PlayNotes - Season 49, Issue 6 - The Cake

Written by Bekah Brunstetter

Discussion Series

Join us for a Book Club-style Page to Stage with the Portland Public Library. Check out your copy of the script and join us two weeks before previews of each Mainstage Production. Scripts are available at the reference desk at the Main Branch of the Portland Public Library. This year discussions will be held in the Rines Room at 1:30pm two weeks before a show opens. Feel free to come and chat about the plays with Literary Manager, Todd Brian Backus; his Directing and Dramaturgy Apprentices, and special guests. Visit portlandlibrary.com/programs-events/ for more information.

The Artistic Perspective , hosted by Artistic Director Anita Stewart, is an opportunity for audience members to delve deeper into the themes of the show through conversation with special guests. A different scholar, visiting artist, playwright, or other expert will join the discussion each time. The Artistic Perspective discussions are held after the first Sunday matinee performance.

Curtain Call discussions offer a rare opportunity for audience members to talk about the production with the performers. Through this forum, the audience and cast explore topics that range from the process of rehearsing and producing the text to character development to issues raised by the work Curtain Call discussions are held after the second Sunday matinee performance.

All discussions are free and open to the public. Show attendance is not required. To subscribe to a discussion series performance, please call the Box Office at 207.774.0465.

HannaH Cordes, Paula Vogel, anita stewart, and todd Brian BaCkus in a talkBaCk, Portland stage ComPany.

The Cake

by Bekah Brunstetter

PlayNotes Season 49 Editorial Staff

Editor in Chief Todd Brian Backus

Contributors

Audrey Erickson, Nick Hone, Rachel Ropella, Liana SC, & Thalia Wolff

Copy Editor

Adam Thibodeau

Cover Illustration

Cody Brackett

Portland Stage Company Educational Programs, like PlayNotes, are generously supported through the annual donations of hundreds of individuals and businesses, as well as special funding from:

The Onion Foundation

The Robert & Dorthy Goldberg Foundation

Margaret E. Burnham Charitable Trust

George & Cheryl Higgins

Susie Konkel

Letter from the Editors

Dear PlayNotes Readers,

Welcome to another delicious edition of Playnotes!

In this issue, we explore the world of The Cake, Bekah Brunstetter's drama inspired by the 2018 Masterpiece Cakeshop supreme court case. When Jenn comes back to her hometown with her fiancee, Macy, family friend Dela must examine the values she's learned and decide whether or not she will make the happy couple's wedding cake. Curious about the real-life inspiration for this play? Check out "Masterpiece Cakeshop" (pg. 20) and learn more about LGBTQ+ legal advocacy today in our sit-down with Portland's own Equality Maine (pg. 12).

We explore the world of The Cake with the articles “The Great British Bakeoff” (pg. 14) and "The History of the Wedding Cake" (pg. 16) .

Want to learn more about this production of The Cake? Head over to our "Interview with the Director - Todd Brian Backus” (pg. 10).

When compiling each issue of PlayNotes, we strive to provide articles and interviews that give you insight into what the process has been like behind the scenes (see articles in “Portland Stage’s The Cake”), contain pertinent information about the play’s setting and major themes (“The World of The Cake”), and provide deeper dives into specific subjects that compelled our literary department (“Digging Deeper”). We include a list of books, films, plays, and television shows that we hope audiences will access for more cultural content that relates to the play (“Recommended Resources”).

We are so excited to have you join us in welcoming this sweet treat to end our season, and we hope you enjoy seeing The Cake.

Sincerely yours,

The Portland Stage Literary Department

Todd Brian Backus

Audrey Erickson

Rachel Ropella

About the Play

by Rachel Ropella

What do you get when you take one conservative Southern baker, a lesbian couple, and one disapproving husband and mix them all together? The Cake, a topical, delicious comedic drama by Bekah Brunstetter. The baker, Della, is delighted when Jen–who she’s seen as a daughter for years–comes into her bakery and asks her to bake the cake for her upcoming wedding. But when Della finds out it’s a lesbian wedding, she has a crisis of conscience, as she and the rest of the characters must grapple with what love and commitment truly look like.

Originally from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, playwright Bekah Brunstetter has spoken extensively on how her upbringing has been deeply influential in the writing of this play. When interviewed by Concord Theatricals’ publication Breaking Character, Brunstetter notes, “I have a lot of people in my life and in my family that are like Della. I feel really protective of them, and I was starting to feel a frustration with how people like Della were being treated and perceived in the media… But as protective as I feel about that character, I also have my own anger and frustration with her values. I also wanted to give myself an opportunity to put myself in conversation with her and challenge her.”

The Cake was first produced by the Echo Theater Company in Los Angeles in 2017, and was then produced by the Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC), where it was directed by MTC's artistic director, Lynne Meadow, in 2019. For both the West and East Coast premieres, the role of Della was played by Debra Jo Rupp, who is best known for her role of Kitty Forman on the sitcom That ‘70s Show.

Barbara Schuler for Newsday wrote that the Off-Broadway production was “a beautifully nuanced, layered portrait of a woman in conflict with her own beliefs.” Since its Off-Broadway run, The Cake has been produced at major theaters across the country before finding its way to Portland Stage, where it’s sure to find a way to win over your heart (and maybe even your sweet tooth!).

two Brides admire tHeir wedding Cake

About the Characters

by Rachel Ropella

Name: Samantha Rosentrater (AEA) Character: Della

A cheery Christian with a sweet tooth and the proud owner of Della’s Sweets. She is married to Tim and is gearing up to be a contestant on The Big American Bake Off.

Name: Eileen Hanley Character: Jen

A Southern sweetheart who moved to New York and has dreamed of her wedding since she was little. She is still grieving the passing of her mom and is engaged to Macy.

Name: Raymond McAnally (AEA) Character: Tim

A devout Christian plumber, married to Della. He can be a teddy bear who loves a homecooked meal, but is also deeply set in his ways.

Name: Echaka Agba (AEA) Character: Macy

An online article writer from Brooklyn who has a complicated relationship to sugar and is engaged to Jen, even though she is skeptical about the institution of marriage.

