On June 7, 2025, I had the great good fortune to direct a staged reading of one of Charles Ludlam’s experimental 1960s queer collage pieces, The Grand Tarot, at the legendary Judson Church on the edge of Manhattan’s Washington Square Park. This was the first time Ludlam’s play had been performed in NYC since before the playwright’s death in 1987. What made the event even more memorable was that it was also a fundraiser for the Everett Quinton Award, which is part of the New York Independent Theater Awards, as well as a memorial for Richard Curry, one of the founding members of Ludlam’s Ridiculous Theatrical Company, who had passed away a few weeks prior.

Judson Church Senior Minister Reverend Micah Busey gave a moving benediction in honor of Richard, and we were blessed to have as members of the cast actors from every era of the Ridiculous, including one of the few remaining founding members, Black-Eyed Susan. It was a beautiful coming together of the Downtown LGBTQ+ community in a moment when a lot of folks are feeling stressed and anxious. Ludlams’s story of the Fool’s journey to spiritual enlightenment truly resonated in this elegant space with its long history of support for social justice.