Tonight, I took my daughters and a few of their friends to see My Big
Gay Italian Wedding, an incredibly funny--and touching--play written by
and starring a longtime One Life to Live friend of mine. I had seen it in its infancy more than ten years ago, but I was excited to share it with some other people.
The fact that both the playwright/star and the director are my friends
gave us the lovely perk of post-show pictures with the cast. I wasn't
surprised that the group of girls, many of them huge theater fans, were
excited about that. What did surprise--and impress--me, however, was how
completely into the show the girls were. They laughed heartily at the
loud over-the-top family members, they clapped along with the music, and
they were genuinely moved by the vulnerability of the lead character.
It didn't matter that many of the characters might be outside of their
daily experience. Their reactions were lovely and human. And I was glad
to know that, at least in one little corner of my world, we are raising
our kids with the compassion to understand choices and families other than their own,
and to feel for people other than themselves.
And I am glad to know that My Big Gay Italian Wedding is here every
weekend (and now, in other places too!) to remind us how important those
choices--and our big, crazy families--are.
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