Coming Out Support Newsweekly: 4/26/10

Coming Out Support (COS) Newsweekly
Volume 13 No. 16 April 26, 2010
Newsletter Editor: M. G. Auerbach Email: COSNewsweekly@gmail.com

The Fine Print

See previous issues

The Gay Agenda: Datebook: April 26-May 2, 2010

Ongoing: Global: 2010 Pride Season. Parades, fairs, festivals celebrating LGBT Pride around the world. www.interpride.org

thru SUN: 5/02: Miami, FL: Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. www.MGLFF.com

MON: 4/26: New York, NY: Live Out Loud 9th Annual Young Trailblazers Benefit Gala. Alan Cumming hosts. Live Out Loud is a non-profit dedicated to connecting LGBT youth with role models and leaders in the LGBT community. www.liveoutloud.info.

MON-SUN: 4/26-5/02: Philadelphia, PA: Equality Forum. largest national and international & LGBT civil rights forum with 60+ programs, parties & special events. www.equalityforum.com

MON-TUE: 4/26-4/27: New York, NY: The 24th Annual Easter Bonnet Competition to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. www.broadwaycares.org.

MON: 4/26: New York, NY: City Center Honors Stephen Sondheim On the Occasion of His 80th Birthday. www.nycitycenter.org.

MON: 4/26: New York, NY: TalkOut Monday at “The Tempermentals”. Chuck Wolfe, President and CEO of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund is featured guest. www.thetemperamentals.com

FRI: 4/30: Las Vegas, NV: Pam Grier, cult favorite and star of "The L Word", signs copies of “Foxy: My Life In Three Acts”. 7PM. Borders Books, Las Vegas Blvd.

FRI-SAT: 4/30-5/01: Chicago, IL: Mario Cantone stars in Eugene Pack's Celebrity Autobiography, making its Chicago premiere at the Royal George Theatre.

SAT: 5/01: New York, NY: Liza Minelli will be honored at PFLAG’s annual gala. She receives the Straight for Equality in Entertainment Award, for a lifetime of advocacy. www.pflag.org.

SUN: 5/02: New York, NY: Miss Fag Hag Pageant celebrating the un-sung heroes of the gay community. A benefit for The Hetrick-Martin Institute, home of The Harvey Milk School. Judges: Caroline Rhea, Robert Verdi, Michael Musto, and John Cameron Mitchell. www.missfaghag.com

SUN: 5/02: Washington, DC: Liza Minnelli and Harvey Fierstein co-host the 18th annual Kennedy Center Spring Gala. www.kennedy-center.org.

SUN: 5/02: New York, NY: Lucille Lortel Awards for excellence in Off-Broadway theatre. www.lortelaward.com.

Newsworthy:

Obama: Hospitals must grant same-sex couples visitation rights. The President signed on 4/15/10, a memorandum requiring hospitals to allow gays and lesbians to have non-family visitors and to grant their partners medical power of attorney. The Washington Post reports:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/15/AR2010041505502.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/16/AR2010041604772.html?hpid=topnews

Prom Night in Georgia. Gay teen takes his boyfriend to the prom without incident. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2010/04/georgia-prom.html

Massachusetts: Republicans have picked a pro-gay gubernatorial candidate with an out running mate. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2010/04/massachusetts-gop-picks-progay-gubernatorial-candidate-with-openly-gay-running-mate.html

California: An elderly gay couple’s life together destroyed by discrimination. The National Center for Lesbian Rights reports: http://www.nclrights.org/site/PageServer?pagename=issue_caseDocket_Greene_v_County_of_Sonoma_et_al

New Magazine Launch: Out There, a glossy print and online magazine will bring international homoculture, voices, arts and travel to its readers. The premiere issue has Alan Cumming on the cover. http://www.out-theremagazine.com/#/i-s-s-u-e-1/4537816923

The Buzz (People Making News)

Coming Out: Jennifer Knapp, the Grammy-nominated Christian music artist, returned to the spotlight and came out. CNN reports: http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/Music/04/16/jennifer.knapp.gay/?hpt=C2

Coming Out: Daniel Kowalksi, the Australian Olympic swimmer, has come out. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/04/17/Olympic_Swimmer_Daniel_Kowalski_Comes_Out/

Awards and Honors:

Recipients: GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles on 4/17/10: http://www.glaad.org/Page.aspx?pid=1403

Nominees: 2010 Drama League Awards. Among them: “Next Fall”, “The Pride”, Michael Urie, Rosie O’Donnell, Levi Kreis, Leslie Jordan, Colman Domingo, Broadway.com reports: http://www.broadway.com/buzz/drama-league-announces-2010-awards-nominees/

Photo Shoots and Video

Trailer: Arias With a Twist Documentary. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=759971528901
Read about the film on Modern Tonic: http://www.moderntonic.com/entry/show/672

Photos: Drag and Drop Dead Gorgeous. The actor Douglas Hodge transforms himself into Albin/”Zaza” in Broadway’s “La Cage Aux Folles”. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/04/18/theater/20100418-hodge.html?ref=theater

Photo: Charlie Williams crowned winner of Broadway Beauty Pageant, which was a benefit for the Ali Forney Center, the nation’s largest organization dedicated to homeless LGBT youth. Theatermania reports: http://www.theatermania.com/broadway/news/04-2010/photo-flash-memphis-charlie-williams-wins-broadway_26763.html

Video: Johnny Weir speaks at Equality California benefit. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2010/04/watch-johnny-weir-speaks-at-california-gay-rights-fundraiser.html

Photo Coverage: The Point Foundation (the largest funder of LGBT scholarships) honors Jane Krakowski, David Mixner and more from BroadwayWorld.com: http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Photo_Coverage_Point_Foundation_Gala_Honors_Jane_Krakowski_20100420

Features

Coming Out: It’s So Easy to be out on Broadway. Variety reports: http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118017755.html?categoryid=15&cs=1

Gay Themes Fill New York Theatres. NY1 reports: http://www.ny1.com/7-brooklyn-news-content/ny1_living/on_stage/117116/-i-on-stage---i--lgbt-themes-fill-new-york-theaters/

Profile: Levi Kreis. The young out star of “Million Dollar Quartet” plays Jerry Lee Lewis. Broadway.com reports: http://www.broadway.com/shows/million-dollar-quartet/buzz/million-dollar-star-levi-kreis-his-real-wild-child-rise/

In Performance: Onstage:Theatre/Music/Dance

New York City (and Broadway)

***Alan Cumming brings his nightclub act to Feinstein’s at the Regency. 4/27/10-5/01/10 and 6/22/10-6/26/10. www. feinsteinsatloewsregency.com
***Bass for Picasso. Kate Moira Ryan’s new play about an amputee navigating gay and lesbian life in the new millenium. to 5/23/10. www.tbtb.org
***The Kid: The Musical. Christopher Sieber stars as sex columnist Dan Savage in the New Group's production based on Savage's memoir of the same name, about Savage and his partner's effort to adopt a child. to 5/29/10 www.thenewgroup.org.
***La Cage Aux Folles, a revival of the 1983 Jerry Herman/Harvey Fierstein musical, based on a French film, which inspired the film "Birdcage”.. www.LaCage.com
***Looking for Billy Haines. A young gay actor auditions to play the famous gay actor William Haines who is run out of 1920’s Hollywood for refusing to play straight. to 5/22/10. www.ticketcentral.com.
***Mayo On Your Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Drag Theatre Company Shim Mamsir’s Performance Series. 4/29/10. www.SpinCycleNYC.com
***My Trip Down The Pink Carpet. Leslie Jordan’s one-man show. to 7/03/10. www.mytripdownthepinkcarpet.com
***Next Fall. Geoffrey Nauffts' provocative play about a gay couple; one partner is a devout Christian and the other is an atheist. www.nextfallbroadway.com
***Promises, Promises. Newly-out Sean ("Will & Grace") Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth star in the Burt Bacharach & Hal David & Neil Simon musical.
***The Tempermentals. Jon Maran's acclaimed drama about Harry Hay, designer Rudi Gernreich (Michael Urie of "Ugly Betty") and friends as they form The Mattachine Society before Stonewall. www.thetemperamentals.com

Elsewhere...

