We’re everywhere. We always have been and always will be. With surging LGBT+ representation in popular culture, it’s hard to imagine a time when we weren’t visible. But – not so very long ago – presenting the gay experience on stage was extremely risky business.
In Out Lines, we explore the forgotten history of gay theater in the United States through the plays of our most influential writers.
Gay theater didn’t begin with Boys in the Band. Uncover the truth with us in Out Lines.
In the final episode of Season One, Mark leads several members of the Now She Dances! cast in a grand off-off-Broadway tradition - the post-show talkback.
Thanks for listening to Out Lines! Sign up for our email list or subscribe to be the first to learn about Season Two.
Stay safe and well (read).
Episode transcript and links to the following resources are available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS at tososnyc.org
Want to request a manuscript of one of Doric's plays? – Send us a message
In this penultimate episode of Season One, Virginia, Mark and Jordan stand back and (almost) let the final scenes of Doric Wilson's Now She Dances! speak for themselves. For this episode's history break, we conclude our discussion of The Trials of Oscar Wilde.
Episode Ten ETA - October 19, 2021.
Episode transcript and links to the following resources are available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS at tososnyc.org
Want to request a manuscript of one of Doric's plays? – Send us a message
References from Episode Nine A (Woman) of No Importance by Oscar Wilde - Wikipedia page
Tea and Sympathy (“Be kind...”) - Official trailer for 1956 film (YouTube)
Two Loves by Lord Alfred Douglas - Full text of poem on poets.org
“A colorful tea cozy” - Example listing from Etsy
On the Richard Strauss Opera, Salome - New Yorker Article
Ravel's Valses Nobles et Sentimentales - Münchner Rundfunkorchester recording (YouTube)
The Ballad of Reading Gaol by Oscar Wilde - Full text of poem on poets.org
George Bernard Shaw - Wikipedia page
“Saint Oscar” - A 2021 installation
About the Trials of Oscar Wilde - General Info (with links to transcripts, other resources)
Virginia, Mark and Jordan forge further into Doric Wilson's Now She Dances! as the play approaches its climax. For this episode's history break, we start exploring a critical source and inspiration for the play - The Trials of Oscar Wilde.
Episode Nine ETA - October 5, 2021.
Episode transcript and links to the following resources are available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS at tososnyc.org
Want to request a manuscript of one of Doric's plays? – Send us a message
References from Episode Eight The Townhouse - Club's official website
Achilles, Antinous, et al - Homosexuals in History blog post
Alfred Taylor - Educational resource site
"Bruce" implying gay - Listserv of examples
Bowers v. Hardwick - Case breakdown on Oyez.com
Breonna Taylor - Grassroots Law Project case page
Compulsory Heterosexuality - Examination of Adrienne Rich Essay
Samson & Delilah - YouTube trailer for 1949 film
Gross Indecency / sodomy laws - 1885 Labouchere Amendment information
Marquess of Queensberry - Wikipedia page
About the Trials of Oscar Wilde - General Info (with links to transcripts, other resources)
Virginia, Mark and Jordan journey deeper into Act II of Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!. For this episode's history break, we look at one of the birthplaces of Off-Off-Broadway - the legendary Caffe Cino.
Episode Eight ETA - September 21, 2021.
Episode transcript and links to the following resources are available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS at tososnyc.org
Want to request a manuscript of one of Doric's plays? – Send us a message
References from Episode Seven About Chekhov's The Seagull- Article on film adaptation from New Republic
About Ibsen's The Wild Duck - Review of 2018 production from Time Out London
The suspense is terrible ... - Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka (GIF)
The Questions Game from Stoppard's Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead - Fandango clip from 1990 film adaptation
Proof that David Leeper (voice of The Prisoner) does not like cats
From the History Break Return to the Caffe Cino edited by George Birimisa and Steve Susoyev - Full text - Free to read online
Caffe Cino: The Birthplace of Off-Off-Broadway by Wendell C. Stone - Book information
In The Life segment on Caffe Cino - YouTube video
Robert Patrick's presentation on Caffe Cino - YouTube Video
Dames at Sea - Broadway World Article
Dames at Sea - Original off-Broadway Cast Album (previews)
Virginia, Mark and Jordan (with continued support from the TOSOS acting company) return for Act II of Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!. For this episode's history break, we resume our discussion of the play's relationship to its times.
Episode Seven ETA - September 7, 2021.
Episode transcript and links to the following resources are available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS at tososnyc.org
Want to request a manuscript of one of Doric's plays? – Send us a message
References from Episode Six Moloch, The Machine - YouTube clip from Fritz Lang's Metropolis
Sabina From Thornton Wilder's The Skin of Our Teeth - YouTube Clip, 1983 Old Globe Theatre production
Removal from list of psychological disorders (1973) - NIH National Library of Medicine Article
First out elected politician (1974) - NBC News Feature Article
NYC Bankruptcy / Ford to City: Drop Dead (1975) - History Channel Video
Don't Ask Don't Tell (1993) - History Channel Article
Will & Grace (1998, 2017) - Vox Article
Matthew Shepard (1998) - "Our Story" page from The Matthew Shepard Foundation Website
Salome's Modernity (2011) - Scholarly work by Petra Dierkes-Thrun
Intermission has been extended! We will return to Now She Dances! in our next episode.
Episode Six ETA - August 24, 2021.
Transcript:
Virginia Baeta: Hello listeners. We have some news.
Christopher Weikel as Lane: How uncomfortable.
VB: Our intermission has been extended. And Episode Six will be delayed.
Gail Dennison as Lady Herodias: Mea culpa. Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa.
