Boston Spirit Jul | Aug 2018 by Boston Spirit magazine

JUL | AUG 2018

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Steph Speirs

The changing face of angel investing

Ballot Referendum

Hard-fought trans right bill under fire

Business of Pot

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Leading lesbian farmer/ entrepreneur

LGBT Review’s 25th

Cultural institution keeps it fresh

Hot summer nights

Seasonal picks for LGBT A&E

Melanin Magic

Making space for queer men of color

Ms. Betty Bowers ‘America’s Best Christian’

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several new and very fun events coming up in the fall (stay tuned for more info) and we have an election and some ballot questions coming in too. As you might have seen recently, the ballot question on public accommodations for our trans brothers and sisters is close, very close. As disappointing as this is, this is not the time to pout and hang our heads; it is the time to fight. We must get out the vote and defeat our opponents.

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Before you flip the page and enjoy this issue of Boston Spirit, please accept my heartfelt thanks to all of you who showed up at the recent Boston Spirit events (the executive night and sunset cruise). Your continued support means the world to all of us at Boston Spirit. We are so excited about our upcoming, new events in the fall. I think you will love them too.

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From The Publisher Ahhhhhh… So nice to take a collective “deep breath” and relax. What an amazing few months starting with Boston Spirit’s LGBT Executive Networking Night back in May. For those of you who were able to attend, you were privileged to hear one of the more remarkable storytellers that you will ever hear. Kristin Beck shared jawdropping stories of her days in the Navy SEALS as well as honest, poignant, funny and heartfelt stories of her transition. It was a truly special evening. From there we hopped back on the hamster wheel and headed off to Pride in Northampton, Boston, Providence and Salem. Not enough? We capped it all off with Boston Spirit’s Summer Sunset Cruise. Thank you to everyone who joined us on the cruise; it was a great night and we raised more than $16,000 for Fenway Health thanks to your generosity. Personally, I think we all deserve a little vacation! Kick back, take in a little sun, go for a swim, a hike, bike ride or just take a nap! You’ve earned it. Just remember, once your batteries are recharged we have a lot to do. The GLAD Summer Party is coming up, Boston Spirit has

2 | BOSTON SPIRIT

Boston Spirit Magazine supporters

Until then, have a great summer!

David Zimmerman Publisher

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As We Go To Press … And now for a huge milestone that you probably don’t know about ... Full nondiscrimination protections are in place for LGBTQ people in all six New England states. You read that right. In June, Governor Chris Sununu, Republican governor of New Hampshire, signed House Bill 1319 into law, banning discrimination against transgender people in housing, employment and accommodations. The law takes effect July 8. Full nondiscrimination protections for all LGBTQ people have already been in effect in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont and Maine. And New Hampshire had all its bases covered too. As of July 8, it’s done. We no longer have to fight to get nondiscrimination laws on the books for LGBTQ New Englanders. That’s the incredible news! The not-so-good news is that we still have to fight to keep those protections on the books. And that begins this fall with the battle to keep full transgender protections on the books in Massachusetts. We cannot rest on our laurels. Stay active. But, still, it’s quite an achievement. Who could have guessed we’d be here 20 years ago? Not me!

Contribute your opinion: editor@bostonspiritmagazine.com

4 | BOSTON SPIRIT

You know you’ve gone mainstream when a rural town of just 30,000 citizens holds a Pride festival. An hour-and-a-half north of Boston, inland Granite State, Rochester, New Hampshire, is holding its third annual celebrations downtown, with a visit by the mayor and the state’s Gay Men’s Chorus. And, honestly, I spent much of Boston’s Pride parade day hanging out at Downtown Crossing. And the whole city felt like it was totally in on the festivities. I lost count of the number of cis-gender, white, straight males holding hands with their girlfriends or wives—donning rainbow flags as superhero capes! How much more inclusive can we get? When it comes to inclusion, it’s New England to the rescue. Yes, there’s more work to be done—here and in the rest of the country and world— heaven knows! But let’s celebrate the victories where we can. Enjoy the summer, and get ready to gear up for the fight for freedom, liberty and love again this fall! Oh, and make sure you register to vote in between your trips to the beach. See you at the ballot box.

James Lopata Editor

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Contents JUL|AUG 2018 | VOLUME 14 | ISSUE 4

Spotlight

Feature

Battleground State

On November 6, Massachusetts becomes the first state where voters uphold—or repeal—public accommodations rights for transgender people A Guide to the Vote

Elevating Cannabis

As marijuana sales become fully legal in Massachusetts, local leaders bring enterprising mission to the business of pot

Oh, Those Summer Nights

The changing face of angel investing 44 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32

Pipeline Angels is creating capital for women and nonbinary femme social entrepreneurs

‘Gay & Lesbian Review Worldwide’ Celebrates Silver Turning twenty-five, storied publication started by Harvard alumni, staff and students keeps shaking up and celebrating LGBT sensibilities

Seasonal

Oh, Those Summer Nights

Whether you’re a daytripper or a weekender, New England’s summer LGBT arts and entertainment

Calendar

New England Events

Taste of the South End Boston Spirit Executive Networking Night Victory Programs Dinnerfest Red Party Womxn of Color Weekend

Scene

Calendar

The Dinner Party 78 Hull Pride 80 AIDS Walk Volunteer Day 81 Heels for Hope 81 AIDS Walk & Run Boston 82 Safe Homes Gala 83 NoHo Pride 84 Provincetown Pride 86 Boston Pride 88 DOT Pride 92 Boston Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence 93 The Silver Party 94 Advancing the LGBT Community in MA 95

Coda

Meet Deven Green

The man behind Mrs. Betty Bowers, ‘American’s Best Christian’

74 76 77

Meet Deven Green

GOOD

UNITES

Good makes a difference. Good promotes equality. Eastern Bank continues to support local LGBTQ communities and organizations, and has been named one of the best places to work by the Human Rights Campaign. Eastern Bank proudly gives 10% of its net income to local charities. To learn more please visit joinusforgood.com.

