ABOUT THE SHOW

Shortly after the end of World War I, a Navy-sanctioned raid on queer activity in Newport, Rhode Island sparked national scandal. Sailors and civilian men alike were targeted in a covert operation against “immoral acts” including sex, drugs, and drag parties. Fourteen Operators went undercover to seduce and entrap young Naval recruits as well as an Episcopal minister, an interior decorator, and a mysterious waiter named Tokio Eddie.

SCANDALOUS CONDUCT: PUNKS & POGUES is a retelling of the 1919 Newport Sex Scandal using primary source documents written by the Operators and compiled and arranged by Matthew Lawrence and Jason Tranchida. Exploring themes of surveillance, performance, and military overreach, this staged reading is part of a larger multimedia project that will premiere in Newport in 2024.

Visit ScandalousConduct.com for more about the project.

Scandalous Conduct is made possible in part through funding support from the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, an independent state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The Council seeds, supports, and strengthens public history, cultural heritage, civic education, and community engagement by and for all Rhode Islanders.

This activity is made possible in part by a grant from the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts, through an appropriation by the Rhode Island General Assembly and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.