Gays on Broadway [Hardcover]

From the genteel female impersonators of the 1910s to the raucous drag queens ofLa Cage Aux Folles, from the men ofThe Normal Heartto the women ofFun Home, and from Eva Le Gallienne and Tallulah Bankhead to Tennessee Williams and Nathan Lane,Gays On Broadwaydeftly chronicles the plays and people that brought gay culture to Broadway.A fascinating look at the gay and lesbian influence on the American stage by an internationally-recognized authority on the topicFrom the genteel female impersonators of the 1910s to the raucous drag queens ofLa Cage Aux Folles, from the men ofThe Normal Heartto the women ofFun Home, and from Eva Le Gallienne and Tallulah Bankhead to Tennessee Williams and Nathan Lane,Gays On Broadwaydeftly chronicles the plays and people that brought gay culture to Broadway.Writing with his customary verve and wit, author Ethan Mordden follows the steady liberation of gay themes on the American stage. The story begins in the early twentieth century, when gay characters were virtually banned from productions. The 1920s saw a flurry of plays closed on moral grounds as well as the Wales Padlock Act, which forbade representation of sex degeneracy. While authorities made consistent attempts to shutter the movement, the public remained curious, and after a few decades of war making, a truce broke out whenThe Boys In the Bandbecame a national smash hit. From this point on, gay theatre proved simply too popular to abolish.With this change, theatre was graced with a host of unforgettable characters - from thrill killers to historical figures to drag performers, as well as professional gays (such as the defiantly effeminate window dresser inKiss of the Spider Woman), closeted gays, and those run-of-the-mill citizens who don't reside entirely within the colorful nonconformist identity (such as the two male lovers in the dinner-theatre comedyNorman, Is ThlÃ0