8 The Play
Written by Dustin Lance Black
Presented by Broadway Impact
and Busted Space Theatre Company
Dustin Lance Black
Dustin Lance Black is a screenwriter, director, film and television producer. He wrote the screenplay for J. Edgar starring Leonardo Dicaprio, which tells the story of J. Edgar Hoover, a powerful head of the F.B.I for nearly 50 years. He also wrote the screenplay for Milk, the story of California’s first openly gay elected official Harvey Milk. Black won two Writers Guild of America Awards and an Academy Award for Best Screenplay for the film. He is also a LGBT Activist and a founding board member of the American Federation for Equal Rights.
American Federation for Equal Rights
The American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER) is a non-profit organization founded in 2009. They have fought for full federal marriage equality for all Americans. AFER was the sponser of the case against Proposition 8 and was responsible for bringing together bipartisan attorneys Theodore B. Olson and David Boies to fight for the fundamental right to marry for same-sex couples in America. AFER was victorious in 2013 when the United States Supreme Court restored marriage equality in California. They also fought against Virginia's discriminatory Marriage Amendment. In 2014, a victory in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit brought marriage equality to the first southern state in the nation, Virginia, and set binding precedent for the freedom to marry in North Carolina, South Carolina, and West Virginia.
Please visit http://www.afer.org/ for more information.
Broadway Impact
Broadway Impact was created in early 2009 when three friends came together to educate and inspire the Broadway community in the fight for marriage equality. Tony-nominated performers Rory O’Malley (Book of Mormon) and Gavin Creel (HAIR) with Production Coordinator Jenny Kanelos, were inspired by the election of President Obama and angered by the creation of Proposition 8. They gathered together their friends to volunteer and created the first grassroots organization to mobilize the nationwide theater community in support of marriage equality.Their mission is to fight for equal rights for all.
"Whether you’re gay, straight, or somewhere in between, we believe that you should be able to marry the person you love."
They partnered with AFER and Dustin Lance Black to coordinate stage readings of a new play called 8 the Play across the nation. Through these readings in theaters and colleges across the United States, they wanted to inspire audiences with the story of one of the most important civil rights cases of our generation. Through the power of theater, these three set out to change the hearts and minds of audience with performing arts.
Please visit http://www.broadwayimpact.com/ for more information.
Two days before the Hollingsworth v. Perry trial, the defendants filed emergency papers with Supreme Court Circuit to block the trial to being aired. Because of this motion, no one expect those involved with the trial, were able to see the proceedings. The American Foundation for Equal Rights got together with Academy-Award winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black to write a play based on the actual words in the Perry trial transcripts, first-hand observations of the trial, and interviews with the plaintiffs and family members. This project culminated into 8 the Play.
Broadway Impact was able to gain the licensing of 8 the Play and had a mission: to stage readings from coast-to-coast at theaters and colleges to inspire audiences with the story of one of the most important civil rights cases of our time. Both AFER and Broadway Impact license 8 the Play for free to use as an educational tool. Readings have also been done on Broadway in New York City and Ebell of Los Angeles. Both readings have included an all-star cast including Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Jane Lynch, Matt Bomer, Larry Kramer, and more.
Find out about the amazing people behind 8 the Play below.
Story of 8 the Play
Watch the Los Angeles Reading Below:
Broadway Impact founders, (pictured left to right):
actor Gavin Creel, production coordinator Jenny Kanelos, and actor Rory O'Malley.