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Peterson Toscano collection
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Held at: Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections [Contact Us]370 Lancaster Ave, Haverford, PA 19041
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
"Peterson Toscano was born on February 17, 1965 in Stamford, Connecticut. In 1982 he became a born-again Christian and began attending conversion therapy at Gospel Tabernacle Church. He graduated from Narrowsburg High School in New York in 1983 and began at Nyack College. He took time off from college in spring 1984 due to "struggling with homosexuality", but then returned in the fall. He worked as a medical missionary for HCJB, a Christian missionary radio station, in Quito, Ecuador during the spring and fall of 1985. Following this Toscano moved to NYC and started attending Life Ministries, a support group for "men struggling with homosexuality". Toscano married Paula Kreuthmeier in 1990. The two moved to Zambia together in 1995 to do missionary work for the radio Christian Voice. They returned to the US in 1996 and Toscano began residential ex-gay therapy at Love in Action in Memphis, Tennessee. Toscano and Kreuthmeier divorced in 1997, and after two years at Love in Action Toscano officially came out as gay in 1998.
Toscano began his work as a writer and performer in 1999/2000 in Memphis with the play Footprints, an Inspirational Comedy. He also wrote a poem performed for Judy Shepard, mother of Matthew Shepard, when she came to Memphis for an event honoring her in 2000. He moved to Hartford, Connecticut to work at the Watkinson School in August 2001 and began attending the Hartford Friends Meeting following the September 11 attacks. He debuted his first major play, Doin' Time in the Homo No Mo House, about his experiences in residential ex-gay therapy in 2003, which he went on to perform across the US and internationally. During his years touring the play he met another ex-gay survivor, Christine Bakke, and the two launched the website beyondexgay.com, an online community for ex-gay survivors. In 2007 Toscano debuted Transfigurations: Transgressing Gender in the Bible and in 2008 he also began performing The Re-Education of George W. Bush– No President Left Behind. Around the same time Toscano met his partner Glen Retief at the Friends General Conference in Johnstown, PA. Toscano and Retief moved to Sunbury, PA together in 2010 and were married in July 2012 at the Pennsdale Friends Meeting. Fom 2009-2012, Toscano traveled around the US performing Transfigurations.
Toscano began researching climate change in 2013, and created a new play on the subject in 2014, titled Does this Apocalypse Make Me Look Fat?– A Comedy about Broken Bodies Large and Small. He continued his climate work through his podcast Climate Stew and as a part of Citizens Climate Lobby from 2015-2020. He also created the show Everything is Connected– An Evening of Stories, Most Weird Many True which combined excerpts from Doin' Time and Transfigurations with new material. In 2017 Toscano published two works: a performance recording of Transfigurations made into a movie by director Samuel Neff and a short graphic story illustrated by Joey Hartman Dow titled The Amazing Adventures of the Afterbirth of Jesus. He and his partner Retief moved to South Africa for a year in 2021, where he debuted his TikTok about the differences between the United States and South Africa, particularly around language. As of 2023, he hosts Quakers Today, the podcast companion to the Friends Journal.
Sourced from "Peterson Toscano Timeline" in Peterson Toscano Collection "
This collection contains various materials from playwright, performer, and Bible scholar Peterson Toscano. Documents include notes and scripts and publicity materials for his plays, personal materials like journals and photographs, and various magazines and newspapers featuring Toscano discussing his creative work, his experience with surviving Ex-gay therapy and how his relationship with Christianity as evolved because of it.
This collection is comprised of five series of materials: Personal; Speeches, talks, conferences; Performance scripts and notes; Publicity materials; and Published works. The Personal series contains three subseries: writing, Ex-Gay experience, and journals.
Gift of creator, December 2022
Processed by Campbell Adams, completed December 2023
- Publisher
- Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections
- Finding Aid Author
- Campbell Adams
- Finding Aid Date
- December, 2023
- Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open for research use..
- Use Restrictions
-
Standard Federal Copyright Law Applies (U.S. Title 17)
Collection Inventory
of Toscano; most have descriptions
gifted to Toscano in 2006 from Southern Illinois University Carbondale when he was a keynote speaker during their GLBT history month.
includes document by Toscano on his relationship with his parents, personal timeline, and notes on an altered Holy Bible used as a prop in his show Jesus Had Two Daddies. The note explains how the Bible is used: "On stage Peterson decided to design his own speciality Bible. At first she puts on stickers or writes on it, but in the end he drills a hole in the middle of the Bible. He then uses the round cutouts like petals in a flower girl's basket and exits via the main aisle tosses the Bible petals into the crowd."
These notes by Toscano are on a photocopy of a selection from Genesis, and focus particularly on Eli
Includes various poems written by Toscano
includes materials about clearness, in CT, wedding materials from marriage to Glen Retief, articles in Quaker publications, and more
includes Toscano's own writings as well as from others; includes personal writings, such as Toscano's script for a talk in Barcelona, and various pamphlets and articles
mostly personal writings from Toscano's time in conversion therapy
published articles on the ex-gay movement, healing from conversion therapy featuring Toscano, includes a poster for beyondexgay.com, an online community run by Toscano and Christine Bakke for ex-gay survivors
This is a signed copy, with the author, Jallen Rix, writing to Toscano, "Peterson, I could not have painted a true picture of the movement without you[r] generous input. May this be encouragement for your book! Much love and respect always, Jallen Rix". Toscano is also thanked by name in the book's acknowledgements.
these are loose pages from various journals
includes three notebooks containing diary entries, poetry, scripture, and copies of letters to his wife Paula
includes two notebooks containing personal/academic notes and personal diary entries
sporadic entries
includes notes on his poem "For Judy Shepard"
these are two notebooks which contain mostly personal diary entries
these are loose pages of a notebook containing mostly personal diary entries
these are four notebooks which contain mostly personal diary entries
loose pages; entries mostly during the summer
these are loose pages of one notebook containing mostly personal diary entries
these are three notebooks (one made up of mostly loose pages) which include mostly diary entries and performance/talk notes
these are four notebooks which contain both notes for talks/performances and personal diary entries; the majority of entries are from 2009
mostly notes for performances
loose pages of diary entries. I'm a little unsure of the format for some of the entries, since some of the entries in August it seems are not written by Toscano, and I don't know who wrote them.
