Tony Winner Betty Buckley talks about her upcoming
events presented by Adam Berry at the Peregrine Theatre Ensemble in
Provincetown Massachusetts on September 2nd, 3rd and 4th with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of
OUTTAKE VOICES™. Buckley is
doing a "talk back" with the audience after the performance of "Carrie
the Musical" on Sept. 2nd and on Sept. 3rd and 4th she will be
performing songs from her album "Ghostlight" produced by T Bone Burnett
and material from her musical theater catalogue for a two-night concert
event entitled "An Evening With Betty Buckley". Betty has been called
“The Voice of Broadway” and won a Tony Award for her performance as
Grizabella, the Glamour Cat, in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Cats”. Her career
spans across theater, film, television and concert halls around the
world and she was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame in 2012.
Currently she’s appearing as Big Edie in the musical “Grey Gardens” now
through August 30th at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor, New York. We
talked to Betty about her busy summer schedule and as a fierce gay ally
she shared her insights on our LGBT issues.
When asked what her personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights Buckley
stated, “Everyone in theater is completely committed to that and has
great concern because all of our companions are gay. So many artists in
the theater are gay men and gay women, that’s been a cause of mine. My
original dance teachers from the time I was eleven in Fort Worth, Texas
were a gay couple. Thank God for gay people in the arts and in theater
and design. What would we do otherwise? Some of the great fashion, great
theatrical minds are persons from the gay community. My brother Norman
Buckley who’s a brilliant director in television, he directed “Pretty
Little Liars”, “The Fosters”, “Mysteries of Laura” and “Rizzoli &
Isles” amongst other TV shows is a gay man who just lost his husband
last fall to suicide. His husband Davyd Whaley was a brilliant painter
who had been very abused in his childhood for being gay. It’s a profound
and necessary concern of our community. We’ve all raised money for
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS through the years, which has been an
honor and a privilege. I was just at a friend’s house in East Hampton
and their little six year old son has been persistent about saying that
he is a girl and they finally in recent months have allowed him to
assume the identity that is obviously most naturally his. It’s good that
all this information is coming to our consciousness the way it is now.
The bullying and the scare that people feel about not being part of the
mainstream is such a sad thing and we have to stop because its
uniqueness, its individuality that’s created all good things and we
should praise that and celebrate it wherever it occurs in our world.”
Betty Buckley other Broadway credits include “1776”, “Pippin”, “Song and
Dance”, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” and “Carrie”. Her films include
her debut in Brian de Palma’s screen version of Stephen King’s “Carrie”,
Bruce Beresford’s “Tender Mercies”, Roman Polanski’s “Frantic”, Woody
Allen’s “Another Woman”, Lawrence Kasden’s “Wyatt Earp” and M. Night
Shymalan’s “The Happening”. On television Buckley starred for three
seasons in the HBO series “Oz “and as Abby Bradford in the hit series
“Eight is Enough”. She has also appeared as a guest star in numerous
television series, miniseries and films for television. For information
and tickets for her upcoming events in Provincetown, Massachusetts on
September 2nd, 3rd & 4th: peregrinetheatre.com
For More Info: bettybuckley.com
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