Pre-Show Activities

by Liana SC and Nick Hone

1. This play is inspired by an actual Supreme Court case in 2018, Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. Read the PlayNotes article covering this case and discuss it with a partner.

2. What’s your favorite kind of cake? Find someone who disagrees and debate why your cake is better.

3. In this play, Macy enters a community in North Carolina that is wildly different from the community she is used to in Brooklyn. Consider a time when you encountered a community different from your own. What did you experience? How did it make you feel? Did you learn anything from interacting with people different from those whom you are normally surrounded by?

4. In this play, two of the main characters, Jen and Macy, feel disconnected from their families because of who they are. Have your family's expectations of you ever come into conflict with your identity? Write a paragraph exploring this topic.

Post-Show Activities

by Liana SC and Nick Hone

1. This play asks the question of whether Della is a good or bad person because of her reluctance to bake Jen a cake. Why do you think she might be a bad person? Why do you think she might be a good person? What do you think the playwright wants to say? Discuss.

2. Does Della change her mind by the end of the play? Do Jen and Macy? Why or why not?

3. In this play, all of the characters grapple with ingrained belief systems that are causing them to feel shame about their actions and choices. What do the different characters do to face this shame? What solutions do they find, or if they don’t find solutions, what do they do to hide from their shame?

4. Certain characters in this play connect to stereotypes some people have of those in different generations or geographical locations from them. List out some of the ones you noticed and discuss with a partner.

5. At the end of the play, Della did make a cake for Jen, but didn’t attend the wedding. What do you think that meant for Della? What do you think that meant for Jen and Macy?

Focus Questions

by Liana SC and Nick Hone

1. Della, the baker in The Cake, is set to be a contestant on a fictional baking contest based in part on the very popular Great British Bake Off. Read the PlayNotes article titled “What’s the Deal with The Big American Bake-Off?” Why do you think baking reality competitions such as this have become so popular in the last decade? Find a partner and discuss.

2. Who do you think is the protagonist of this story? Who, if anyone, do you think is the antagonist?

3. Jen feels a sense of pride and belonging in North Carolina while also feeling rejected because of her sexuality. Do you have pride in where you’re from? Does where you are from conflict with anything else you are or believe?

4. Reflect on your paragraph about your family’s expectations vs. your experience, and compare it to the experience of Jen and Macy in the play. Were there any similarities or differences? Did you connect with anything you saw?

An Interview with the Director Todd Brian Backus

Edited for Length and Clarity by Rachel Ropella

Directing and Dramaturgy Apprentice Rachel Ropella sat down with director Todd Brian Backus to talk about his artistic journey with Portland Stage and building space for queer theatermakers.

Rachel Ropella (RR): You’ve been involved with Portland Stage in different roles, starting in 2011 within the apprentice program. What has your artistic journey looked like from then to now?

Todd Brian Backus (TBB): In undergrad, I got a degree in acting directing and graphic design. So when I first started at Portland Stage, I was actually the marketing apprentice, I took photos and did social media, but would also help with focus and strike. That was really important to me, because in my undergrad, my professors stressed the importance of directors understanding all of the different elements of the craft. It allowed me to think about how a theater continually produces work, which was really foundational for me. In 2014, I ran away to New York for a couple years and made work with a couple of friends from my apprentice year with our company,

PowerOut. In fact, Emily White who's doing costumes for The Cake, designed a bunch of shows for us. We all did like seven or eight shows together in about 15 months in New York. Around the time that we were finishing our last show, Emily Dickinson: Paranormal Investigator , which I wrote, the position for the literary manager at Portland Stage opened up. I applied, and now here I am!

RR: What’s something that’s excited you during the rehearsal process?

TBB: Our cast is incredible. We are a week in, and they are mostly off book and we are just playing and exploring in this space in a way that's really exciting to me. I am the sort of person that wants to give people a little structure, and then play to see what we can build together. I think that is the most fun part of the collaborative process—just entering this place where we're here to do a job but we’re also here to figure out how this thing works together.

RR: So much of this play is deeply grounded in realism, but there are times it becomes more fantastical as Della daydreams about The Big American Bake Off. How did you approach creating these ‘reality-breaking’ moments with designers?

TBB: I'm really excited about how we're using the light and sound in these moments to really heighten and change the world. I'm more interested in reflections and refractions of the world. And the thing that really sold me on The Cake, is in these heightened moments where the lights get a little weird and you know, the energy is a little heightened. We get to peek into Della’s psychological state, we get to see how she wrestles with a decision she just made and she's also questioning if the cake that she made is worthwhile. For me, getting to pair these two, metaphorical and literal elements at the same time, gets us to a place that's much more exciting.

todd Brian BaCkus. PHoto By erin elizaBetH.

RR: The Cake has these heightened moments of emotional intensity as well as intimacy, how do you approach making space for actors to be vulnerable in the rehearsal process? How do you make that space for yourself as well?

TBB: On the first day of rehearsal, I sat down with the cast and we talked about how this play is very funny, and also a lot of other things. This play deals with a lot of hard topics, particularly for people in the queer community. In rehearsal, we’re making space to talk about what it means to get rejected on coming out. What does it mean to have someone that you love disapprove of how you love? As someone who came out in high school, I haven't grappled with it in a long time, I have felt like I could very authentically be myself for a long time. And yet, in working on these scenes in this play, I have to figure out how do we make these moments feel raw for Jen and for the audience watching it, but also safe for Eileen, our actress portraying this character. With this show, we can't just run these scenes full throttle all the time. It's about making sure that it is a safe emotional space for both myself and everyone in the room with the level of intensity in this work.

RR: How have you approached working on a play that humanizes such a politically divisive conflict, especially now with some of the legislation we are seeing in our country?