VB: You had nothing to do with it, Lady H. Neither did Covid. And neither did our cats. Anyway, Out Lines will be back in two weeks.
Christopher Borg as The Actor: You’re here. I’m here. We can still make this a meaningful experience.
VB: Nice try. Save it for August 24th.
Karen Stanion as Gladys: Something tingling with excitement is about to take place.
VB: You bet your sweet ass it is.
Learn more about Now She Dances! at outlinespod.com.
In this "Intermission" episode, your hosts - Virginia, Mark, and Jordan - step away from the play, Now She Dances!, and take a closer look at the playwright, Doric Wilson.
We will return to Now She Dances! in our next episode.
Episode Six ETA - August 24, 2021.
Episode transcript and links to the following resources are available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances! Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson Learn more about TOSOS at tososnyc.org Want to request a manuscript of one of Doric's plays? – Send us a message
References from Episode Five Don Shewey / Doric Wilson Interview - From Don Shewey's website
Edmund White / Doric Wilson conversation - Video - YouTube
2007 Independent Theatre (IT) Award Lifetime Achievement Acceptance - Video - YouTube
Doric Wilson obituary by Patricia Nell Warren - From the On the Purple Circuit Website
Doric's Stonewall Interview - American Experience video
The history of coming out - From The Conversation
The Glines - Photo gallery
"Envisioning Queer Liberation: The Performance of Communal Visibility in Doric Wilson's Street Theater" (by our very own Dr. Schildcrout) - Project Muse article
Show notes: In this episode, your hosts - Virginia, Mark, and Jordan - continue strolling through Act One of Now She Dances! (NSD). This week's history break focuses on the character of Salome and how her story has developed over the ages.
Episode Five ETA - July 27, 2021.
Links to the following resources available at outlinespod.com
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS – tososnyc.org
Read Oscar Wilde's Salome – Project Gutenberg eBook
Read Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest – Project Gutenberg eBook
References from Episode Four
From the Now She Dances! discussion:
Tom Stoppard's Rosencranz & Guildenstern are Dead - Wikipedia entry
From the Salome Interlude
Salome in the Bible - Story as told in the Book of Mark (NIV)
Flavius Josephus Versions - In The Antiquities of the Jews (Project Gutenberg Text)
Virgin/Whore Complex - TVtropes.org wiki
About the femme fatale - TVtropes.org wiki
Salome - Iconic Femme Fatale - User-created gallery
About Salome in 18th Century (Dijkstra) - From an article on gender - Victorianweb.org
Sarah Bernhardt - Wikipedia entry
Aubrey Beardsley Illustrations - From the British Library
Flaubert's Herodias - Project Gutenberg Text
Show notes: In this episode, your hosts - Virginia, Mark, and Jordan - continue strolling through Act One of Now She Dances! (NSD) with a brief interlude about LGBTQ historical milestones that informed the first drafts of the play.
Episode Four ETA - July 13, 2021.
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances!
Read up on the playwright - Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS – tososnyc.org
Read Oscar Wilde's Salome – Project Gutenberg eBook
Read Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest – Project Gutenberg eBook
From the historical intersections interlude: LGBTQ Rights Timeline (US History) - Detailed timeline from educational resource
On the decline in theatre censorship (60s/70s) - An article by our own Jordan Schildcrout
Lanford Wilson's The Madness of Lady Bright - Wikipedia entry
Robert Patrick's The Haunted Host - Caffe Cino Photo Archive (includes play text)
Amiri Baraka's The Toilet - CONTINUUM Journal article
The Other Side of Silence (TOSOS) History - From the TOSOS website
Theater of the Ridiculous (Charles Ludlam) - Wikipedia entry
Hot Peaches - YouTube video montage of the faces of Hot Peaches
In this episode, your hosts - Virginia, Mark, and Jordan - start walking through Act One of Now She Dances! (NSD) with a brief interlude about the origins and purpose of off-off-Broadway theatre.
Episode Two ETA - June 29, 2021.
References from Episode 2 From the Now She Dances! discussion: Metatheatre (Meta) - Wikipedia entry
Luigi Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author - Project Gutenberg eBook
The soubrette - Hidden Secrets of the Soubrette (editorial)
Molière's Tartuffe (Dorine) - Project Gutenberg eBook
Franklin Pangborn - An introduction to a neglected star
Rollerena - From The Center's archives
From the off-off-Broadway interlude: About off-off-Broadway - 1975 NY Times article
The Little Theater Movement / Provincetown Playhouse - Scholarly article from literariness.org
W.E.B. Du Bois / Harlem Renaissance - Scholarly article from CONTINUUM: The Journal of African Diaspora Drama, Theatre and Performance
Episode transcript is available at outlinespod.com.
In this episode, your hosts - Virginia, Mark, and Jordan - introduce the themes of this season and demonstrate how Doric Wilson's Now She Dances is the right play for right now.
Episode Two ETA - June 15, 2021.
Read the play! Download Doric Wilson's Now She Dances
Read up on the playwright Doric Wilson
Learn more about TOSOS tososnyc.org
References from Episode 1: Caffe Cino - Article from the National Park Service
A good article on censorship in U.S. Theatre (from Seattle Rep)
Che! (stage play) and obscenity - Village Voice article (1970)
Lenny (film) - IMDB entry
The imprisonment of Oscar Wilde - History.com entry
Introducing Out Lines – where we explore the intersections between independent theatre, LGBTQ+ culture, and history.
Join hosts Virginia Baeta, Mark Finley and Jordan Schildcrout on a 10-episode journey. In our first season, we travel through Doric Wilson’s Now She Dances.
Episode One arrives June 1, 2021.
Transcript is available on the show page at outlinespod.com.