Why Tales of the City is Always a Revolutionary Show | Television and radio

For five decades, Tales of the City affirmed, changed and even saved lives. Armistead Maupin's books, which began as a newspaper column in 1976, took readers into the dream world of Barbary Lane, where the matriarch and owner, Mrs. Madrigal, presided over a group of friends. and lovers in San Francisco – heterobadual, gay, cisendus and transgender – at a time when queer life was rarely described outside of his circles. The series ended with a ninth installment, The Days of Anna Madrigal, in 2014, but these characters have a new life breath in the form of a brilliant, hypercolouristic revival of Netflix TV or reimaginable television. , depending on who you are talking to. It is rare that a fictional universe is held as dear to the world as Mouse, Mary Ann and Mrs Madrigal. Maupin knows it too well. "All I have to do is go out to Soho in a bar and, my God! "S & # 39; he exclaims.

The author admits that he was afraid of not being able to adapt a new version. "I was nervous," he concedes. "Trust your baby with these other people and God knows what they are going to do." But he quickly realized that security was provided by the new generation (mostly) of new writers and directors. "As soon as I saw the scripts, I knew they were not just on the right track, they were going to make me look funnier than me," he chuckles. he. Maupin is 75 years old and recently moved to London with her husband for what he calls "a last different chapter". The move coincided with a resurgence of interest for Tales of the City, first shown on the small screen as a pioneering mini-series on Channel 4 in 1993, and has been sporadically rekindled since.

"Over the last 25 years, it would have made waves," said Laura Linney, Executive Producer of the new series and interpreted the character of "Alice in Wonderland" by Mary Ann Singleton since the first book was aired on Channel 4. The last show appeared at Showtime in 2001, "but suddenly, things felt a bit different," says Linney. "It looked like," Oh, that could actually happen. "I could say that it was the right time, and I could say that there was another kind of interest." When Netflix took it, she said, "we were gone shopping."

Admittedly, the climate has changed since the first broadcast of the mini-series. When he debuted in the United States on PBS in 1994, Tales of the City was hailed by critics and received a high ranking, but attracted protests and threats from religious fundamentalists in the country. The network has given way to pressure and has withdrawn funding from a sequel. "I was just in shock. I was so surprised, in a very naive way, Mary Ann Singleton, "recalls Linney. "I was stunned by nastiness and heartbroken at the time when PBS would abandon the series. But in some ways, this has been a very awkward part of the evolution of it all. "

Maupin had been used to the controversy around everything about the book. "When he entered a new form [in 1978]The sales representative said, "I represent Arizona, but I would never sell the book there, because they just would not like it in Arizona." The presumption of harm kept him at every step of the game. "The 2019 TV version is a whole new experience." The dramatic difference at the moment is that the culture has come to such an extent that they say we hire queer writers, and bragging about that."

Reintroducing Barbary Lane to the world required a reshuffle, since the lives of homobaduals had changed since 1976, and even since the first series in 1993. "What is wonderful about what happened now, it is that these stories are people in the LGBTQ community are saying it now, "Linney said. "All our writers are weird. All our administrators are queer. It was not possible in 1993. It is a change, and it is important, that these stories are told by authentic voices. I am very proud of that. "

Part of this change has resulted in the beginning of a silent revolution in the way trans characters are represented on the screen, with more and more calls for these actors to be entrusted with these roles. At 87, Olympia Dukakis returns in the role of Anna Madrigal, with whom she has been playing since 1993, which could have put a modern queer television series in the foreground. "It could have been a dilemma," Maupin admits. The solution was to have an episode reminiscent of Anna's younger days and to entrust a trans actor, Jen Richards, with the role. "I like the fact that a trans woman plays young Olympia. The pioneers of Olympia have led to the hiring of a trans actor, who is extraordinary, "he says. "I mean, I do not think anyone who knows the original would blame Olympia for its great budget, because she has always been so sympathetic to the project."

Tales of the City brings this nuance to a time when strange stories are no longer so rare on the screen. "In 1993, it was unheard of; it did not exist, "says Linney. "There have been some cases of homobadual characters, but they have been seen as the fop or the bad guy. They were not seen as people.

"It's so rare, again, that we see strange stories told. When we see them, they are often marginalized, "said series star Lauren Morelli. "This is the story B or C of someone else's story." They are a friend. This is the person who is chosen when the writers have time. "

All those involved in the new Tales of the City are aware of all that these characters have represented for generations of readers and viewers. "Oh my God, I feel all the pressure in the world!" Says Morelli, explaining that they must satisfy both old and new viewers. "In my best days, this seems like an excellent opportunity. In my worst days, I have the impression that queer people are so lacking in representation that you do not want to go wrong. "

But Tales is in good hands and this new series is a celebration of the world built by Maupin. Linney is worried about how the original fans might receive him. "I was worried," she says. "I think we were all. But you know, you try. You do your best. Will everyone love him? Probably not. But I think for some people it will make them feel less alone. And for that, I totally agree. "

Tales of the City is on Netflix from Friday, June 7

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