Playwright Eric Anderson (Back Porch): “I Wanted To Write Something Affirmative”

DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley

Dennis shuts down Zoom for a change and ventures out into the world to meet playwright Eric Anderson in the lobby of his Burbank hotel. Eric and his husband flew in from Hawaii for the world premier of Eric’s play Back Porch. Back Porch is a gay twist on the American classic Picnic by the playwright William Inge, who was highly acclaimed and also very closeted. Eric talks about the real-life experience that inspired the play, which is that when he was 4 years-old, the film Picnic shot near his small Kansas town and Eric and his family got to be extras. Even though he was just a boy, he remembers it vividly. He also talks about the gay love story at the heart of his play, between Gary, an 18 year-old college-bound local, and Bill, William Holden’s handsome stunt double on the film, and why it was important to him to write a gay romance where homophobia doesn’t drive the entire plot. Other topics include: the arts scene in Hawaii, why drifters are awesome, the thrill of seeing his play finally produced after being delayed for three years because of the pandemic, the playwriting teacher that changes his life, small town busy-bodies and the movie he’s seen more than any other (Hint: It’s not Picnic).