Frank Rich, Side by Side with Stephen Sondheim at Williams Jan. 23

Stephen Sondheim (L) and Frank Rich have taken their show on the road.
In what is likely the best free event of the year, critic and New York Times op-ed columnist Frank Rich will settle into Chapin Hall at Williams College this Saturday, January 23 for a nice chat with Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim. Rich first met Sondheim when he was writing for the Harvard Crimson and reviewed the pre-Broadway tryout of Follies in 1971. It's a classic.They have been fast friends ever since.

In these sit-downs, Rich asks the questions, and Sondheim answers them with creativity, clarity and class. There are no secrets between the men, and because of that, we get to know both much better. While the session is free, reservations are a must, and needs to be done asap. Go to this link and click on the Read More to reserve tickets. Or go directly to the request form.

Since Rich and Sondheim have taken this "show" on the road before, I found this question Harvard Arts Beat recently asked Rich very apropos:

How do you keep ongoing conversations with Sondheim fresh? Do you have to repeat information?

Rich: Not much. I follow my nose. It’s not pre-scripted. I keep a running list of things I want to ask him. He’s incredibly candid and will answer anything. He’s really thoughtful. Obviously, he has a way with words, and he is quite brilliant and takes himself lightly.

And if you don't read the weekly Frank Rich op-ed political column in the New York Times, here's a link to his latest. He covers the political scene as if it were theatre. Elections, after all, are nothing but acting, artifice and illusion anyway, aren't they? And all too often real life decisions are made on the basis of how they will play in the media rather than in real life.

That's why I think the more time you spend with people like Rich and Sondheim, the more you know about life.

Queer Film Festival Next Weekend in Williamstown

A whole new generation is about to rediscover the fun of taking part in The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
With plummeting temperatures, there is no better time to be inside with your LBGTQ friends than January. The Queer Film Festival at Images Cinema is just the ticket. Organized by the Williams College Dively Committee for Human Sexuality and Diversity with the support of the Berkshire Stonewall Community Coalition and the Rainbow Times, it will provide a full weekend of fun, film and friends.

Each of the three days offers something special too. On Friday, at midnight, there will be a fun-filled audience participation midnight showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show with the Come Again Players . If you have not been part of one of these midnight showings, a staple a decade or two ago, then you are considered a RHPS virgin. If you’re planning to be part of the fun for the first time, you should check out What every virgin should know. Friday also features two other good films Outrage and Travel Queeries. Schedule and running times are below.

Saturday's matinee has a double feature, The Aggressives and Mom's Apple Pie, to be followed by a discussion and receiption. Late afternoon will host a showing of Hannah Free and the main event in the evening is Bandaged.

Jennie Livingston broke the ground for a lot of independent film makers.
Sunday, Director Jennie Livingston will be on hand to talk about not only her groundbreaking film, but the others that have followed in a similar vei, The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela which is shown at noon, a documentary at 4 and Paris is Burning, her cult classic at 7.

Ticket prices are as follows (Williams College students have their own special)

General Admission: $9 with Matinees at $6
Members: $5
Bennington College Students: $5
Children : $5 (12 years and younger)
Other Students: $6
Seniors (62 years and older): $6

SCHEDULE AND SYNOPSIS

*Friday, January 15, 2010*

7:00 pm Outrage (90 min) Nominated for a Dorian Award as the best LGBT of the year (see previous blog entry) it stars Massachusetts own Barney Frank and former governor of New Jersey, Jim McGreevey who was outed by an ex-lover. Outrage is a searing indictment of the hypocrisy of closeted politicians with appalling gay rights voting records who actively campaign against the LGBT community they covertly belong to.


Boldly revealing the hidden lives of some of the United States' most powerful policymakers, Outrage takes a comprehensive look at the harm they've inflicted on millions of Americans, and examines the media's complicity in keeping their secrets. With analysis from prominent members of the gay community such as Congressman Barney Frank, former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey, activist Larry Kramer, radio personality Michelangelo Signorile, and openly gay congresswoman Tammy Baldwin.

