on following Alan’s death as he is forced to deal with his mother's ("Ma") intolerance and disrespect when she visits from Florida. The first act derives its name (International Stud) from an actual gay bar of the same name at 117 Perry Street in Greenwich Village in the 1960s and 1970s. The bar had a backroom where men engaged in anonymous sex. The backroom plays a central role in the act. The trilogy derives its title from the “torch” musical style which are “popular sentimental song[s] of unrequited love.” The award-winning and popular work broke new ground in the theatre: "At the height of the post-Stonewall clone era, Harvey challenged both gay and straight audiences to champion an effeminate gay man's longings for love and family." Production history The first staging of International Stud opened on February 2, 1978, at La MaMa, E.T.C., an off-off-Broadway theater, where it ran for two weeks. The off-Broadway production opened on May 22, 1978, at the Players Theatre, where it ran for 72 performances. The first staging of Fugue in a Nursery opened at LaMama on February 1, 1979. Torch Song Trilogy first opened at the uptown Richard Allen Center in October 1981, produced by The Glines. On January 15, 1982, it transferred to the Actors' Playhouse in Greenwich Village, where it ran for 117 performances, produced by The Glines. The cast included Fierstein as Arnold, Joel Crothers as Ed, Paul Joynt as Alan, Matthew Broderick as David, Diane Tarleton as Laurel/Lady Blues and Estelle Getty as Mrs. Beckoff. The Broadway production, directed by Peter Pope, opened on June 10, 1982, at the Little Theatre, where it ran for 1,222 performances and 8 previews. Fierstein, Joynt, Tarleton, and Getty were joined by Court Miller as Ed and Fisher Stevens as David and Susan Edwards as Lady Blues. Later in the run, David Garrison and Jonathan Hadary portrayed Arnold, Craig Sheffer was cast as Alan, and Barbara Barrie replaced Getty. The play won Fierstein two Tony Awards, for Best Play (with John Glines' historic Tony speech that acknowledged his lover and co-producer Larry Lane) and Best Actor in Play; two Drama Desk Awards, for Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Actor in a Play; and the Theatre World Award. The West End production starring Antony Sher, with Rupert Graves as Alan, opened on October 1, 1985, at Albery Theatre on St. Martin's Lane, where it ran