The Pink Triangle

In June, 1934, the Nazis launched the Night of the Long Knives, the Reich’s first-ever purge. In the international press, it was billed as a cleanup of Germany’s “public baths.” Those public baths teemed with the boys and men of the S.S. They were led by Ernst Rohm, a beefy,...

By Penn Bullock

June 4, 2009

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In June, 1934, the Nazis launched the Night of the Long Knives, the Reich’s first-ever purge. In the international press, it was billed as a cleanup of Germany’s “public baths.” Those public baths teemed with the boys and men of the S.S. They were led by Ernst Rohm, a beefy, openly gay, wannabe Spartan general. By 1934, Rohm and his street gangs, which had brought the Nazis to power, were agitating for a socialist revolution — and having a pederast’s blast in the baths and bars. Hitler had Rohm killed. By the hundreds of thousands, homosexuals were arrested, castrated, or sent to concentration camps.

Bent, a Broadway play, brought this history to light in 1979. It follows a decadent gay couple from the bars to the camps, where gays were ranked below Jews. Now Bent is coming to the Rising Action Theatre exactly 75 years after the Night of the Long Knives. It’s not to be missed.

Bent plays at the Rising Action Theater (840 East Oakland Park Blvd, Fort Lauderdale) through July 19. Tickets cost $35 or less. Call 954-561-2225, or visit www.risingactiontheatre.com.
June 6-July 19, 2009

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