9:00 pm Travel Queeries (67 min) Travel Queeries examines the culture, art and activism of radical queers in contemporary Europe. Through personal interviews and documentation of performances, festivals, multi-media visual arts and spaces, Travel Queeries puts an exciting international lens on queer fringe culture. With the aim of building bridges and awareness, Travel Queeries considers the word "queer" and explores the complexities, innovative values and spirit of queer within a progressive social change movement.

"Chatting to punk faggots in Berlin, capturing live acts in Copenhagen, quizzing the Pornflakes art collective in Italy, stopping off in Poland, Serbia and well, Leeds – there’s a whole European-wide network of dirty queers, and Travel Queeries has been on the road recording their stories."

BH- Gay Times London (April 2009)
www.gaytimes.co.uk

A properly done RHPS is a mix of film and live action.
Midnight Rocky Horror Picture Show With the Come Again Players of South Hadley, MA. A newly engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must pay a call to the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter on the same night the doctor unveils his latest creation.


*Saturday, January 16, 2010*

2:00 (Double Feature!) The Aggressives (75 min) A documentary look at women who prefer to dress and act as men and who participate in NYC's predominantly African-American lesbian drag balls.

Also, Mom’s Apple Pie (60 min), While the beginnings of the LGBT Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum, the 1970s witnessed horrific custody battles for lesbian mothers. Mom's Apple Pie: The Heart of the Lesbian Mothers' Custody Movement revisits the early tumultuous years of the lesbian custody movement through the stories of five lesbian mothers and their four children.

Discussion and reception directly after Mom’s Apple Pie.

Hannah Free follows two lesbians as they grow from children to adults, and grow together. Until late in life, the two only need each other, but when Rachel falls ill, family jealousy keeps them apart."
5:00 Hannah Free (86 min). Hannah and Rachel grew up as little girls in the same small Midwest town, where traditional gender expectations eventually challenge their deep love for one another. Hannah becomes an adventurous, unapologetic lesbian and Rachel a strong but quiet homemaker. Weaving back and forth between past and present, the film reveals how the women maintained their love affair despite a marriage, a world war, infidelities, and family denial.

9:00 Bandaged (92 min). Since his wife's death, Arthur, a peculiar and severe surgeon, cloisters his teen daughter Lucille inside a strange mansion. Desperate, Lucille tries to commit suicide and ends up with her face completely burned and bandaged. Arthur, with the assistance of his aunt, prepares a weird skin graft in order to give back Lucille a face, a face that resembles his beloved and deceased wife. To take care of her, the father then hires Joan, an attractive nurse with a somber past. Lucille and Joan start a forbidden and passionate love affair.


*Sunday, January 17, 2010*
(an afternoon with director Jennie Livingston)

12:00 The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela (80 min).Raquela is a transsexual-or "ladyboy"-from the Philippines who dreams of escaping the streets of Cebu City for a fairy tale life in Paris. In order to make her dreams come true, she turns from prostitution toward the more lucrative business of Internet porn. Her success as a porn star brings new friends, including Valerie, a ladyboy in Iceland, and Michael, the owner of the website Raquela works for. Valerie helps Raquela get as far as Iceland. From there, Michael offers her a rendezvous in Paris. Will Paris be everything she dreamed of? And will Michael turn out to be her Prince Charming?

Who's the Top is an all too brief but insightful look at queers and movies.
4:00 Jennie Livingston, Who's the Top? short documentary; conversation with the director. WHO’S THE TOP is a fantastical S/M musical comedy, complete with Busby Berkeley-like dance sequences. One writer finds her true self by determining who’s the bottom. Premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Who knew what "voguing" was until Is Paris Burning opened our eyes?
7:00 Paris is Burningfollowed by a conversation with the director. Jennie Livingston. Livingston helped launch both the American Independent film movement and New Queer Cinema with her documentary PARIS IS BURNING, which won the 1991 Sundance Grand Jury Prize.

The film is an unblinking behind the scenes story of fashion obsessed New Yorkers who created "voguing" and drag balls , and turned these raucous celebrations into a powerful expression of personal pride. The world within a world is instantly familiar, filled with ambitions, desires and yearnings that reflect America itself. PARIS IS BURNING is an intimate portrait of one urban community, a world in which the allure of high fashion, status and wealth becomes an affirmation of love, acceptance and joy.

Tickets for these showing are available now by visiting the Images website and clicking on Calendar. If you love film, you shouldn't miss these wonderful and unusual films at the Berkshire's most welcoming and friendly cinema for not only the LGBT community, but all residents. Unlike the mall and North Adams multiplexes, or even the new Beacon, here you will find the films that speak to us, our community, and are consistently a cut above the usual Hollywood formulaic products.

Justin Adkins Tells His Story

Justin 2.0 (Most recent release) Photo by Claire Schwartz.
Each and every one of us has a fascinating story to tell about our experience being a LGBTQ person, and Justin Adkins is the first trans person to detail his "coming out" at the Driftwood site. Homophobia is never pretty, but Transphobia is often even worse.

Most of us know Justin as the Queer Life Coordinator for Wiliams College, and a guy who just seems to be everywhere at the same time. He is also a bit of a techie, designing websites and juggling his social media commitments with suave panache. (I love those fancy words, and am so happy to have found someone worthy to use them on.)

Here's his tale. I posted my own earlier this week in this Stonewall Article. We welcome yours, too. As Justin says, it is important that people know our stories, it puts a human face on the LGBTQ community.

I'm From Poway, CA.

by Justin Adkins

Reprinted from www.imfromdriftwood.com with permission from Justin Adkins

Justin 1.0 This was the Original 2001 Version.
As a little girl I didn’t know about anything queer. It seemed like my parents made sure that I was sheltered from all Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) people. It could be that their lives were so sheltered from LGBT people that they didn’t know anyone out of the closet except the hairdresser, who in our case really was gay.

In the flavour of church I was raised in, it was clear that LGBT people were not welcome. So in 7th grade when my friend Mimi invited me to her home for a birthday sleepover it was not surprising that my mom flipped out when she realized that Mimi had two moms. As soon as I was dropped off, my mom raced home and called me at Mimi’s. She offered to bring me home right away. She was even ready to fib to “protect” me.

I stayed.

By high school Mimi and I were drifting apart. Once the last chairs together in the junior high flute section Mimi had moved up to first chair, I remained last. I was also invested in fitting in. I was so invested in fitting in that I joined in the harsh treatment of Mimi. I, and others, were mean to Mimi because her mothers were lesbians. After 10th grade I never spoke to Mimi.
About the same time I met Ezekiel Webber. Zeke and I were in honours classes together. We shared the same dry sense of humour and faith traditions. In 10th grade Zeke was one of the first openly gay students at my high school of almost 5,000 people. He was the first person to go to prom with a person of the same sex. Zeke was beaten up at least once a week because he was openly gay.

These experiences taught me that it was not safe to be queer in my neighborhood.

These two individuals made a deep impact on my life and I was not able to tell them. A few years after high school Mimi walked into the ocean never to return. I believe that the stress and harassment became too much for her.
I was still in the closet.

Zeke went on to be a star student at Dartmouth, helping organize much of the queer programing there in the late 1990’s. He then went on to be a star student at UCLA Law School focusing on LGBT civil rights issues. He was never able to practice law though as he passed away while at UCLA.

I was just coming out of the closet.

In late 2003, early 2004, I was no longer able to hide. I came out as a lesbian. You might be confused, after all my name is Justin. See, I had never met any transgender guys. I thought trans people wore feather boas, and though I like a nice boa once in a while, that was not me. All I knew then was that I was mostly attracted to women and did not fit traditional female gender norms. “Of course,” I thought, “I must be a butch lesbian.”  The problem was that deep inside I was not a woman at all, oh I tried, but it was not me. Deep inside my gender identity was male.

When I found out about Female-to-Male transgender people (FTM’s) I finally realized that I belonged, that there are other people like me, people born “female” who often, through hormones and surgery, go on to live their lives as “men.” Around this time I started my slow transition to becoming a visible man.

I have come to realize that I would not have the courage and strength to make this transition if it were not for those who went before me. Zeke and Mimi lost their lives because of intolerance, I cannot stand by and let that continue to happen.

