100 Women We Love: Joan Lipkin

Playwright, director, theater company founder, social critic, activist, Ethical Humanist of the Year: Joan Lipkin has worn many hats while using theater to advocate for social change. Dividing her time between St. Louis and New York City, she has done many projects in the LGBT community—including writing and directing the first piece of LGBT theatre in St. Louis (Some of My Best Friends Are…), as well as projects about racism, sexism, ableism, cancer survival, ecology and more. Why so diverse? "I consider myself a citizen of the world," she said. "It's essential to work in coalition with others to create the world in which we wish to live together." As Artistic Director of That Uppity Theatre Company in St. Louis, Lipkin works with both citizen actors and professionals. As co-founder of the DisAbility Project, she also provided a venue for people with and without disabilities to create theater about the culture of disabilities. NPR, the BBC, and network television have broadcast Lipkin’s work. One of her current projects, The Big, Fat LGBT Show, uses sketch comedy, song and dance to educate corporations and the public in various settings. Light touch, powerful message. Pure Lipkin. –DN