Join Us to Make a Difference at joinusforgood.com

SPOTLIGHT Trending STORY Scott Kearnan

Hit List NEWS,

NOTES AND TO-DOS FOR EVERY GAY AGENDA by Anjimile’s experiences as a sober person in recovery, and there’s even more new music where that came from: Anjimile has a new EP on the way. In the meanwhile, check out some of the artist’s other lo-fi folk tunes—like “To Meet You There,” which was featured in the Matt Bomer film “Anything”—on music streaming platforms. More: anjimile.bandcamp.com

Mama and Sweet Cheeks Q. Fool’s Errand will be a more decidedly intimate affair. Inspired by Faison’s love of European tapas bars, it’s a standing-room-only “gourmet snack bar” (think cherrydipped foie bonbons) serving craft cocktails in funky digs designed, with its open kitchen format, to feel like the coolest house party in the Hub. More: foolserrandboston.com

GO ON A FOOL’S ERRAND with

LEAVE A LEGACY with Personal

out chef Tiffani Faison. The “Top Chef” runner-up will open her third Fenway neighborhood eatery in July on a Boylston Street space between her existing restaurants Tiger

Story Films, a new service from Emmy-nominated documentarian Lisa Pontoppidan. Inspired by her experiences making a film

Lisa Pontoppidan

PHOTO Justine Bowe

PREPARE TO GO AWOL at Provincetown’s newest boutique hotel, opened in June. AWOL comes from the Lark Hotels group, the team behind 18 playfully chic Karen properties throughout Akunowicz New England, and will boast 30 bohemianstyle guest rooms in P’town’s West End, all with outdoor access to either first-floor hammocks or secondfloor balconies equipped with daybeds; one Lark Suite has a private roof deck and full kitchen. Other perks include a heated swimming pool, indoor-outdoor wet bar, s’mores kits for the fire pits and loaner beach cruiser bikes. More: larkhotels.com CONGRATULATE chef Karen Akunowicz for winning “Best Chef: Northeast” at the recent Anjimile James Beard Foundation Awards, which is essentially the Oscars of the restaurant industry. This was the fourth nomination for the proudly queer femme toque, who earned the award for her work as executive chef and partner at Myers + Chang in Boston’s South End. Akunowicz, who previously competed on Bravo’s “Top Chef” series, also recently released a cookbook “Myers + GET YOUR HANDS ON “Golden Chang At Home” coauthored Hands,” a new single from with the spot’s eponymous Boston-based Anjimile, a queer owner, Joanne Chang. More: and nonbinary trans singermyersandchang.com songwriter. The gorgeous, tender track was inspired

PUBLISHER David Zimmerman EDITOR IN CHIEF James Lopata MANAGING EDITOR Robert Phelps [rob@bostonspiritmagazine.com] ART DIRECTOR Dean Burchell CONTRIBUTING LIFESTYLE EDITOR Scott Kearnan [lifestyle@bostonspiritmagazine.com] CONTRIBUTING ARTS EDITOR Loren King CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Alyssa Gillin, Tom Joyce, Natalie Nonken, Kim Harris Stowell CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Joel Benjamin COVER PHOTO Joel Benjamin ON THE WEB [bostonspiritmagazine.com] TALK TO US [feedback@bostonspiritmagazine.com] EDITORIAL CONTACT [editor@bostonspiritmagazine.com] PUBLISHING AND SALES CONTACT [publisher@bostonspiritmagazine.com or 781-223-8538] THE FINE PRINT Boston

JUL|AUG 2018 | VOLUME 14 | ISSUE 4

Spirit magazine. A Division of Jake Publishing, LLC Published by Jake Publishing, LLC. Copyright 2004 by Jake Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this periodical may be reproduced without the written permission of Boston Spirit magazine. Neither the publishers nor the advertisers will be held responsible for any errors found in the magazine. The publishers accept no liability for the accuracy of statements made by advertisers. Publication of the name or photograph of any person, organization or business in this magazine does not reflect upon one’s sexual orientation in any way. Boston Spirit Magazine, 398 Columbus Ave. #395, Boston, MA 02116

8 | BOSTON SPIRIT

about her father, Pontoppidan, who lives with her wife in Jamaica Plain, launched a business dedicated to sharing clients’ life stories so that they can be passed down to future generations and saved for other family members—something that could be especially important to childless LGBTQ folks in particular. From 15-minute portraits to full-length films, each documentary work lets ordinary people share notso-ordinary life lessons and preserve their unique human story for posterity. More: personalstoryfilms.org

PRACTICE YOUR PLIE

with “Ballez Class Everywhere,” a new YouTube instructional series coming this summer from Katy Pyle, whose ballet company, Ballez, is dedicated to reimagining the dance form for queer bodies. Though Ballez is based in based in Brooklyn, Pyle recently wrapped a residency at Maine’s Bowdoin College that brought her work to New England, and highlighted the ways in which

her approach applies classic foundation to different body types and centers LGBTQ experiences in the craft. She’s currently working on “Giselle of Loneliness,” inspired by the first widely published novel featuring a lesbian protagonist. More: ballez.org

KEEP AN EYE OUT for “Being True,” a new LGBTQ comics anthology released by the Boston Comics Roundtable. The comic, now available for purchase online, at comic conventions and at select local shops, collects fancifully rendered stories from local and international queer artists. Each tale combines hallmarks of comic books, like superheroes and other fantastical elements, with touching stories that celebrate and uplift the LGBTQ experience. “There are far too many tragic stories about LGBTQ people,” explains the Roundtable. “This anthology is full of stories about hope, love and happy endings.” More: bostoncomics. com [x]