***Girlfriend. A Musical inspired by Matthew Sweet’s 90’s pop album. Boy meets boy in homeroom, and they fall in love. to 5/09/10. Berkeley, CA. www.berkeleyrep.org.
***I Am My Own Wife. Steven Abbott stars as Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, the real-life German transvestite who managed to survive both the Nazi onslaught and the repressive East German Communist regime. to 5/16/10. Rohnert Park, CA. www.spreckelsonline.com
***Master Class. Terrence McNally's Tony-Award winning play is a portrait of opera diva Maria Callas. to 5/02/10. San Francisco, CA. www.nctcsf.org
***M.Butterfly. David Henry Hwang's award-winning play. The true story of a French diplomat who falls for a Chinese spy posing as a Bejing opera diva. to 6/06/10. Minneapolis, MN. www.guthrietheater.org
***Queer 101: Now I Know My gAyB,Cs. Activist Peterson Toscano’s solo performance piece about being gay. 4/27/10, Manchester, CT. http://www.petersontoscano.com/Schedule
***SexRev: The José Sarria Experience The musical celebration of America’s queer activist. to 5/02/10. San Francisco, CA. www.TheRhino.org
***Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South, E. Patrick Johnson’s one-person theatre piece based on his book about gay life in the South. to 5/29/10. Chicago, IL. www.aboutfacetheatre.com
***Transfiguration: Transgressing Gender in The Bible. Activist Peterson Toscano finds gay Biblical people. 4/28/10, Hartford, CT. http://www.petersontoscano.com/Schedule

On Screen (and Video & DVD)

Out on Screen...

***Arias With a Twist. The incredible performance collaboration between performance artist Joey Arias and puppeteer Basil Twist is now a documentary. To see the trailer: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=759971528901
***A Single Man. Tom Ford's debut film, an adaptation of a Christopher Isherwood novel, about a day in the life of a gay man, starring Colin Firth and Julianne Moore.
***Eyes Wide Open, two ultra-orthodox Chasidic Jews fall in love in Israel.
***LA Mission. Benjamin Bratt is a barrio tough guy who discovers that his son is involved in a relationship with another boy.
***Prodigal Sons, a film by TG film maker Kimberly Reed about her journey back to her home town and her reunion with an adopted brother. http://prodigalsonsfilm.com/
***Stonewall Uprising, a new documentary by Kate Davis and David Heilbroner covering the 3-day Stonewall riots in 1969. http://firstrunfeatures.com/stonewalluprising_playdates.html

Out On Video & DVD

***An Englishman in New York. John Hurt as Quentin Crisp ("The Naked Civil Servant") as he becomes a celebrity. Also stars Cynthia Nixon, Denis O'Hare and Jonathan Tucker.
***Evening Primrose. The 1966 musical teleplay by James Goldman from from John Collier short story, with a score by Stephen Sondheim. Anthony Perkins, Dorothy Stickney, Larry Gates, Charmian Carr.
***MadMen, Season #3.
***Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire. The stunning drama from out director Lee Daniels about an overweight, illiterate Harlem teen.
***Trinidad. The documentary about the Colorado town that has become “the sex change capital of the world. http://trinidadthemovie.com/

On TV Of Note: All times listed are ET. Check local listings for times in your area.

