Bv Knrsrm PETTIT e National Film Board of Canada/Studio D provided me a wonderful Valentine’s _ Day surprise: Forbidden Love: The Unashamed Stories of Lesbian Love. In it, ten Canadian women remember what it was like to be a young woman experi- encing her emerging lesbianism in post-WWII Canada, an envi- ronment that offered them only ' distortions of gay identity as their role models, churned out in les- bian pulp fiction and an hysteri- cal, homophobic press. Each woman’s reminis- cence is a personal narrative, of course, but taken together they offer an entertaining window into the good old/bad old days when sex and love between women was the “love that dares not speak its name.” Some of those pre- Stonewall women took the (some- times literal) beating and paid the price for their open rebellion, tr-uly gutsy, as they struggled to express their truest selves, often laboring under the weight of the sleepwalking marriages many drifted into (or used for cover) or the frenetic double lives they led so their gay identity would sur- vive, at least, if not thrive. Now in middle or old age, the women seem comfortable in their bones, having overcome (or burned out?) the fear and anger that dominated their youth. And, still, some women retain an old pain, etched-in around the eyes, but it’s just a memento, not the reality of their lives now. lntertwined with the Women’s stories is a dramatiza- tion of the plot of one of the nov- els ofAnn Bannon, a successful and influential novelist in the “Golden Age of Lesbian Writing” (late 1940’s through mid- 1960s): 3 Young woman leaves home, 3065 to the city — Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal — seeks the gay bar, tries to negotiate the stylized butch/femme roles, takes a lover, makes her way passages remembered by all of us who Came of age in the 19605 or before. Bannon did everything She could to flout the conventions Ofthe genre or the dictates of bosses that called for the charac- ters’ punishment or remorse — Wen their deaths. Some of the novels were set in girls’ reforma- tories but even more usually, in private schools for girls. In May, Vermonters will see on stage just what could befall two teachers in such a school, set in an even earliertime, before the Second World War. Montpelier‘s Lost Nation Theater is offering Lillian Hellman’s 1934 play The Children 3" Hour, set at an upper- crust New England private school headed by two best friends, Karen Wright and Martha Dobie. The two women must deal with the crisis that occurs when an angry student accuses them of having an “unnatural relationship,” a phrase she may have lifted from the cover of the gay books in the town’s drugstore. Of course, Hellman’s play was far from les- bian pulp fiction; it was excellent stagecraft and quite daring for its day. Many of you may even remember the film version in 1962, with Audrey Hepburn and Shirley McLaine as the besieged young teachers. Performances of The Children s Hour will be May 15- 18, May 22-25 and May 29-June 1. Janice Perry and Kathleen Keenan (Lost Nation’s co-artistic director along with Kim Bent) will reinvigorate Hellman’s work, giving immediacy to what many consider to be a dated play. In. fact, Perry thinks it is important to put the play before the public now — perhaps especially the young —- because violence and hatred against gays plague us still. I had a memorable evening myself at LNT in March, thanks to Janice Perry and her students, who were concluding a workshop led by Perry. The Conservatory, a program offered under the direction and imple- mentation of LNT’s theatrical community, offers high school students the opportunity to create theater while being mentored by an acclaimed performer or techni- cian — in this case, Janice Perry, a teaching performance artist. The focus of both teacher and students was intense and respectful as the kids performed their autobio- graphically-based theater pieces for each other. They’ll perform for others soon, as well, bringing their work to the end-game: the live performance for an audience. The Conservatory gives students experience learninghow to produce theater — all aspects of A The Dangs !.esbian Love Recalled In Film and Theatre it — and involves them in a com- munity of like-minded people for support and inspiration. Kids are immersed in three theatrical areas of their choice (undiluted by the distractions and rough and tumble of a typical high school day) and, finally, they engage in a perform- ance experience in a mainstage show, The Children ‘s Hour in May — ifthe tryouts go well, of course. From what I saw of the kids’ performance pieces that night, Janice Perry and Kathleen Keenan will be ably supported when the play opens in May with these women in the lead roles and a selection of young folk appear- ing as the students. ' I reviewed Janice Perry’s video “Holy Sh*t: Stories From Heaven and Hell” in OT [M in June, 2002. Seeing it again — or for the first time — is a tonic, a refreshment against our present- day political theatrics. Its satire is dead on, lampooning “miracles from modern life” as well saints and sinners from the past. In that review, I mentioned Perry’s grow- ing involvement in teaching and her amazement at the capabilities, risk-taking and idealism of stu- ' dents. I said kids would be lucky to spend time under her direction, buoyed by her enthusiastic, chal- lenging support. I said it then because I thought it was probably true and because good teachers have something of the actor in them, and Perry’s a versatile, engaging actor. . Perry says the play still backs a wallop (I re-read it; it does), and she’s looking forward to working with this current crop of Conservatory _students who may play the students in The Children 's Hour. Look for an update in May’s issue of OITM. V For more on The Conservatory program for young thespians call LNT (802-229-0492), and ask for Kim Bent or Kathleen Keenan. For more on Janice Perry or Holy Sh*t: Stories From Heaven and Hell, point your browser at www.janiceperry.com. Kristin Pettit is a semi-retired teacher and drama club coach who lives with her partner in Underhill. 2003-2004 Season t9l(ar7yz.'7y by James Danek A Vermont Premiere! June 5-7 ° South Burlington High School - 7:30PM Till! li|l§ll'|’: ll|Ell\l|JlElEll lllllll\lll|.llGll|ES by Jeff Goode Back by popular demand! December, 2003 Proposed Spring 2004 Production ’ll'fer]il4/£9 gznoli file /Zllnyty Inch A Vermont Premiere! For more information on TOAS, check out our website at www.theatreshoe.com RE/l\«*IAX North l’r0fr:ssionals 463 Mountain View Drive Suite 200 Colchester, VT 05446 Phone: 802-655-3333 X45 Fax: 802-655-0400 Email: Rob@Condoguy.com Rev. Susan Snowden A Clairvoya-ntCotmse1o>ri ’ Graduate of the Berkeley Psychic Institute 4? 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