SPOTLIGHT Travel STORY Scott Kearnan

Newport, Rhode Island aerial view PHOTO Michael Kagdis

Out in Newport NEW LGBT ORG PROMOTES RHODE ISLAND’S GILDED RESORT DESTINATION With all due respect to Dorothy, “there’s no place like home” doesn’t mean much when you’ve only been out of Kansas once. Sean O’Connor, on the other hand, has been everywhere over the rainbow during a decade of work for “National Geographic.” So it means something that he’s returned to his Rhode Island roots to run Newport Out, an LGBTQ organization promoting tourism and community in Rhode Island’s gilded resort destination. “I grew up sailing, and it was a wonderful place to live that also seemed like a drunken sailor town,” says O’Connor, whose parents owned a business on the marina. He was 14 when his own father came out, and recalls a largely welcoming experience in a town known for its old New England money—and

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the oft-conservative values that come with it. “It’s still a drunken sailor town,” laughs O’Connor. “But there are so many more sides to it. It’s been fun getting to know that, exploring it, and creating something special.” In March, O’Connor and his husband, Daniel Cano Restrepo, officially took over Newport Out from its founder, Lionel Pires. Pires was owner of Castaways On Solar Winds, which was Newport’s last remaining full-time gay bar when it closed in 2006. The city may be best known for its mansions, but from champagne cruises to fabulous dining and a hip arts scene, there’s plenty of untapped potential to build up its appeal to gay tourists—and enhance

options for the “huge amount of LGBTQ couples” and business owners in town, says O’Connor. Newport Out is off to a running start. In June, the organization produced the first Newport Pride festival, which included a bike ride, drag brunch with the Providencebased Trailer Park Girls, and party sail aboard a schooner. Future ideas include hosting a LGBTQ family weekend and bringing greater attention to Newport’s gay history, like investigating suggestions that the famed Cliff Walk could have been a cruising ground for Gilded Age gays. Even in today’s progressive New England, there’s still a need for Newport Out’s LGBTQ-oriented guidance. “It’s like we pick through the weeds to pull out the flowers,” says O’Connor. “We’re curators of experiences.”

For more information on Newport Out, visit newportout.org

STAY Architect’s Inn: This 23-room Victorian inn was built in 1873 as a residence for renowned architect George C. Mason. Today its gay owners focus on large group rentals, including whole-house accommodations, plus three-day “Murder Mystery Weekends” that immerse guests in Newport-themed, interactive whodunits—a fun bonding experience for your nearest and queerest. Hydrangea House: There’s a romantic vibe to this 10-person gay-friendly inn within walking distance to the Newport mansions. Overnight packages include amenities like champagne, long-stemmed roses and inroom couples massages, and the classically appointed accommodations include the Oak Suite with fireplace, spa tub and steam bath.

Sean O’Connor and Daniel Cano

DO Try the prosciutto and poached egg pizza, plus more modern American fare and cocktails, at the new weekend brunch service (including a hip-hop soundtracked Saturday service) at Parlor Bar & Kitchen, an LGBTQ-friendly Modern American restaurant and Newport Pride supporter. Toss back a coconut mojito at the gayfavorite hangout Salvation Café, where bohemian-chic décor sprawls throughout an outdoor tiki bar and buzzy dining room serving global cuisine like Mongolian BBQ ribs and sake-steamed clams. See what’s happening at the Newport Art House, an inclusive contemporary arts organization behind diverse events including “The Rewind,” a recurring performance art series with alternating themes—like “Her Stories,” which recently highlighted women artists like local trans musician Valerie Larkin. Whether you want to scoot around town in a motorized coupe or get in some exercise with pedal-powered bicycles, rent your wheels from Scooter World, owned by partners Robert Bidlack and Tom Welby, to zip from the beach to the bars in style. Visit the Newport mansion Rough Point, former summer cottage of famed tobacco heiress and AIDS philanthropist Doris Duke, who left her entire fortune to her eponymous charitable foundation and— as seen in the 2006 flick “Bernard and Doris,” starring Susan Sarandon and Ralph Fiennes—her devoted gay butler.

Rough Point Cliff Walk, Newport, Rhode Island PHOTO Giorgio Galeotti Check out a show at Jane Pickens Theater, a historic art house cinema known for its unique screening experiences and ability to lure special guests—like “Call Me By Your Name” screenwriter James Ivory, who visited right after snagging his Academy Award for the gay romance this year. Join a potluck dinner and program (held on the third Sunday of every month) with Interweave, the LGBTQ cohort of Channing Memorial Church, a welcoming Unitarian Universalist congregation, and organizers of events like an annual “Born This Way” prom and Transgender Day of Remembrance service. Poke through the amazing antiques at The Drawing Room, a gay-owned shop filled with a wide array of museum-quality pieces and curios, plus a room dedicated to gay culture—from LGBTQ-oriented books to homoerotic paintings and reproductions of pre-Columbian potter

Jump into nightlife at One Pelham East, a multi-level hotspot that attracts a mixed but welcoming crowd to its hopping live music stage, dueling piano bar and top floor nightclub, Studio 3, that previously played host to gay “Gossip” parties. Discover “Bohemian Beauty: The Aesthetic Movement and Oscar Wilde’s Newport,” an exhibition in the galleries of Rosecliff mansion through November 4, featuring furniture, ceramics, paintings, and other works inspired by Wilde’s historic July 1882 lecture on the Aesthetics Movement at Newport Casino. Head to beautiful Bowen’s Wharf and to pick up luxury bath and beauty products at Soap and Water or high-end fashions at The Sail Loft, both boutiques owned by husbands Michael Evangelisti and Will DeYoung, Newport Pride sponsors. [x]

JUL|AUG 2018 | 11

SPOTLIGHT Performance STORY Scott Kearnan

Innovation Artist BLACK VENUS CREATES AT THE INTERSECTION OF GENDER, RACE AND SEXUALITY Look up. There’s a bright young artist in our orbit.

resources that offered art training,” says Black.

The nature of self-identity—and what it means to define, explore, and evolve one’s sense of being in the varied constellation of human experience—is central to the work of Black Venus, who proudly exists at the intersecting coordinates of Black, queer and female-bodied. From that artistic vantage point, and through additional work as a community organizer, they shine a special light that is often lacking in a Boston arts community that offers too-few platforms for LGBTQ creatives of color.

