Hey fam, it's me, Amara Jones.

Welcome to the Translash podcast, a show where we tell trans stories to save trans lives.

Well, December is a month when hundreds of thousands of people come to New York with grandma or parents or friends or themselves in order to see both the holiday

lights and of course to indulge in a little bit of Broadway.

Now, it's been a consequential few years for a trans representation in theater.

Earlier this year, Alex Newell and Jay Harrison Gee became the first non-binary performers to win Tony Awards,

and last year, in 2022, Angelica Ross became the first trans woman to play a leading role on Broadway.

And also, theater has always been an opportunity for exploration around gender by actors and audiences alike, even sometimes controversially.

So today I wanted to chat with two people who are taking the theater world by storm.

First, I'll talk with singer and actor, Justin David Sullivan, about their groundbreaking journey to Broadway

and their brave decision to take themselves out of the running for a Tony Award.

I felt like people just didn't know what to do with me. There was no space for me. There was

no category for me to be in until there was.

Next time joined by artist and advocate, Lady Dane D.D., to talk about the power of theater and the power of diversity in theater today.

Because theater has attempted to position itself as somehow separate or somehow above the

politics of the world,

it has ignored its highest calling,

which is to be, in my opinion, at the forefront for social change.

But before we get to these conversations,

let's start, as always, with some trans joy.

Music Let's start as always with some trans joy. Trans non-binary and two-spirit artists have long been misrepresented and underpaid for their work in American theater.

Breaking the binary theater, also known as BTB, is a New York-based work development and community building hub

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