Ambiguously Gay Duo

Thanks to a
post-holiday slump amplified by our nation’s current
economic crisis, more than a dozen Broadway shows
closed in January, darkening almost half the marquees
on the Great White Way. Like Hairspray, long-running,
big-budget, full-chorus spectaculars such as
Grease, Gypsy, Young
Frankenstein, Spamalot, and Spring
Awakening proved that you could, in fact, stop the
beat. But now, opening February 19 at the intimate Booth
Theatre, the first official new Broadway musical of 2009
will be -- wait for it -- The Story of My Life,
a 90-minute, single-set, two-person show about
friendship, by life partners Neil Bartram and Brian
Hill. So can a pair of relatively unknown, 40-something
gay guys from Toronto revive American theater?
They’re sure as heck going to try.

The Story of My Life, which was presented last year
by Connecticut’s Goodspeed Musicals, is the
story of a successful writer who returns to his
hometown to deliver the eulogy for his best friend of 30
years. In examining their colorful history and eventual
estrangement, the perpetual power of friendship is
exalted.

“It’s not a big show with a big cast and lots
of flashy sets,” says Bartram, who composed the
music and lyrics, “but it’s a story that
anyone can connect with. It’s accessible,
genuine, and heartfelt.”

While it may
celebrate BFFs, the show is no Sisterhood of the
Traveling Pants 3. Directed by Richard Maltby,
Jr. (a Tony-winner for Ain’t
Misbehavin’ and Fosse), The Story of My
Life stars Broadway favorite Will Chase
(Rent, Aida, The Full Monty) and
out Tony-nominee Malcolm Gets (Adam &
Steve, Caroline in the City, and
the upcoming Grey Gardens) as the besties in
question.

“There are
more barriers and complications between male friends than
there are between female friends, which added more conflict
to the story,” says bookwriter Hill.
“Men tend to be more guarded with their
feelings.”