Forth Worth Councilman Joel Burns Officiates MY BIG GAY ITALIAN WEDDING Tonight

‘My Big Gay Italian Wedding,' now entering it's 2nd year Off-Broadway, is honored to welcome Fort Worth, Texas City Councilman Joel Burns to the show tonight, June 25th to officiate the marriage ceremony!

A city councilman for District 9 in Fort Worth, Texas, Joel Burns, received national and international press attention in October 2010 after speaking at a council meeting about the issue of suicide among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth, as part of Dan Savage's ‘It Gets Better' campaign. In his speech, which was subsequently released on the Internet as a video, Burns spoke about his own experience as a 13-year-old boy facing bullying at school in Crowley, Texas because of his sexual orientation.

The speech has resonated throughout the Internet in a matter of minutes after Gawker.com had first reported the clip on its website. Shortly thereafter, Burns held his first television interview on the subject with CNN, after the show aired the thirteen minute YouTube clip in its entirety, an unprecedented occurrence for a major daytime news program. One day later, Burns and his speech was featured on scores of national and international news media and in under one week, the clip had garnered over one and a half million views, resulting in more appearances including NBC's Today Show with Matt Lauer and the Ellen Degeneres show. As of late March 2011, the clip has sustained over 2.5 million hits, making it one of the most-watched videos in the 'It Gets Better' campaign.

The production currently features Anthony J. Wilkinson, Chase Coleman, Erik Ransom, Adam Shorsten, Brett Douglas, Liz Gerecitano, Leah Gerstel, Randi Kaplan, Chad Kessler, Kim Sozzi, Marissa Rosen, Meagan Robar, Joe Scanio, Joey Murray, Mike Russo and Tommaso Antico. Teresa A. Cicala directs. Sonia Blangiardo and Dina Manzo are Executive Producers.

My Big Gay Italian Wedding focuses on two gay men as they plan their wedding and the people around them, including an overbearing Italian mother, a jealous ex-boyfriend, the wedding planner from Hell, and an assortment of family and friends.

The production also features choreography by J. Austin Eyer, scenic design by Rob Santeramo, costume design by Philip Heckman, lighting design by Graham Kindred, choreography by J. Austin Eyer, and original music and lyrics by David James Boyd.

St. Luke's Theatre is located at 308 West 46th Street. Tickets are $69.50, including $1.50 restoration fee, and are available through Telecharge.com or by phone at (212) 239-6200.
For more information visit www.BigGayItalianWedding.com

 

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