Terrence Mcnally Research Paper

John Dionisio

Theater 300

Kevin Slay

15 March 2018

Terrence McNally

This week, I was able to learn more about the LGBT community through understanding LGBT media and theater. Over the past century, many Gay playwrights like Terrence McNally, inspire their audience members through portraying their LGBT identity on televised shows and movies. Over the past years, the LGBT community has been oppressed and ostracized by other people. The LGBT community was often criticized for so many social issues in the past century. Many people in the LGBT community fought for certain rights, such as same-sex marriage, civil unions, medical hormone replacements, and many other rights. Over time the LGBT community has expanded their ideas through theater arts. Thus, in this assignment, I will provide a brief evaluation the history and personal background of LGBT playwright named Terrence McNally. By evaluating McNally’s background, we will be able to familiarize ourselves with the perspective of an LGBT individual in television.

McNally was raised in Corpus Christi, Texas. In his early life, he found his passion in acting and theater arts when he saw a Broadway production called Annie Get Your Gun in 1946 starring Ethan Merman. From there, McNally decided to pursue a degree in English at Columbia University. McNally spent most of his early college life helping Nobel prize winner John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. Through hard work and dedication, McNally drafted his first theater performance called And Things That Go Bump in the Night. His theater performance premiered at the Royale Theatre in New York City, New York. Eventually, McNally decided to pursue a career in theater arts later in his