so....lesbians....

[OddExoticCreature]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:28am

So I was wonder, serious question, why are there 3495u3q95uu35o5u353957395873 gay men in theater but hardly any lesbians? This is not a why are there gay men in theater question, because duh...but for real there need to be more lesbians on Broadway.

The end.

[zoran912]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:42am

Excuse me if this sounds discriminatory.

It seems as if gay men are trying to assimilate into female territory. Likewise, gay women seem to be trying to make themselves more like men. Of course, these are stereotypes and by no means cover all members of these groups. I myself am a gay male and I don't view myself as a feminine individual.

That said, theatre is, in the view of many non-theatre people, a very feminine activity, just as sports are viewed as being masculine. Therefore, gay men are more likely to be involved in theatre than gay women.

Sorry for being so blatantly stereotypical. I mean no offense. I couldn't find any other way to put it.

[M J R]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:43am

As long as we're talking in total stereotypes, the vast majority of stage managers I've ever worked with have been lesbians. I always wonder why that is...

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:45am

hey not all of us stage managers r!!! but the majority of them at my college are (i'm not tho).

[OddExoticCreature]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 2:05am

REALLY? Oh damn all the more reason for me not to be a stage manager. I've been told I'd make a good one, but I really have no desire.

This was kind of a joke, so don't worry about offense taken!

[hot_brdwy_diva]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 2:48am

Yea one of my theatre classes... I think it was theatre history went into this huge thing about feminine males, masculine males, masculine females blah blah and that there is not just 2 genders but like 100 genders. If you count all the combinations. I forget them all by now but it was interesting. Just my 2 cents. :)

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 10:56am

I'm quite feminine, thank you. And the other two lesbians I've met from this site are also quite feminine.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 11:31am

That said, theatre is, in the view of many non-theatre people, a very feminine activity, just as sports are viewed as being masculine.

Tell that to all the famous female playwrights in the world. I think you can count them all on one hand.

I think that theatre, particularly the backstage and creative process, is dominated by men. Even female directors aren't all that common.

[vbplayer]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 11:50am

I have 2 great lesbian friends. They are not in theatre though. Does that count?

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 12:28pm

I am a little too girly sometimes, but I am not IN theatre, just INTO theatre. There are lots of lesbians in theatre. Cherry Jones, I think, would be the most famous. But I bet there are a lot a bisexual gals and hasbians, too.

[cheezedoodle]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 12:30pm

You might try looking on the Rugby fields...and what in the world is a Hasbian?

[theatrebabe]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 12:33pm

Hah. What is a hasbian? I haven't been in a ton of shows, but just about every show I'm in I meet at least one gay man. So far, I don't think I've ever been in a show with a lesbian. Strange.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 12:47pm

Hasbian: a woman who spent a brief period of time delving into the Sapphic arts. ie: "I was a lesbian in 1974!"

(It was from the L Word. My friends still giggle at it.)

Updated On: 11/30/05 at 12:47 PM

[cathywellerstein]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:56pm

i bet there are more lesbians in theatre than we know. they just aren't out yet...at least publicly.
Updated On: 11/30/05 at 01:56 PM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:59pm

Here's hoping, anyway!

[Calvin]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 3:04pm

Just look at the way Roger DeBris treats the one lesbian on his staff.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 3:56pm

There are quite a few lesbians in the theatre. The aforementioned Cherry Jones, Fiona Shaw, Cynthia Nixon (technically bi-sexual, but same diff), Lily Tomlin, Lisa Kron, etc.

There are also quite a few high-profile lesbian playwrights: Ms. Kron and the other members of The Five Lesbian Brothers, Paula Vogel, Sarah Schulman, Maria Irene Fornes (I believe...), etc.

There are many lesbians in the theatre. They just may not be as high-profile as some of their male counterparts.

[Jon]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 4:30pm

Yes, like Shirley Markowitz, there are many lesbian lighting designers.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 6:59pm

Well, one of them needs to call me.

[theatrebabe]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 7:03pm

Can I just say that I love the thread title. Every time I look at it, I crack up.

[Cherubino]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 7:08pm

I've often thought that as well, but know that it's simply that I've not heard of them. Yet. I've also often wondered why no one has heard of Joe Orton. And where all the lesbian scandals are. Were. Whatnot. As far as I know, lesbianism wasn't illegal because they didn't believe it existed. Don't mind those last bits unless you can explain what I'm talking about to me. I don't even rightly know all too much on what I was talking about, so...indeed.

[OddExoticCreature]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 8:45pm

lol theatrebabe that was the point

I agree with the point that they're there just aren't known. Of course there are some but I mean the point you can list off a handful of lesbians in theater, but then if someone said "list the gay men in theater" everyone would be like "..."

I'm an actress and a playwright and I definitely noticed that there is a lack of women in the writing/behind-the-scenes aspect.

I took a Gender & Sexuality class once and it was so interesting...I'd love to take one specifically related to theater.

PS. I'm also very feminine. And the word "hasbian" is hilarious.

[superwoman108]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 9:34pm

i'm in theatre, and I'm a lesbian.

But to answer your question...i really think its because *stereotype ahead*, lesbians are just not as easy to pick out from a crowd. It is usually much easier for your average person to recognize a gay man as homosexual than a woman.

Also...enough about the stage managers. It's all about the Technical Directors! How many straight female TD's do you know?

[Mythus]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 10:04pm

You know, I just thought about it, and all the female techies for the school play were lesbians. Of course, there were only three of us, but that still never occured to me.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 10:33pm

OddExoticCreature... I love your avie! (I just realized I had never told you that.)