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Best. Lesbian. Week. Ever. (June 18, 2010)

TWEETS OF THE WEEK

Facebook updates, lactating and The Real L Word – all of these topics and more were Tweeted about by queer women in entertainment this week.

If you come across tweets that you think we should feature in “Tweets of the Week” or if you find (verified) Twitter accounts for out lesbian/bi women in entertainment who you think we should follow, please send us that info at [email protected].

THIS JUST IN: THE CREATOR OF CAMP WANATACHI WANTS YOUR LESBIAN CAMP STORIES

Over the past few months, a considerable buzz has surrounded the musical Camp Wanatachi, a quirky story about an all-girls Christian summer camp in which two of the campers fall in love.

When it debuted at New York’s Fringe Festival last year, Time Out New York called it “refreshing and uplifting and gave it four stars. New York Magazine dubbed it a hilariously subversive piece of theater.” Even we had something to say about it.

Produced by Bridget Regan of Legend of the Seeker and Ian Pai, co-founder of Blue Man Group and musical director of Fischerspooner, the zany musical is set to forward-sounding electro tracks with whimsical yet hormone-driven lyrics that evoke the frenetic and confusing but often exhilarating time called adolescence. It features beats by hip-hop producer Machinedrum and was arranged by up and coming composer Conrad Winslow.

Two weekends ago Camp Wanatachi enjoyed a sold out two-night run at the 3LD Art & Technology Center in Lower Manhattan. We caught up with creator Natalie Weiss, who discussed the love story’s autobiographical origins, her offbeat take on God and Christianity, and the future of Camp Wanatachi and its related art installation, in which she would like AfterEllen.com readers – yes you! – to participate.

AfterEllen.com: The main story arc is the love story between two female campers at Christian summer camp. Was the plot inspired by personal experiences?

Natalie Weiss: Yes, the story is roughly autobiographical. Camp Wanatachi follows the relationship of 13 year old Jana, earnest and religious, and 13 year old Titi, promiscuous and enchanting. Jana is essentially me at 13, but with a better collection of Christian ska records. I, like Jana, fell in love with the sluttiest girl at camp, set out to convert her and eventually fingered her in my bunk bed. After which she totally ignored me. This encounter made such an impression on me that I have spent the last three years exploring the experience and the context in which it occurred.

AE: If you don’t mind my asking, do you identify as queer?

NW: Yes. I am romantically attracted to both women and men.

AE: Are you Christian?

NW: Yes, absolutely. But I’m not a “normal” Christian. I am not interested in judgment. I am a sex positive queer theist who wants to actually become Jesus through a slow process of freeing myself from cartoon ideas of God and learning to love perfectly through art.

AE: The version shown on June 3 and 4 was the abbreviated version of the musical. Why was only the abbreviated version shown?

NW: We decided to do an abbreviated version – we called it a “Concert Version” – of Camp Wanatachi due to financial restraints. It is very expensive to mount a full-length musical. When you are doing a concert version, no one expects set pieces, props or costume changes – when doing a full production things like that become necessary.

We hope that when people see the concert version they get the idea, imagine its potential, and invest in Camp Wanatachi! We are in the midst of a fund-raising campaign though kickstarter.com that lasts until June 30. It feels funny to be so direct, but seriously, if you want to see a lesbian relationship at the center of a big Broadway musical for the first time ever, donate any amount and be part of history.

AE: Yes, that would be awesome! So what is the next step for Camp Wanatachi – like perhaps an Off-Broadway run showing the full version of the musical if you raise the funds?

NW: Actually the next step for Camp Wanatachi is a multimedia gallery show and discussion corridor entitled “Jesus in Our Lives” at Ramiken Crucible Gallery in New York City’s Lower East Side this August.

As for our next big musical production, we have received offers to perform the full version of Camp Wanatachi Off-Broadway next year! Hooray! I am still praying that the funds will come in that will allow us to accept one of those offers. Of course our goal is to take Camp Wanatachi to Broadway and it’s looking like that is a real possibility! This s–t is getting mad hyped.

AE: On the donation site, “Jesus in our lives” is described as such: “Jesus In Our Lives’ utilizes photographic, video, performance and interactive components that give a voice to young lesbians and promote frank discussion about the intersection of homosexuality and Christianity.” Can you elaborate on the details?

NW: The gallery show, “Jesus in Our Lives,” serves three purposes. First, it allows me to creatively explore experiences related to Camp Wanatachi that we don’t have time to explore within the format of a Broadway style musical.

Secondly, we are thrilled by the photographs, songs, and video art that our musical has inspired. Conceptual artist Frank Traynor took photographs of our Camp Wanatachi cast through crystal prisms. Those photos are too good to exist solely as publicity shots for us. The audio recordings of Camp Wanatachi songs are incredible. Crafted by my musical hero Travis Stewart (Machinedrum) and featuring performances by musicians like Ben Bromley of New Villager and Ian Pai of Fischerspooner, I want them to be experienced as independent pieces of sound sculpture without the distraction of dancing and lighting changes. Further, the projections we used in our last production, created by visual and performance artist Tom Sawyer, were so beautiful they made me homesick for camp. I want someone to be able to experience those projections alone in an art gallery at two in the afternoon, not just in the context of a banging-ass musical.

