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With greater representation, an on-stage ‘Transparent’ musical looks to transcend the Amazon show’s rocky ending
(JTA) — When the Amazon series “Transparent” premiered in 2014, America had never met a family like the Pfeffermans on TV.
The hit dramedy, following a Jewish family of three adult siblings whose parent comes out as a transgender woman in her 60s, was the first scripted series to center on a transitioning character. The show won eight Emmys out of 28 nominations, along with awards from GLAAD and the NAACP. It has been credited with paving a path for more leading trans characters in shows such as FX’s “Pose,” CW’s “Supergirl” and HBO’s “Euphoria.”
“Transparent” was also called by many “the most Jewish show on TV.” Its Jewish characters range from mostly secular Los Angelenos to a rabbi to Weimar-era German counterculture pioneers (seen in flashbacks). In the fourth season, the main characters visit Israel-Palestine, where they attempt to understand both their faith and the occupation.
But the show was criticized for casting straight cisgender actor Jeffrey Tambor as the transitioning matriarch Maura Pfefferman. And in 2017, after “Transparent” had been renewed for a fifth season, Tambor was accused of sexual harassment by two former on-set colleagues. He was fired, his starring character killed off in the finale. (Tambor has repeatedly denied the allegations against him.)
That finale took the form of a 100-minute musical film, which ended the series with a divisive show tune called “Joyocaust,” urging Jews to transform their DNA-rooted suffering into joy: “Take the concentration out of the camps, concentrating on some song and dance.”
Now the entire series is getting the musical treatment, arriving on a real stage in Los Angeles. “A Transparent Musical” — adapted by “Transparent” creator Joey Soloway with music and lyrics by Faith Soloway, who also wrote for the TV series — debuts on Tuesday and runs through June 25 at the Mark Taper Forum. One of the goals: to put the spotlight squarely on LGBTQ actors.
“It’s like 75% trans and nonbinary people on stage,” said Faith.
The siblings were originally inspired by their own family: Their parent, formerly known as Harry Soloway, came out as a woman, calling herself “Carrie,” at 75 years old. After they started making the show, Joey and Faith Soloway gradually also came out as trans. Joey changed their name from Jill. Both siblings use the pronouns “they/them.”
They saw the musical medium as a way to freshen up the TV show’s explorations of Jewish and queer history, and the ways in which they interact. Their production will include songs like “Jewish and Queer” — a jubilant “Jewish drinking song,” said Joey — along with defiant anthems like “Deviant,” which celebrates uniting against hatred.
Before they understood their interest in gender, the siblings always imagined making a musical together.
“At the ages of 5, 6, 7 years old, you can picture us sitting on the carpet in our living room in the early ‘70s, listening to the cast albums of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ and ‘Hair’ and ‘Fiddler on the Roof,’ dreaming that one day this was where we were going,” said Joey.
Joey said they did not realize that Tambor’s casting was “problematic” when the TV series debuted. They approached casting and hiring creatives for “A Transparent Musical” with a laser focus on representation, choosing trans actress Daya Curley for Maura’s role. They also centered the character of Davina — Maura’s trans friend, portrayed by Black actress and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” runner-up Peppermint — to intensify the musical’s focus on intersectionality.
Adina Verson, who identifies as nonbinary and featured in the show “Only Murders in the Building,” will play Ali Pfefferman, the family’s youngest sibling.
“I’ve never seen a show with so many trans actors,” said Verson. “It’s an incredible room full of unique, incredible performers who honestly haven’t often been given the stage that they deserve.”
As someone who is married to a man and has a child, Verson said they “never felt queer enough”; meanwhile, growing up as a Reform Jew, they “never quite felt Jewish enough.” (In the series, Ali is played by non-Jewish actress Gaby Hoffmann.)
“It was so exciting to be able to bring that questioning to Ali’s journey, and through Ali, I feel like I’ve really found my footing,” they said.
At the same time as trans representation in popular culture has grown since Amazon premiered “Transparent,” trans identities have come under a coordinated political attack. This year alone, 20 states have passed 71 bills restricting healthcare, public accommodations and school activities for trans people, according to the Trans Legislation Tracker.
Last week, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a slate of bills targeting drag shows, restricting the discussion of “preferred pronouns” in schools and enforcing the use of specific bathrooms at public facilities — from schools to prisons — based on “biological sex.” The laws also banned minors from accessing transgender medical treatments, such as puberty blockers or hormone therapy, and placed new restrictions on adults seeking treatment.
Joey Soloway said they were “in mourning” and “paralysis” over the legislation. They see “A Transparent Musical” as a form of protest, conveying “the relationship between how Jews are othered and trans people are othered” with a power that feels different on a theater stage.
