In his talk “Theatre of Be Longing,” the playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney noted: “I’ve been chasing belonging, knowing this: I cannot create it. I must return to it by first returning to my community.”
If Atlanta is the Brigadoon of Black Queer Folk, Washington, DC, is our Mecca. The first Black Gay Pride Celebration in the country was held here on Banneker Field across from Howard University. So it’s fitting that We Are Gathered, McCraney’s new play, is opening in Washington, DC, at Arena Stage on May 16.
Based on what we saw at a recent open rehearsal, the play looks to invite its audience to consider the power and possibility of publicly committing oneself to another person and to one’s community. The play also suggests that its audience not only consider the possibility that each individual in the audience is worthy of making that choice to commit but also consider “Why would you want to?” And “Are you allowed to?”
In the brief Q&A session that followed the run-through of two scenes from the play, McCraney noted: “Marriage is not a necessity. It is not air. But to be in service to a relationship for the rest of your life is a calling.”
Two of the cast members are also clergy, and at every performance, audience members who decide to do so will have the opportunity to make that commitment: by proposing to their beloved, affirming their vows, or in fact being legally married in front of an audience of witnesses. In the culture in which I was raised, such a public invitation to engage in a ritual of connection would be termed “calling the children home.” This ritual gives the title of the piece — We Are Gathered — a weight that is worth meditating over conscientiously or, for those who practice it, prayerfully.
During the open rehearsal, McCraney referenced Essex Hemphill,* whose poem “Commitments” describes the breach that is being mended in this play:
I will always be there.
When the silence is exhumed.
When the photographs are examined
I will be pictured smiling
among the siblings, parents,
nieces and nephews.In the background of the photographs
the hazy smoke of barbecue,
a checkered red and white tablecloth
laden with blackened chicken,
glistening ribs, paper plates,
bottles of beer and pop.In the photos
the smallest children
are held by their parents.
My arms are empty, or around
the shoulders of unsuspecting aunts
expecting to throw rice at me someday.Or picture tinsel, candles,
ornamented, imitation trees,
or another table, this one
set for Thanksgiving,
a turkey steaming the lens.My arms are empty
in those photos, too,
so empty they would break
around a lover.I am always there
for critical emergencies,
graduations,
the middle of the night.I am the invisible son.
In the family photos
nothing appears out of character.
I smile as I serve my duty.
It’s not surprising, then, that We Are Gathered — at least the part we were able to see — feels like a feast, an affirmation, a revival, and a welcoming home of prodigal sons and daughters. The focus here is on LGBTQ+ folk and their relationships with their families — of origin or chosen — and their communities. This is a queer love story.
McCraney, director Kent Gash, and the entire cast and crew are working to create a space that is safe. As Gash describes it, they are hoping to create a space that encourages the audience to go on a journey of “endless possibility but that also feels like we have our seatbelts on for the ride.”
The two main characters — Free and W. Tre — who are going to be married to each other, met while looking for someone to have sex with in a wooded public place: a park (aka cruising). The words that describe W. Tre’s journey through understanding and acceptance of his value are poetic and scriptural. The journey into the forest by which one is changed has mythological resonance.
To prepare yourself for We Are Gathered, I suggest you take a moment to listen to what McCraney had to say in his talk on “Theatre of Be Longing” from which this quote is taken:
Remember when the Vice President was heckled at a Broadway show? Remember how the President said that the theater was supposed to be a safe space. He was right. President Trump signaled that he and his cohorts belong to a theater that is safe for them always. That is the theater that they belong to. The theater I belong to isn’t safe from ideas, though. I want to walk home shaking.
We Are Gathered plays May 16 to June 15, 2025, in the Fichandler Stage at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater, 1101 6th St SW, Washington, DC. Tickets start at $59 and are available online (starting at $59) or visit TodayTix. Tickets may also be purchased through the Sales Office by phone at 202-488-3300, Tuesday-Sunday, 12-8 p.m., or in person at 1101 Sixth Street, SW, D.C., Tuesday-Sunday, 2 hours prior to a performance. Groups of 10+ may purchase tickets by phone at 202-488-4380.
Arena Stage’s many savings programs include “pay your age” tickets for those aged 35 and under; military, first responder, and educator discounts; student discounts; and “Southwest Nights” for those living and working in the District’s Southwest neighborhood. To learn more, visit arenastage.org/savings-programs.
* A special exhibition at the Phillips Collection, running concurrently with We Are Gathered, showcases Essex Hemphill’s influence on visual artists and performers. There is a performance element on June 14.
SEE ALSO:
Arena Stage announces full cast and creative team for ‘We Are Gathered’ (news story, April 9, 2025)
Kyle Beltran and Nic Ashe to headline Oscar winner Tarell Alvin McCraney’s ‘We Are Gathered’ (news story, February 25, 2025)
