By Wayman Wong
01 Dec 2004

‘METHOD’ ACTOR IS HIGH ON MUSICAL THEATRE
Tommy Foster is an all-American boy who literally has been caught between a rock and a hard place — crystal meth and HIV — and turned his harrowing story into a thrilling tour de force. Called The METH-od to My Madness, this riveting one-man show explores the highs and lows of a bright-eyed actor from Concord, NC, and it’s illustrated with songs by Sondheim, Kander and Ebb and Lloyd Webber. Foster goes from being "The Life of the Party" to escorting in "Love for Sale" and gets trapped in the web of addiction to the strains of "Kiss of the Spider Woman" ("The Spider Woman is crystal meth and her kiss is HIV," he says). After wrestling with the anger and angst of "Gethsemane" ("Why should I die?"), he rediscovers the joys of "Being Alive."

After its premiere in October, John Hoglund of Back Stage raved, "Foster scored across the board in what may well be the most important showcase of the year. His vulnerability and the depth of his performance make this show the singular sensation it is." Foster was just featured in "Are You Positive?," the CNN medical special about HIV/AIDS that airs again Dec. 1 at 3 and 11 PM ET. Plus, he returns with his METH-od show on Dec. 2 at 8:30 PM and Dec. 10 at 7 PM at Don’t Tell Mama.

In October 2003, the one-time Carnegie Mellon student found out he’d been infected with HIV while using crystal meth. A month later, he began to create a show that would address why "crystal meth is so popular in the gay community. I grew up as a fat ugly kid who was called a ‘faggot,’ and I was ashamed. Then I got to New York and had crazy sex with hot guys because I could never have it before. But when I got HIV, I stopped being ashamed. I take responsibility for my actions and my disease and refuse to infect anyone else. We have young men doing crystal meth, not caring about themselves and safe sex because we have a president who says their lives aren’t worth anything."

METH-od took shape as musical theatre because "that’s my training," says Foster, 27, a graduate from the University of Michigan. His classmates included Gavin Creel and Barrett Foa, who recalls, "Tommy’s really talented. He’s got the greatest voice, and he’s a cool guy." This summer, the lyric baritone delivered a showstopping "Soliloquy" as Billy in Carousel at the Gateway Playhouse in Bellport, NY, and he has appeared regionally in Footloose and Joseph.

So how did this aspiring Broadway baby get drawn into drugs? "I was so unhappy with life and wanted to get as f----- up as possible. I was deep in debt, so I was a male escort for four months. At first, it was an ego boost. It was the easiest $200-$300 [an hour] I ever made. I’d work as a waiter for 10, 12 hours for only $30. Screw that. But I escorted only six times. Then I quit. It was so disgusting. Crystal meth offered an escape."

Though he’s single and "would love to be a dad someday," the current love of his life is Spenser, his seven-year-old Jack Russell terrier. For now, the 5 foot-11 Foster is accentuating the positive: "A friend told me that my show is really about forgiving myself. I feel absolved. Now I want to share my story and make a difference."

For more information, visit www.tommyfosternyc.com.

WHERE THE GUYS ARE
There’s so much to see in New York: Taboo’s Cary Shields and Rent’s Mark Jackson are set to really rock Dec. 4 at 8 PM at the Belt Theatre, 336 W. 37th St. (212-563-0487). . . . You’ve got male when Broadway’s D.B. Bonds, William Broderick, Gilles Chiasson and Graham Rowat celebrate new tunes from The Men’s Songbook on Dec. 5 at 8 PM at Opia, 130 E. 57th St. (212-688-3939). . . . Chester Gregory plays Seaweed in Hairspray, but you can "run and tell" his fans that he’s throwing a birthday bash of his R&B/soul songs on Dec. 5 at 7:30 PM at the Ars Nova, 511 W. 54th St. (212-868 4444). And, Barrett Foa may be an ensemble member in Avenue Q "for now," but he steps into Ars Nova’s Broadway Spotlight on Dec. 6 at 8 PM, with backup from "The Foa-natics": Courtney Balan and Jason Robinson. . . . Jason Graae delivers a Coup De Graae of madcap musical comedy Dec. 6-18 at 7 PM at Helen’s, 169 Eighth Ave. (212-206-0609). . . . Michael Feinstein will toast Holiday Heart Songs Dec. 7-31 at Feinstein’s at the Regency, 540 Park Ave. (212-339-4095). . . . Scott Coulter, Steven Ray Watkins and Lennie Watts are three marvelous MAC Award winners who’ll offer A Christmas to Remember Dec. 9 at 10 PM and Dec. 13 at 7 PM at Mama Rose’s, 219 Second Ave. (212-533-0558). . . . Jack Donahue, who lights up any room with his crooning, headlines Dec. 10 and 17 at 9:30 PM at Opia. . . . And the suave singer-pianist Steve Ross salutes the debonair Fred Astaire now through Dec. 31 at 59E59 Theaters, 59 W. 59th St. (212-279-4200).

TIME FOR A THUMB’S-UP AND THANKS!
Thanks to all the great guys that we interviewed in 2004: Michael Arden, John Barrowman, Gary Beach, Jim Caruso, Dmitri Chepovetsky, Scott Coulter, Jeremy Davenport, Tim Di Pasqua, Jack Donahue, Barrett Foa, Hunter Foster, Tommy Foster, James Getzlaff, Hugh Jackman, Cheyenne Jackson, Chad Kimball, Drew Lachey, Norm Lewis, Joey McIntyre, Alfred Molina, Paolo Montalban, Euan Morton, Burke Moses, Manu Narayan, David Osmond, Hugh Panaro, Noah Racey, Darren Ritchie, Jai Rodriguez, Cary Shields, Christopher Sieber, Marcus Simeone, John Tartaglia, Max von Essen, David Wienir, Patrick Wilson and Matt Zarley.

Got comments or questions? E-mail me at waymanwong@hotmail.com.

Happy holidays and until next year, let’s hear it for the "boys"!

Wayman Wong edits entertainment for The New York Daily News. He has been a movie and theater critic for The San Francisco Examiner, a writer for The Sondheim Review and a Drama-Logue Award-winning playwright.