The past few years have been referred to as the "Transgender Tipping Point", marking a distinctive change in society with regards to the understanding and representation of the Trans community. Orange Is the New Black's Laverne Cox brought the conversation to mainstream audiences, quickly paving the way for other Trans-focused shows like Transparent, I Am Cait, and Difficult People. And with visibility increasing in popular culture, celebrities like Caitlyn Jenner are often rumored to appear in scripted shows that include Trans characters. That's exactly what's going to happen in Season 3 of Amazon's Transparent, which will feature a cameo by Jenner herself. Now we know what her role will consist of.
Transparent's showrunner Jill Soloway recently spoke to Variety about Caitlyn Jenner's upcoming role in the dramedy. After joking that she'd be playing a cousin of the Pfefferman family (yikes), Soloway revealed the real way that Jenner will be appearing in the series. And it sounds like the perfectly sized role.
She's in a dream sequence. [Gaby Hoffmann's character] Ali has a kind of wild, nitrous-inspired goddess-worshiping dream sequence, and you can't talk about the goddess without Ntozake Shange and Caitlyn Jenner who are both in the dream.
Honestly, this makes total sense. And personally, I'm relieved that Caitlyn Jenner's appearance will only be in a dream sequences, rather than the actual events of the series. Let's be real: she's not exactly a trained actress.
Caitlyn Jenner appearing in a Ali's dream sequence actually makes a ton of sense. We all know that dreams can be a big strange and disjointed, as your subconscious brings up various memories and combines them into weird new visions. With the Pfefferman largely focused on the truth of the Transgender community, it would stand to reason that perhaps the most famous Trans person in the world would pop up in one of the character's dreams.
Joining Caitlyn Jenner in Ali's dream is playwright and poet Ntozake Shange. Shange has been known during her career to give proper voices to those who have been underrepresented, particularly women of color. She is perhaps best known for her play for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, for which she was awarded an Obie Award. The play focuses on the experience of being a black woman in America, including a wide variety of stories. The play was also adapted into a 2010 film by Tyler Perry.
This motley duo of women are sure to make Ali (played by Gaby Hoffman) have a significant and hilarious dream during Transparent's third season.
Transparent has already been renewed for a fourth season, with Season 3 making its premiere on Amazon Friday September 23rd, 2016. Stay tuned with us at CinemaBlend for all things Transparent.
