Trans* Success

David Harrison is an actor, playwright, and performer.  He trained at the Drama Studio of London at Berkeley, five years with director Richard Seyd (in San Francisco), movement & mask with Leonard Pitt (Berkeley), and “Viewpoints” with the SITI Company in New York.  His first play, Permission (written in 1991 before his transition), was based on his experiences in the sex industry working as a professional dominatrix.  The show toured the East Coast of the US and Canada in 1992.  Harrison invites people to see his play “FTM”.  David’s show is a wise and witty excursion through the middle ground of gender, being one person’s journey to discover the nature of masculinity and manhood.  In “FTM”, David’s transformation is juxtaposed with that of his mother who is experiencing changes in her own body as a result of breast cancer.  Their stories, sometimes funny, frequently poignant, are told through dreams, anecdotes, and remembrances.

David’s underlining theme of alienation is a universal one.  His quest to feel comfortable in his own skin and to be accepted by others makes “FTM” a must see.  FTM, was first produced at 848 Community Space, San Francisco in May of 1994, and has been touring internationally since then.  Other recent productions David has been seen in are Dennis Potter’s Blue Remembered Hills, as the 7-year-old Willie, Helmut in Taking Sides, and with No Pants Theatre Company’s Fitting Room Series, as Robert in Mommy & Daddy are Doing Dirty Things at Manhattan Theater Source.  He is currently working on a new play.  Many of you might also know him from the movie “TransAmerica”, this is a more recent photo below: