Hyphenated Identities and Cultural Clashes: The Portrayal of Generational Gaps in Italian-Canadian Families through the Lens of Sexual Orientation in Salvatore Antonio's In Gabrie's Kitchen

This paper examines the treatment of the generational and cultural gaps among Italian Canadians in a theatrical setting. The article focuses on Salvatore Antonio’s In Gabriel’s Kitchen, a play that focuses on the destruction of an Italian Canadian family upon the announcement of their son ’s homosexuality. Using a background of cultural studies and examples of Italian-Canadian literature, the paper analyzes Antonio’s ability to deliver a double set of conflicts: the first dealing directly with the differences between first- generation parents and second-generation children; the second with the much more devastating culture war revelations of the contested identity of being a gay man in an Italian-Canadian setting.