TBB: I think what's really hard about doing plays about political topics is that if you really want to convince someone of anything, truly anything, the two of you need to see each other as people. In a worse version of this play, Della could be a one note, very ideological, and ‘bad’. I think what Bekah Brunstetter does so well is showing that this lady is trying hard, but she's not perfect, she's gonna mess up and so many people do. I think it's really hard that in our world right now, there's this feeling that people are either ideologically pure or disposable, and nothing in between. And I think that that is such a hard way to live because so many of us are contradictions of different things. It gives me hope that people who really sympathize with Della at the start of the play will also see what

is possible on the other side of that conflict. To consider what it might mean, if we could all just love each other a little more, and have grace for one another. I think that's one of the things that drew me to this script is the grace. Macy has an incredible amount of grace, despite a lot of times where Della says just the wrong thing. My hope is that an audience watching this will leave the show, thinking like how can I bring a little more grace into my life, as in how can I offer kindness and understanding to people that I might not agree with right away? How can we find a way forward together?

RR: What one thing that you hope the audiences of Portland Stage take away from this production after watching The Cake?

TBB: I think truly for me, it's that grace. It's something that I've been reminded of, not just during this process, but at other times in my life. Like, “Hey, Todd, these people are actually coming at this from a different life experience and point of view and maybe you need to honor that a little bit. This might be hard for you, too and I can't just assume that you're like being a jerk to be a jerk." And I think if everyone can leave the play and think, “How can I be a little kinder and truly try to understand where someone else is coming from?” I think that if that happens, we'd have done our jobs right.

HeatHer HarVey and zo tiPP (aea) in Emily Dickinson: Paranormal invEstigator, written By todd Brian BaCkus. PHoto By todd Brian BaCkus.

Community Connections: EqualityMaine

Edited for Length and Clarity by Audrey Erickson

We [also] invest time and energy around advocating for laws and policies that protect our community, at the local, state, and federal level. As the director, I get to sort of make sure all that happens, which is exciting. I got involved in this work 12 years ago or so. I lost my job when I transitioned, and found a great community here in Maine and in Portland. I started volunteering with a couple of different LGBTQ organizations, and one of them was EqualityMaine, on the marriage campaign of 2012. And from there, I went from volunteer to Executive Director.

AE: What is EqualityMaine working on right now?

Directing and Dramaturgy Apprentice Audrey Erickson sat down with Executive Director of EqualityMaine, Gia Drew, to discuss EqualityMaine's work supporting the LGBTQ+ community in Portland and across the state.

Audrey Erickson (AE): Thank you so much for sitting down with me today, Gia. Can you tell our PlayNotes readers a bit about yourself?

Gia Drew (GD): I'm Gia Drew, and I'm the Executive Director at EqualityMaine. My pronouns are she and hers. I've been with EqualityMaine for ten years, and I've been the Executive Director now for about nine months.

AE: Can you tell us about EqualityMaine’s mission, and how you got involved?

GD: EqualityMaine [has] been advocating on behalf of Maine's LGBTQ+ community for 39 years. Our work usually involves three different areas. We provide a lot of education around what it means to be LGBTQ... We do a lot of community-building to make sure folks who are connected to our community feel connected to one another, across this beautiful, large, rural state.

GD: There's a lot of stuff happening really locally… school board fights, trying to ban books or drag queens at schools. We're trying our best to support local communities and those efforts. [We] develop some messaging and some toolkits around how folks can get involved and what they can do to support their local LGBTQ kids. At the state level, unfortunately, there are 40+ anti-LGBTQ bills that have been introduced. Nothing like this has ever happened in the history of Maine. There are 450 bills across the country. But we also have a positive agenda, we're trying to get 12 pro-LGBTQ [bills] passed as well.

AE: Can you tell us what some of those bills are, and what issues we should be paying attention to?

GD: Like most of the bills across the country, most of the anti-LGBTQ bills have to do with public schools. The majority of those [bills] have to do with, quote, unquote, "parental bill of rights." I say "quote, unquote" because it has nothing to do with parents' rights, it just has to do with disrupting public education. [We want to shape] what curriculum looks like, to make sure curriculum is inclusive and diverse and represents the diverse humanity we live amongst, across this globe and here in Maine.

gia drew.

There's some bills around trans rights in schools, making sure that kids get to use names and pronouns that they like best. For the second time, there's a bill that would ban transgender girls from participating in sports from as young as kindergarten, all the way through college… [With] our positive bills, some have to do with cleaning up state government to make sure that all their vital records and forms have spaces for "M [male]," "F [female]," and "X [unspecified or another gender identity]." We'll try to make sure that gender-affirming care is covered by MaineCare which it already is, but it's not in law, so we're making sure that's been put into law, so it can't be repealed quickly, like it's being done across the country. And we're even trying to allow minors access to hormone therapy, if their parents are not supportive, or they don't have a parent or guardian to access that medical care.

access points for people to sort of engage with complex ideas. I think there's a really important role for the arts, in theater, in a play, in fleshing out those things that happened in politics.

AE: Do you see any overlap with your creative arts background and the work you do now?

GD: I think a lot of people are like, "What's creativity have to do with politics and policy?" For me, having that background and being a creative thinker, I tend to come up with ideas and conversations that haven't been thought about before… [I bring] people together you wouldn't normally bring together, or in a conversation, rather than the usual suspects, maybe there's some other people that need to be at that table to flesh out those ideas.

AE: How can interested people get involved in supporting the work EqualityMaine does?

AE: How do you think storytelling or pieces of art influence political activism, or impact human rights work and social justice issues?

GD: I think the arts have always been deeply connected to politics and protest and to advocating for human rights. I think that they're intricately connected. [Policy] wasn't my field I was a high school art teacher for 20 years. When you hear a case like Doe v. Clenchy, which was a really important case here in Maine history that had to do with transgender rights… you wouldn't know it's the most important case for a transgender student's rights in US history. But it was actually heard here in the state of Maine. Some people may dismiss it, because it has to do with the law, or it has to do with public policy. The idea of humanizing some really complex things can create different

GD: Great question. Just last week, we had our annual awards and auction. We raise awareness about the work we're doing, and during that event, we talked about the way people can get involved. And it's not just money yes, money does help, we're a small nonprofit with a staff of four but there's other ways folks can get involved as well. We do need volunteers, there are many events to help us staff. Sometimes we need help with the legislature. If you have a story that you'd like to share, there's an opportunity to. If you want to talk to your legislator about an issue that you're passionate about, there's always the opportunity to do that as well. We are a resource, but we're also a conduit to other resources… There are a myriad of things that could be happening and [people] reach out to us because we are relatively well known, [and we've been] around for a long time. We can point them to an agency that is LGBTQ inclusive, or can direct them to file a complaint, or connect them to a lawyer. [People can] connect with us through our website, there are some good resources and information about organizations. Our social media are current as well, so those are ways folks can get connected to EqualityMaine.

