Watch starry LA benefit of Dustin Lance Black's '8'

The hottest ticket in Los Angeles - probably in the world - on Saturday, March 3, 2012 was for the all-star reading of Dustin Lance Black's "8," which took place at the Wilshire Theater.

Those lucky enough to get tickets saw an all-star line-up featuring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Bomer, Martin Sheen, Kevin Bacon, Jane Lynch, Matthew Morrison, John C. Reilly and Jamie Lee Curtis (among others) in Black's dramatization of the Federal District Court trial in Perry v. Schwarzenegger (now Perry v. Brown). The play gave audiences a look behind the trial's closed doors.

The starry benefit was streamed on the American Foundation for Equal Rights' (AFER) YouTube channel. You can watch a rebroadcast below.

The play will be seen in readings at theaters throughout the country over the next few month. To find out if it is at a theater near you, click here.

"At long last each and every American will be able to see for themselves what happens when prejudice and fear are put on trial in a court of law," said AFER Board President Chad Griffin in a press release. "For over two years, the anti-marriage proponents of Proposition 8 have fought tooth and nail to hide their discriminatory arguments from the American people. But on Saturday night, thanks to YouTube and our incredible cast, people across the nation, from Los Angeles to Little Rock to Baltimore, will get to watch as our Constitution's promise of liberty and equality for all is protected."

Black won an Oscar for his script to Gus Van Sant's "Milk." He also recently penned the script to Clint Eastwood's "J. Edgar."

He based "8" on the actual words of the trial transcripts, first-hand observations of the courtroom drama and interviews with the plaintiffs and their families. The reading was directed by Rob Reiner.

Coming onboard last Thursday, Brad Pitt was the last member to join the ensemble. Also in the cast was George Clooney and Martin Sheen as Plaintiffs' lead co-counsel David Boies and Theodore B. Olson, the renowned attorneys who notably faced-off in Bush v. Gore.

Academy, Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Christine Lahti and Golden Globe Award-winner Jamie Lee Curtis will star as plaintiffs Kris Perry and Sandy Stier, a lesbian couple together for eleven years and the parents of four boys. Emmy, Golden Globe and Tony Award-nominee Matthew Morrison and acclaimed White Collar television star Matt Bomer will play plaintiffs Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo, a gay couple together over ten years.

Kevin Bacon played Charles J. Cooper, the lead attorney for the anti-marriage proponents of Proposition 8. Jane Lynch took the role of prominent opponent of marriage equality Maggie Gallagher, co-founder and former chairman of the National Organization for Marriage. Academy. John C. Reilly played David Blankenhorn, founder and president of the Institute for American Values.

Additional roles will be played by Emmy Award-winning journalist Campbell Brown; Chris Colfer,Jesse Tyler Ferguson; Cleve Jones; Rory O'Malley; George Takei; Yeardley Smith; and Vanessa Garcia, Jansen Panatierre, James Pickens, Jr. and Bridger Zadina.

The Los Angeles reading of "8" comes just weeks after a landmark decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upholding the historic August 2010 ruling of the Federal District Court that found Proposition 8 unconstitutional. The Ninth Circuit concluded:

"Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples. The Constitution simply does not allow for laws of this sort."

Throughout 2012, AFER and Broadway Impact are licensing "8" for free to colleges and community theatres nationwide in order to spur dialogue, understanding and action. Most performances will be followed by a talkback where cast and audience members can discuss the issues presented in the Perry v. Schwarzenegger trial.
"I was lucky enough to watch the closing arguments of Perry v. Schwarzenegger in San Francisco," said Broadway Impact co-founder Rory O'Malley (Tony Award-nominee for "The Book of Mormon"). "We knew then and there that audiences needed to see and hear this story live, as we had done. '8' builds on a successful tradition of documentary theatre-plays like "The Laramie Project" and "The Vagina Monologues," which inspire us with their combination of art and activism. We are thrilled to partner with AFER to bring this story to a national audience."

For more on "8", visit the play's website.