On Monday I begin a three city tour of my new play, a one-person, multi-character, multi-gender play, Transfigurations — Transgressing Gender in the Bible , which explores the lives of transgender Bible characters. On Tuesday August 26, 2008 I will present the play at the headquarters of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) 1640 Rhode Island Ave, Washington, DC. An hors d’oeuvres reception begins at 5:30 PM with the performance starting at 6:00 pm. On Wednesday I fly to Seattle, Washington for the Gender Odyssey Conference where I will mostly soak in the many amazing workshops, but I will also offer Transfigurations as a workshop on Sunday afternoon. Then I fly to New Orleans to take part in the Many Stories One Voice Conference . In addition to performing Transfigurations, I will also attend and present at For Such a Time as This: A Transgender Pre-Event. The last time I presented the play was earlier in the summer in Malta. The response there surprised me with many people telling me how...
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The movie brings up HIV/AIDS up a lot. This moves me because of the many family members and friends lost to complications due to the AIDS virus. My cousin Madeline, from Puerto Rico, died three months after she received Jesus. A lesbian and a long time heroin addict, she lived in the South Bronx. I remember how sweet the love of Jesus felt as we sat together on her hospital bed and prayed or read or just cried.
I worked in the Lower East Side's Alphabet City for years and would return every day to my West 81st Street apartment by Central Park. Living in NY gave me a glimpse of so many worlds. Having a mixed raced family (my cousins are all half-Italian and Puerto Rican or Black or Irish or Filipino) gave me an opportunity to experience many New Yorks.
I'm not sure how non-New Yorkers respond to Rent, but I remember the days when everyone loved someone who was dying and living with AIDS.
The musical for me is so much about loving well the people in our lives for the limited time we have them.
But once the first note started, I knew I was in for something special. Boy was I right! Someone said to me that I needed to have my "homo card" revoked since I had never seen it. This should count!
Thanks for all you do, Peterson. Talk with you soon!
David