Drawn to the stage since childhood, they immersed themselves in grassroots neighborhood art scenes and built a following through multiple mediums, from actively performing at spoken word poetry nights to DJing at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. In 2016, they published their first poetry collection, “Constellations*.”

Black’s bright vision is being recognized. The Theater Offensive, Boston’s nationally acclaimed queer arts organization, selected Black Venus as one of five LGBTQ artists of color for its first artist residency program, providing mentorship and financial resources to support a performance debuted at October’s inaugural OUT’hood FEST. Black Venus’s work, titled “Speculum,” was a multimedia performance project that examined the erasure of queer black and trans people in the dominant culture— including Boston’s arts scene. “Growing up in Boston as an art lover, it was hard for me to gain access to places and

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Black Venus attended Boston Latin Academy and Boston College, where they focused on Communication, Theater and African and African Diaspora Studies. But BC was a learning experience in other ways too. “I found my queerness in college,” says Black Venus, who felt unwelcome given the homogeneity of the school. “Discovering all these different parts of who I am was really challenging, but also pushed to the forefront, because I was in such a white, heterosexual, affluent environment.” As Black embraced their queerness, they also felt “betrayed” by the local church community in which they were raised. This self-described former “Jesus freak” went from singing in the choir to “completely separating myself” from the church.

But there’s much power in your remaking your identity. “I began understanding myself as a person with many complex identities,” says Black. “I deepened that into a general exploration of identity and what it means to me, and I use that to challenge norms. I like to challenge my own norms around identity as well, my own rigid perspective of what it means to be me.” To create the most honest version of their artistic self, Black realized it was necessary to challenge their identity at its very foundation: their name. “I hate my birth name,” says Black, whose parents chose Ashley. “There were always five other Ashleys in the room, and I knew I wasn’t like any other Ashley!” As their artist career grew, a new name was in order. Their inspirations range from writer-activists like Audre Lord to Harlem Renaissance artists and entertainers like Josephine Baker, who was occasionally dubbed “Black Venus” by the press. Plus, the artist-formerly-known-as-Ashley is a Libra, the zodiac sign ruled by Venus. They go by Black for short, a way of centering that aspect of their identity rather than dismiss it as a mere descriptor. Sometimes, they say, that causes folks to raise an eyebrow. Good. “What I strive to do with my work is challenge people’s ideas of reality and identity,” says Black. “I like breaking down those walls and shaking people up.” We’re shook. [x]

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Where each matters.

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SPOTLIGHT Travel STORY Scott Kearnan

Out in New Haven CONNECTICUT’S SECOND-LARGEST CITY HAS FIRST-RATE LGBT SCENE “I’m going to say something controversial,” says Patrick Dunn. “New Haven is one of the best queer cities in New England.” We’re not arguing. Dunn, who grew up between Turkey and California, is an enthusiastic ambassador for his chosen home. After all, he’s executive director of the New Haven Pride Center, a 1996-founded nonprofit working to enrich opportunities for LGBTQ culture around Connecticut’s second-largest city. Last year Dunn, who fell in love with New Haven and dove headfirst into its queer sphere upon moving to the coastal city eight years ago, became the first paid director in the organization’s history. Using his development background in the nonprofit arts world, Dunn is working to ramp up the center’s programs, grow its budget, build coalitions with community partners and model strong approaches to inclusivity. This exciting new chapter for the Pride Center—which organizes support groups, social events and advocacy and activism opportunities—recognizes the potential for even greater growth in New Haven’s thriving LGBTQ community. “New Haven has so much to offer,” says Dunn. “We are a fabulous nexus of so many incredible things.” Among other things, he points to the city’s vibrant cultural landscape of museums and performing arts companies, the intellectual capital that comes with being the home of Yale University (oft-nicknamed the “Gay Ivy”), New Haven’s gay bars and drag scene (he performs as Kiki Lucia) and a strong record of laws protecting LGBT people at the city and state level.

The so-called “Elm City” certainly has plenty to offer New Englanders seeking a gayfriendly getaway. What to do on a New Haven escape? Here’s an LGBTQ-focused shortlist.

Pride New Haven PHOTO Megan McGory Gleason

Friday, September 14—Sunday, September 16. It’s the 20th annual installment of Pride New Haven, with its signature block party and other exciting— and still incredibly important— events. “When I think of why Pride still matters, 49 years after Stonewall, it’s not for the people dancing in the street or performing on the stage,” says Dunn. “It’s for the person on the other side of the street, who’s not quite ready to cross.”

STAY The Study at Yale. As smart and sophisticated as you’d expect, this university-associated hotel is sited in the heart of the school’s art campus and features guest rooms boasting sumptuous leather seats and signature seersucker robes.

Connecticut Gay Men’s Chorus

Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale. An excellently situated hotel just two blocks from the 1600seat Shubert Theatre, the Omni has a 19th-floor restaurant (John Davenport’s) with stellar city views and spa offering hydrating facials and hot stone massages.

EAT Barracuda Bistro & Bar. This lesbian-owned Latin restaurant culls Spanish, Colombian and other influences, combines them with American comfort food, and comes up with bright ideas like seafood paella and Peruvian chicken, plus creative cocktails made with fresh juices.

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Patrick J Dunn PHOTO Lucy Gellman Three Sheets New Haven. Billing itself as a “friendly neighborhood gastrodive,” Three Sheets is number one for alternative-punk crowds, and you’ll find plenty of LGBT folks

around the pool table, sipping craft beers and digging into neat eats (octopus banh mi!) on the picnic table-lined patio.

PLAY

168 York Street Café. The address of this historic Yalearea brownstone holds plenty of surprises. It’s home to a pretense-free gay bar with an ample rear patio, drag shows hosted by attention-stealing queen Robin Banks, and cheap boozy brunches for recovering from the night before.

