For [artistic director Mark] Finley, who has lived “on either side of 10th Avenue” since he moved to the neighborhood in 1994, his association with TOSOS began upon meeting Doric in 1999. “We hung out at the Film Center Cafe until about four in the morning, talking about acting and playwriting and the union and all of this stuff,” said Mark.

“And the next day he called me up and said, ‘I want you to be my director.’ I was like, ‘Would you like to see some of my work?’ and he said, ‘No, no, I don’t need to — you’re doing theater for the right reasons. Lanford Wilson had Marshall Mason. I want you to be my Marshall Mason.’” The offer was “A little intimidating, but that’s our Doric,” laughed Mark. “A little while later, he and Barry Childs and I decided to reboot the original TOSOS company, and here we are — 22 years later!” 

our free reading series

Play readings throughout the year
bring our community together.

FEBRUARY 2025

IN EARNEST

by Dante Zagros Gonzalez

Directed by Sirena Lopez and Jacob Bergman

A serious sex comedy for trivial queers dedicated to Oscar Wilde, our Queen queen, featuring transgenderism, disguise, and sex.

SUN 2 FEB @ 2:30 PM
at The Flea Theatre
20 Thomas Street, NYC

All readings for the Doric Wilson Playwrights Project are free to the public.

FREE!

BARRY BOEHM’s
OUR HOUSE

Opening 2026

OUR HOUSE is about family. In Iowa, the year before marriage equality is recognized by the Supreme Court, Andy, an ACT-Up NY veteran and his husband are to host the wedding of their nephew Brendan to Eugene, who is African-American. The happy occasion is threatened when the young couple venture out into the neighborhood and a confrontation with locals force this modern family to face some hard facts about what it takes to make everyone feel safe in “our house.” It's a hopeful comedy packed with honest truths, similar in style to HBO’s “Somebody Somewhere.”

OCTOBER 2024

DORIC WILSON PLAYWRIGHTS PROJECT
presents a reading of

QUEER SPOOKY SHORTS ‘24

Phase by Scott Mullen
Bowie by Barry Boehm
Southies by Jeffrey James Keyes
Practice by Caitland Winsett
Land of 1000 Smiles by Joe Moe

DIRECTORS
Andrew Coopman
Cat Gillespie
Rula A. Muñoz

OCTOBER 2024

The Other Side of Silence (TOSOS)
presents a mini-tour of

DORIC WILSON’S STREET THEATER

DIRECTORS
Mark Finley & Barry Childs

Photos by Mikiodo

THE OTHER SIDE OF SILENCE IS…FIFTY!

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

WHAT A NIGHT!!!

We brought our TOSOS community together to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the company’s founding in 1974.

We were honored to receive three proclamations from the offices of NYS Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, NYS Assembly Member Tony Simone and NYC Council Member Erik Bottcher!

We were graced with the presence of Chanel Lopez, Deputy Director of LGBTQ+ Affairs in the Office of Governor Kathy Hochul and NYS Assembly Member Landon Dais!

We bestowed the TOSOS Honors Award on our longtime artistic director Mark Finley and managing director Barry Childs, who revived TOSOS in 2002 with the sole surviving original founder, playwright Doric Wilson. They’ve kept the company going for the last 22 years!

We had a blast coming together to salute the company’s place in LGBTQIA+ history, theatre history, New York City history — and all the intersections therein!

Please help us keep the fire burning!
Donate directly to TOSOS!

AUGUST 2024

CHESLEY/CHAMBERS PLAYWRIGHTS PROJECT
presents a reading of

BURNING LEAVES

by TOM ROWAN

Directed by GRAYDON GUND

In need of a fresh start, Matt Leland, a young actor on the run from New York, takes a job teaching at a small high school in the Midwest—where he finds himself feeling unprepared for the unexpected challenges that await. His most talented student is Jesse Wade, a troubled sixteen-year-old on the verge of coming out. Isolated in the small conservative town, Jesse desperately needs a gay role model—and other things Matt may or may not be able to provide. Burning Leaves is a humorous, compassionate play that asks serious questions about education, friendship, and love.

TOSOS CELEBRATES PRIDE

The Other Side of Silence (TOSOS) celebrates writers — the chroniclers of our diverse collective history — and serves as a curator of the LGBTQ+ theatrical timeline by keeping our theatrical heritage alive and in conversation with the playwrights of today.

Through our mainstage productions and our free reading series, our audiences — and especially our LGBTQ+ youth — can hear the voices of both the past and the present to learn how far we’ve come (or not) as a community. They are given the opportunity to understand the generations who came before us, what life was like for them, and how they fought for the rights and freedoms we have today. At the same time, we give the stage to the writers of the present day who help us understand the continued struggles and incremental triumphs of our community and give us perspective on our collective progress.

Community is big for us. With great joy and good humor, we bring our TOSOS family together at social events like our free play readings and holiday parties. We discuss and debate the art we showcase — to learn from each other and build respect and understanding — and have lots of laughs!

At TOSOS, we embrace our differences. As an LGBTQ+ theater company, we value the diversity of artistic, cultural and life perspectives our artists bring to our stages. As storytellers, we champion the voices that aren’t being heard. As people, we strive toward equality, toward a world where everyone is welcome to the party. Join us!