The Stars in ‘And the Band Played On’ Almost Outshine Its Message
The starry cast in Aaron Spelling’s adaptation of Randy Shilts’ And the Band Played On makes this message film a Hollywood spectacle as much as a work of activist pop art.
aids
AIDS Activism and Sarah Schulman’s Joyous Anger
Schulman’s Let the Record Show argues that AIDS continues to kill queer, drug-addicted, brown, black, undocumented, and uninsured people.
AIDS Play ‘The Normal Heart’ Is a Guide During COVID-19 and Political Indifference
When national leadership isn't addressing a pandemic as it should, Larry Kramer, as playwright and activist, pens the only viable response: "Everyone's entitled to good medical care. If you're not getting it, you've got to fight for it."
Parallels of HIV/AIDS in Tony Kushner’s ‘Angels in America’ and COVID-19 in Trump’s America
Tony Kushner's Angels in America foreshadows our current state of sick politics and bodies and, in particular, the presence of Trump in a time of plague.
Before Ru Paul and Trixie Mattel There Was the Ball Circuit: ‘Paris Is Burning’
Told through the voices and movements of the legends and pioneers of the '80s Harlem drag-ball scene, Paris Is Burning is an indispensable look at one of America's most influential subcultures of the last half-century.
Camp, Satire, and Serious Artistry in Carnival Krewsing
Gay carnival culture in New Orleans offers an interesting parallel to African American culture, observes Unveiling the Muse.
The Stirring ‘BPM (Beats Per Minute)’ Humanizes the AIDS Crisis
A force-of-nature performance by Nahuel Pérez Biscayart anchors Robin Campillo's stirring AIDS crisis drama.
Is There Anything Left to Say About Julia Child? A Great Deal, in Fact
With The French Chef In America, readers get a fresh look at a beloved personality.
Lillian Faderman’s ‘The Gay Revolution’ Gives an Epic Sweep to a Story of Repression and Resistance
How does the amazing evolution in the image and status of gays and lesbians, as well as bisexual and transgender people, affect all Americans? What remains to be done?
What Happens When Public Health Becomes a Battleground for the “Moral Language of Health”
After the Wrath is an amazing read and full of thought-provoking ideas and theories about how religion – leaders, institutions, and policy – frames responses to disease.
Has AIDS Been Lurking Amongst Us Since the ’50s?
Many shoddy theories exist about the origins and evolution HIV/AIDS. Dorothy Crawford's work examines both in great, nail-biting detail.