How a Broadway showstopper became a defining anthem for the LGBT+ community
In short: Composed by Jerry Herman for the 1983 musical La Cage aux Folles, the song I Am What I Am transcended its theatrical origins. It evolved into a powerful gay anthem during the AIDS crisis and remains a signature hit for legendary performers like Gloria Gaynor and Shirley Bassey today.
In his April 2025 lecture at London’s Conway Hall, Professor Dominic Broomfield-McHugh explores how showstoppers function as metaphorical voices for communities. Representation, he notes, involves presenting an image that stands for a person or group. While this can provide a sense of identity, it also carries the inherent risk of stereotyping, particularly when the group being represented is marginalized or stigmatized.
The challenge of authentic representation is compounded when creators lack a deep connection to the community they depict. This tension is evident in the history of queer representation in musical theatre, where subjectivity and personal experience are often flattened. Broomfield-McHugh highlights the songwriter Cole Porter (1891–1964) as a case study in how public perception often clashes with private reality. While Porter’s attraction to men is well-documented, his life has frequently been subjected to reductive, sensationalized biographies.
For instance, the 1995 book Genius and Lust frames Porter’s career through the lens of a tragic secret, while the 2020 Netflix series Hollywood depicts him in a manner that leans into tropes. These portrayals contrast sharply with the 1946 biopic Night and Day, which famously depicted Porter in a conventional marriage to Linda Lee Thomas. By examining Porter’s intimate 1925 letters to the ballet dancer Boris Kochno, scholars can move beyond these caricatures, revealing a more complex, human reality that resists the simplified narratives often imposed on historical figures.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: The LGBT+ Showstopper: ‘I Am What I Am’ - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
- Also: The LGBT+ Showstopper: ‘I Am What I Am’
- Also: podcast.gresham.ac.uk — The LGBT+ Showstopper: ‘I Am What I Am’ - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh - Gresham College Lectures
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