Swing by Strange Ways. Hip, artsy queers flock to the quirky pins, patches and other flair (plus a smart selection of apparel and curios culled from cool indie artists) at this gayowned shop with a major online presence and curated storefront for friendly freaks and geeks.

Gotham Citi Café. If you’re looking to dominate the dance floor, hit this longstanding nightclub that goes gay every Saturday night. You’ll find two bars, go-go dancers shaking their barecovered thang and thumping remixes accompanied by stateof-the-art light effects.

Kiki Lucia PHOTO Andy Scheller Zinc. This elemental eatery is popular with LGBT crowds. The on-trend (but not-too-trendy) restaurant offers modern American dishes alongside one

of the city’s best wine lists in a chic setting. It’s more casual sibling, Kitchen Zinc, specializes in artisan pizzas and Italian-oriented bites.

Partners Café. There’s something happening every night at this full-time gay bar. Downstairs has a homey neighborhood feel; upstairs is for dance parties, from “Night,” a delightfully grimy soiree for dark, industrial tunes, to Sapphic Saturdays for women and genderqueer crowds.

Grab a seat at Yale Cabaret. The theatrical society, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, has a strong record of putting on edgy and LGBTQthemed productions including an annual “Dragaret” and the recent show “For Your Eyes Only” exploring queer sex work and fetish culture. Check out the Connecticut Gay Men’s Chorus. The New Havenbased performance group hosts two fully-staged and costumed concerts each season, plus monthly “Bingomania” events, fast and fabulous drag queenhosted gay nights, every month at the Annex Club. [x]

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JUL|AUG 2018 | 15

SPOTLIGHT Health & Beauty STORY Scott Kearnan

Truth and Beauty NATICK SALON HELPS CLIENTS SEE THEMSELVES AS THEY TRULY FEEL THEMSELVES TO BE Waxing the City in Natick, Massachusetts is a spa that helps people live as their authentic self. That ethos starts with its married owners. “We’re a place of rebirth,” says Eva Kraus. Kraus was raised in New York, served in the military, became a spouse and parent and had a high-paying career in financial services. But along the way, she battled anger issues related to repressing her authentic gender identity. “I was born in 1959, when there was no Internet—nothing,” says Kraus. “When you didn’t feel right with yourself, you felt isolated. I’d dream at night of being a girl.” Ten years ago, Kraus, who had been privately “cross-dressing” since age 11, came to live openly as a transgender woman. Pressured to leave her firm, she enrolled in cosmetology school as a way, she says, to

Eva Kraus [LEFT] and Traci Marusak-Kraus fully embrace her femininity. That’s where she met Traci. Traci Marusak-Kraus grew up in a rural Massachusetts town in a strict Evangelical Pentecostal Christian family. She was bullied at school. She’d never met a transgender

person before Eva, but after a few months of studying and training together, it was clear they were becoming more than friends. “It challenged my spiritual foundation,” says Marusak-Kraus. So she prayed to God, asking to see Eva through the eyes of her creator.

Plan to take care of each other. A wealth plan that is thoughtfully constructed can help you provide for those you love. True wealth is not only about money. It’s about the relationships, interests and goals that bring you joy ... and what should be at the heart of your wealth plan. As a Morgan Stanley Financial Advisor with significant experience working with same sex couples and the larger LGBT community, I know every client’s circumstances and resources are unique. By understanding your total life picture, we will work together to build a solid financial plan so you can be more at ease enjoying those things that matter most. Building confidence in your future is my goal.

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Call me and let’s arrange a meeting. The appropriateness of a particular investment or strategy will depend on an investor’s individual circumstances and objectives. Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), its affiliates and Morgan Stanley Financial Advisors do not provide tax or legal advice. Individuals should consult their tax advisor for matters involving taxation and tax planning and their attorney for matters involving trust and estate planning and other legal matters. © 2018 Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Member SIPC.

CRC 1982759 LGBT008 01/18 CS 9276060 06/18

When she did, she fell in love. They married, leaving behind old limitations to live fully and free.

“ For some people, it’s the first time seeing themselves as who they feel themselves to be. It’s amazing to see the smiles on their face, the tears well up in their eyes.”

At Waxing the City, they help others do the same. The hair removal business has earned a reputation for its inclusive and affirming atmosphere—something especially important to transgender clients, for whom body service spas can be sites of anxiety. Kraus, after all, knows what it’s like to be on the other side of stares. So the diverse team, which includes LGBTQ and multilingual staff of different races and ethnicities, is specifically trained in how to offer potentially sensitive services, like Brazilian waxes, to transgender guests. Word-of-mouth has earned the spa a strong reputation in the trans community, says Kraus, who says many clients come in one form of dress and then change in the bathroom. Becoming who you are, and feeling beautiful in the process, is no superficial matter. Marusak-Kraus recalls offering complimentary services to attendees of the First Event, an annual transgender conference hosted by the Tiffany Club of New England: “Doing a simple eyebrow wax, I could see the fear in some people’s eyes as they wondered, ‘Is she going to judge me?’”

