Columbia Center for Oral History Portal > Oral history interview with Tony Kushner, 2017
Creator: | Kushner, Tony | Project: | LGBTQ+ Columbia University oral history collection. (see all project interviews) | Phys. Desc. : | Transcript 40 pages sound file : digital preservation master, WAV video file : digital preservation master, mp4 | Location: | Columbia Center for Oral History | Full CLIO record >> |
Biographical NoteTony Kushner is a Columbia alumnus and a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. He is active within the New York Civil Liberties Union and an advocate for LGBTQ rights
Scope and ContentsTony Kushner begins his interview by talking about his childhood in Lake Charles, Louisiana and how, from a very young age, he always knew that he was attracted to men. Kushner discusses his attempts to become straight through therapy sessions, and how his denial about his sexuality impacted his time at Columbia University. Kushner analyzes how his experience going to a racially integrated school in Louisiana impacted his views on campus race relations, compared with Northern classmates who had not attended integrated high schools. He also discusses how attending Columbia introduced him to the theater scene in New York City. Kushner describes in depth his experiences being gay and a playwright and addresses his play "Caroline, or Change." He then analyzes the 2017 political situation and what it means for the gay community. Kushner concludes his interview by discussing what it means to him to be an artist and what responsibility he believes artists have to the general public
SubjectsAccess ConditionsCopyright by the Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, 2017
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