Justin 3.0 Now in Beta from The Simpsons.
I could live my life now as a quiet trans guy blending into society, basking in perceived straight white male privilege. But I choose to be out. I have chosen to fight for queer rights. I am the Williams College Queer Life Coordinator. I was a founding member of Brattleboro, Vermont’s Queer Community Project. I am on the board of Bennington Pride in Bennington, VT. And, this past summer I was proud to be one of the main organizers for the first ever New England Transgender Pride March and Rally. There, we saw over a thousand transgender people come together to speak up for their rights.

In all I do feel privileged to have the opportunity to support wonderful LGBT folks and allies. I am privileged because I am out. I want to make our world a place that is not just accepting but embracing of all people.

When not tending his garden, trying to figure out which is food and which is weeds, you can find Justin on Facebook. He is friends with the Dalai Lama. And me.

Meet The Rainbow Times in Williamstown April 23

The Current Issue

Short notice I know, but you may want to take an hour out of your day April 23 to meet the key people behind , The Rainbow Times our regional newspaper for the LGBTQ community. It is one of the best things to happen in years, and it seems to be growing even as other newspapers are shrinking.

AREA BUSINESSES CAN MORE EASILY REACH GLBT CUSTOMERS

If you are a business or on a business track, you might want to attend the informational session with the publishers at 3:30 pm, April 23 at the Hardy House living room at Williams College. The Rainbow Times depends on advertising to support its publication, and it is important for our community to note and patronize the supporters whose ads appear in the newspaper.

LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS CAN GET THE WORD OUT MORE EASILY

This will be followed by a more social reception at the Mezze Bistro and Bar on Water Street in Williamstown at 5 pm on April 23. The current issue has a superlative guide to the NoHo (Northampton) Pride festivities taking place on May 2 in our neighboring community just across the mountain.

http://www.therainbowtimesmass.com/
The Rainbow Times is the region’s premiere LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) newspaper, It serves both to increase awareness of LGBT issues and as a vehicle to unify and strengthen the communities of Western MA, the Capital District of NY, Northern CT, and Southern VT.

The Rainbow Times is written and published by experienced and professional members of the newspaper industry with over 20 years of publishing and journalism experience. Their team strives to bring much needed news and information of interest to the LGBT community in Western Massachusetts, the Capital District of NY, Northern CT, & Southern VT.

Most importantly, their purpose is more than just reporting gay issues and events but to also act as a collaborative voice for our underserved community.

In the Northern Berkshires you can pick up a copy at Wild Oats, Mass MoCA, Papa Charlies, Images, Cup and Saucer, Brew HaHa, the Milne Public Library and the Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center. Thanks to Justin Adkins for providing this information.

LGBT Town Meeting in Williamstown

Northern Berkshire Gathering set for Tuesday, April 14, 2009 - 6:30-8:00 pm



An open invitation has been extended to all LGBT folks - and their allies and friends - to get together for an ice cream social in Williamstown. In addition to the socializing, there will be discussion about events and happenings in and around Williams College.

The organizers welcome LGBT folks and their allies who not only live in Williamstown but in the surrounding towns as well. And just in case there is a lull in the conversation, there is an official Topic: What is an ally? How can I be one?


Where to meet? Just head for The Log - you will see the rainbow flag, it's on Spring Street between Images and Tunnel City Coffee (on your left).

"Who ordered the Rainbow ice cream?"

MeetUp Saturday April 18 for Berkshires Gay Professionals

Did you know there is a small Berkshire Gay Professionals Club which is having a mid-day Meet Up on Saturday, April 18 at Mass MoCA in North Adams. It welcomes a wide range of gay and lesbian people - maybe you? - from the greater Berkshires area. Participants include students from Williams, BCC and MCLA who are on a professional track, web designers, artists and business people - anyone who wants to meet and network both socially and professionally. It welcomes everyone from the diverse GLBTQ community.
A typical MeetUp group.
To find out more go to the MeetUp page http://www.meetup.com/The-Berkshires-Gay-Professionals-Meetup-Group/?a=wm1_gn. See you there?