PRIDE ISSUE: the 1970s gay-marriage musical "Boy Meets Boy"
The Broadway Maven, David Benkof, interprets Broadway
Here’s the monthly FREE issue of The Broadway Maven’s Weekly Blast. Subscriptions are just $5 a month or $36 a year.
Shalom!
This week, The Broadway Maven looks at gay Broadway and A Chorus Line.
• On Monday, June 6 at Noon and 7 pm ET, “Gay Broadway” will meet, covering shows like Angels in America, Fun Home, Falsettos, and Rent. FREE class. Sign up here.
• On Thursday, June 9 at Noon and 7 pm ET, we’ll have our first “Master Class,” with all-new, advanced material. The subject will be A Chorus Line. Sign up here.
• This Weekly Blast:
A) describes a stunningly forward-thinking musical on gay themes from five decades ago;
B) includes a YouTube GEM showing productions of Fiddler on the Roof in more than a dozen languages;
C) contains a student RAVE about some gay-themed Broadway shows; and
D) shares a YouTube GEM about the highly problematic show Grease.
With the just-opened A Strange Loop and other prominent LGBT shows on Broadway this century such as Fun Home and Kinky Boots, it’s easy to forget that nearly 50 years ago, an off-Broadway Musical named Boy Meets Boy had debuted off-Broadway. Not only did it treat male-male relationships as completely normal, it highlighted a same-sex marriage.
In 1975.
Set in the 1930s, the show is a lighthearted musical comedy in the Broadway tradition, with a gay relationship at the center. That normalization seemed fantastical for many gay people; the gay publication The Advocate called the show “a sweet nostalgic valentine of a gay fantasy that certainly could never have occurred in 1936 - or for that matter at any other time in history — past or present.”
Thankfully The Advocate’s crystal ball was broken.
The show received warm reviews and has been revived periodically. An original cast album is available on iTunes and YouTube.
What does “Tradition” sound like in 14 languages? Check out this Fiddler on the Roof compilation.
Michael Lehrman: Here’s a quick overview of five of my favorite shows with gay themes and subtexts that may not be the first to come to mind:
1. Jerry Herman’s musical Mame has a song “Bosom Buddies” that describes fidelity between leads Vera and Mame as “friends, sisters and pals,” referencing a famed literary queer pair: “I’ll always be Alice Toklas if you’ll be Gertrude Stein.”
2. In the Elton John musical Billy Elliot, Billy’s best friend Michael is overtly gay and persuades Billy to “dress up” in drag as a way of “Expressing Yourself.”
3. Company: Bobby has been repeatedly suspected of being gay, though Sondheim denied it. The show has alienation themes, about an isolated, noncommittal, never-married loner.
4. King Herod in Jesus Christ Superstar is often played as a big “queen.”
5. Even Wicked – though not romantic with each other, Glinda and Elphaba have strong sisterly attachments and much affection, though not physical, could be (and has been) interpreted with Sapphic overtones.
Grease is beloved by young people, but it’s a highly problematic show. Here’s how problematic:
In time for Pride Month, we’ll look at four LGBT Broadway shows: Angels in America, Fun Home, Rent, and Falsettos. Tuition: FREE.
Please note the class will be recorded and made available for students observing the second day of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot.
We’ll revisit A Chorus Line in June with an advanced “Master Class” looking at the background, history, book, lyrics, and musical structure of the show, with 100 percent new material. It will not be recorded and will not be repeated, and the content will be sophisticated and elaborate. Tuition $12.
Watch this video and describe in the comments ANOTHER early Broadway show with what you consider to be a gay subtext. Explain your answer in the comments.
With 17 dancers in A Chorus Line, it can be tricky to differentiate among them. This video goes over the stories of the dancers from left to right, which will help prepare students for our Master Class on the show that meets Thursday, June 9 at Noon and 7 pm.
Note: links to register for ALL classes are ALWAYS available at TheBroadwayMaven.com.
• Monday, June 6 Gay Broadway (Noon and 7 pm ET, FREE)
• Tuesday, June 7 Introduction to Broadway, part 6 of 9 (Noon and 7 pm ET, registration closed)
• Thursday, June 9 MASTER CLASS: A Chorus Line (Noon and 7 pm ET, $12)
• Monday, June 13 Singer-songwriters (Noon and 7 pm ET, FREE)
• Tuesday, June 14 Introduction to Broadway, part 7 of 9 (Noon and 7 pm ET, registration closed)
• Tuesday, June 21 Introduction to Broadway, part 8 of 9 (Noon and 7 pm ET, registration closed)
• Thursday, June 23 Circus Broadway (Noon and 7 pm ET, $5)
• Tuesday, June 28 Introduction to Broadway, part 9 of 9 (Noon and 7 pm ET, registration closed)
The Broadway Maven, David Benkof, helps students further their appreciation of musical theater through his classes, his YouTube Channel, and his Weekly Blast. Contact him at DavidBenkof@gmail.com.