20 YEARS OF ‘FACING EAST’

BY JERRY RAPIER

FACING EAST received its world premiere at Plan-B Theatre (Salt Lake City, November 2006 & April 2007; off-Broadway at Atlantic Stage 2 in New York, May-June 2007; and at Theatre Rhinoceros in San Francisco, August 2007). Directed by Jerry Rapier, it featured Charles Lynn Frost as Alex, Jayne Luke as Ruth, and Jay Perry as Marcus. The production was designed by Cheryl Ann Cluff (sound), Greg Ragland (graphics), Jerry Rapier (costumes), Randy Rasmussen (scenic), Victor Saldivar (wigs), and Cory Thorell (lighting), with Ross Thorell as crew Jennifer Freed as stage manager. It's since been produced all over the country and in Mexico. Now we're bringing it home.

HOW FACING EAST CAME TO BE

Some theatre is good drama.
Some drama is good theatre.
FACING EAST is both."
- Martin Denton, nytheatre.com

In FACING EAST, Ruth and Alex McCormick are the perfect Mormon couple. Or they were. Reeling from their son Andrew's suicide, they unexpectedly encounter his partner Marcus for the first time, soon realizing that getting to know him is the only way they'll ever truly know their son.

Our world premiere of this unforgettable journey of faith and family was named the Best Production of 2006 by City Weekly and Deseret News and featured arguably career-defining performances from Charles Lynn Frost, Jayne Luke, and Jay Perry. FACING EAST has since been produced by 18 other theatre companies and marriage equality has become the law of the land.

In "The Life of Reason," Spanish philosopher George Santayana wrote, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." And we are in the midst of that repetition. In just the first three months of 2026, 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in 43 state legislatures nationwide, an attempt to strip away the civil protections that accompany marriage equality, and even marriage equality itself. Most have been defeated, but the act of bringing them forward does its own damage. Truth be told, 2026 feels an awful lot like 2006. Our response is to reactivate the ferocity, compassion, love, honesty, and grace of FACING EAST from our own history.

SACRED SPACE

In August of 2005, playwright Carol Lynn Pearson invited 10 people, including me and philanthropist Bruce Bastian, to a private reading of the very first, very raw draft of her new play, FACING EAST.

She sat in the middle of a friend's living room and read all three roles.

When it was over, we collectively couldn't breathe.
No one wanted to disturb the silence.
It was sacred.

Once I was able to catch my breath, I knew that Plan-B had to produce the play. So Carol Lynn and I worked on the script over the next few months. The next step was a reading as part of Utah Pride Center's Winter Pride in January of 2006. The moment that reading began, I knew that the breathless, sacred silence we had experienced the previous August wasn't a fluke: we were creating the rare piece of truly transformational theatre.

 

By 2006, Bruce's foundation had been supporting Plan-B for five years. This project was different. He personally, fully funded the world premiere of FACING EAST that November. And that was just the beginning. Carol Lynn and I were sitting next to each other during the final preview. Bruce was sitting directly behind us. When the performance ended, he leaned forward between us and said, 'What’s next?' For a moment, we weren't sure what he meant: next was opening the show! But he was a step ahead of us both. Carol Lynn and I looked at each other and then I said, “We should take it to New York.” And he said, “Okay.” And Carol Lynn said, “And San Francisco too.” And Bruce said, “Okay.”

Before FACING EAST officially opened we were blessed to know that it was the first leg of a coast-to-coast adventure. What we didn't know was how life-changing that adventure would be. We became the first - and remain the only - Utah theatre company to transfer an intact production off-Broadway. That year we spent with FACING EAST was, and remains, the stuff of dreams.

Carol Lynn recalled to The Salt Lake Tribune, "I met Bruce in 1986 when my book GOODBYE, I LOVE YOU (the story of my life with my gay husband and his death from AIDS) was published [by Random House]. This tall, sad-looking man hesitantly approached me after a book signing at Deseret Book in Orem, and asked if he could fly to California (where I had relocated) to visit with me. He was one of the large number of desperate gay men who agonized over their dilemma as a Mormon man with a wife and children in a church they knew condemned them. Many saw in me and my story something unheard of. Embrace a gay person? Tell them they’re not evil? Radical thought! This particular man happened to be highly influential and wealthy. He was an inventor and co-founder of WordPerfect. He flew in. He brought me a computer! We talked and talked, and he has told me many times since those conversations changed his life. Bruce used his money to bless causes and individuals that aligned with his vision. As Bruce and I sat together on the front row of Plan-B Theatre at opening night of FACING EAST, he whispered to me, 'This is the best money I have ever spent.'"

Attending FACING EAST was like attending church. Not counting-minutes-until-I-can-get-out-of-these-clothes church, but I-don't-want-to-disturb-this-unexpected-catharsis church. Families would gather in the lobby after the show and hold each other, even pray together, even in New York and San Francisco, where the show was even better received than in Salt Lake City.

FACING EAST TODAY

Fast forward to 2026, and the 20th anniversary revival of FACING EAST opens our 2026/27 Season - our 36th! - that is comprised of four plays by female Utah playwrights. FACING EAST is as prescient now as it was 20 years ago, maybe even more so. It remains a template for listening and leading with love at a time when both are at risk. It challenges presuppositions of what mothers and fathers are capable of. And it personifies Carol Lynn's impact on LDS culture as a touchstone (and sometimes lifeline) for those who are gay and LDS and their families. Managing Director Cheryl Ann Cluff sums it up best: "FACING EAST is vital because it examines the issues surrounding religion and sexuality in a very honest, respectful way."

BRUCE BASTIAN & CHARLES LYNN FROST

This 20th anniversary production is dedicated to the memories of Bruce Bastian (who passed away in 2024) and Charles Lynn Frost (the original Alex, who passed away in 2021). And serendipitously, actor Jay Perry, the original Marcus, now plays Alex.

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FACING EAST PRODUCTION HISTORY

• Plan-B Theatre, Salt Lake City, UT, October/November 2026

• Lakeside Little Theatre, San Antonio, Tlayacapan, Mexico, June 2024 & January 2025

• Old Grantsville Church Foundation, Grantsville, UT, June 2024

• Breaking Boundaries Productions, Idaho Falls, ID, December 2022

• All Under One Roof, Pocatello, ID, June 2017

• Utah/Idaho Performing Arts Company, Draper, UT, November 2016

• Trinity Performing Artist Series, Toledo, OH, October 2012

• Actors Repertory Theatre of Idaho, Idaho Falls, ID, December 2011

• The Workshop Theater, Richmond, VA, February 2011

• Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, June/July 2010

• Triangle Players Acts of Faith Festival, Richmond, VA, February/March 2010

• International City Theatre, Long Beach, CA, June/July 2009

• Diversionary Theatre, San Diego, CA, March/April 2009

• Southern Utah University Arts Administration Program, Cedar City, UT, November 2008

• Stillspeaking Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, July/August 2008

• Buffalo United Artists,Buffalo, NY, April 2008

• Philadelphia Gay & Lesbian Theatre Festival, Philadelphia, PA, June 2008

• Spotlighters Theatre, Baltimore, MD, June 2008

• The Space Between Theatre, St. George, UT, June 2008

• Plan-B Theatre @ Theatre Rhinoceros, San Francisco, CA, August 2007

• Plan-B Theatre @ Atlantic Stage 2, off-Broadway, New York, NY, May/June 2007

• Plan-B Theatre, Salt Lake City, UT, November 2006 & April/May 2007

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TICKETS

the 20th anniversary revival of FACING EAST by Carol Lynn Pearson runs October 22-November 8 in the Studio Theatre at The Rose. Please click here for details and tickets!