NEW YORK SUCCESS!--FACING EAST (upstanding Mormon couple deals with suicide of gay son) plays its final week Off-Broadway, through Sunday 17th. Still time to go or send your friends! Call 212-279-4200.

FROM THE CRITICS:
"Some theatre is good drama. Some drama is important theatre. FACING EAST is both"...."doesn't bear even the slightest trace of exploitation: only truth, simply and beautifully told"...."Surprisingly sophisticated, bristles with authenticity"...."I was unprepared for the high quality of the acting and the writing. Here's where I must admit to a bit of New York bias as this show has transferred in from Utah."
For full reviews, see: http://www.planbtheatre.org/facingeast/buzz.html
For interview with author and director, see: http://www.broadwayworld.com/printcolumn.cfm?id=18914

FROM THE AUDIENCE:
"As I watched the depiction of these three lives colliding into the beginning of forgiveness and healing, the tears rolled off my face and I was filled with such gratitude to you for this amazing work."
"During the play I noticed that my husband had his head down and I worried that he might be having a hard time staying awake because of jet lag. But then I saw there were tears running down his cheeks. Such a powerful, beautiful message!"
"As a non-religious Jewish woman, I can't even begin to tell you how FACING EAST moved me."

MEMORABLE MOMENT: "ISN'T IT GREAT TO BE USEFUL?"
Walking from my apartment to catch the subway to the theatre, I passed an elementary school surrounded by a tall wall of brick and wrought iron. At the corner, a short, white, female police officer tossed a basketball to a tall black kid, maybe twenty. Clearly she had asked if he would shoot the basketball over the fence to get it back where it belonged on the playground. I watched as he skillfully aimed the ball and shot it right over the twenty-five foot wall. Seconds later I stood beside the young man as we waited for the light to turn green. I looked up at him and smiled and said, "Isn't it great to be useful?" He smiled back at me and I saw that all four of his front upper teeth were missing (many young black men these days, I thought, have lots of cards stacked against them). "Yeah!" he said, with a fervor that surprised and delighted me, "Oh, yeah!"
Walking on, I thought, Useful. Useful. I slipped into my "synchronicity space." I had been thinking about the word "useful" earlier that morning. What was it? Yes. I had been reading an article about the plays and musicals up for Broadway's Tony Awards. Reading through all those impressive names of productions and of people, I had smiled self-consciously at the very idea that my FACING EAST is appearing Off-Broadway, right in the neighborhood of all those great shows–Inherit the Wind–Translations–The Coast of Utopia.
Well, I said to myself, FACING EAST may never get a Tony, and it may never go down in the annals of great plays. But–FACING EAST sure is–useful. Really useful.
I was thinking of the email I had received that morning:
"I want you to know that you saved another life. My partner and I attended your play in Utah. She had been struggling so much with our religion and being a lesbian and was close to taking her life over it. Your play, hug and kind words brought a new light and hope into her life. I just wanted to thank you... for saving the person I love!"

I would not mind this being my epitaph: SHE WAS USEFUL.

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SAN FRANCISCO PERFORMANCES: Tickets now on sale!

August 10-26
THEATRE RHINOCEROS
2926 16th Street
TICKETS: 415-861-5079
For tickets online, go to http://www.ticketweb.com and enter "Facing East"

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MORE GOOD WORDS FOR NEW BOOK--NO MORE GOODBYES: CIRCLING THE WAGONS AROUND OUR GAY LOVED ONES:
"I recently bought six copies of NO MORE GOODBYES, and last Sunday I donated one to the Ward Library and gave a copy to my bishop. I told him I thought it ought to be required reading for every bishop, and for every member for that matter!"

SPEAKING EVENT: I will be giving a workshop on THE MAGIC AND MEANING OF COINCIDENCE, as well as a presentation on NO MORE "US" AND "THEM" at EYES WIDE OPEN, a luxury resort weekend for gays and lesbians August 23-26 near Lake Tahoe. See: http://yourlifeonpurpose.com/

TO PURCHASE NO MORE GOODBYES, FACING EAST, GOODBYE, I LOVE YOU, OR MOTHER WOVE THE MORNING, VISIT www.nomoregoodbyes.com.

Have a fabulous summer!

"My country is the world, and my religion is to do good."
–Thomas Paine


Love to All,
Carol Lynn