Russian ambassador goes to see lesbian musical Fun Home with US envoy
The US Ambassador to the UN took the Russian ambassador to see lesbian musical Fun Home, according to reports.
Fun Home is based on feminist author Alison Bechdel’s autobiographical comic of the same name – which has faced repeated censorship for its lesbian content.
The musical features a strong LGBT-affirming lesbian theme.. but apparently that didn’t stop the US Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, from taking the Russian ambassador to see it.
AP and Reuters reports that Ms Power took 15 of her fellow envoys to see the Broadway show, a few minutes away from the UN Headquarters in New York City.
Russia’s ambassador Vitaly Churkin was among those to attend the event – along with the envoys for Australia, Vietnam, Namibia, Norway, Mexico, Uruguay and Gabon.
It’s not clear if all of the ambassadors knew what the musical was about prior to attending, but Ms Power is hoping that seeing a positive lesbian character might open a few minds.
In a Q&A session moderated by Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon, Ms Power told the cast:”Thank you for bringing this all home in a way that resolutions and statements never can.”
The EU’s ambassador Joao Vale de Almeida praised the “great” performance and spoke about his own brother coming out to gay, adding: “It could have gone wrong but they went pretty well,.
“It’s a good story in my case. I know (for) other people, the stories were not so good.”
Switzerland’s Ambassador Jurg Lauber added: “Too often our work is about abstracts. Once in a while it’s important to tell us it’s about people.”
