Artist Profile by Nicole Serra

Gay Slave Handbook? Yeah, I know what you're thinking. The title alone haunts ya, doesn't it? I felt the same thing when I picked up the script for the first time. The subject matter was graphic and the characters shameless- as an actor I was thinking, "Can I actually do something so provocative? What will my mother think?"

Yet as we began our first read-through, I soon realized that these were anything but one-dimensional characters stuck in situations purely for shock value. Giulia, Sebastian, and Jimmy became living, breathing beings struggling with the bad decisions they had made in the past while trying to salvage their situations in the present. They were looking for redemption. I like to say that they were dysfunctional with only the most sincere intentions.

The character of Giulia actually jumped off the page for me. She was a role I had always wanted to play: outrageous, ridiculously funny, fiercely loyal, uninhibited, full of contradictions, out of her mind. What's not to love? I realized that it wasn't my responsibility to judge this trio of seemingly doomed characters, but to understand why they reacted the way they did and to establish the connection that kept them together.

Benjamin Farber (Sebastian), John Crotty (Jimmy), and I had the opportunity to co-direct as well as act. Although that would definitely not have worked with every script, it added a whole other dynamic to our rehearsal process. We had no costumes, no elaborate set pieces (except all the the whips and chains- just kidding!), so all of the focus lied on our work as actors- my favorite type of challenge!

Most importantly, as the playwright, Blake gave us free reign to explore the script in absolutely every direction and to tailor it towards our vision. John and I had performed together on this show once before, so we found it especially exciting to work with no restrictions and expand every angle of our characters without any inhibitions. With the added energy of our new cast member Ben, rehearsals really began to feel like a playground and we evolved together as an ensemble. We knew the only downside to this freedom was that if we flopped, we had no one to blame it on!

Fortunately, Gay Slave Handbook became something we were really proud of and had a blast performing every night. When I think of Giulia to this day, I still think of her as a close, personal friend of mine. I guess that is why I smile whenever I think about the show- I felt like I shared a part of my life with these characters. Also, I have to admit, the title is still pretty funny to say out loud.