Resource:TV Gayed, GLAAD's Weekly Guide to What's LGBT on TV: Updated every Friday. www.glaad.org/tvgayed

***April/May: In the Life. LGBT news magazine. PBS. Check local listings. http://www.itl.tv/inthelife/episodes/

Conferences, Seminars, Benefits, and Special Events

5/03/10: New York, NY: TalkOut Monday at “The Tempermentals” with Barney Frank and playwright John Marans. www.thetempermentals.com

5/03/10: New York, NY: Lambda Legal's 2010 Liberty Awards National Dinner
http://support.lambdalegal.org/site/Calendar?view=Detail&id=100981

5/05/10-6/06/10: New York, NY: GAYFEST NYC, the 4th annual LGBT arts festival to benefit the Harvey Milk School. www.gayfestnyc.com.

5/05/10-5/15/10: Boston, MA: Boston LGBT Film Festival. www.bostonlgbtfilmfest.org

5/12/10-5/15/10: Toronto, ON: We’re Funny That Way. Canada’s International LGBT Comedy Festival. www.werefunnythatway.com

5/13/10-5/16/10: Seattle, WA: Translations: Transgender Film Festival. www.threedollarbillcinema.org

5/13/10-5/16/10: New Orleans, LA: Saints and Sinners. the 8th annual internationally-recognized festival that brings together a who’s who of GLBT publishers, writers and readers. http://sasfest.org/

5/16/10: New York, NY: AIDS Walk New York. www.aidswalk.net

5/16/10: Minneapolis, MN: Minnesota AIDS Walk. www.mnaidsproject.org

5/17/10: Los Angeles, CA: Joel Grey directs a 25th anniversary staged reading of Larry Kramer’s pivotal AIDS drama “The Normal Heart”. A benefit for the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center's Jeffrey Goodman Special Care Clinic. www.lagaycenter.org/thenormalheart

Last Week’s Trivia Quiz: Gay (Spring Break) Getaways

1. Question: Name this gay getaway, a 23-block stretch of a former barrier island with diets and deco. Madonna hangs out here. So does Rosie. So does Ricky. Years ago, the action was 25 miles north, where the boys are. Answer: South Beach, part of Miami Beach.

2. Question: Name this gay getaway. You can golf with lesbians, dry out with celebrities and visit sites where a celebrity transitioned. Answer: Palm Springs, CA, home of the Dinah Shore Women’s Gold Classic, the Betty Ford Center, and where Sonny Bono transitioned from singer to politician (first mayor, then congressman).

3. Question: Name this gay getaway. It’s a capital and a college town with a great music scene, hours from a space center, the Ewing ranch, and the gulf beaches. Answer: Austin, TX, home of the SXSW Festival and a few hours from Houston, Dallas and Padre Island.

4. Question: Name this gay getaway, named for a bone. It had one of the first out mayors, and was home to a famous gay playwright and one of America’s leading authors. A newly out lesbian ran a famous restaurant here. Answer: Key West, FL, home to Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, and Kelly McGillis.

This Week’s Trivia Quiz: May Milestones

1. Question: Name this LGBT activist group which staged a national convention in San Francisco in May, 1960, the first known public gathering focused on lesbians in the United States.

2. Question: Name this Oscar-winning rocker, born May 29, 1961, who came out in 1993. A cancer survivor and LGBT activist, this musician has been involved in National Coming Out Day.

3. Question: Name this American politician who came out publicly on May 30, 1987. (one of the first to come out). Coming out has not hurt the public servant’s career; LGBT activism is part of his legacy.

4. Question: Name this legendary figure in LGBT history, born on May 22, 1930. His life has been turned into an award-winning documentary, opera, and feature film. He died young. On May 20, 1979, Californians marched in anger when his killer was convicted of manslaughter and not murder.

5. Question: Name this flamboyant entertainer and pianist, born on May 16, 1919. He was one of the biggest sensations to play Las Vegas; there’s a museum there to honor him. He refused to come out but everyone knew his “secret”.

The first person to submit the correct answers gets their name in print right here. Email your answers to: COSNewsweekly@gmail.com. If you do not want your email address to appear in the blog format of this newsletter, please indicate that. http://cosnewsweekly.blogspot.com/