The Queerly Festival
Queerly logo

            Founded in 2014, Queerly is FRIGID’s annual celebration of all things artistic and LGBTQIA2S+. Queerly strives for diversity on and off stage, seeking out queer teams and artists of all kinds as well as a wide range of shows and performances. Our goal is to provide a space for queer artists who’ve rarely or never seen their identities portrayed on stage to be able to represent themselves and tell their stories their way, as well as to provide a space for queer celebration, pride, and strength. Queerly was started by Erez Ziv and then curated by Kevin R. Free for many years. It is now curated by FRIGID co artistic director Jimmy Lovett, a trans, non-binary, bisexual maker and theater artist.
            Queerly is a place for self-representation, for telling the stories we want to tell, and for sharing our work with our community and beyond. Regardless of how a piece makes us feel, there is joy in artistic creation and, as we raise our heads in defiance of those who would dehumanize us, queer joy is an act of rebellion. Queerly is a place for that rebellion. In light of the barrage of anti-trans legislation across the country, we are prioritizing work by or featuring trans artists, and amplifying trans voices, trans joy, and trans rebellion, as well as work that speaks to queer resilience past, present, and future.

            The theme for this year’s festival is “Then, Now, and Always.” With this theme, we are creating a line-up of work that speaks to the ways queerness has thrived and will continue to thrive across time. This may look like queering mythology, historical fiction, science fictional, biography-based work, storytelling, queer futurism, and more. The theme is not meant to be restrictive, but rather to offer a guide post to our artists and to build an energy of queer joy, power, and perseverance. We can’t wait to share this year’s show with you!

Queerly 2026 will run from June 11th through July 3rd.

Keep up with Queerly on Instagram at queerlyfestival!



We’ve also been featured in a number of publications, some of which are listed below. We’re endlessly grateful to Emily Owens PR for representing the festival.

  • 100 Word Review
  • All About Solo
  • The Body
  • Broadway World
  • CBS NY
  • Chelsea Community News
  • The Daily News
  • EDGE New York
  • Gay City News
  • The Hollywood Soapbox
  • Lou Reviews
  • NBC New York
  • NY1
  • New York Theatre
  • New York Trend
  • New York Times
  • Queer Forty
  • Secret NYC
  • Stage & Cinema
  • Stage Whisper Podcast
  • TDF Stages
  • Theater Reviews From My Seat
  • Theatre Beyond Broadway
  • Thesis on Joan Podcast
  • Thinking Theater NYC
  • Time Out NY
  • Young-Howze Theatre Journal

Past Years

Over the years, Queerly has been honored to feature some truly incredible shows and artists.

Queerly 2025 featured…
Queerly 2024 featured…
  • As You Will produced by Conor Mullen
  • Asexuality! The Solo Musical by Rebecca McGlynn
  • A Bit Too Much Hair produced by Butch Mermaid Productions, written by Ania Upstill and William Duignan
  • Calico by Kai Xing Mun
  • A Drag is Born by Edu Díaz
  • Flayed by Josiah Blount
  • Give Me The MacArthur Genius Grant by Tarek Ziad
  • The Goblin Woman by Mackenzie Krestul
  • The Ho Must Go On by Phillipe Andre Coquet
  • Hottie Bop
  • If I Did, You Deserved It by Jess Lauricello
  • Ladies at a Gay Girls’ Bar, 1938-1969 by Maggie Cee
  • Paper Kraine
  • Pearl Necklace: A Gay Sexcapade by Jamie Brickhouse
  • RADICAL: BLACK QUEER PLEASURE produced and created by Queerly Femmetastic
  • Shake the Disease by Leif Larson
  • Virtue and Grace by Isabella Van Houzen
  • Woo and Aah: Homecoming by Nazlah Black and Rachel Weekley

Queerly 2023 featured…
  • Affirm THIS! A Fundraiser for Trans Liberation in collaboration with What Will the Neighbors Say?
  • Anna May Wong: PERSONA by Kai Xing Mun
  • As You Will
  • At Birth by Ty Autry
  • BECOMING AUSTIN NATION: From Crack to PhD – One Drag Queen’s Story by Austin Nation
  • Drag Story Hour
  • Funny Women of a Certain Age curated and hosted by Carole Montgomery
  • Love, Chicken by Maddox Pennington
  • Paper Kraine: Do You Queer What I Queer
  • The Parentheses by Marissa Fleming
  • A Probably Disastrous Experiment by Rachel Weekley
  • The Ramón Show: Spiritual Cheerleading 101
  • The Real Black Swann Confessions of America’s First Black Drag Queen by Les Kurkendaal Barrett
  • Spent. by mik berry
  • Transhumance by Ania Upstill
  • Two Foreskins Walk into a Bar by Chris Thompson
  • walkOver by Elena Freck
  • Welcome to my UNAverse by Una Osato
Queerly 2022 featured…
  • As Sylvia by Summer Minerva
  • As You Will
  • Big Gay Love Story, the Musical by Allison St. Rock
  • Books and Burlesque: An evening of Lore and Allure presented by Fortune Cookie & Rosie Tulips
  • Come What May: An Evening with Lena Horné
  • Driver’s Seat by Ellie Brelis
  • Funny Never Gets Old curated by Carole Montgomery
  • High Amongst the Stars a performance by The Space Station
  • Jackson Sturkey & The Big Turn On by Jackson Sturkey
  • Josiah by Cassel Miles
  • KINGS by Sam Kaseta aka Sam Bam Thank You Ma’am
  • Man Up: A Show for Women by Maggie Metnick
  • The Messy Show produced by Quinten Lamar
  • Paper Kraine Presents: Do You Queer What I Queer
  • Pocket Curiosities (Not A Pirate Show) by Rachel Weekley
  • Spektorology produced by Marie Anello, Chevy Lace, and Killer Queen Opera
  • Thank You For Coming Out produced by Dubbs Weinblatt and JessAnn Smith
Queerly 2020 (virtually) featured…
  • The Reparations Show produced by Kevin R. Free
  • ‘TASHA produced by Yusef Miller
  • Desperately Seeking the Exit produced by Peter Michael Marino
  • Within My Heart My Secret Lies – Excerpt from “Sissy” produced by DANA Movement Ensemble
  • 1953: The Race for the Summit produced by Om Raj Raut
  • Big Gay Love Story, The Musical by Allison St. Rock
  • It’s Not Me, It’s You: A Paradise Lost Reimagining produced by Amancay CT Kugler
  • Coming Out: A New Musical by Allison St. Rock
  • The Gay Card produced by Logan Martin-Arcand
  • Before We Can Make a Final Decision produced by Jonathan Edmondson
  • Backup Plan produced by David Beck
  • Veronica Garza – Excerpt from “I Tried” produced by Veronica Garza
  • BORDERS produced by Maera Hagage and Dirty Laundry Theatre
  • This Feeling produced by Invisible Disco Productions
  • Performance Check produced by Conor Mullen, Tess Henry, and Jimmy Lovett
  • Infemous produced by Fringe MTL
  • Blessed Oil and Brown Liquor produced by Germono Toussaint
  • God Loves Ya & I’m Tryin’ produced by Ron Stroman
  • Improvised Buffy produced by Emily Godfrey, Matthew Woods, and Justin Harris