My
girlfriend
and
I
recently
went
to
see
Oprah
Winfrey’s
presentation
of
Alice
Walker’s
“The
Color
Purple”
at
the
Fox
Theatre.
I
must
admit
that
when
I
heard
that
a
musical
was
made
to
depict
one
of
the
best
books
and
films
of
the
20th
century,
I
was
not
at
all
excited.
I
know
it
is
Oprah,
but
given
the
subject
matter
of
the
story,
I
could
not
(no,
I
would
not)
allow
myself
to
believe
that
someone
(not
even
Oprah)
would
be
bold
enough
to
tell
the
story
on
stage
and
stay
authentic
to
the
book
when
covering
issues
such
as
infanticide,
domestic
violence,
incest,
infidelity,
racial
and
religious
oppression,
patriarchy,
misogyny,
love,
and
yes,
even
same-sex
love.
The
film,
which
premiered
in
1985,
became
one
of
my
favorites.
I
can
quote
it
line
for
line,
from
infamous
lines
like,
“It’s
gon’
rain
on
yo’
head,”
to
more
subtle
lines
like,
“See
Daddy.
Sinners
have
souls
too.”
I
was
14
years
old
when
the
film
premiered
and
since
then
I
have
seen
it
innumerable
times.
It
would
be
another
nine
years
before
I
would
read
Alice
Walker’s
“The
Color
Purple”
and,
as
many
times
as
I
had
seen
the
film,
only
then
did
some
of
the
scenes
make
sense.
The
book
helped
me
better
understand
the
scene
where
Shug
Avery
and
Miss
Celie
kiss,
as
well
as
one
of
the
last
scenes
where
they
appear
to
live
together.
The
meaning
of
the
kiss
was
always
“fuzzy”
to
me,
but
I
can
remember
reading
the
book
and
saying
out
loud,
“Oh!
Now,
I
get
it!”
The
kiss
between
Shug
and
Miss
Celie
was
not
just
endearing
(as
the
film
would
lead
one
to
believe).
The
kiss
was
that
of
love,
as
well
as
a
deep
intimacy
that
Shug
and
Miss
Celie
were
not
able
to
have
with
men
in
the
patriarchal,
misogynist
and
religiously
oppressed
society
of
the
era.
Women
were
considered
property
to
their
husbands
and
in
the
absence
of
love,
sex,
in
most
instances,
was
considered
an
obligation.
But
Shug
and
Miss
Celie
developed
a
relationship
that
transcended
the
bounds
of
that
obligation
and
the
oppression
that
being
in
relationships
with
men
dictated.
They
discovered
a
true,
genuine,
intimate
love
that
both
of
them
had
never
been
privileged
to
have
as
the
property
of
men.
Today,
we
call
their
kind
of
love
“same-sex
love”
or
homosexuality.
Black
homosexual,
bisexual,
and
transgender
individuals
(e.g.
LGBT)
are
often
abhorred
in
African-American
society.
As
a
black
lesbian,
I
have
been
subjected
to
homophobia
within
the
African-American
community,
as
have
many
of
my
black
LGBT
brothers
and
sisters.
There
are
several
factors
that
contribute
to
the
perpetuation
of
homophobia
within
the
African-American
community,
including
patriarchal
attitudes,
misogyny,
misinterpretations
of
biblical
scripture,
mis-education,
and
lack
of
education
about
our
culture
that
we
were
forced
to
abandon
during
the
Diaspora,
to
name
a
few.
As
a
licensed
mental
health
clinician,
I
often
explain
to
my
patients
and
their
families
that
same-sex
love
is
not
merely
about
sex,
but
intimacy
and
love.
Many
of
the
women
whom
I
see,
who
have
been
married
or
once
identified
as
heterosexual,
often
cite
a
deep
level
of
intimacy
as
a
predominant
(though
not
the
only)
factor
in
the
transition
of
their
heterosexual
identity
to
lesbian/bisexual
identity.
Though
many
enjoyed
sex
with
men,
most
did
not
experience
this
level
of
intimacy
in
their
relationships
with
men.
Unfortunately,
however,
many
of
my
African-American
patients
have
more
difficulty
than
my
Caucasian
patients,
who
face
the
same
issue,
resolving
their
lesbian/bisexual
identity
due
to
fear
of
not
being
accepted
and
affirmed
in
the
African-American
community
—
the
same
community
that
is
important
to
them,
in
which
they
hold
strong
ties,
and
where
they
have
been
accepted
when
they
could
not
find
acceptance
anywhere
else.
Perhaps
in
1985,
Steven
Spielberg
—
director
of
the
film
“The
Color
Purple”
—
and
Hollywood
felt
that
America
was
not
ready
for
the
“real”
story
behind
Shug’s
and
Miss
Celie’s
relationship.
Quite
honestly,
I
am
not
sure
that
straight
black
America
is
any
more
ready
for
the
real
story.
I
am
happy
to
say,
however,
that
Oprah
Winfrey
kept
the
storyline
between
these
two
characters
true
to
the
book
and
African-American
people
who
went
to
see
the
musical
were
forced
to
grapple
with
their
discomfort
over
Shug’s
and
Miss
Celie’s
relationship,
and
in
essence
concede
to
their
homophobia.
Not
only
did
these
characters
share
an
intimate
kiss
on
stage,
the
storyline
between
the
two
was
reaffirmed
as
Shug
confessed
her
love
for
Miss
Celie
while
begging
to
allow
her,
...
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Stacey Day on 9/3/0812:13 AM:
Great article, except that I think your thanks may be misdirected. I love Oprah, but I think she was not at all associated with this production until she signed on as an exec producer well after the Atlanta premiere and just before the Broadway opening. So I don't think she added anything creatively, but having her name associated with the show helped sell tickets. I think the biggest creative forces were lead producer Scott Sanders and bookwriter Marsha Norman, because all of the things you mention were in the production before Broadway.
