AIDS Crisis

Whispers of an emerging disease known as AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) were first heard in the early 1980s. Very quickly, it became an epidemic among homosexual men. Risks of becoming infected also increased among intravenous drug users, blood transfusion patients, and women with infected partners. The US government was slow to respond to the crisis at first, leaving activists to take charge and provide support networks and create care centers for victims of the disease. The government eventually provided millions of dollars for research, public education, and health care, but the fear and discrimination around the disease remained throughout the 1980s and 1990s. As did the death toll. In 1986, 12,000 Americans died of AIDS. Just two years later, that figure had grown to 20,000. AIDS was not confined to the US or one part of the world, but instead became a real threat in Africa and elsewhere in the world. This guide examines the timeline of the epidemic and considers how the theatrical community responded to the crisis both on and off stage.

Terminology

• Queer Theatre: The accepted generic term for the LGBTQ+ theatre movement.
• AIDS: The name used to describe a number of potentially life-threatening infections and illnesses that happen when the body's immune system has been severely damaged by the HIV virus.
• HIV: The human immunodeficiency virus is a virus that attacks the body's immune system.
• Actors’ Equity Association: The labor union of theatre artists.
• Antiretroviral: Relating to a class of drugs which inhibit the activity of retroviruses such as HIV.
• Homophobia: Dislike of or prejudice against gay people.
• Pulitzer Prize: An award for an achievement in American journalism, literature, or music.
• Tony Award: The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre.

Key Dates & Events

• 1978 - Gay men in the US and Sweden - and heterosexuals in Tanzania and Haiti - begin showing signs of what will later be called AIDS.
• 1980 - 31 deaths of this new disease are reported to date.
• 1982 - CDC (USA) links the new disease to blood. The term AIDS ("acquired immune deficiency syndrome") is used for the first time on July 27th.
• 1982 - Playwright and activist Larry Kramer founds The Gay Mens Health Crisis in New York City.
• 1985 - US President Ronald Reagan finally mentions the word "AIDS" in public for the first time in response to a reporter's questions in September..
• 1985 - One of the first AIDS-related plays, The Normal Heart by Larry Kramer, opens Off-Broadway. It was revived in 2004 and finally made its Broadway debut in 2011.
• 1985 - The film star Rock Hudson is reported to have died from AIDS complications.
• 1987 - AZT becomes the first anti-HIV drug approved by the FDA.
• 1987 - In a speech on April 2, President Reagan calls AIDS "public enemy number one".
• 1987 - ACT UP is founded in New York City.
• 1987 - The entertainer Liberace and choreographer Michael Bennett are reported to have died from AIDS complications.
• 1987 - Equity Fights AIDS is established by the Council of Actors’ Equity Association.
• 1988 - Broadway Cares is established by The Producers’ Group. It went on to merge with Equity Fights Aids in 1992.
• 1988 - World AIDS Day is established annually on December 1.
• 1990 - Ronald Reagan apologizes for his neglect of the epidemic while he was president (US).
• 1991 - The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 10 million have HIV worldwide.
• 1991 - Professional basketball player Magic Johnson tells the world he has HIV.
• 1991 - Part One of Tony Kushner’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Angels in America premieres in San Francisco, followed by Part Two a year later. It was adapted by HBO into an acclaimed miniseries in 2003.
• 1992 - The actor Robert Reed is reported to have died from AIDS complications.
• 1992 - Larry Kramer’s play The Destiny of Me premieres Off-Broadway and becomes a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
• 1993 - Researchers in Europe show taking AZT (monotherapy) early in the disease has no benefits.
• 1993 - The ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev is reported to have died from AIDS complications.
• 1996 - TIME magazine's 1996 Man of the Year is AIDS researcher Dr. David Ho.
• 1996 - The Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent opens Off-Broadway. Tragically, its creator Jonathan Larson died suddenly and unexpectedly from an aortic aneurysm on the morning of the final dress rehearsal.
• 1997 - CDC reports the annual number of deaths due to AIDS complications have dropped in the US.
• 2018 - Matthew Lopez’s epic play The Inheritance opens at the Old Vic Theatre in London before transferring to Broadway the following year. It won both the Olivier and Tony Awards for Best Play.