Playwright Jon Richardson
Photos courtesy of Provincetown Theater
The Jack of Hearts Club Makes its World Premiere at the Provincetown Theater
by Steve Desroches
When Jon Richardson looks out over the crowds that come to see him sing and play piano at the Crown & Anchor he sees a sea of smiles. And it doesn’t take long before the crowd of largely gay men begins to sing along. The scene of a piano man in a gay bar in Provincetown leading a crowd in song is an image lodged deeply in the town’s history going way back before Stonewall. Originally from Minnesota, Richardson has lived in Provincetown for almost a decade now, a place that enchanted him upon arrival. Having studied history while an undergraduate at Iowa’s Grinnell College, he’s remained a student of the past. As such, he did a deep dive into Provincetown history, and more specifically, its long and important role in LGBTQ culture. And when it comes to the historical record of the LGBTQ experience in America there are increasingly more source materials online as collections are digitized and those long hidden are finding institutions interested in making them widely available. Taking advantage of this, Richardson found two things: one is that the written record of the gay community in Provincetown dates back to the 1930s and two, when it comes to photographs of LGBTQ people while in Provincetown there’s something unique. Often, everyone is smiling. Other gay archives show mug shots, images of people trying to hide their faces or stoic images with nothing overtly intimate or celebratory. But the images from Provincetown’s past show real happiness and freedom. That gave Richardson the idea to write a new musical, The Jack of Hearts Club, all about that beautiful ache that is the magical feeling so many LGBTQ people only feel in Provincetown.
“I wanted to write a story that wasn’t based in gay trauma, but joy, while maintaining historical accuracy,” says Richardson. “It’s a 90-minute window of time, set at 11:30 on a Saturday night on the last day of summer. It would be a moment that no one would be focused on the real world.”
Set in a gay bar owned by the community lesbian matriarch Dorothy on Saturday, August 31, 1963, The Jack of Hearts Club follows the lives of 10 LGBTQ people in Provincetown as they prepare for the annual So Long, Summer variety show marking the end of the season. Back then, Provincetown’s tourism trade ended sharply after Labor Day, which meant many would be leaving until the next summer while others hunkered down for the off-season, making it a bittersweet time as LGBTQ folks would have to leave the comfort and shelter of Provincetown to go back out into a hostile America. But Richardson says he felt a responsibility to those smiling in the historic photos he discovered and as such The Jack of Hearts Club isn’t a story about victimhood or oppression, but of a community defining itself and celebrating being gay.
Choosing to set the play in the early 1960s was a specific choice as a reminder that gay life and culture existed prior to Stonewall, to tap into the optimism of the times before the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and also so modern audiences wouldn’t compare the Provincetown depicted to the town today. Modeled after real gay bars from Provincetown’s past like Weathering Heights and The Ace of Spades, the fictitious Jack of Hearts Club is used to show that even in Provincetown the freedom to be oneself was relegated to gay bars that most often went ignored by local authorities giving a feeling of home rather than just a place to grab a drink. All the character are at some sort of a crossroads, some being drawn to stay in Provincetown with others finding it might be time to leave and explore the world beyond. And that is a tale as old as time on the Cape tip.
“We realized that this is not a period piece,” says Richardson. “It’s informed by the times, but it’s about family.”
Developed in part with the Provincetown Theater, The Jack of Hearts Club is directed by Leda Hoffmann and features Mary Callanan, James Jackson Jr., Angelo McDonough, Marissa Miller, Brittany Rolfs, João Santos, Chris Spaulding, Mike Sullivan, Peter Toto, as well as Richardson, the anticipation for this play is palpable across town. There have been several concert performances and readings in Provincetown and New York City and Richardson includes the song “Where I Belong,” a stand out number from the musical, as part of his set at the Crown & Anchor for years, helping to build momentum for this love letter to Provincetown. And the Provincetown captured in The Jack of Heart Club isn’t that of the quick getaway or even staying for a whole summer, but rather the real place, the real Provincetown that is home to so many over time creating such a wonderful community.
“It is a dream come true to give something back to this town that’s given me so much,” says Richardson. “It’s very much grounded in a part of the town that is my home. Provincetown is my home. I think when this is all over, I’ll want to write another one.”
The Jack of Hearts Club is at the Provincetown Theater, 238 Bradford St., Thursday through Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. October 2 through November 2. Tickets ($55) are available at the box office and online at provincetowntheater.org. For more information call 508.487.7487.