Treatment Room, Waxing the City spa. Marusak-Kraus knows what it’s like to be judged. She rarely sees her conservative parents, who still refuse to acknowledge her wife. She believes a seemingly simple beauty treatment can become a meaningful act of kindness. “For some people, it’s the first time seeing themselves as who they feel themselves to be,” says Marusak-Kraus. “It’s amazing to

Traci Marusak-Kraus see the smiles on their face, the tears well up in their eyes.” As an out transgender woman, Kraus understands those heady emotions. “Coming from a harsh business and very restrictive environment, I wanted to do something that had a human aspect to it,” says Kraus. “I feel strongly about what Waxing the City does, and the values it represents.” [x]

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SPOTLIGHT Community STORY Scott Kearnan

Melanin Magic CREATING A MUCH-NEEDED SOCIAL SPACE BY AND FOR QUEER AND TRANS MEN OF COLOR New England reserve is real. Unfortunately, so too is Boston racism. “Boston already has a reputation for being cold if you’re straight and white,” says Steve Hantone, cohost of Men of Melanin Magic, a Boston-based group carving out muchneeded social space for queer and trans men of color in a city that can feel off-putting to many, but downright hostile to some—even in the kind of LGBTQ spaces where, one would hope, better minds would prevail. “For people of color, it can be really frustrating, and there are micro-aggressions all the time,” says Hantone. “One thing I’ll never forget was when I was at Club Café, and these two white twinks at the bar called a friend of a friend a chimpanzee.” Such bald-faced racism is not surprising. Massachusetts, the first state to legalize same-sex marriage, is generally upheld (or, depending on where you stand, reviled) as a bastion of American liberalism. But the Bay State’s embrace of progressiveness is not felt universally. From the riots over desegregation that accompanied the busing crisis in the ‘70s to contemporary conversations about gentrifying and

18 | BOSTON SPIRIT

homogenizing neighborhoods, Boston also has “a reputation as a racist city,” says Hantone, echoing a sentiment recently explored in a Boston Globe seven-part series on race in Boston. “When I talk to a Black person they’ll ask, ‘why do you live there?’” Yet there’s much to love about Boston. So Men of Melanin Magic works to foster greater social opportunities for queer men of color, building new spaces and strengthening the kind of personal and professional networks that encourage the putting-down of roots. It can also help Boston retain the kind of intellectual capital and creative talent that might otherwise leave the city for others with better reputations. Men of Melanin Magic was founded in 2016 by Andrew Rayner, then a Harvard grad student and community manager for The Welcoming Committee, a social events organization for mostly 20- and 30-something LGBTQ folks. He formed a small core of fellow hosts, including Hantone, who continues to lead the group now with Lambert Rahming, a gay local pastor. What started with monthly meet-ups of 10 people has ballooned to crowds of 50 to 70 at regular events that run the gamut, from

trivia nights to picnics on Boston Common. The group has organized a special “Black Panther”-themed dinner party at the South End restaurant Estragon, and spun off an affiliated “Feedback” discussion series on thinkers like Audre Lorde. The group is still growing, and looking to build the kind of team infrastructure that can ensure Men of Melanin Magic lasts beyond any one leader. That’s a major priority, says Hantone, though looking to the future, he’s also interested in building the outfit’s social media presence and exploring opportunities around group travel. Right now, he’s looking to keep the focus on the social rather than political, benefits to community building. “Social spaces for queer men of color do not exist in this city,” says Hantone. “You can’t think about political advocacy if you don’t first have personal support.” While Boston works to become a better, more diverse city, grassroots groups like Men of Melanin Magic are crucial to fostering those kinds of community-based support systems for queer people of color. Says Hantone: “I’ve had people come up to me and say, ‘I’m so glad this exists. Otherwise, I wouldn’t see anybody who looks like me.’” [x]

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JUL|AUG 2018 | 19

SPOTLIGHT News STORY Rob Phelps

From the Blogs NEWS HIGHLIGHTS FROM BOSTONSPIRITMAGAZINE.COM on the grounds of his religious belief against same-sex marriage likely would have gone one of two ways. If the Court decided in favor of the gay couple, the celebrations would have been grand. If the Court backed the baker, the energy at Pride would surely have galvanized great outrage into action.

Boston Spirit Publisher David Zimmerman

PRIDE TV PERSON OF THE YEAR For his “outstanding work in the LGBT community,” Pride TV has named Boston Spirit publisher David Zimmerman 2018 Person of the Year. Each year New England Pride TV asks its fans and friends to nominate people they think have done outstanding work in support of the LGBTQ community. This year, Pride TV, now heading into its fifth season and going out to over two million homes in New England, received thousands of votes so they decided to recognize two other top winners along with David Zimmerman, whose award they distinguished as the Judge’s Choice Award from cast and crew. The two other awards went to Ashley Delgado from Providence, Rhode Island, for outstanding leadership and commitment and Michael Lanava from Worcester, Massachusetts, for outstanding leadership and political work.

SCOTUS WEDDING CAKE DECISION Coming at the start of Pride Month, the Supreme Court’s decision on the case of the Colorado baker who refused to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple

What actually happened was something down the middle, leaving many scratching heads. According to the Boston Globe, “The Supreme Court ruled narrowly Monday for a Colorado baker who wouldn’t make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. But the court is not deciding the big issue in the case, whether a business can invoke religious objections to refuse service to gay and lesbian people. “The justices’ limited ruling turned on what the court described as anti-religious bias on the Colorado Civil Rights Commission when it ruled against baker Jack Phillips. The justices voted 7-2 that the commission violated Phillips’ rights under the First Amendment.” So the Court’s narrow ruling in favor of the baker turns out also to be a loss for the baker’s backers—those who’d hoped that anti-discrimination laws could be created to refuse goods and services to select groups (here, LGBT people) in the name of free speech or religion. As attorney Mary Bonauto explains it in a GLAD press release, “[T]he majority of the Court—those in the majority as well as Justices Ginsburg and Sotomayor—stood on the side of ‘civil rights laws that ensure equal access to goods, services, and public accommodations.’ In applying those laws, neither a person’s religion nor their sexual orientation should affect

20 | BOSTON SPIRIT

David Mullins and Charlie Craig, plaintiffs in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado the administration of justice. As the Court stated in its penultimate paragraph, ‘disputes must be resolved with tolerance, without undue disrespect to sincere religious beliefs, and without subjecting gay persons to indignities when they seek goods and services in an open market.’” In other words, this ruling— coming in the early days of Pride Month—has given the LGBTQA community reason to both celebrate AND galvanize outrage into action for wider, greater and more inclusive rights for all.

