Bridging the Gap is a community-based project that uses theater as a means to bridge the generation gap in the NYC Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Transgender and Queer (LGBT) community. Younger and older LGBTQ people rarely socialize with each other and, as research shows, they may harbor negative preconceptions about each other. The years since the emergence of HIV and AIDS have seen a consistent increase in LGBTQ visibility and civil rights. But community members remain the targets of hate crimes, bullying, and discrimination. Two groups at opposite ends of the age spectrum remain particularly vulnerable: young people and adults over age sixty. Bridging the Gap brings these two groups together through the creation and public performance of an original theater piece.
After a successful pilot project in 2011, in which an intergenerational group of seventeen community members with varied levels of theatre experience created an original show that they performed for an audience of over 125 people, Bridging the Gap is back! Again, this year, Bridging the Gap will culminate in a free public performance and talk-back with the cast and co-directors, presented on November 10th at 2pm at The Center, Manhattan’s LGBT community center in the West Village.
