Joan Lipkin and her Uppity Theatre company on HEC TV.

KSDK News 6pm September 19, 2009

KSDK News 10pm September 19, 2009

If you are interested in a seat on our bus please click here.

Click here for her article: http://bit.ly/29ckwK

You may listen to an archive version of the radio show via itunes by clicking the following link:

http://bit.ly/kdhx-interview

ST.LOUIS, MO – SEPTEMBER 16, 2009 – On Sunday September 20, 1:00 pm Show Me No Hate and That Uppity Theatre Company present Beyond Stonewall: Why We March, a new play written by Tennessee playwright Sharon Bandy and St. Louis playwright Joan Lipkin. The play will be presented at the new home of Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) at 1919 S Broadway.  Admission is free, with general seating and will be followed by a short discussion after the performance.  The play has been launched on the Internet and has performances scheduled at college campuses and universities across the country.

The amazing cast of Beyond Stonewall: Why We March spans from 16 year old Kaitlin Wright, a junior at Metro High School to Dieta Pepsi, one of the region’s leading female impersonators.  Other performers include Carol Robinson, former president of St. Louis Pride, AIDS activist Steve Houldsworth, Theresa Masters and Howie Hirshfield from the Howard Brinkley sketch comedy troupe, Rich Scharf formerly with the DisAbility Project, Equity actors Tyler Vickers and Travis Estes, and deaf interpreter / actor Scott McMasters.  Bert Coleman St. Louis activist who serves on the national steering committee for the Oct 11th National Equality March, former St. Louis Judge Susan Block and artist Claire Medol Hyman will also be performing in the roles of community bloggers.

Beyond Stonewall: Why We March was inspired by actual online blogger comments posted in response to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story published this spring.  The article was about the new face of gay activism among St. Louis professionals.  The online link of the newspaper’s story drew over 300 negative attacks on the locals featured in the story, as well as LGBT issues.  The play follows a newscaster who tries to do a story about an out-of-the-closet, white, gay prominent banker when his interview on the street is hijacked by the ghosts of Stonewall, bloggers, two college students and an African-American lesbian activist. It uses actual comments from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch website.

Both funny and informative, the 30-minute play presents multi-generational perspectives and differences of opinion in the LGBT community, and explores gay marriage; the Employee Non Discrimination Act; Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell; and gay bashing, among other issues. Ultimately, it suggests that LGBT rights are human rights and should be of concern to all people, regardless of sexual orientation.

Playwright and director Joan Lipkin was launched into national prominence twenty years ago with the production of her play, Some of My Best Friends Are  . . . which was the first piece of LGBT theatre to be produced in St. Louis.  The play was a runaway hit, and Lipkin, Artistic Director of That Uppity Theatre Company, used the occasion of the play to call attention to Missouri’s Sexual Misconduct Law.  Since then, Lipkin received the James F. Hornback Ethical Humanist of the Year Award, among other honors, and, in October will receive the National Conference for Community and Justice Award.  She has been produced internationally and created numerous other projects including the groundbreaking DisAbility Project.

Sharon Bandy’s full-length play EXIT 136, written shortly after she moved from California to Tennessee, examines homophobia in the south. The play was presented at the Barter Theatre in Virginia as part of its Appalachian Festival of Plays and Playwrights, and has received readings across the country.

One of the gay St. Louisans included in the Post-Dispatch article is the former CEO of Pulaski Bank, Bill Donius. “Joan and Sharon’s play addresses timely topics within the LGBT community involving our struggle to obtain the elusive equality we have sought in the four decades since Stonewall,” shares Donius.

Show Me No Hate is a coalition of Missourians seeking Marriage Equality in our state.  Professional comedian and actor Ed Reggi started the grassroots organization last November shortly after he learned that Proposition 8 narrowly passed in California.  Show Me No Hate recently chartered a bus to Iowa City where 17 Missouri same-sex couples became the first to get legally married in Iowa.

For information call (314) 995-4600

Please listen to the interview here:

St. Louis Public Radio: Gay Activism <—- CLICK HERE

If you would like to download the original interview or use itunes please follow this link:

http://www.stlpublicradio.org/programs/slota/archivedetail.php?showid=3693

WORLDWIDE THEATRICAL ACT FOR EQUALITY
BEYOND STONEWALL: WHY WE MARCH OCT. 2ND – 4TH
ONE WEEK BEFORE THE NATIONAL EQUALITY MARCH IN WASHINGTON D.C.

SEPTEMBER 11, 2009 – In recognition of the National Equality March in Washington D.C. on October 11th, two playwrights have teamed up to create Beyond Stonewall: Why We March.  Tennessee playwright Sharon Bandy and St. Louis playwright Joan Lipkin offer their play royalty free worldwide as a theatrical act for equality.

To perform Beyond Stonewall: Why We March in your City, School, University, Church or Community center please visit contact us at uppityco@aol.com

A few months ago, the two of us, one in St. Louis, Missouri, the other in Chattanooga, Tennessee began work on what we hoped would become a call to action. After several drafts, numerous emails, regular phone conversations and table readings, we put the finishing touches on our play, Beyond Stonewall: Why We March.