Keep up with EqualityMaine online at www.equalitymaine.org, or on Instagram @equalitymaine!

equality maine at a Pride Parade

What’s the deal with The Big American Bake Off?

by Rachel Ropella

In The Cake, Della is preparing to be a contestant from the fictional reality TV contest

The Big American Bake-Off. This fictional contest is a parody of the popular show The Great British Bake Off. Below is a quick guide to the original show, as well as some other references The Cake alludes to!

trophy). Each episode has a theme such as Bread Week or Vegan Week, with the latter theme-week often going as well as Della’s disastrous dream. These themes have led to iconic victories such as Paul's lion bread and devastating blows such as Iain throwing away his melted Baked Alaska (yes, in 2014, this went viral online #BinGate). The two judges, originally Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, sample the treats and give critiques. After the three challenges are finished, the judges choose the Star Baker of the week and eliminate the contestant who wasn’t up to their standards. With lovable hosts who give comedic commentary, intense but charming soundtrack, and an ever-rotating cast of plucky bakers to become invested in and tweet about, GBBO quickly became a hit in the UK as well as in America, hitting over 9 million viewers per season in the UK alone.

But Who is This Handsome Judge?

The Original Premise:

The Great British Bake Off (often shortened to GBBO ) began in 2010 on the UK TV channel BBC 2 and is now in its thirteenth season. Each season features twelve amateur bakers competing against each other to win the title of Greatest British Baker across a series of weeks in the summer. Each episode contains three challenges: The Signature (a classic/ basic recipe), The Technical (a challenging recipe with few instructions given), and The Showstopper (a chance to show off skills and talent). Within a limited period of time, the bakers have to make the tastiest and most unique treats in order to reach the final round to win the title (and a cake stand

Now that you know the original GBBO , you might be wondering: who is George based on? In The Cake , Della speaks of a handsome judge named George who has “got a voice like a king. He speaks and it’s true." In The Cake , this judge is a parody of GBBO judge Paul Hollywood. Known for his piercing blue eyes and his often harsh but honest critique of the contestants’ baking ability, Hollywood has been a mainstay of GBBO while other judges have come and gone. While some fans of the show have felt Hollywood can be overly critical of contestants’ work, the "Hollywood Handshake" has become a coveted thing for contestants to earn during the competition. If Paul is truly impressed with your technical skill and baking prowess, he’s been known to break into a rare smile and shake your hand in congratulations.

are tHese tartlets ComPettion ready?

The Great American Spin-Off: With GBBO’ s popularity in America, it wasn’t long before an American spin-off was developed. In 2015, the first season of The Great American Baking Show aired on ABC as a direct adaptation of GBBO .

Curious about the title change? When GBBO originally aired in the United States, it was under the title The Great British Baking Show , which quickly was switched back to the title we know and love when it moved to Netflix. The Great American Baking Show has run for five seasons and has a rotating cast of hosts, including actress Ellie Kemper and Spice Girls singer Emma Bunton, as well as different judges, which have of course included GBBO favorites Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood. The Great American Baking Show has also produced special holiday mini-season with celebrity contestants, which was won by actress D'Arcy Carden in 2022. Similar to the original GBBO , the show has been praised for its compelling contestants from across the country, such as Brother Andrew, a FilipinoAmerican Franciscan friar who won season 5, and its unique bakes like Stephanie Chen's pineapple bread Santa. No matter what side of the pond, both shows have found an enthusiastic fan base of amateur bakers who dream of winning the coveted title of Greatest Baker.

a Baker PreParing Bread dougH.

a Contestant witH Cookies fresH from tHe oVen

From Scones to Rooster Combs: The History of the Wedding Cake

by Audrey Erickson

Breaking the glass, throwing the bouquet, jumping the broom… weddings have countless traditions. Some traditions are universal and others are specific to a religion, culture, or even individual family. Every tradition that you may see when the happy couple says “I do,” comes with its own origin and story. One of the sweetest traditions that you’ll see at most marriage celebrations is the wedding cake. Read on to learn about how the cake came to be a centerpiece of the wedding industry!

While many cultures throughout history have had some kind of feast or celebratory dish associated with marriages, the tradition of the wedding cake that we know today can most closely be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. However, it was not always as sweet a ritual as we know it to be today. In those times, a bread or scone-like cake was broken over the bride’s head after the wedding ceremony, to symbolize the new couple’s fertility. In those times, grains were very closely associated with fertility, as the Greek and Romans saw wheat and grains as a symbol of agriculture and the earth’s fertility. Even the Roman goddess Ceres was the goddess of both the harvest and fertility, as was her Greek counterpart, Demeter. To invite in good fortune from these goddesses, the newlyweds would consume a few crumbs of the broken cake, and the wedding guests would eat the rest of the crumbs for good luck. As the Romans began to conquer other empires and lands, they took their customs with them, spreading the tradition of breaking bread.

By the time the wedding cake got to Britain around 43 CE, the Brits put their own spin on the tradition, throwing bread at the bride to wish her fertility (which eventually morphed into the popular rice-throwing tradition we know today). Baked goods punctuated weddings for centuries to come–“made with love” takes on a whole new meaning–but the specifics of the common practice continued

to morph with the times and across Europe. As sugar became more readily available, the dense, nutty cakes that had been used gave way to more elaborate frosted buns, spiced scones, and cookies. This dessert spread was presented in a high, precarious stack, made by the couple’s family. A departure from crumbs in your hair or having bread rolls thrown at you, the couple now had a new challenge: if the two could reach over the piled-high tower and kiss without sending any sweets falling to the ground, it represented a good fortune in their marriage. If it fell? Well, wedding guests took to throwing cakes from the pile at the bride and groom, just to make sure the good fortune followed them.

