Diversity Rules Magazine

The long running off-Broadway hit, Naked Boys Sing- ing!, made its triumphant Off-Broadway return in March with a brand-new produc on starring Ameri- can Idol's David Hernandez and the first body posi- ve naked boy. "For close to 25 years, our show has celebrated the male form with a lot of laughs and no costuming," says producer Tom D'Angora, "but our brand-new pro- duc on spotlights the beauty of all men's shapes and sizes." Plus-sized gender-fluid actor Dom Giovanni (He/ Them) makes their off-Broadway debut in the produc on, joining David Hernandez (American Idol), Jaden Lux (Naked Boys Singing Las Vegas), and Gregory Sullivan (Naked Boys Singing, A Musical About Star Wars and NEWSical). Presented by husbands Tom D'Angora and Michael D'Angora, Naked Boys Singing! is high-camp musical theater. The 60-minute show features a cast of five handsome "boys" with gorgeous voices and hilarious comedic ming. There are no costumes and no underwear… it is simply Naked Boys Singing! "If you would have told me fi een years ago when I first saw Naked Boys Sing- ing! that I'd be in the re-opening of the off-Broadway show, I would never have believed you," Dom Giovanni says from their Harlem home. "It always seemed to me that this show was only for buff and toned boys. I'm excited to reveal my talent along with my own brand of hotness and prove that curvy Naked boys deserve a pla orm too." "I'm really stoked to return to the show and get back in my birthday suit," says American Idol's David Her- nandez. Hernandez first made waves as a fan fa- vorite on season 7 of American Idol. A er making it to the top 12, he was eliminated from the show when his stripper past came to light. He made his Naked Boys Singing! debut in the Las Vegas produc on of the show last year and is excited to star in his first off- Broadway musical. "Naked Boys Singing! is hilarious, empower- ing and incorporates my favorite aspects of life: music and nudity!" Producer Tom D'Angora is thrilled, too, to bring a more inclusive Naked Boys Singing! back to New York City. "I started my af- filia on with Naked Boys Singing! in 2001, as a cast member," he explains. "While in the cast, I was in top physical shape, but beneath the muscles was a guy struggling with body issues." Since leaving the cast to become a producer and di- rector of several off-Broadway shows, Tom D'Angora has fought a twenty-year ba le with weight loss. At one point, he was close to 400 pounds. With the help of Weightwatchers, he success- fully lost over 200 pounds. To remove the sagging skin le behind, he under- went a full body li surgery; and was publicly cri cized for it. "I was shamed for pu ng on the weight and then shamed for taking measures to improve my body a er I had lost the weight," Tom D'Angora says. "The bot- tom line is I am working hard to love my body and I hope the new show encourages everyone to do the same." 4 | Diversity Rules Magazine | Apr 2023 Naked Boys Singing! Returns to Off-Broadway Cast Includes American Idol's David Hernandez and the Company's First Body Positive "Naked Boy"

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