Theatre Rhinoceros
LGBTQ theatre / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Theatre Rhinoceros, Theatre Rhino, or The Rhino is a gay and lesbian theatre in San Francisco.[1] Theatre Rhinoceros claims to be the world's longest-running professional queer theatre company.[2] It was founded in the spring of 1977 by Lanny Baugniet (who became the theater's General Manager) and his late partner Allan B. Estes, Jr. (who became the theater's Artistic Director). The name is based on the lavender rhinoceros, a symbol popularized by the Boston gay community in the mid-1970s.[3] It is a non-profit theater company dedicated to the production of plays by and about gay and lesbian people.
Theatre Rhinoceros is the first gay theater company to employ actors under a professional seasonal agreement. The company was recognized by the California State Assembly on its twenty-fifth anniversary and again as a pioneering organization at the twenty-fifth anniversary remembrance of assassinated San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk.