Based on personal interviews with Mary Ann Zielonko

A Staged Reading to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Death of Kitty Genovese

38 WITNESSED HER DEATH, I WITNESSED HER LOVE: THE LONELY SECRET OF MARY ANN ZIELONKO (Kitty Genovese Story) written and performed by LuLu LoLo is a four part/three character drama in which LuLu portrays “The Chorus of 38”; the New York Times City Editor A.M. Rosenthal recalling the murder and the Times headline story; Winston Moseley testifying at his trial which convicted him of the murder; and Kitty’s lover Mary Ann Zielonko reminiscing after 40 years of silence about gay life in New York in the 60’s, her life with Kitty, the murder, the trial, and its aftermath

Herstory:
Fifty years ago on March 13, 1964, Kitty Genovese was brutally murdered in Kew Gardens, Queens, NY. Forty years later it was revealed that Kitty was a lesbian and living with her lover Mary Ann Zielonko at the time of her death. At the time of Kitty’s murder, the New York Times reported that 38 people witnessed her being attacked in three separate incidents—38 people heard her cries for help—And not one person called the police or came to her aid. Her death and the silence of the witnesses became a worldwide symbol of the apathy of the modern city.

In 2004, LuLu LoLo was granted an interview with Mary Ann Zielonko which LuLu developed \into the “Mary Ann Monologue” that was first performed at the Gay and Lesbian Theatre Festival in Columbus, Ohio in 2004. Due to popular demand, LuLu in 2006 developed this monologue into a one-act play to include a portrayal of The New York Times Editor, A.M. Rosenthal, and Kitty’s murderer Winston Moseley. In 2009 LuLu incorporated choreography by Jody Oberfelder and her dance company into the production which was performed at The New York International Fringe Festival. Mary Ann Zielonko attended the first performance of this production.

Quotes from reviews:
“The performance that steals your heart…I was moved to tears…”. Bill Kaiser, On the Purple Circuit

”This deeply affecting play features performance artist LoLo as multi-character monologist in the brilliant Anna Deveare Smith vein…” Eva Yaa Asantewaa Infinite Bodyblogspot.com

“This is riveting theater, with intensity and passion..” Elizabeth Ahlfors www.curtainup.com

Biography:
LuLu LoLo is a playwright/actor, international performance artist, and multi-disciplinary artist. LuLu has written and performed seven one-person plays Off-Broadway highlighting her Italian immigrant family heritage, her passion for historical research and social justice especially as pertaining to the dramatic struggle of women in New York City’s past on such subjects as the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire; the lesbian lover of murder victim Kitty Genovese; the murder of Helen Jewett; women who fought in the Civil War disguised as men; and Aaron Burr’s tragic relationship with his daughter Theodosia Burr Alston. Her latest play portrayed the shameful treatment of the women consigned to the Magdalene Laundries in Ireland. LuLu recently performed on 14th Street for Art in Odd Places as “Loretta the Telephone Operator” in “Remembrance of Phone Numbers Past” attempting to connect passers-by on the street with the earliest phone numbers they remember. LuLu’s current projects are “Obits” a play based on lives revealed in obituaries, and a book based on the letters written to the late controversial East Harlem Congressman Vito Marcantonio. LuLu was a Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Writer in Residence, and has been named a 2013 Blade of Grass Fellow, www.abladeofgrass.org

www.lululolo.com

LuLu LoLa’s fan page on Facebook