Includes materials from an event with Judy Shepard (Matthew Shepard's mother), including "For Judy Shepard" a poem written by Toscano, performed at the event
Includes various materials from conferences which Toscano performed at, usually on the topic of LGBT rights and faith. Also includes some name tags from these conferences, including Toscano's name tag when he was a Friend in Residence at Haverford College in 2013.
Includes materials from various conferences/festivals Toscano performed at, including the 2012 Greenbelt Festival, Together in Faith, a conference on LGBT rights and faith hosted by the AFSC Faith Action Network, True Colors XI: Opening Minds, Opening Doors, and more.
these notes and guidelines are about Toscano's appearance on TV show Faith Under Fire in February 2005.
Includes various booklets/pamphlets from conferences which Toscano performed at, also includes Toscano's notes from a retreat workshop
Includes Toscano's notes on his talk on violent crime against LGBT people and two articles/studies on LGBT intimate partner violence, hate crimes, and sexual assault in prisons
Includes two booklets for two conferences which Toscano performed at in 2012, the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion in Chicago and the National Conference on LGBT Equality in Baltimore
8 DVDs, 2 mini disks, 26 CDs; most are video recordings or photos of Toscano's performances
7 VHS tapes; most are video recordings of Toscano's performances
As explained in the folder titled Toscano Personal timeline, this Bible with a hole drilled into the middle of it was used as a prop in his show Jesus Had Two Daddies.
This scarf was a prop for Toscano's play Transgressions: Transgressing Gender in the Bible
This is an outline of Toscano's play Transfigurations - Transgressing Gender in the Bible made into a lecture format
Outline for a Drama Workshop held at the National Civil Rights Museum, June 21, 2000
Includes notes, outlines, and scripts from a variety of different talks/performances done by Toscano
Edits from Phyllis Tickle on the 1st chapter of Toscano's draft of the book version of his play Doin' Time in the Homonomo Halfway House
includes an article feature promoting a 2004 performance of Footprints: an Inspirational Comedy by Toscano
January-May
contains script outline and flyers for performances
Includes his own writing and notes, including drafts and outlines for A Queer Response to Climate Change, and Does this Apocalypse make me look fat?
held at the Christian Student Center September 8, 2000; includes newspaper article, flyers from The Daily Helmsman on this performance by Toscano of Footprints in the Sand at University of Memphis Christian Student Center.
includes newspaper and magazine interviews of Toscano and article contributions by Toscano
includes various newspaper interviews of Toscano, Norwegian and British articles on Toscano, writing in Watkinson School Literary Magazine where Toscano worked, publicity materials, etc.
includes various newspaper interviews of Toscano, including promotion for his performances in the area
includes newspapers and magazines featuring Toscano, multiple from the publication Metroline
includes a variety of material surrounding Doin' Time in the Homo No Mo Halfway House: personal notes, script portions, flyers for various performances, reviews of the play, etc.
includes various newspaper interviews of Toscano, including promotion for his performances in the area
includes various newspaper articles and interviews of Toscano
includes newspapers and magazines featuring Toscano
includes printed out articles from online and physical newspaper articles on Doin' Time in the Homo No Mo Halfway House, Transfigurations, interviews of Toscano, publicity materials, etc.
includes newspaper articles on Toscano, publicity materials, and an exchange between a reverend and reader of the Christian newspaper the Trend on their article about Toscano and the United Christian Church's view on homosexuality.
Flyers and article feature about 2005 documentary Fish Can't Fly, which Toscano appears in.
includes various promotions for Toscano's performances in newspapers
includes various magazines featuring Toscano, including an interview of Toscano in the Susquehanna University student publication
includes various articles featuring Toscano, including interviews, publicity for performances, articles discussing Toscano's relationship to faith following his experiences with conversion therapy, and his contribution to an article on the ex-gay movement
Includes various flyers for Toscano's performances, also includes Toscano's resume, a flyer for Glen Retief's memoir The Jack Bank, and publicity for Toscano's time in 2011 as an Artist in Residence at Tennessee Tech University
Includes flyers for a variety of performances and talks by Toscano
includes flyers, article features, and thank you letters from high school students who watched Toscano's performance at their school
Contains two oversize magazines/newspapers where Toscano features in an article on the Ex-Gay movement.
Contains posters for a variety of Toscano's performances, including Doin' Time, Transfigurations, Everything is Connected, and more
short graphic novel written by Peterson Toscano and illustrated by Joey Hartmann-Dow
Toscano contributes two sections to this book titled "The M Word" and "Doin' Time in Estes Park". These passages are taken from Toscano's blog, Peterson Toscano's A Musing, written on February 25, 2007 and November 3, 2007 respectively.
Toscano contributes a section to this book, taken from his play Transgressions-- Transgressing Gender in the Bible, titled, "Transgressing Gender at Passover with Jesus!"
Toscano contributes a chapter to this book, titled, "Confessions of an Unlikely Ally".
Toscano is thanked in the preface.
Toscano contributes a section to this book, titled, "Not Our First Rodeo: Memory and Imagination Stir Up Hope".