Rising Action Theatre: Two boys in a Bed on a Cold Winter's Night (reviews)

Rising Action Theatre opened its production of Two Boys in Bed on a Cold Winter's Night on May 13, 2011.

The steamy, sexy and sultry Two Boys in Bed on a Cold Winter's Night comes to Rising Action Theatre in an all new production. James Edwin Parker's play has been critically acclaimed in the US and on the International stage. Set in New York City in 1987, this play explores the sexual etiquette of one-night stands and is peppered with poignant, humorous and sly observations as its two boys yearn for a carefree time of days gone by.  The audience is a veritable fly on the wall as the couple slowly exposes secrets and yearning during their one night fling.

Jerry Jensen directed a cast that featured Angel Perez and Nigel Revenge.

J.W. Arnold reviewed for South Florida Gay News:

Perez is perfectly cast as the strong and stoic Peter, delivering one of his best performances to date. Perez’s Peter is confident and sexy, but at his best near the end of the play when he must drop this façade after the revelation he is cheating on a boyfriend hospitalized presumably with AIDS.

...Revenge presents a complex Daryl, a privileged pretty boy who is pushing 40 and knows it.  He has had little success with relationships and remains nostalgic about his boyhood love, but is at the same time calculating and bitter, offering an opportunity for Revenge to showcase a wide range of emotions, despite a clunky Northeastern accent that occasionally gets in the way.

Each character is individually delivered thanks to strong direction from Jerry Jensen, it’s the chemistry between the two that ultimately makes the production successful. We’ve come to expect a little gratuitous frontal male nudity from Rising Action, but here it’s integral to the story as the two alternately tease and torment each other through the night, rolling around in the bed and storming across the apartment. And, let’s be honest, solid performances aside, both actors are very easy on the eyes, too.

Two Boys in Bed on a Cold Winter's Night plays at Rising Action Theatre through June 12, 2011 has been extended through June 26 July 17.