Zap2it.com
by Lisa Wilton

May 18, 2001

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) -- While no one can charge "Queer as Folk" with practicing tokenism in the realm of gay men, it's not easy playing one of the show's two lesbians, new moms whose storylines tend toward domesticity. "I'm like, 'Don't we go out? Don't we have friends?'" actress Michelle Clunie, who plays Melanie on the Showtime series, said Wednesday (May 16) at a panel in Los Angeles sponsored by Outfest. Don't even get her started on the clothes. Clunie said that early in the season the wardrobe department debated endlessly about finding the right balance of butch, glamour and believability for Melanie's attire. "Finally I said, 'Thea's the one I'm supposed to be dressing for. Why don't I just wear whatever turns her on?'" Now Clunie and Thea Gill, who plays Melanie's girlfriend, Lindsay, choose each other's outfits. While both actresses are straight, Clunie said they comfortably choreograph love scenes off the set, which they prefer to leaving it in the hands of a gay male director. Clunie is encouraged, however, that the show is currently looking for a female writer to add to the staff.