“We’re amping up our ammunition beyond a one-on-one TV experience that you watch alone in your room, streaming on your iPad,” said Joey. “This is something you experience collectively, that lands in the body and allows you to go out into the world singing and dancing.”
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Board of Peace Members Have Pledged More Than $5 billion for Gaza, Trump Says
A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo
US President Donald Trump said Board of Peace member states will announce at an upcoming meeting on Thursday a pledge of more than $5 billion for reconstruction and humanitarian efforts in Gaza.
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump wrote that member states have also committed thousands of personnel toward a U.N.-authorized stabilization force and local police in the Palestinian enclave.
The US president said Thursday’s gathering, the first official meeting of the group, will take place at the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, which the State Department recently renamed after the president. Delegations from more than 20 countries, including heads of state, are expected to attend.
The board’s creation was endorsed by a United Nations Security Council resolution as part of the Trump administration’s plan to end the war between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza.
Israel and Hamas agreed to the plan last year with a ceasefire officially taking effect in October, although both sides have accused each other repeatedly of violating the ceasefire. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, more than 590 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops in the territory since the ceasefire began. Israel has said four of its soldiers have been killed by Palestinian militants in the same period.
While regional Middle East powers including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Israel – as well as emerging nations such as Indonesia – have joined the board, global powers and traditional Western US allies have been more cautious.
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Turkey Sends Drilling Ship to Somalia in Major Push for Energy Independence
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a ceremony for the handover of new vehicles to the gendarmerie and police forces in Istanbul, Turkey, Nov. 28, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Murad Sezer
i24 News – Turkey has dispatched a drilling vessel to Somalia to begin offshore oil exploration, marking what officials describe as a historic step in Ankara’s drive to strengthen energy security and reduce reliance on imports.
Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar announced that the drilling ship Çagri Bey is set to sail from the port of Taşucu in southern Turkey, heading toward Somali territorial waters.
The vessel will pass through the Strait of Gibraltar and around the coast of southern Africa before reaching its destination, with drilling operations expected to begin in April or May.
Bayraktar described the mission as a “historic” milestone, saying it reflects Turkey’s long-term strategy to enhance national energy security and move closer to self-sufficiency.
The operation will be protected by the Turkish Naval Forces, which will deploy several naval units to secure both the vessel’s route and the drilling area in the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea. The security arrangements fall under existing cooperation agreements between Ankara and Somalia.
The move aligns with a broader vision promoted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, aimed at reducing Turkey’s dependence on foreign energy supplies, boosting domestic production, and shielding the economy from external pressures.
Bayraktar said Turkey is also working to double its natural gas output in the Black Sea this year, while continuing offshore exploration along its northern coastline. In parallel, Ankara is preparing to bring its first nuclear reactor online at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, which is expected to begin generating electricity soon and eventually supply about 10% of the country’s energy needs.
The current drilling effort is based on survey data collected last year and forms part of Ankara’s wider plan to expand its energy exploration activities both regionally and internationally.
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Syria Expected to Form a New Government, Appoint a PM with US Support
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a Ministerial formation of the government of the Syrian Arab Republic, in Damascus, Syria, March 29, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
i24 News – Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is expected to launch in the coming weeks a workshop to form a new, inclusive Syrian government with expanded powers, a Syrian source close to President al-Sharaa tells i24NEWS. This government will include figures from across the spectrum of Syrian society in a bid to address the concerns of minority groups. Those chosen will be individuals who enjoy both local and international legitimacy.
i24NEWS has learned that a prominent candidate considered for the post of prime minister is veteran Syrian politician Fahad al-Masri, chairman of the Syrian Liberal Party. A US official says that the Trump administration “appreciates al-Masri’s support for Washington’s positions regarding Syria and the region, and that Syria would be well-served with him in an influential role.”
The Syrian source tells me that the new Syrian government will adopt “a phased plan to merge several ministries to achieve greater integration and efficiency.”
According to the US official, the workshop to form a new government is among several ideas that have been floated and discussed in order to reach a more permanent, non-transitional government.
The official said that US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack’s decision to drop support for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is partly because he believes Syria’s Kurds must be part of the government in Damascus in order to grant it greater legitimacy.
“Making known that the SDF’s mandate has expired from Washington’s point of view is an avenue to encouraging the Kurds to integrate and speed up the process of forming that broad, inclusive government,” the US official said.
i24NEWS reached out to Fahad al-Masri to ask about his readiness to assume the role of prime minister in the upcoming Syrian government. Al-Masri declined to confirm or deny his nomination but stressed that “the priority must remain the stability and unity of Syria rather than individual roles.”
Al-Masri expressed his deep appreciation for President Trump and the US administration’s stance on Syria, describing it as “principled and strategically significant.” Al-Masri underscored his confidence in President al-Sharaa’s leadership during this pivotal period, affirming that the success of the transitional phase is vital for national interest and regional stability.