Theatre like you've never seen

Friends of friends. Oh, how they introduce you to the most interesting things.
Tonight I saw a performance of Les Liaisons Dangereuses presented by a local theatre troupe in DC. So, they took some artistic liberties and toyed with the script a little: the performance included only male actors. The characters from Choderlos de Laclos' 1782 novel, however, remained unaltered (men were men, and women were men), as did the essence of the story. It was interesting watching a six foot tall blond male perform as the ever-conspiring Marquise de Merteuil (both my favorite character and actor). The Source Theatre consists of a roughly 30 x 100 ft rectangular room housing a stage area (floor level) and about 100 tiered seats positioned in the front and to either side. Needless to say, the atmosphere was intimate. You can imagine that the steamy scenes, complete with full nudity, left nothing to the imagination. To think this novel was written over 220 years ago confounds me considering the story remains racy in 2005.
I'd highly recommend this show both for its artistic merits and for a glimpse of DC culture that largely hovers under the radar. Be prepared to forgive a few missed lines and a sparse stage in return for a novel adaptation and overall excellent acting. The theatre group caters mostly to the lesbian/gay/bi/trans population in DC, but I don't think this production was limiting in its appeal. The themes remain universal and relevant, and the diversity in the crowd expresses this most convincingly.
It should be noted that the show is scheduled to run at Busboys and Poets (great name) just up the street at 14th and V, but moved down to 14th and T for some performances until the other venue is ready.