While the tradition of piling pastries gained popularity over the next few generations, the sugary treats used weren’t specifically associated with marriage traditions. Wedding guests would bring whatever they knew how to bake, or what they had ingredients for. In fact, the first wedding-specific bake wasn’t a cake at all, but a savory pie. In 1685, a recipe for “bride’s pye” was made. The pie was a common flaky crust and contained lamb testicles, rooster comb, oysters, and pine kernels. Eating the pie was believed to allow the couple to have a happy marriage together, so following the ceremony, the newlyweds and

not tHe wedding Cake you're used to seeing!

all of their guests would eat the entire pie; to refuse a slice was like a guest wearing white to a wedding today! Good things could come from bride’s pye though, as each pie contained a ring inside. Whoever had the slice with the ring would be favored to get married next–a precursor to the throwing of the bouquet!

Bride’s pye began to fall out of fashion (a good thing, given the ingredients!) and sweet cakes started to become the standard way to celebrate. While they were often bare, simple cakes in earlier years, refined sugar became much cheaper in the 17th century, allowing chefs to frost cakes in the white, airy frosting that so many wedding cakes have today. Similar to the iconic wedding dress, the white cake also symbolizes purity and virginity, in addition to being a show of status and wealth.

Early wedding cakes were small, simple, and short–not the extravagant, heavily-decorated and multi-tiered cakes you see on the homepage of Pinterest. While no one knows for sure when wedding cakes took on the scale of their pastry-pile predecessors, some historians believe cakes started getting taller in the 18th century. Allegedly, a baker, in an attempt to impress the woman he was courting, baked the multi-tiered cake for her when he proposed, meant to resemble the spire of a church. From there and throughout the Victorian era, cakes continued to grow taller and more elaborate.

With everything from fuschia wedding dresses, to solo walks down the aisle, to personalized vows, weddings can now entirely reflect those getting married, their relationship, and their story. And as our culture changes, our celebrations and traditions with loved one evole to reflect it. With society's expnding understanding of identity, people are finding that their relationships to themselves and to others are complicated, and that they may not fit into the binaries and traditional gender roles that many wedding traditions are based on. It is also more common for people to find love with others from different cultures, religions, and backgrounds. Now, couples who are a blend of different backgrounds, and couples who don’t fit into heteronormative standards, can come together and say “I do,” however they want.

The same way the foods that appear during a couple’s big day have changed throughout history, the many traditions and rituals of weddings continue to evolve.

So if you know a couple looking to break the tradition of a cake slice post-nuptials, maybe their idea will be the next big thing in the wedding cake’s long history–and hey, it’ll probably be a step up from bride’s pye!

a wHite-frosted wedding Cake

HaPPy CouPles CeleBrate tHeir loVe in all sorts of ways.

Glossary

by Rachel Ropella

Billy Graham: (1918-2018) An ordained Southern Baptist minister who gained national attention with his broadcasted sermons. Before he passed, Graham was vocally against the LGBTQIA+ marriage amendment in the US.

Cardamom: A spice which has a gingery, aromatic flavor made from the seed pods of the Cardamom plant. Cardamom is a popular seasoning for curries and pastries.

Cat Stevens: (1948-) A British singersongwriter who plays multiple instruments. The music genres of his albums range from folk to rock to Islamic music.

Chick-fil-A: An American fast food chain that is known for its fried chicken. Many of the company's values (such as restaurants closing on Sundays) are influenced by the religious beliefs of its founder, S. Truett Cathy, who was a Southern Baptist. Chick-fil-A has faced significant controversy in the past decade as they have donated over $5 million to antiLGBTQIA+ groups.

Dogwood: A type of flowering tree that is native to eastern North America and northern Mexico; its blossoms vary in color, including yellow, white, and pink.

Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman: A western TV drama, starring Jane Seymor as Dr. Michaela Quinn. Dr. Quinn heads west and settles in Colorado during the 1860s, convincing the town that women can practice medicine and eventually finding romance over the course of the show’s six seasons.

Elephant ear: A flat disc of fried dough, fried and is dusted with cinnamon and sugar. Elephant ears have been a staple treat sold at many state fairs and carnivals in America since the early 1900s.

Food Lion: An American regional grocery store chain that was founded in North Carolina and has stores located across the Southeast.

Goa: A popular tourist destination within the country of India known for its sandy beaches, seafood, and the annual Goa Carnival festival.

ISIS: Also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, ISIS is a militant jihadist group who was extremely active in the 2010s as they made significant territorial gains in Iraq and Syria. International efforts to hinder the group led to its decline, with Syria and Iraq considering ISIS effectively defeated at the end of 2017.

Jackie O: A shortened nickname that the public gave Jacqueline Onassis, who was the wife of John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States. Known for her sense of fashion, her oversized, circular sunglasses were called "Jackie O. glasses" by the press.

Jezebel: A US-based website that launched in 2007 and features news and personal essays geared towards an audience seeking feminist cultural criticism. Jezebel is also a Phoenician royal in the Bible who has come to signify a power-hungry, violent, and sensual woman.

Marzipan: A sweet that consists primarily of sugar, honey, and almond meal. Marzipan can be molded and turned into edible figures of animals or fruits.

dogwood tree Blossoms

Maxwell House: An American brand of coffee that was first introduced in 1892, it was the most common and highest-selling coffee brand in the United States through the 80s.

Party City: An American chain of stores that sells party supplies such as balloons and decor for different occasions.

Richard Dawkins: (1941-) A British evolutionary biologist and writer whose 1976 book, The Selfish Gene, helped popularize a gene-centered view of evolution in biology. Dawkins is also well known for his criticisms against creationist theory and identifies as an atheist.

Russell Stover: An American manufacturer of chocolate and other candies that are popular for holidays, it was founded by chemist Russell Stover and his wife in 1923.

