With See You Next Tuesday, Joe Johnson mixes comedy with heft

Joe Johnson sits on the couch in the lobby of the L Train Theatre Lounge, his legs crossed and his arm stretched across the back cushions. He adjusts his unbuttoned black blazer and takes a sip of his wine.

â┚¬Å”You have your questions all ready?â┚¬Â he asks.

He's a director even when he's not directing.

It's in his blood. And he's ready to show that to the world once again when his newest original play See You Next Tuesday premieres at the L Train Theatre Lounge in October.

â┚¬Å”It was originally going to be titled Frenemies,â┚¬Â says Johnson. â┚¬Å”But then they came out with the Disney show of the same name, so I decided to change it to See You Next Tuesday. It works better though. And it has a double meaning, some people know what it means, and others don't. When you see the play, you'll understand.â┚¬Â

The play is a backstage comedy, showing the audience what happens behind the scenes of theater life. It tells the story of two former television show cast-mates, Jack and Lorraine. At the height of their success, Lorraine outed Jack and subsequently ruined his career.
Now, decades later, she has reentered his life in need of a favor, but Jack may not be ready to forgive and forget.

â┚¬Å”Originally I had thought, â┚¬ËœOk, this one isn't going to be a gay-themed play',â┚¬Â says Johnson. â┚¬Å”But when I started thinking about the two main characters I kept thinking, â┚¬ËœWhat is the conflict? Why would he hate her so much?' And outing him and ruining his career seemed to be the most severe thing, so that started to color in the spaces. So it isn't a â┚¬Ëœgay play' per se, but it does have strong gay themes within it.â┚¬Â

Johnson has not only starred in Hollywood film and theater productions, he has written, directed, and starred in a slew of his own original plays including Cellmate Confessions and Greencard Wedding Bridesmaid. In this time, he has learned that audiences respond to comedy, but they also want to experience a well-rounded piece of work.

â┚¬Å”This one gets a little heavy,â┚¬Â says Johnson. â┚¬Å”But the audience not only wants to laugh, they want to see some conflict and resolution.â┚¬Â

Johnson credits some of the heft to the storyline of his main character being outed in a time when it was still considered taboo.

â┚¬Å”Back in the day, it was a big deal, you just could not be gay,â┚¬Â says Johnson. â┚¬Å”I was blackballed for it in my career. I remember distinctly when I went to this one commercial agency, and one of the agents there knew I was gay, and they ended up saying â┚¬ËœNo, don't take him.'â┚¬Â

But Johnson says he can see an evolution in not only the entertainment world, but in society as a whole.

â┚¬Å”I mean, did you see the line-up for this TV season?â┚¬Â he says. â┚¬Å”There are three shows with gay guys as the stars!â┚¬Â

And while he is welcoming of this progress, he still sees certain inconsistencies.

â┚¬Å”It's a bit hypocritical,â┚¬Â he says. â┚¬Å”It's ok to watch them on TV and laugh, but we still can't get gay marriage laws passed.â┚¬Â
However Johnson is comfortable with his current career and his label as a â┚¬Å”gay playwrightâ┚¬Â.

â┚¬Å”It is what it is,â┚¬Â he says. â┚¬Å”Writers write what they know. Things come out from my own life when I'm writing.â┚¬Â

And as Johnson gears up to start the three-week run of See You Next Tuesday, he already has ideas for future plays.

â┚¬Å”I'm kind of on a roll,â┚¬Â he says. â┚¬Å”I have a lot of ideas. I'm just trying to take it as it comes.â┚¬Â

See You Next Tuesday runs through Oct. 21, with shows Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and one matinee only on Oct. 21 at 3 p.m. Seating is extremely limited and reservations are highly recommended.

The L Train Theatre Lounge is located at 900 Central Avenue and will open at 6 p.m. on performance dates. Tickets are $ 20. For reservations, call 727-823-2685.