A Fun Home Retrospective

Fun Home is a Tony-award-winning musical adapted from Alison Bechdel’s graphic novel of the same name. Written by Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron, the musical follows Alison Bechdel as she writes her novel, delving into her memories from childhood and college, primarily focusing on her relationship with her closeted father and her relationship with queerness. A lot of the musical takes place at Bechdel’s alma mater, the one and only Oberlin College. For the first time ever, Fun Home was performed as part of the Oberlin Theater 2025-2026 Mainstage Season. 

I was fortunate enough to portray “Medium Alison,” AKA Alison as a freshman here at Oberlin. As a freshman myself, I found it easy to connect with the anxiety and naivety of 19-year-old Bechdel trying to ease into college life and simultaneously put herself out there despite being rather introverted. In my first scene, I was slumped on a dorm bed, miming a phone call with Bruce Bechdel (Tyler Sanderlin) as he instructed Medium Alison to “trust [her] instincts” and to not “twist [herself] in knots trying to impress people who are not worthy of [her].” This scene took me back to my first week at Oberlin, scared of not fitting in and trying too hard to impress people I thought were much cooler than I. In fact, I remember calling my mom only to hear the exact same advice as Alison’s dad offered her (in a more caring way, of course; my mother is not like Bruce Bechdel). It was a lot of fun playing a character who was in my exact situation at the beginning of her own freshman year at Oberlin, and--especially with this being my first Oberlin musical ever--I will look back on Fun Home with the fondest of memories. Here are a few highlights: 

Caption: This was my first time ever doing stage intimacy (could you tell?)

Stage kissing, from what I’ve learned through this experience, takes a lot of practice, hard work, and can often be extremely silly. One key tip we got from our intimacy coordinator was to let the hands do all the work, to distract from the fact that there wasn’t much going on with the lips. 

Caption: Changing my Major to Joan. 

I got to sing "Changing my Major," one of the most iconic queer songs in musical theater ever. This song takes place after Medium Alison and Joan have sex with each other for the first time (Alison’s first time ever). It is a beautiful piece written in 3/4 (typically associated with love songs as seen in Rodgers and Hammerstein). This song having such a lovey, innocent tone portrays lesbian sex as something beautiful and sensitive, fighting against stereotypes that assert otherwise. It was such an honor being able to sing such a profound song as a queer woman myself. 

Caption: Judy Kuhn taught a masterclass!

Judy Kuhn played Helen Bechdel in the original Broadway cast of Fun Home--oh, and she’s actually an Oberlin alum. During show weekend, she hosted a masterclass where members of our cast were able to sing for her and get feedback like no other. We were all so grateful to have been in the presence of a legend who also happened to go to our school. Pictured here is Sara Nearenberg (Small Alison), Judy Kuhn, and myself after the event. 

 Caption: We met Alison Bechdel 

Oberlin alum and author of Fun Home Alison Bechdel joined professor K.J. Cerankowski in a discussion regarding Fun Home via Zoom. Oberlin students and members of the local community were invited to listen in on the conversation and ask Bechdel questions at the end of the event. It was interesting to hear her talk about the musical, and how her experience with it is like no other. She explained that, although she would have loved to come see the Oberlin production, “seeing your father get hit by a truck every night can be a little much.” Overall, the talk led to many ongoing conversations and gave all of us cast members a new perspective on our work in Fun Home. 

Caption: We take our final bows. 

Every story must come to an end, but I will always be thankful for this amazing opportunity, my fantastic fellow cast members, and the power of queer storytelling.