1,000 Homosexuals
is a new comedy that recounts the story of Anita Bryant's 1977 crusade against
gay civil rights in Miami-Dade county.
The play is a documentary/fantasy/comedy
presenting Anita just the way she would want: as a musical Joan of Arc battling
a powerful and perverse gay mafia.
Due to Anita’s concern for her family, she resists taking a stand against a
county-wide gay rights ordinance.
After she heeds God’s call to take heroic action, Anita pays a heavy price for
her stand. The play bends documentary sources such as
government records, newspaper stories and underground gay manifestos into a
twisted carnival of 70s-style sex and faith.
In the late 1970s, then-County Commissioner Ruth Shack introduced a Human Rights
Ordinance including sexual orientation protection.
After the ordinance’s adoption, Anita Bryant—former beauty queen,
aspiring singer and spokeswoman for the Florida Citrus Commission—led the highly
publicized “Save Our Children” campaign against it.
As a result, her infamy soared.
Nearly 6 months after the ordinance was passed, Bryant succeeded in
repealing it.
In 1998, the controversial human rights debate was temporarily laid to rest with
the adoption of a second Human Rights Ordinance.
Again, the ordinance was challenged—this time by the Christian Coalition
in 2002. With the same fervor that
Bryant campaigned against gay rights in 1977, SAVE Dade successfully spearheaded
the “No to Discrimination” campaign in 2002 and the ordinance was
not repealed this time.
The world premiere of 1,000 Homosexuals,
this coming Fall, is timely—immediately following a referendum to place the
so-called Marriage Protection Amendment in the State of