Lastly – and most importantly – our proclamation with Camp Wanatachi is that there is “No Fear in Love. That is even the name of the last song in Camp Wanatachi. The Bible states clearly in 1 John 4 that “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear” and that “whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”

So yeah, to answer your question, Ramiken Crucible will be a safe space for everyone to explore the space in which Christianity and homosexuality intersect. If we get haters up in there, they will be removed by a large dyke named Shirley. But this is f—–g New York, and everyone is going to be very nice and supportive.

AE: Can you tell me more about why such a safe space is needed? What kind of fears are you trying to diffuse, if that makes any sense.

NW: There is another kind of fear that a lot of people don’t know about, another fear I am trying to remove with this gallery show. It is the fear of telling people you are Christian. Surely you’re familiar with a few of the reasons someone might not want to be called Christian – the scalping of thousands of Native Americans, the bombing of abortion clinics and the ridiculous appointments of ill-equipped presidents come most immediately to mind. Yet it is a path I cling to, albeit in a nontraditional way, and is a huge part of how I have branded myself as an artist. It is part of my life art.

I often jokingly say that I am out twice over, I’m an out queer and an out Christian. Now, I’m not trying to front like I’m the only young Christian doing cool experimental work. No way. You might not know, but Williamsburg is crawling with talented young hipster Christians who do weird art. But like, their message is so cloaked in reverb and delay pedals that I couldn’t very well call them out Christians. Hell, they don’t even talk about God in public. I mean, they might casually mention that they go to the same church as Sufjan Stevens, but they are not like, at a bar with friends, looking up at the sky and proclaiming to everyone, “Man I am so excited about Jesus’ return! This sunset is so beautiful! I’d love to see Jesus split that sky open on a sweet white horse!” No way.

The cool way to do Christianity is to kinda not mention it and then hopefully someone will come along and be like, “You have a joy – a peace. What is it? Could it be that you are in contact with the great unknown?” Whatever! That is too subtle for me. I’m a musical theater girl. It’s all gotta be over the top!

AE: You told me that you’d like AfterEllen.com readers to participate in this gallery show. How can they be a part of it?

NW: Many, many women had lesbian experiences at summer camp. Right now I have an open call out to women who would like to share their Sapphic summer camp tales. Afterellen.com-ers: did you have any lesbian experiences at a summer camp? Whether your experience was physical or emotional or as a counselor or camper, I am very interested. I am collecting written submissions, as well as audio and video recordings of your stories to include in our gallery show “Jesus In Our Lives” this August. Your story can be credited to you or left anonymous.

If you live in the New York City area we can come to you and create an audio or video recording. If you like, you can send us a video of yourself telling your story and then request that we only use the audio of your story, not the video, so that you can remain more anonymous. Submissions or links to your submissions should be sent to [email protected].

So, AfterEllen readers, it’s time to dig up your randy lesbionic encounters from camp. These stories don’t have to be from Christian summer camp. They can originate from any type of camp – day camp, sleep away camp, music camp, religious camp, non-religious camp, and of course, tennis camp. Also, spread the word about the musical and related art installation, and hopefully next year we’ll be treated to the full version of Camp Wanatachi in an Off-Broadway run. And then, possibly, onto Broadway!

Thanks to Sabrina Haley for the tip.

– by Grace Chu

WORKING THE POLL: SUMMER CONCERT SEASON

Christina Aguilera might have cancelled her Bionic tour, but several others are still soldiering on — even Lilith Fair, which has been reporting poor ticket sales in several cities. Rihanna is having the same problem.

It’s crazy, really, because touring is how most artists make their money. Unless they put out their own albums independently, they see very little revenue from record sales, so ticket and tour merchandise sales are a big part of how they make a living.

Some of the hottest artists will be touring this summer — there’s something for everyone. Which one of these shows are you psyched on seeing in your city?

Which summer concert is on your to-see list?online surveys

In our poll last week, we asked which U.S. city you’d like to see featured on the next installment of Ilene Chaiken‘s The Real L Word. Brooklyn it is!

Which city should be the focus of the next “Real L Word” series?Market Research

LESBIAN VIDEO CLIP OF THE WEEK: BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

On July 9, the new Lisa Cholodenko (High Art, Laurel Canyon) film, The Kids Are All Right, will be released. Having just screened the feature about a lesbian couple (Annette Bening and Julianne Moore) and their kids, we can assure you that you are in for a treat. The press isn’t permitted to say much about the film until after June 25, but we’re happy to report that it’s one of the best movies we’ve seen in a long time, and lesbians are WAY overdue for a smart, funny, complex and high quality film about our lives. Here’s a brief behind the scenes clip to tide you over until the release date:

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

Anyone But Me is hosting a Web-a-Thon to raise funds for Season 3. July 27 – 29 they will show three half-hour specials with “letters from fans, a walking tour of ABM locations and special appearances from the show’s cast.” It’s basically a pledge drive, and if you donate, you can win items like a walk-on role for Season 3, the ability to eavesdrop via Skype on a Season 3 table read, a personalized voice mail greeting performed by a cast member and Vivian’s T-shirt from the season two premiere.

