Skeleton in Harvard’s closet comes to light in ‘Unnatural Acts’
In 2002, a Harvard University sophomore found evidence in the university’s archives of a court that sought out and punished gay students. This scandal is the backdrop for “Unnatural Acts,” a new play at the Classic Stage Company in New York. After a Harvard student committed suicide in 1920, the student’s brother found letters that indicated the student was gay, and had befriended several other gay students at the school. The university president appointed a court of five administrators to investigate what they deemed to be “deviant” behavior on campus. Fourteen young men were convicted of what the court called “homosexualism.” They were expelled and banned from the school. One of the young men killed himself a few days later, just before graduation.
Tony Speciale, the director and co-writer of “Unnatural Acts,” talks about his new play based on these true, tragic events.
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