Grassroots ‘queer-normative’ theater reopens in Homestead

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In the great tradition of putting on a show in a barn, the resourceful folks at The Glitterbox Theater have made a new home in an old Homestead auto garage.

The space formally opened with a ribbon cutting and other festivities this past Saturday. And yes, with glitter, too — as well as lots of purple, from the sequined curtains to the decorative light fixtures and the plush cloth beneath the PA mixing board.

It was a big day for the volunteer-run grassroots venue dedicated to “affordability, diversity and queer normativity” and known for its signature Ten Minute Play Festival.

“It’s really great to be somewhere that’s sparkly and purple — as a sparkly purple person myself,” said Olivia Devorah Tucker, a writer and performer who promptly added, “We celebrate butches, too.”

In 2020, the group lost its lease in the first and only permanent home for its wacky, campy shows, in North Oakland’s Blumcraft Building, on Melwood Avenue.

The garage on Homestead’s main street, West 8th Avenue, is owned by Glitterbox co-founder Christopher St. Pierre, who bought it before the pandemic. It served as a makeshift venue for productions like the holiday-themed, for-mature-audiences “The Mistle Hoes.”

But after audiences assumed the building was the “new Glitterbox,” organizers embarked on a $40,000 fundraising campaign that along with considerable volunteer labor produced a new roof, ADA compliance, and bathrooms that might comfortably serve more than a mechanic or two.

Now the clean, high-ceilinged, 150-capacity space is set to host events including the latest Ten Minute Play fest, this Sat., Sept. 14. Also this month is the monthly queer open-stage comedy night Rhinestone Microphone (Sept. 27). Other upcoming highlights include the all-styles singing contest Glee-ter-box (Oct. 10); the Halloween dance and costume party The Mon Monster Mash (Oct. 19); and the “Keanu Reeves character and look-alike costume and dance party” Night of a Thousand Keanus (Nov. 2).

Upcoming rental events by outside entities include Pittsburgh Sound + Image’s Oct. 4 screening of Sergei Eisenstein’s silent Soviet-cinema classic “Strike.”

Glitterbox, founded in 2016, still revolves notably around the talents and enthusiasm of Teresa Martuccio, a professional film-and-TV set dresser known as “Tree.” A few years earlier, Martuccio had created the Ten Minute Play fest, which took place in various venues. She co-founded Glitterbox to give the festival a permanent address, and it grew from there.

Between its own productions and rentals — several shows a week and sometimes two a day — Glitterbox became a go-to indie space, in particular for anything a little out of the ordinary.

One recent program (the new space soft-opened in July) was the Presidential Drag Show, sporting two Lincolns and two George W. Bushes. Another was the variety showcase “Sexy Spaghetti.”

“Who doesn’t want to see a combination of sexy spaghetti?” said Martuccio.

One skit featured two giant mock-ups of teeth eating a noodle from either end, a la “Lady and the Tramp.”

“Lots of puppets occur here,” noted Caily Grube, the group's treasurer.

Olivia Devorah Tucker, a theater kid in high school, was drawn to Glitterbox by Martuccio’s musical “Sea Turtles in Space.”

It was “so ethereal, and the costumes were delightful,” said Tucker.

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Writer and performer Tenley Schmida was hooked by Martuccio’s Amelia Earhart musical “Amelia.”

“I was like, ‘I will be her friend,’” said Schmida, who credits the Glitterbox staging of “The Matrix” with making her realize “anyone can write a play. … It blew my mind.”

“I am just a bombastic person who cannot be contained, and Tree is my outlet for that,” Schmida adds.

One year, at its peak, Glitterbox hosted 388 events, Martuccio said. Due to the pandemic, it has scaled back and will try to rebuild capacity sustainably, she said. Funding comes from donations, rentals and memberships. (The latter cost $150 and provide unlimited access to the theater and other resources — though you needn’t be a member to participate.)

Meanwhile, playwrights might want to check out the inaugural “Christopher Guest Short Play Series,” which seeks submissions of original short plays featuring characters from Guest’s films as writer, performer or director, including “This Is Spinal Tap,” “Waiting for Guffman” and “Best in Show.” Two plays will be chosen for staging the second weekend in February. Submissions are open through this year.