This year we celebrated Pride by going to see the lesbian musical Fun Home. The celebration started when my partner Barbara won free tickets from WRTI, the local jazz radio station.
We started the evening with dinner and then a short stroll through the back alleys of Philadelphia’s “gayborhood” — where I found out that the Bike Stop still exists (from my memories of coming out thirty some years ago.
Fun Home is based on the 2006 graphic memoir of the same name written and illustrated by Alison Bechdel. It is a touching coming of age story based on the author’s lesbian identity and that of her father, a closeted gay man. The play didn’t disappoint, but when my partner left, she had a puzzled tone in her voice when she said that the audience was mostly straight people. Thankfully, the world has changed.
I’ve never met Alison but have long read her comic strip “Dykes To Watch Out For” and have read her graphic novels. Then when my book Tea Leaves: a memoir of mothers and daughters was published (2012: Bella Books), it was in the same review as one of Alison’s books in Curve magazine.
This blog post is dedicated to my late friend Toni Brown.
Toni was a wonderful poet and writer and you can hear her read her work by clicking here.
Before moving to Philadelphia, Toni lived for many years in North Hampton Mass. She may have told me that she once knew Alison Bechdel or it just may be that North Hampton (which I visited several times) was so very much like the “Dykes To Watch Out For” comic strip that I always associate it with her. Thank you Toni.
Janet Mason, author 