Great LezBritain columnists Sarah and Lee recently interviewed Maxine Peake, the star of The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister. The actress talked about why she pursued the role, doing justice to the role for the LGBT community and how playing Lister has changed her.

Our writer/photographer Lindsey Byrnes is on tour with Tegan and Sara in Europe and shooting some photos to go along with Tegan’s tour blog for Paper Magazine.

When UpScale Magazine recently asked Queen Latifah about her sexuality, she told them (among other things), “I don’t have to explain anything. I don’t have to confirm anything. Look, I need my time. I need my life.” She added, “… You write about it. You go ahead and speculate. I’ll just live it.” Well if you insist

Israeli reader Iris tipped us off to out lesbian contestant Noa Doitch on her country’s version of American Idol, Kohav Nolad. Iris tells us Noa auditioned with the song “I”m not a Man, Nor Woman,” an original song she’s written because people always ask her if she’s a guy. When she made it through to the next round, she kissed her girlfriend in celebration.

Keira Knightley continues to tantalize gay women by kissing Carey Mulligan in their new film, Never Let Me Go. The film, based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, follows two friends at a boarding school who share a “haunting secret.”

In the B-movie The Devil’s Tomb, there is apparently “some of the nastiest lesbian sex you’re ever going to see.” And a reviewer of the DVD notes, “I don’t mean nasty in the sense that it’s hot and nasty. It’s actually pretty gross.”

Ali Davis delivered a RachelWatch Special Edition recap of Real Time with Bill Maher, which featured guests Rachel Maddow, Oliver Stone, Bill Frist and Queen Noor discussing the Gulf oil spill and our little filibuster problem.

The documentary Min n?ªsten normale familie (“My Almost Normal Family”) aired in Denmark this week, following a boy who has two moms. The moms, Nanna and Karen, have been married since 1996 and have four sons. (Thanks for the tip Cardinal!)

Remember when we told you there were no lesbian chefs on this season of Top Chef? We were wrong! Tracey Bloom is this season’s gay lady. “They’ve had a few before,” she told Access Atlanta, “I was kind of hoping for more!”

ComicGeekSpeak.com has posted the final installment of their “director’s commentary” podcast series with Terry Moore, author and artist of Strangers in Paradise (the all-time best comic book series ever). In it, he discusses the final SIP pocket book, which of course includes Francine and Katchoo’s happily every after. Listen to the entire podcast on Terry’s blog.

A Maryland lesbian enjoying a beverage at a local bar was nearly busted for underage drinking because a bar patron thought she was Justin Bieber and called the cops.

Be sure to check out our Gay Summer Reading Guide before your next visit to your independent bookseller.

Out actress Heather Matarazzo and Jennifer Coolidge star in a new film from Fat Girls director Ash Christian. The movie, Mangus, is in post-production and needs some donations to help get it finished (it’s all independently funded).

Ellen DeGeneres will be writing another book! She’s signed a deal with Grand Central Publishing to write her third book, “a look at her life through her humor,” which will be released in the fall. She told The New York Times, “I found that between my talk show, American Idol and my late-night blogging, I didn’t have enough ways to express myself.”

Dana Delany told Digital Spy that if she hadn’t been cast in her new series, things would have ended differently for Robin and Katherine on Desperate Housewives. Originally, they were supposed to break up and Robin was going to leave because Katherine was going to have a sexuality crisis. “Because Katherine doesn’t know whether she’s gay, or she’s straight and she needs to stop trying to find happiness outside herself,” Dana says. “That the happiness is inside.” She also said that Marc Cherry wrote the ending (in which Robin and Katherine go to Paris) in one day based on Dana’s new pilot. In the same interview, Dana also discusses her excitement about playing lesbian on the show. (Hat tip d_wlesbeau.)

Don’t know if you’ve heard, but a little reality show called The Real L Word debuts this Sunday night on Showtime. As part of our coverage, we have interviews with Ilene Chaiken and the cast at the Los Angeles premiere party, as well some suggestions for ways to make The Real L Word iPhone app even better.

Speaking of the show, we’ll be doing both a live Tweetup and a live blog! We want you to participate with us, of course. So if you’re on Twitter, we’ll be using the hashtag #realLwordAE. We’ll post the liveblog right here on AfterEllen.com 10 minutes before the show starts, and we’ll have screencaps, comments from readers and staff, and other musings about the show as it unfolds. Please join us on Sunday night at 10 p.m. EST and follow along with our Twitter handles: @trishtype, @karmankregloe, @thelinster, @hhhoagie, @gracethespot, @daranai and @afterellen.

That’s it for this week! Got the inside scoop on a hot new lesbian/bi actor/musician/TV show/film? Tell us at [email protected]. Check back next Friday for another edition of Best. Lesbian. Week. Ever.

Lesbian Apparel and Accessories Gay All Day sweatshirt -- AE exclusive

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