George Clooney is the first actor to
join the Los Angeles reading of the play 8, The
Los Angeles Times reported.
8, which was written by Milk
screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, is based on the trial over the
constitutionality of California's gay marriage ban, Proposition 8.
The 13-day trial held last year in San
Francisco resulted in federal Judge Vaughn Walker, now retired,
declaring the ban unconstitutional. Proponents of Proposition 8
appealed the ruling, and gay and lesbian couples in California remain
barred from marrying.
The Broadway premiere of the event
raised over $1 million for the fight to win marriage equality.
Clooney, 50, is traveling in Australia
and unavailable for comment, but in a statement released by the
American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), the group formed
specifically to challenge the 2008 voter-approved amendment, Clooney
is quoted as saying: βIt is astonishing that gay and lesbian
Americans are still treated as second-class citizens. I am confident
that, very soon, the laws of this nation will reflect the basic truth
that gay and lesbian people β like all human beings β are born
equal in dignity and rights.β
The Los Angeles premiere of the play
will take place at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre on March 3. Click
here to purchase tickets.