This story, originally published February 4, has been updated February 5 to include additional quotes from Lauren Gunderson.
On January 30, the Justice Department released over 3.5 million emails relating to late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. Of the many names in those files, the name Nathan Wolfe appeared 589 times. Wolfe is a virologist who, according to the emails, was trying to secure funding from Epstein for research on a "female viagra." The two also seemed to have been friends because Wolfe invited Epstein to his wedding in 2012 to playwright Lauren Gunderson, a widely produced writer of women-focused work.
Gunderson's name appeared in the Epstein emails nine times, mainly because she and Wolfe used a joint email account to send Epstein invitations to their pre-wedding celebration, their wedding, and (later) their baby shower. There is no direct correspondence between Gunderson and Epstein.
As the revelation that Wolfe and Gunderson had a connection to Epstein spread around the theatre industry February 3, one theatre took a preemptive move: Contemporary Theater Company in Rhode Island announced (in a now-deleted Facebook post) that they were cancelling their production of Gunderson's The Revolutionists, due to "Lauren Gunderson's connection to Jeffrey Epstein." Though the theatre admitted that it was "not clear to what extent Gunderson shared her husband's relationship with Epstein," they "will not produce work by Gunderson unless and until exonerating information does come to light."
On February 4, Gunderson released a statement on Instagram saying that she and Wolfe were separated before these revelations came to light, and that Epstein did not attend their wedding. Wrote Gunderson: "[Epstein's] vile crimes and conduct are abhorrent, and I universally condemned his actions and legacy long ago, and still do. I was shocked to discover only days ago that my name appears in the public files because of an electronic Paperless Post 2012 wedding reception invitation sent to him. I was given a sizable contact list by my then fiancé and his email was in it. That same list was blind copied to send two subsequent birth announcements years later. I did not know/meet/have knowledge of/engage in any way with Epstein before or after that initial invitation was sent, nor did he attend any event at which I was present including my wedding."
Gunderson then pointed to her own track record of writing plays centering women and feminist voices; her works include The Half-Life of Marie Curie and I and You. Her plays have made her the most-produced playwright in America for three seasons, according to American Theatre magazine. Wrote Gunderson: "As a storyteller primarily of heroines, I am nauseated to have even the most remote and incidental association with this awful predator. Honestly, I am absolutely just appalled. Most vitally, I honor the survivors of this awful predator and his network of abusers."
In a later follow-up with Playbill, Gunderson said she had not received any communication from Contemporary Theater before they cancelled her production, saying, "I disagree with their decision, but I hope they retain support for producing important feminist plays in the future."
When asked about the contents of the emails—including one dated July 18, 2011 where Epstein said to Wolfe after the two had met the evening before, "your fiance is great ... that was fun"—Gunderson maintains she had never met Epstein. "I understand how this email from 2011 can be read several ways. I have never met the monster Jeffrey Epstein and the only thing that makes any sense is that my ex-husband spoke about me and my profession in his presence, since we were newly engaged."
She also said that she hadn't been aware she had invited Epstein to her wedding until the release of the files. She had handled the sending of the invitations, "incorporating the sizable number of email contacts Nathan provided, along with my own. There were over 400 people invited to the reception, many of whom I had never met."
At the same time, while she admitted to being "shocked and appalled" by rush of judgement directed at her, Gunderson has been buoyed the support she has received from colleagues following the release of her statement. Said Gunderson: "There is a long history of the public rushing to vilify women without curiosity or compassion for their point of view, not to mention the truth. I understand the outrage about this horrifying subject, because I share it. As an ardent feminist with a two-decade long career of writing about women fighting patriarchy, I hope we remain focused on the survivors and victims of Epstein’s deplorable actions."
In a statement to the San Francisco Chronicle, Wolfe said that he sought funding from Epstein but never received it and that "I never visited his island or flew on his plane ... I did meet with him professionally at his homes in New York and Palm Beach to discuss my research. During those in-person meetings, I never witnessed or participated in any misconduct or inappropriate behavior.”
Playbill reached out to Contemporary Theater for clarification but did not receive a response.
