In Becoming a Man in 127 EASY Steps, Scott Turner Schofield takes his audience through what he describes as a ‘choose-your-own-adventure romp through gender identity.’
The acclaimed writer, performer and speaker divulges the details of his life as a growing transgender individual in a series of segments of the audience’s choosing.
Equipped with a decoder ring, the audience calls out numbers that correspond with one of the 127 vignettes pre-prepared by Schofield to perform.
‘I don’t even know what the show is going to be about yet, and we create it together, and we build a fort – it’s a lot of fun,’ Schofield said.
Energetic and down-to-earth, Schofield, 28, will share personal life stories with his audience, ranging from when he attended tap dance classes at 4-years-old, how he learned to chug a beer for the first time, skinny-dipping after getting drunk and even the moment he came out to his parents. You can also expect to see Schofield in the nude.
‘He amazes me with how much energy and optimism he has,’ said Sixto Wagan, co-executive director and performing arts curator for DiverseWorks. ‘It’s just really great to be around somebody who is so clear about who he is and what he’s gone through in order to be there.’
The show succeeds with its universality on the subject of identity, or rather, how people need not obsess over it.
This show is accessible to frat boys and sorority girls, and it works for gay kids, trans-people and grandmas, Schofield said.
‘I mean, all kinds of people come to this show, and they all walk away going, ‘Wow, I know something more about myself now and had a really fun time with that guy,” he said.
In order to understand what ‘being transgender’ means, an understanding of the differences between sex and gender must be discerned.
The American Psychological Association (APA) says that sex refers to the biological status of male or female, which includes physical attributes such as sex chromosomes and hormones, internal reproductive structures and external genitalia.
Gender is a term often used when referring to ways that people act, interact, or feel about themselves, according to the APA.
According to the APA’s Web site, ‘Transgender is an umbrella term,used to describe people whose gender identity (sense of themselves as male or female) or gender expression differs from that usually associated with their birth sex.’
Though the transgender community still suffers from discrimination, Schofield’s show is not about pushing an agenda or a call to arms for activism.
‘I bet there are going to be students reading this, who are like, ‘I’m not trans. Why should I care about this?” Schofield said.
The point is that each of us has an idea of identity, as a man or a woman, and his show will help people to understand themselves in a funny way, that is not threatening, and has no political agenda other than to make you laugh, think and have a great time, he said.
In his interview with Blase DiStefano of OutSmart Magazine, Schofield said that he sees this performance as a way of staying true to human experience.
‘ ‘You’re a different person every day,’ Schofield said. ‘You tell a different story about yourself depending on how you feel that day or depending on what questions people ask you.’
Commissioned by DiverseWorks with The Pat Graney Company, 7 Stages and National Performance Network, Schofield’s show took 18 months of preparation before its premiere.
The one-hour, 15-minute performance was difficult to fit into a structure that would best present his stories.
‘ ‘I didn’t have a real metaphor for this show, and I was realizing that as with everything in life there aren’t any simple ways to talk about things like who you are,’ Schofield said.’ ‘So I decided to make it funny and random ‘hellip; and people love it.’ You just don’t know what you’re going to get, if I can be Forrest Gump about it.’
He has produced two other shows that deal with gender identity and his process, as well as his most recent book, Two Truths and a Lie, which is up for two Lambda Literary Awards and was added to The Rainbow List for suggested GLBT books.
Schofield said jokingly that he can only imagine in a few years’ time that his show will evolve with him, resulting in a continuation: Becoming a Man in ‘197’ EASY Steps.
‘I challenge anybody who thinks that this show won’t be for them to come check it out, because they will,’ Schofield said.
Schofield will perform at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, in the DiverseWorks Theater. Tickets are $15 for general admission, $10 for members and $8 for students and seniors.