Our inspirations were many and included the Stonewall Riots of 1969 and the women and men who risked their lives to put the struggle for gay rights on America’s radar. A recent article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about a prominent gay banker and activist, and the many comments by readers that followed on the paper’s blog—both condemning and supporting—served as additional material. We were also fascinated by generational shifts in perspective and differences in the LGBT community about what constitutes the most pressing issues.  But, above all, we wanted to encourage people to participate in the National Equality March in Washington D.C. on October 10-11, or if they could not go, to examine issues closer to home. There are so many issues on the table and roadblocks to full equality.  But theatre, especially when it offers humor, can be a way to create a shared experience.

One of the most exciting aspects of this short, fun piece is its versatility. While it is ideal for theatre companies interested in giving it a full production, it can be equally powerful in a classroom, outside a coffee house, on a bus, in a park, a cafeteria, a church or synagogue. There are no limits.  We encourage you to have at it.  Do the blogs as voice-overs. Or flood the stage with live, silent  bloggers who type throughout a performance. Use your imaginations as freely as we have used ours.

We realize that we cannot represent all LGBT people or all issues, but what we can do is provide a curtain-raiser for the most important part—your conversations and your actions. If we left something out, what is it? Why is it important to you, and what do you plan to do about it? If one of the characters especially speaks to you, why is that the case?  How do the feelings and issues that the play raises connect with your own life? We see our play as just one way to bring people together, to get them talking and determining where they want to go next as individuals and communities.

And best of all, Beyond Stonewall: Why We March is available royalty-free, because we simply want it to have a voice, so that others may find theirs.  So download it now, adapt it to fit your time, your space, your people, your resources. And then talk about it, organize, pass it along, and join us in publicizing the important issues the play addresses.

This is a play for all audiences, regardless of sexual orientation. We believe that the struggle for equality is one that should include all Americans, as well as our friends in other places.  LGBT rights are human rights. This little play is our message in a bottle.  We hope it finds its way to you and helps to bring the change we need in the world.

We would be thrilled to hear what you do with it, so please pass along any production news and/or photos to us at uppityco@aol.com.  Thanks for giving this your consideration.

With all best wishes,

Sharon Bandy and Joan Lipkin

ST.LOUIS, MO – SEPTEMBER 7, 2009 - On Sunday September 20, 1:00 pm – In recognition of the National Equality March in Washington D.C. this October 11th & 12th, Show Me No Hate and That Uppity Theatre Company have teamed up to present Beyond Stonewall: Why We March, a new short play written by Tennessee playwright Sharon Bandy and St. Louis playwright Joan Lipkin.

The play will be presented at Metropolitan Community Church in (MCC) at 1919 S Broadway. Admission is free and there is open seating.

Beyond Stonewall: Why We March was inspired by actual online reader comments posted in response to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story published this spring.  The article was about the new face of gay activism among St. Louis professionals.  The online link of the newspaper’s story drew over 300 negative attacks on the locals featured in the story, as well as LGBT issues.  The play follows a newscaster who tries to do a story about an out-of-the-closet, white, gay prominent banker when his interview on the street is highjacked by the ghosts of Stonewall, bloggers, two college students and an African-American lesbian activist. It uses actual comments from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch website.

Both funny and informative, the 30-minute play presents multi-generational perspectives and differences of opinion in the LGBT community, and explores gay marriage; the Employee Non Discrimination Act; Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell; and gay bashing, among other issues. Ultimately, it suggests that LGBT rights are human rights and should be of concern to all people, regardless of sexual orientation.

Playwright and director Joan Lipkin was launched into national prominence twenty years ago with the production of her play, “Some of My Best Friends Are  . . .” which was the first piece of LGBT theatre to be produced in St. Louis.  The play was a runaway hit, and Lipkin, Artistic Director of That Uppity Theatre Company, used the occasion of the play to call attention to Missouri’s Sexual Misconduct Law.  Since then, Lipkin received the James F. Hornback Ethical Humanist of the Year Award, among other honors, and, in October will receive the National Conference for Community and Justice Award.  She has been produced internationally and created numerous other projects including the groundbreaking DisAbility Project.

“With Beyond Stonewall, I have come full circle to where I began twenty years ago.  Only this time, we have the benefit of social networking technologies to get the work out,” said Lipkin, who is releasing the play for free on the Internet. “We are doing this as a gift and a message in a bottle to say that LGBT rights are human rights.”

Sharon Bandy’s full-length play EXIT 136, written shortly after she moved from California to Tennessee, examines homophobia in the south. The play was presented at the Barter Theatre in Virginia as part of its Appalachian Festival of Plays and Playwrights, and has received readings across the country.

One of the gay St. Louisans included in the Post-Dispatch article is the former CEO of Pulaski Bank, Bill Donius. “Joan and Sharon’s play addresses timely topics within the LGBT community involving our struggle to obtain the elusive equality we have sought in the four decades since Stonewall,” shares Donius.

Show Me No Hate is a coalition of Missourians seeking Marriage Equality in our state.  Professional comedian and actor Ed Reggi started the grassroots organization last November shortly after he learned that Proposition 8 narrowly passed in California.  Show Me No Hate has successfully organized a rally in front of the Historic Old Court House, a teach-in at the Tivoli Theatre, a candlelight vigil in University City and most recently, Show Me No Hate chartered a bus to Iowa City where 17 Missouri same-sex couples became the first Missourians to get legally married in Iowa.

For more information visit http://www.uppityco.com or call (314) 995-4600