“8” (The Play)

Save the date! There is a play coming to Boulder—for one night only—that you definitely want to see (if, that is, you’re near Boulder. For those who aren’t, you'll want to find it somewhere near you.) The play is called “8.” Mark your calendar: Thursday, December 6, Nomad Theater. Let me explain what this is and why you want to be there.

First, a bit of context. As you likely know, this is shaping up to be a landmark year for same-sex marriage. Not only did President Obama (finally) declare his support for marriage equality, but the topic of same-sex marriage will be on the ballot in four states next week (MD, ME, WA, WI). And, as if that weren't enough, it seems likely that during this year's session, the US Supreme Court will hear at least one of several same-sex marriage cases that are currently sitting in the Court’s “to do” pile. Depending on which case(s) they choose to hear and how they rule, things may change in a big way for LGBT people from this year forward.

So it’s a wonderful coincidence that just as LGBT rights are likely to take center stage in the Supreme Court, what could be called a “reality play” about those rights is coming to several community stages around the country. And Boulder is one of the locations chosen to see that play. (Actually, it’s no coincidence at all. It’s due to excellent planning by Out Boulder.) Here’s the back story:

As you all know, in 2008, California voters passed Proposition 8, which overturned an earlier state Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage in that state. Between the initial Court ruling and the vote on Prop 8, thousands of California same-sex couples chose to marry. This created an especially stark contrast between the presence and absence of equal rights: some same-sex couples were legally married, and just down the block, other couples were forbidden from marrying.

Now, this was not—by far!—the first time that LGBT rights had lost at the ballot box. In fact, we have never won when marriage equality was put to a popular vote (although that might change this year). But this was California, the most populous state in the nation. California, the state known for leading the nation forward toward progressive social change. California, the home of San Francisco, the Castro, and Harvey Milk!

Not surprisingly, Proposition 8 was almost immediately challenged—in the streets and then in the courts. In addition to LGBT rights groups, other, very surprising people also stepped up. Chief among these was an “odd couple” from the highest ranks of the legal profession who uncharacteristically joined forces to challenge Proposition 8: Ted Olson, the attorney who represented George W. Bush in the Supreme Court case that installed Bush as President in 2000, and  David Boies, the attorney who represented Al Gore in that same case. Despite their diametrically opposed political views on most matters, they both agree that same-sex couples should have the same right to marriage that heterosexual couples have. So this improbable team is leading the legal challenge to Prop 8 in the courts—perhaps all the way to the US Supreme Court.

The case moved up the judicial hierarchy to US District Court. There, the original plan called for the trial to be videotaped and streamed live, but the broadcast was blocked by legal maneuvering. In response, a playwright by the name of Dustin Lance Black decided to find a way to make the transcript of the trial accessible to folks in the real world.

Which brings us back to Harvey Milk.

Dustin Lance Black is probably best known for having written the Oscar-winning screenplay for the movie “Milk,” which tells the story of Harvey Milk’s rise to political office and then his assassination. Not coincidentally, “Milk” opened just before the vote on Prop 8. So now, determined to bring the Prop 8 trial alive for people on the street, Black has written a “play” that is basically an artistic rendering of excerpts from the transcript of the US District Court trial. That’s the play called “8”. It opened to rave reviews in LA and New York, where the parts were read by a megastar cast including Kevin Bacon, George Clooney, Jamie Lee Curtis, Morgan Freedman, Brad Pitt, Martin Sheen, and others you’d know if I could remember them. I saw the play streamed live from LA in those opening days, and it is amazing, compelling, jaw-dropping. You can see clips (with parts read by those very stars) here.

And now, “8-The Play” is coming to selected community theaters around the country. Each performance is hosted by a local group, which chooses a cast from among local folks (heck, your friends might be in it!). The idea is to bring the story home to people who should have been able to watch the trial as it unfolded but were prevented from seeing it. Until now. 

And here’s the best part (drum roll), our own Out Boulder is one of the groups selected to host a reading of “8-The Play.” But there’s more. Not content with only staging the play, Out Boulder aims to create an opportunity for the community to really engage in this story. Especially since Colorado has a unique connection to Prop 8 that makes this trial particularly relevant to us. So they have organized a panel to follow the play that includes experts in a range of fields and a variety of perspectives—law, political organizing and activism, religion, psychology—and even an economist who testified in the Prop 8 case. To see what I mean, check out the outstanding panel line-up. As the kids say, awesome!

This is going to be a wonderful evening—a thought-provoking play followed by an informative and engaging panel discussion combined with audience participation. You really don’t want to miss this!

Tickets are on sale at the Out Boulder site (or click here to order now). Get ‘em early, as seating is limited, and the play will happen on this one night only.

So if you haven't done it already, mark your calendar: Thursday, December 8, 7:30, Nomad Theater. 

You’ll be ever so glad you went.