Tea 'N' Crisp
An Invitation for tea with Quentin Crisp
All images supplied by and reproduced here with Richard's kind permission.
Read an indepth interview with Richard.
Richard Louis James brings Quentin back to live in his play based on Quentin's writings and public appearances, which debuted at the Ashby Theatre, 1901 Ashby Avenue, Berkley, CA.
Tea 'N' Crisp - second run.
Richard performed his play at The San Francisco Playhouse on 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th of February 2008.
Tea 'N' Crisp - third run.
Read for about the third run.
Back by popular demand Richard will be performing his play every Sunday in July and August 2008 at the The San Francisco Playhouse.
Richard is also currently working towards putting his play on at the New York Fringe Festival, the Gay International Fringe Festival in Ireland and the Edinburgh Festival in 2008.
Richard has now produced a promo of his show.
David Alexander Nahmod has writen an excellent piece on Tea 'N' Crisp for the February 2008 edition of the Onbayarea.com Magazine. It's on page thirty five.
coulter7@earthlink.ne
Greetings Mr. James,
Your show Sunday was a delight. I’ve never known much about Mr. Crisp. A few news clips here and there. I feel like I know him much better thanks to your performance. Certainly, I now hold more respect and understanding for him than before your show.
He was, for me, a curiosity. Now he’s a remarkable content. Thank you and congratulations.
Sue
If it's Sunday, it must be Belgium
Today, we headed over to San Francisco, and it was practically a storybook experience: no aggressive panhandlers, and we only witnessed one act of public urination! Yes, Mayor Newsom really is cleaning up the city! Last summer, I was disappointed to have missed (due to our Jamaica trip) the debut run of Richard Louis James' one-man show "Tea 'n Crisp," in which the extremely gifted Bay Area actor portrays the late gay icon Quentin Crisp. Luckily, the show is now running at the SF Playhouse in honor of the centennial of Crisp's birth, and it's well worth checking out, even if you're not a Crisp devotee (as many in the audience obviously were -- the woman next to me was carrying a hardcover copy of Crisp's autobiography, The Naked Civil Servant.) I first heard about Crisp when I was a teenager, and the British pop label Cherry Red Records released An Evening with Quentin Crisp. He was very funny, and a true English eccentric, but for many gays & straights alike, his message of taking pride in being yourself continues to resonate a decade after his passing. To create the show, James has obviously internalized Crisp's writings & performances to the point where he can, in the second act, take questions from the audience -- even on contemporary issues like cell phones, global warming and gay marriage -- and answer them in a way that seems perfectly Crisp-like.
Article in ON magazine by David Alexander Nahmod
Ghost Of Quentin Crisp
Article in The Bay Area Reporter by David Alexander Nahmod
Excellent review in the 16 February 2008 edition of BeyondChron online magazine.
Preview in the San Francisco Chronicle
I had the premier of my show Tea `N Crisp tonight and one of the guests who was involved in a movie Red Ribbons with Quentin told me about your website.
I`m so thrilled to know it exists. I`m so blessed to continue his spirit on stage.
The response was unbelieveable. So many people were touched by his words and I`m proud to say the guest told me it was like watching Quentin`s ghost. I`m not surprised as I asked Quentin before going on to give me support and guidence tonight.
Bless you for this wonderfull site.
22nd June 2007
Read an indepth interview with Richard.
Richard Louis James brings Quentin back to live in his play based on Quentin's writings and public appearances, which debuted at the Ashby Theatre, 1901 Ashby Avenue, Berkley, CA.
Tea 'N' Crisp - second run.
Richard performed his play at The San Francisco Playhouse on 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th of February 2008.
Tea 'N' Crisp - third run.
Read for about the third run.
Back by popular demand Richard will be performing his play every Sunday in July and August 2008 at the The San Francisco Playhouse.
Richard is also currently working towards putting his play on at the New York Fringe Festival, the Gay International Fringe Festival in Ireland and the Edinburgh Festival in 2008.
Richard has now produced a promo of his show.
David Alexander Nahmod has writen an excellent piece on Tea 'N' Crisp for the February 2008 edition of the Onbayarea.com Magazine. It's on page thirty five.
Richard's illustration which he drew for the cover of the program.
Richard on stage as Quentin.
Reviews - February 2008
Ronald E Coultercoulter7@earthlink.ne
Greetings Mr. James,
Your show Sunday was a delight. I’ve never known much about Mr. Crisp. A few news clips here and there. I feel like I know him much better thanks to your performance. Certainly, I now hold more respect and understanding for him than before your show.
He was, for me, a curiosity. Now he’s a remarkable content. Thank you and congratulations.
Sue
If it's Sunday, it must be Belgium
Today, we headed over to San Francisco, and it was practically a storybook experience: no aggressive panhandlers, and we only witnessed one act of public urination! Yes, Mayor Newsom really is cleaning up the city! Last summer, I was disappointed to have missed (due to our Jamaica trip) the debut run of Richard Louis James' one-man show "Tea 'n Crisp," in which the extremely gifted Bay Area actor portrays the late gay icon Quentin Crisp. Luckily, the show is now running at the SF Playhouse in honor of the centennial of Crisp's birth, and it's well worth checking out, even if you're not a Crisp devotee (as many in the audience obviously were -- the woman next to me was carrying a hardcover copy of Crisp's autobiography, The Naked Civil Servant.) I first heard about Crisp when I was a teenager, and the British pop label Cherry Red Records released An Evening with Quentin Crisp. He was very funny, and a true English eccentric, but for many gays & straights alike, his message of taking pride in being yourself continues to resonate a decade after his passing. To create the show, James has obviously internalized Crisp's writings & performances to the point where he can, in the second act, take questions from the audience -- even on contemporary issues like cell phones, global warming and gay marriage -- and answer them in a way that seems perfectly Crisp-like.
What the press said - February 2008
The Return Of A Gay Icon.Article in ON magazine by David Alexander Nahmod
Ghost Of Quentin Crisp
Article in The Bay Area Reporter by David Alexander Nahmod
Excellent review in the 16 February 2008 edition of BeyondChron online magazine.
What the press said - June 2007
Preview in the San Francisco Bay TimesPreview in the San Francisco Chronicle
From Richard Louis James
Email Richard: rjcrisp@att.netI had the premier of my show Tea `N Crisp tonight and one of the guests who was involved in a movie Red Ribbons with Quentin told me about your website.
I`m so thrilled to know it exists. I`m so blessed to continue his spirit on stage.
The response was unbelieveable. So many people were touched by his words and I`m proud to say the guest told me it was like watching Quentin`s ghost. I`m not surprised as I asked Quentin before going on to give me support and guidence tonight.
Bless you for this wonderfull site.
22nd June 2007