A schoolteacher married
ore and more
to an attorney, her corn-
movies, TV
ing out was not so
shows and
much
a party but a slow
plays seem to
celebration.
"I never
be exploring the gay lifestyle
had
a
declaration,"
she
these days. And more and
says
of
becoming
a
les-
more, it seems, gay perform-
bian. "It was more like
ers are less scared of opening
an evolution."
their closers, looking for light
It served a dramatic
and love in all the performing
purpose,
too. Miller bared
places.
her
life
in
My Left Breast,
Indeed, an ever-increasing
in
which
she
declared: "I
number of Jews involved in
•
am
a
one-breasted,
the creative arts as writers,
menopausal, bisexual les-
producers and performers are
bian
mom, and I am in!"
cutting a high profile as both
Off-Broadway
thought
gay
; and creative forces in the
she
was
in,
too,
giving
world of arts and entertain-
Miller's
work
an
Obie
ment.
Award.
But what role has Judaism
Miller prizes what
played in their lives, and how
Judaism
has meant to her
supportive has the Jewish
as
a
lesbian
writer and
community been — despite
performer.
"Judaism
the fact that Torah targets
offers a sense of charity,
homosexuality as sinful
of opening doors within
Above left: Tony Kushner: "There was sustenance in the Jewish community," he says. Above right: Paul Rudnick,
behavior.
yourself
to truths and
left, confers with director Frank Oz and producer Scott Rudin on the set of Rudnick's comedy "In and Out."
Interviews with a number
knowledge,
to an under-
of leading lights in the arts
standing
of
the
complex
demnation at someone outside the
gay couple redefine the story of
who are Jewish and gay reveal a pic-
cc norm. ,,
relationships
between
people,"
she says.
Genesis.
ture of tolerance and concern.
Pulitzer
Prize-winning
playwright
_
"I
know
on
a
political
level,
when-
"There is a great Jewish pride in
"There are such strong traditions of
Tony Kushner (Angels in America) had
ever New York City tried to pass a gay
Jewish artists, who often serve as
Jewish liberalism and reverence for
an uncomfortable childhood, living
civil rights bill, there was always an
heroes," adds Rudnick.
culture," says writer Paul Rudnick.
amid the bias of the bayous in Lake
outcry from the Orthodox communi-
But what happens if those artists
His movie In & Out comically
ty. It's ironic, given our own history of Charles, La.
don't follow the straight and narrow?
explored the story of a high school
It was an area where it was bad
being persecuted, that [the Orthodox]
Are Jews narrow-minded about sexual
teacher whose former student teaches
enough
being Jewish, let alone gay.
would be willing to persecute others,
orientation?
him the dangers of sexual self-delu-
Yet,
Kushner,
overtly gay without
he says.
"Jews," says Rudnick with a chuck-
sion. His current Off-Broadway play,
),
proclaiming
his
orientation
while liv-
Writer/actress
Susan
Miller
has
le, "are not exempt from the paradox
The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told,
ing
there,
found
some
comfort
among
had a somewhat unorthodox career.
of heaping praise while hurling con-
puts a new spin on the Bible as two
other Jews. "There was sustenance in

M

The Gay '90s'

Barriers are coming down and tolerance is on the rise.

"

This Year In Israel

S

an Francisco — They'll visit
Masada, Yad Vashem, the
Museum of the Diaspora and
the Western Wall. They'll eat
falafel and float in the Dead Sea.
But they'll also meet with gay and
lesbian activists, authors and artists,
dine at gay-owned
restaurants and
b ,
sunbathe on a gay beach.
It's all part of a 10-day "Journey of
Pride aimed at exploring gay and les-
bian life and culture in Israel. The
mission, scheduled for April 11-22, is
sponsored by the Gay and Lesbian
Task Force and the Israel Center,
both of which fall under the auspices
of the San Francisco-based Jewish
Community Federation (JCF).

Leslie Katz writes for the Jewish Bulletin
ofNorthern California.

The first such trip to be sponsored
by the JCF, "Journey of Pride" aims
to introduce first-timers and old-
timers alike to a new perspective on
the Jewish state. It is geared toward
gays and lesbians, their partners and
friends — though others can join the
group as well.
"The theme is to show gay and les-
bian Jews that Israel is a country where
there is everything for everybody" said
Dr. Sam Tucker, a San Francisco psy-
chiatrist and chair of the trip. "There is
quite a vibrant gay culture there."
Tucker has been to Israel twice,
including on one JCF mission. But
beyond a quick walk through a "gay-
lesbianish" Tel Aviv neighborhood, he
hasn't had the chance to explore
Israeli gay life firsthand.
"Journey of Pride," he believes, will

afford him an opportunity to see the
country in "a whole different way."
Participants will meet with pro-gay
Knesset members Yael Dayan and
Moti Zanberg. They will speak with a
representative of the Association for
Civil Rights in Israel to discuss the
justice system's role in protecting civil
and religious rights.
And they will have an opportunity
to enjoy a Shabbat meal in gay and
lesbian homes.
The visitors will travel north to see
Safed, the capital of Jewish mysti-
cism, as well as spend time in the
border town of Kiryat Shmona, the
local JCF's partner city. In the north,
they will talk with Jewish settlers in
Katzrin, in the Golan Heights.
The group will be in Israel to cele-
brate Israel's Independence and mark

Yom Hashoah, the Holocaust
Memorial Day, and Yom Hazikaron,
Israel's national memorial day.
The trip — which costs $2,500 per
person, including airfare, room, board
and touring fees — arose out of rec-
ommendations made by the gay and
lesbian task force established by the
federation more than two years ago.
"There are so many gay and les-
bian Jews in the Bay Area," said Alan
Rothenberg, who served as JCF presi-
dent in 1996-1997, shortly after the
task force was founded. "We were
trying to figure out how to reach out
to that group and make them feel
more comfortable in a lot of Jewish
settings." I 1
— Leslie Katz

3/26
1999

Detroit Jewish News

97