Socrates: (470 BCE-399 BCE) An Ancient Greek philosopher who spoke about and studied the questions of ethics. Well known for being the teacher of Plato and Aristotle, he was sentenced to death by poison at age 70 for challenging Athens's concept of democracy.

Speedrooter: Built by the company General Wires, the Speedrooter is an electric drain auger that helps unclog and clean drains and pipes by using a rotating drill bit to dislodge any clogs in a plumbing system.

Splenda: An American brand that makes sucralose, an artificial, low-calorie sweetener that is 600 times sweeter than normal sugar. Known for its packaging in little yellow packets, Splenda is commonly found in restaurants and diners.

Swiss roll: A dessert made from a sponge cake that is rolled and filled with cream, jam, or frosting and then is either covered in chocolate or dusted with powdered sugar.

The Birdcage: An 1996 American comedy film starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane, adapted from La Cage aux Folles, a 1973 French farce by Jean Poiret. In the film, Val, the son of openly gay Armand and his partner Albert, brings his fiancée's ultraconservative parents over for dinner but tries to hide his family’s true identities.

Yelp: A website and phone app that allows customers across the globe to publish reviews about businesses they visit, helping generate recommendations with their rating system out of five stars.

a Box of russell stoVer CHoColates

JaCkie onassis kennedy

a deliCious swiss roll

Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission

by Audrey Erickson

The wedding planning started the way it always does: with a cake. Okay, it may or may not have started with a cake; there’s the rings, and the garb, and the guests, and when Charlie Craig and David Mullins approached Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, in 2012 for a cake for their big day, Phillips didn’t exactly ask where they were in their planning process. In fact, Phillips refused to bake or decorate a cake for the happy couple, stating that his religious beliefs did not support samesex unions. What followed was a multi-year, highly publicized legal battle that culminated in the 2017 Supreme Court case Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission The press from this case (herein referred to as Masterpiece) caught the attention of playwright and television writer Bekah Brunstetter, who would later draw from the details of Masterpiece to create her complicated, human drama, The Cake. While Brunstetter’s play finds levity and humor within a challenging topic, the case itself is a huge event in LGBTQIA+ history, and its legal implications are still being seen and experienced today.

When Craig and Mullins planned their Colorado nuptials, the couple had already been legally married in Massachusetts earlier that year (at the time, same-sex marriages weren’t legal in Colorado), and they wanted an opportunity to celebrate with their family and friends in Colorado. When they were turned away from Masterpiece Cakeshop in July of 2012, they saw the injustice of the situation and turned to the Colorado Civil Rights Division to file a discrimination complaint. The Division found that Phillips violated the Colorado AntiDiscrimination Act, which states that “it is… unlawful for a person, directly or indirectly, to refuse [goods and services to]…an individual or a group, because of disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, or ancestry…[at] a place of public accommodation.”

By September 2012, the Division had referred Craig and Mullins’s case to Colorado’s Civil Rights Commission, and preparation for a formal hearing began. The Commission, in their examination, found that, by refusing to make a cake for a same-sex couple, “Phillips violated Colorado’s public accommodations law that prohibits business establishments from discriminating"; the Court of Appeals agreed, and when the Colorado Supreme Court did not take the case, it went to the Supreme Court of the United States.

While refusing to make a cake for a gay couple may seem like a straightforward example of discrimination, the legality of the Masterpiece Cakeshop incident is a little more complicated. According to the Anti-Discrimination Act, businesses are not allowed to discriminate against protected classes and must give all paying customers the same access to the goods or services of that business; at the same time, the law protects individuals’ free will and religious beliefs. So even though Masterpiece Cakeshop was legally obligated to serve Craig and Mullins, Phillips as a private citizen has the right to act according to his religious beliefs. Phillips had been willing to sell the two men an already-made cake from their shop, but wouldn’t use his designing or decorating skills to personalize something for their ceremony;

tHe suPreme Court saw many rallies as tHey deliBerated oVer masterPieCe CakesHoP V. Colorado CiVil rigHts Commission

did this detail mean that Masterpiece Cakeshop was fulfilling their legal requirement? Furthermore, Phillips’s legal team argued that the cakeshop owner’s right to exercise free will was being violated, and that the Commission was exhibiting hostility toward Phillips’s religion in their argument. This legal strategy sidestepped the central question of Masterpiece –”Would it violate free exercise of religion or freedom of speech under the First Amendment to force Masterpiece Cakeshop to design and bake a cake for a same-sex wedding?”–and instead focused on criticizing the way in which Colorado’s Civil Rights Commission made their arguments.

It’s also worth noting that Masterpiece’s progression to the Supreme Court changed the stakes of Craig and Mullins’s legal battle with Masterpiece. In court, the outcome of a case decided by common law becomes a precedent for future cases involving similar legal issues or disputes; in other words, the decision can be used by lawyers in the future to make their arguments. When a case goes to a Supreme Court, whether a state’s Supreme Court or SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States), it means that it is complicated enough that it must go to the highest court to be evaluated. Legal cases like this one that are tied up in topical social issues become even more publicized and caught up in political agendas when they ascend to this level of court. Additionally, because SCOTUS is the highest court in the US legal system, “its decisions are binding precedent not only for the lower federal courts but also for state courts.”

With all the media, the anticipation, and the public’s divisive perspectives on a hot-button issue, it was a devastating loss for Craig and Mullins, as well as LGBTQIA+ activists, when they lost in the Supreme Court on Monday, June 4, 2018. In a decision that remains debated today, seven of the court’s nine judges opted to reverse the original ruling and decide in Phillips’s favor, with only Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor disagreeing with the ruling.

The Supreme Court cited the Commission's hostility to Phillips’s religion as enough reason to reverse the decision, picking out a couple of specific quotes that the majority justices found to be evidence. Both quotes–one stating that Phillips couldn’t use his personal beliefs to inform how he runs his business, and the other speaking more broadly to the use of religion as a rhetoric to commit wrongdoing–have been closely examined by legal experts in the years since the 2018 decision, leaving many dubious that these statements show evidence of mistreating the case. The Court also justified that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission had historically ruled in favor of “bakers who refused to make cakes with specific messages–” though many were quick to point out that those cases had not violated Colorado’s discrimination law.