Scott Lively at the Massachusetts GOP convention. AP PHOTO Winslow Townson

28 PERCENT OF MA GOP DELEGATES BACK ANTI-GAY ACTIVIST IN GOVERNOR’S RACE At late April’s state Republican convention in Worcester, nearly 30 percent of GOP delegates backed the anti-LGBT activist pastor Scott Lively from Springfield, Massachusetts, in his primary run against Governor Charlie Baker, according to a May 1 Boston Globe report. “Already Baker has said many of Lively’s views should have no place in public discourse. ‘I’m no fan of his position on gay rights, and I’ll just start there,’ he added Monday,” stated the Globe story, which went on to report on the federal lawsuit Lively faces for his work in Uganda aimed at depriving LGBT people of not only their basic human rights but in some cases life itself:

“A judge last year called Lively’s efforts and writings against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people ‘odious’ and ‘crackpot bigotry.’ “‘The question before the court is not whether Defendant’s actions in aiding and abetting efforts to demonize, intimidate, and injure LGBTI people in Uganda constitute violations of international law. They do,’ wrote US District Judge Michael A. Ponsor. It’s a view Lively vociferously disputes. “The case—now pending before the US Court of Appeals in Boston—was publicly known before Saturday’s Republican convention but was not part of the public deliberations when nearly 30 percent of GOP delegates backed Lively over Governor Charlie Baker. Yet Lively’s opinions about gay people will likely be front and center during the primary campaign.”

PHOTO courtesy gsanetwork.org

MA PUBLIC SCHOOLS OFFER NEW LGBT-THEMED CURRICULUM Lessons on the 1969 Stonewall riots and writing by Langston Hughes and Willa Cather and other notable LGBT authors are all just part of a new curriculum that includes LGBT-themed history, literature and health education to be included in

Massachusetts Public Schools this fall. “We talk about mirrors and windows,” Jeff Perrotti, director of the Massachusetts Safe Schools Program for LGBTQ Students, told the Boston Herald in a recent article. “Students need to see themselves reflected and see others who are different from themselves. It is important that all students feel safe, valued and

respected in school so they can be ready to learn.” “If students don’t see themselves in the curriculum, they are not as likely to pay attention,” said commission director Corey Prachniak-Rincon. “It is a huge demand we hear from teachers. They recognize part of the reason why LGBTQ students feel excluded is they’re not reflected and that part of their identity is ignored.” [x]

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JUL|AUG 2018 | 21

SPOTLIGHT News STORY Natalie Nonken

Newsmakers | Connecticut Articles from The Constitution State New London Pride

NEW LONDON PRIDE WEEKEND KICKS OFF AUG. 23 Joette Katz

Jennifer Levi

CONNECTICUT WELCOMES LGBT FAMILIES TO ADOPT, HOPES TO INCREASE NUMBERS THIS YEAR Connecticut is actively recruiting LGBT families to adopt children, as well as foster children while several Red States have made the news lately for passing laws to make it legal for adoption agencies to ban LGBT families from adopting. The Connecticut Department of Children and Families recently started an outreach campaign and plans to work with LGBT organizations to encourage members of the community to apply to adopt and foster children. And Governor Dan Malloy has gotten involved in the campaign, pointing out on Twitter that over 4,000 children in the state are living in foster care. Malloy also said, “We want to spread the message that ALL families are valued as potential foster and adoptive families,” Malloy tweeted out. The State Commissioner of Department of Children and Families Joette Katz hopes to increase the number of LGBT adoptive families in Connecticut’s system. Currently there are around 100. Katz told the national political newspaper The Hill that she hopes to go beyond doubling that number this year and is reaching out to LGBT families to achieve that goal.

FIRST STATE IN U.S. TO GRANT GENDER ID RIGHTS TO PRISON INMATES Effective, July 1, Connecticut is the first state in the U.S. where transgender prisoners have the legal right to be housed and otherwise treated according to their gender identity. With the passage of SB-13, transgender prisoners have the right to be searched by officers who share their gender identity. Plus they may also expect prison staff to address them according to their gender identity. For their part, transgender prisoners must be diagnosed with gender dysphoria (the term recognized by the American Psychiatric Association) or carry an ID card matching their gender identity to access these rights. Jennifer Levi, director of the transgender rights project of the GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, or GLAD, told Newsweek that the law was “groundbreaking.” The new law “sets as the presumptive standard that transgender women are housed with women and transgender men are housed with men, which is in stark contrast to laws in other states and at the federal level,” Levi told Newsweek. “Connecticut officials report that there are transgender women in women’s facilities in that state and that they have been moving toward the standard just recently passed into law. They will, of course, have to continue to train prison officials to ensure compliance with the law given pervasive misunderstandings about transgender people’s lives.”

This year’s New London Pride Weekend, presented by outCT, takes place August 23–26. The festivities begin on Thursday night, with a kickoff event at Club Avalon at Mohegan Sun Casino. Friday, there will be a pre-party at O’Neill’s Brass Rail in New London, followed by the New London Pride Festival on Saturday at Ocean Beach Park. Sunday, the events conclude with an interfaith service at All Souls UU Church in New London, plus a cookout that afternoon. The festival features many performers including the Hartford Gay Men’s Chorus and the Connecticut Gay Men’s Chorus. In addition, there will be volleyball courts, The Diva Center, where festival goers can have their nails and hair done, face painting, psychic readings, mini golf, waterslides and much more. Check out newlondonpride.com/ schedule for more.

