I recently saw the off-Broadway
play The Judy Show. An absolutely hilarious one-person show starring comedian
Judy Gold, it’s all about Gold’s life as a lesbian and a Jew, and her quest to
get a sitcom on TV featuring a family with gay parents.
I totally loved this play. I saw
it with my mom, and the two of us were literally clutching our sides with
laughter. While I would have really appreciated if she specifically identified
with the feminist movement, it’s clear that Gold does support the ideals of
women’s rights. She’s also extremely active in gay rights (a feminist cause),
hosting the Sirius/XM weekly radio show “Hatched By Two Chicks” and the GLAAD
Media Awards, as well as performing on a half-hour comedy special for LOGO,
among other activities.
In the play, she talks about
growing up Jewish in predominantly Gentile Clark, New Jersey. Being Jewish is a
clear part of Gold’s identity: she usually describes herself as a “6”3 lesbian
Jew.” (I appreciated her usage of the word Jew as opposed to Jewish,
since people are often reluctant to label themselves so blatantly as Jews.) A
lot of her jokes are about her stereotypically Jewish mother, obsessed with her
children and the state of Jewry. A lot of my own mother’s idiosyncrasies are
similar to what Gold was describing, although I never realized they were Jewish
mother things. (I thought everyone took the soap and shampoos from hotels! I
means, it’s just there for the taking…and doesn’t everyone look at lists of
names and point out the Jewish ones?) Gold had her rebellious moments, though:
in high school, she ate cheeseburgers, knowing that her parents would be
horrified at this blatant disregard of Jewish law. She now calls herself
observant, which I think is beautiful. I know many LGBT Jews feel it’s impossible
to be religious and gay at the same time, and the fact that Gold is able to do
both really gives me hope.
Another thing I found interesting
was that Gold didn’t talk about coming out as gay to her friends. I think it’s
great that she never felt a need to announce to the world that she’s a lesbian
- I mean, do straight people have to tell everyone their sexuality? Gold did
struggle with telling her parents, though. Her father knew she was gay, but she
was never able to tell him directly, and she deeply regretted it when he died.
She eventually told her mother and sister. While it took her mom a while to get
used to the idea (she originally told people that Gold’s “roommate” had a baby
and she adopted him), she came around.
The whole premise of The Judy
Show is that Gold wants a sitcom about her family called The Judy Show:
a divorced lesbian couple with two sons. Gold was fascinated with TV during her
childhood and adolescence: in the play, she explains how shows like The Jeffersons,
Maude, Three’s Company, and The Brady Bunch shaped her
views on the world and her expectations for life (which, unfortunately, were
not always met). She went to several networks and pitched the idea, but was
repeatedly turned down, even by LOGO. OWN actually began filming, but then
decided to nix the show because of the controversy it would stir (something the
financially-suffering network feels it can’t afford).
I do find it interesting that
Gold has faced so much opposition and disinterest to her idea. Modern Family,
which has won and been nominated for dozens of prestigious awards, has a gay couple with an adopted child; Will
and Grace, which was also wildly successful,
featured two gay men and their hags. Why is the concept of a whole show
centered around a family with two mommies so threatening to TV producers?
Shouldn’t TV shows reflect the reality of the world, which now includes
families with gay parents?
Whatever the case, I look forward
to the day when kids - hopefully my own - can watch The Judy Show on TV
every week on prime time.
Get your tickets fast - The
Judy Show closes on November 27!
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