The Supreme Court’s decision was viewed by many weak and politically motivated, but it did not provide full permission for LGBTQIA+ people to be discriminated against, as SCOTUS “did not rule on the broader constitutional questions of freedom of religion and antidiscrimination,” and rather ruled on the Commission’s practices. While this may seem like a small detail, it means that Masterpiece cannot be used as a precedent for people making the same argument as Phillips. In fact, the Supreme Court heard another case from Colorado in December of 2022, from web designer Lorie Smith, who preemptively sued Colorado with the belief that “the state public accommodations mandate violates her right of free speech.” While the case is yet to be settled (a decision is expected sometime this summer), it is a new opportunity for the central issue of Masterpiece to be answered and acknowledged in a way that was sidestepped in 2018. A highly anticipated decision, LGBTQIA+ activists hope that the decision will go their way, thanks to a changing political climate and Biden’s appointment of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court.

Are you interested in ways you can learn more about LGBTQIA+ law and policy, and how you can use your voice to get involved? Head over to our interview with Gia Drew, Director of EqualityMaine on page 12!

Chick-fil-Yay or Nay? The Ethics of Consumption

by Thalia wolff

DELLA: Isn’t there something about Chick-fil-A not supporting, ah—

JEN: I support Chick-fil-A going right into my mouth.

She eats a nugget. Don’t tell Macy.

In Scene 3 of The Cake, Jen brings Della a bag of Chick-fil-A nuggets as a reconciliatory gesture, seeking to “[pretend] everything is normal and fine.” Della digs in enthusiastically, offers some to Jen, then hesitates: is this right?

In 2017, when The Cake was first produced, Chick-fil-A donated over $1.8 million to organizations with a history of anti-LGBTQIA+ discrimination, despite the company’s reported promises to stop giving money to such causes back in 2012. This news reignited concerns surrounding the company’s longstanding association with hateful messages directed toward the LGBTQIA+ community, from a CEO’s vocal opposition to marriage equality to company owners’ alleged connection with a charitable trust promoting the harmful practice of conversion therapy. In this moment of the play, Della takes note of the contradiction between Jen’s peace offering and the company's harmful practices, and wonders if she should be responding differently. However, Jen appears to care more about the food’s role as a point of connection between her and Della than what it relates to on broader societal levels.

In recent years, the things we purchase and consume have become increasingly tied up with morality in public discourse, placing pressure on companies to at least nominally support causes they anticipate or perceive as being important to their consumer base. For example, the public outrage over Chick-fil-A’s continued contributions to anti-LGBTQIA+ groups caused the company to issue multiple public apologies and withdraw from several of their more problematic affiliations over the course of the 2010s. That said, it took Chickfil-A over half a decade to stop spending over a million dollars a year on donations to groups with anti-LGBTQIA+ affiliations.

It's not just Chick-fil-A either: many corporations that Americans interact with every day are tied up in their own ethical quandaries. For instance, were you aware Nestle was sued for using child slave labor in the Ivory Coast to harvest cocoa? The case got to the Supreme Court before being dismissed in 2021 because, according to the Justices, none of the relevant conduct took place within the United States. Did you know McDonald's has been linked time and again to the deforestation of the Amazon? Or that Walmart often uses voluntary, but extremely low-paid prison labor to manufacture goods?

Often, big companies care more about the appearance of morality than actually behaving ethically or standing up for the rights of marginalized groups. In the context of LGBTQIA+ rights, this is especially evident during Pride Month, when companies that may be actively contributing to LGBTQIA+

CHiCk-fil-a is a HouseHold faVorite many PlaCes in tHe soutH, and Has loCations aCross ameriCa.

discrimination through their business practices post as many rainbow symbols as possible on their products and social media in hopes that consumers will view them as allies, in spite of their harmful actions. This practice is referred to as rainbow capitalism.

In the face of public pandering by companies, the onus is often placed on the consumer to see through corporate deception and make their consumption choices ethically. As those companies continue to use the money and attention consumers provide them to contribute to discrimination against marginalized communities and individuals, some argue it is up to the individual consumer to make the "right" moral choice. However, the scene with Della and Jen involving Chick-fil-A highlights a complexity in this discourse: the contradiction between the principle of ethical consumption and the belief that there is no ethical consumption under capitalism.

The principle of ethical consumption places the blame for companies’ harmful actions upon the consumers who support them. This principle has a negative psychological impact on consumers who may not have the time or money necessary to consistently consume ethically. In part to acknowledge this burden, the slogan “no ethical consumption under capitalism” was devised to better account for the corporate “incentive to sell the cheapest and quickest made products that more often than not result in pollution and unsafe workplaces.” Proponents of this viewpoint argue that the consumer is not the one at fault when a company behaves irresponsibly, especially when consumers lack the financial position to afford ethically-made materials.

The burden of ethical consumption upon the choice-limited consumer is especially taxing for marginalized people who are targets of discriminatory corporations. Della experiences guilt and cognitive dissonance knowing that she is enjoying food made by a company that does harm to Jen's community. Out LGBTQIA+ people can render visible a cognitive dissonance that makes it hard to ignore the ethical complications of an otherwise heartfelt exchange. For queer people, the shame over

consuming unethically may be heightened by unearned shame over reminding family and friends, by their presence alone, that they are consuming unethically.

Della’s concern for Jen’s feelings about consuming Chick-fil-A comes from a place of caring. Although Della’s feelings about Jen’s lesbianism are conflicted, she does not want to hurt Jen or make her feel isolated. She worries about whether Jen will take offense at her consumption of food associated with a harmful company, ignoring the intention behind Jen’s act of bringing her said food. Jen is telling Della she would rather be simply seen and loved and treated like the family she is than worry about ethical consumption in this moment. In this way, she also asks to be treated not as a two-dimensional stand-in for the entire queer community, but as the individual she is, with her own unique cares, desires, likes, opinions, and needs.

To support a queer person in one’s life is to support that specific individual; the community is not a monolith. As Jen ultimately expresses to Della, the sentiments behind an action or decision can matter more to a person than the action itself: “I don’t need you to bake me a cake. I need you to love me.” While it is important where possible to be considerate of where one’s money, time, and attention are going and what they are supporting, it’s really important to listen to the people in your life about what they need from you, and to continue loving them indiscriminately as the individuals that they are.

Pride eVents are imPortant to tHe queer Community, But CorPorations are HaVing a larger footHold in tHe CeleBration

Recommended Resources

by Editors

Listen:

Amicus, podcast with Dahlia Litwick

Ingrid Michaelson & Bekah Brunstetter, The American Writers Museum Podcast

Fun Home, Original Broadway Cast Recording

Read (books, plays, and more):

Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Become our Identity by Lilliana Mason

Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta

Stop Kiss by Diana Son

Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution by Linda R. Hirshman

"How LGBTQ Pride Month became a branded holiday" by Alex Abad-Santos, VOX .com

Watch:

I’m done with JK Rowling, video essay by Jessie Earl

This Is Us, supervising producer Bekah Brunstetter

The Masterpiece Cakeshop Case: What You Need to Know, video by the ACLU

The Great British Bake Off, BBC and streaming on Netflix

But I'm A Cheerleader, director Jamie Babbit

Paris is Burning, director Jennie Livingston

Listen to the PlayNotes Podcast!

Portland Stage Company Education Programs

Join Portland Stage as we discuss, debate, and explore the plays on our stage and in the classroom! Portland Stage is dedicated to bringing exciting theater, inspiring conversation, interactive experiences, and thought-provoking literature to a wide audience of youth and adult learners. Whether you take part in a discussion, subscribe to PlayNotes, take a class in our Theater for Kids space, or bring a group of students to see a performance, there is something here for everyone. How would you like to participate?

Student Matinee Series

The Portland Stage Student Matinee Program annually provides more than 7,000 middle and high school students from Maine and New Hampshire with discounted tickets for student matinees. We would be happy to do a workshop pre-show or post-show with you too!

Play Me a Story

Experience the fun and magic of theater on Saturday mornings with Play Me a Story! Ages 4 – 10 enjoy a performance of a children’s stories followed by an interactive acting workshop with Portland Stage’s Education Artists for $15. Sign up for the month and save or pick individual days that work for you. Build literacy, encourage creativity and spark dramatic dreams!

After School Classes

After school classes at Portland Stage produce a safe environment for young people to find a higher sense of play, stretch their imaginations, and gain valuable social skills such as listening, risk-taking, ensemble building, public speaking, and leadership through storytelling. These classes are fun, creative, spontaneous, and begin to build skills for the young actor or non-actor’s voice, body, and imagination. Visit our website for this year’s offerings!

Vacation and Summer Camps

Our theater camps are fun, challenging, and enriching. We use stories of all kinds to fuel these active, educational and lively, process-based week-long school vacation and summer programs for youth. Theater for Kids works with professional actors, directors, artisans, and composers. Students are invited to think, speak, and act imaginatively, critically, and creatively in an environment of inclusivity and safe play.

PLAY Program

An interactive dramatic reading and acting workshop for elementary school students in grades Pre-K to 5. Professional teaching artists perform children’s literature and classic poetry for the entire school, and then work with select classrooms in workshops based on the stories. Actors actively engage students in small groups/workshops using their bodies, voices, and imaginations to build understanding of the text while bringing the stories and characters to life. PLAY helps develop literacy and reading fluency, character recall, understanding of themes, social emotional skills, physical storytelling, and vocal characterization. The program also comes with a comprehensive Resource Guide filled with information and activities based on the books and poems.

Directors Lab

Groups watch a 50 minute production of a Shakespeare’s play performed by professional actors/ teaching artists. After the performance, students engage directly with the text in an interactive workshop with the actors and creative team. In these workshops, students practice effective communication, creative collaboration, rhetowric, and critical analysis. The program also comes with a comprehensive Resource Guide filled with information and resources about the play we are focusing on. Directors Lab puts Shakespeare’s language into the hands and mouths of the students, empowering them to be the artists, directors, and ensemble with the power to interpret the text and produce meaning.

Portland Stage Company

Anita Stewart Artistic Director

Martin Lodish Managing Director

Artistic & Production Staff

Todd Brian Backus Literary Manager

Jacob Coombs Associate Technical Director

Aisling Dono Education Assistant

Ted Gallant Technical Director

Myles C. Hatch Stage Manager

Meg Lydon Stage Manager

Mary Lana Rice Production Manager & Lighting Supervisor

Julianne Shea Education Administrator

Seth Asa Sengel Asst. Production Manager & Sound Supervisor

Michael Dix Thomas Education Director

Susan Thomas Costume Shop Manager

Administrative Staff

Paul Ainsworth Business Manager

Beka Bryer Front of House Associate

Chris DeFilipp House Manage

Allison Fry Executive Assistant

Beth Given Development Director

Lindsey Higgins Development Associate

Erin Elizabeth Marketing Director

James Hadley Assistant Marketing Director

Jennifer London Company Manager

Renee Myhaver Assistant Box Office Manager

Donald Smith Audience Services Manager

Madeleine St. Germain Front of House Associate

Adam Thibodeau House Manager

Shannon Wade Front of House Associate

Apprentice Company

Amanda Cooper Stage Management Apprentice

Audrey Erickson Directing & Dramaturgy Apprentice

Nick Hone Education Apprentice

Madison MacDonald Props Apprentice

Andrej Nawoj Costumes Apprentice

Moira O'Sullivan Directing & Dramaturgy Apprentice

Elizabeth Randall Costumes Apprentice

Rachel Ropella Directing & Dramaturgy Apprentice

Liana SC Education Apprentice

Ashley Ward Lighting & Sound Apprentice

Brady Willis Stage Management Apprentice

Thalia Wolff Company Management Apprentice