TRIANGLE COMMUNITY CENTER HOSTS GAYMES NIGHTS Norwalk’s Triangle Community Center is hosting its Gaymes Nights on July 13 and 27, as well as August 10 and 24. The event takes place every other Friday of each month, from 8pm to 10pm at the community center. An 18+ event and sober event. No RSVP is required. Fun includes an array of games, with classic board games and also quirky, newer games. Examples include Scrabble and Cards against Humanity. Games vary depending on interest and may even include video games if there’s interest. Attendees are welcome to bring their own games, but many games are supplied. Snacks will be provided, but gamers are welcome to bring additional food to share. Check out ctpridecenter.org/social_groups for more. [x]

22 | BOSTON SPIRIT

Thank You to all of our Table Captains and Event Team, our corporate sponsors, Dr. Susan M. Love Award recipient Diana Nyad, Congressman Gerry E. Studds Award recipient Governor Deval Patrick, and the 2,500 LGBT people, friends, supporters and volunteers who attended the 2018 Dinner Party and Men’s Event for helping to make both events so very successful. A special thanks goes out to our Event Chairs Katelyn Dolan, Theresa Murray, Amanda Preston-Sicari, John Basile, Andy Huang, and Gregg Snyder, whose hard work made both nights possible. With your help, we raised over $1.2 million in cash, pledges and in-kind donations to support the life-saving services and programs at Fenway Health!

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SPOTLIGHT News STORY Rob Phelps

Newsmakers | New Hampshire Headlines from the Granite State NH GOVERNOR SIGNS TRANS RIGHTS BILL AND CONVERSION THERAPY BAN INTO LAW Friday, June 8, 2018 is now an historic day for LGBT rights in New Hampshire. Republican Governor Chris Sununu signed not one but two pro-LGBT rights bills into law: House Bill 1319, banning discrimination against transgender people in housing, employment and public accommodations, and House Bill 587, protecting LGBTQ minors from conversion therapy. “Discrimination—in any form—is unacceptable and runs contrary to New Hampshire’s Live Free or Die Spirit,” the governor wrote in a public statement following the signing of HB 1319. “If we really want to be the Live Free or Die state, we must ensure that New Hampshire

is a place where every person, regardless of their background, has an equal and full opportunity to pursue their dreams and to make a better life for themselves and their families,” he said. “This bill will ensure equal rights, equal opportunity, and nondiscrimination protections in the areas of housing and employment,” the governor’s statement read.

GRANITE STATE LOG CABIN REPUBLICANS FRUSTRATED OVER THEIR PARTY’S PLATFORM Leaders of New Hampshire’s chapter of LGBT Log Cabin Republicans expressed dismay after the state GOP’s convention shot down their proposal to revise the state’s platform. At the gathering, former state GOP chair and co-chair of the Granite State Log Cabin

inside & outside

group Jennifer Horn proposed changing the party’s platform language from describing families as “traditional” to “nurturing” and to completely drop the marriage between “one-man-one-woman” plank. Horn’s proposal was not taken up, according to a May 17 report in the Concord Monitor, because Horn and her husband had been disqualified as convention delegates due to their recent move from one ward to another in Nashua. “I wish we had the opportunity to have the discussion, but that didn’t happen,” Matt Mayberry, a board member with the group, told the Concord Monitor. “There are times, sure, that we all get frustrated. Sometimes change doesn’t come fast enough. But change does come, has come, and will continue to come.” Log Cabin Republican New Hampshire chapter co-chairman Doug Palardy agreed with Mayberry. “As a gay, married, conservative man, am I disappointed there was no discussion on the party’s platform last week? Absolutely,” he said. However Palardy remains optimistic. “Do I believe that action represents Granite State Republicans as a whole? Not at all,” he said. “If you were to poll all registered New Hampshire Republicans, I think you would

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Emily Fishbaugh Gov. Chris Sununu and New Hampshire Gay Men’s Chorus. PHOTO courtesy NHGMC find that the vast majority would favor an immediate platform update.”

ago—when acceptance of LGBT people in New Hampshire was scarce.“

GAY MEN’S CHORUS RECEIVES GOVERNOR’S COMMENDATION

To open the council’s session, the chorus performed the official state song, “Old New Hampshire,” “I Sing Out” and “Let the River Run.”

The New Hampshire Gay Men’s Chorus sang for Governor Chris Sununu and the state’s executive council inside the state capital on March 21. And commemorating the group’s 20th anniversary, the governor read and presented them with a proclamation in a televised speech. A chorus press release said the event “marks an important milestone in our history, given that this performance would have been unthinkable in NHGMC’s early years—or even as recently as 10 years

NORTH HAMPTON RESIDENT NAMED ADVOCATE ‘CHAMPION OF PRIDE’ Emily Fishbaugh of North Hampton was selected by the Advocate for its “Champions of Pride” list. Writes the Advocate, Emily “has been leading by example since the fourth grade, when she began living as her preferred gender— pushing forward a much-needed dialogue in her North Hampton, N.H., community. She

bravely testified with other trans teens and their families before the state’s House Judiciary Committee in favor of the 2017 bill, HB 478, which would have prohibited discrimination based on gender identity, had it passed. Rather than give up, Fishbaugh, now 16, has become a visible presence in her state, advocating for a 2018 version of the legislation. At a rally earlier this year, she spoke about being miserable before coming out. Her school was supportive of her social transition, and as SeaCoastOnline.com reported, Fishbaugh now says she’s “just like any other girl. I’m just living my life and I’m happy.” And now that that state has a new version of the antidiscrimination just signed into law, it’s even more clear that Emily’s efforts are helping to make a positive difference for us all! [x]

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SPOTLIGHT News STORY Rob Phelps

Newsmakers | Vermont Green Mountain State Update

to continue to see people feeling despair and isolated and lonely,” Kaplan said.

NATIONAL CENTER FOR LESBIAN RIGHTS CONVENE WITH VERMONT RURAL PRIDE

Green Mountain Crossroads board of directors.

Vermont Governor Phil Scott, May 11, 2018 bill-signing. PHOTO courtesy Outright

VERMONT GOVERNOR PHIL SCOTT SIGNS GENDERNEUTRAL BATHROOM BILL INTO LAW Republican Governor Phil Scott said he hoped to send a “powerful message” in signing HB 333 in to law. The bill makes it the law of the state that all single-user public bathrooms be gender neutral. “This is especially important for kids in school who face anxiety and bullying over something as simple as using the restroom,” Scott said at the May 11 signing ceremony. “Treating others in this way is not who we are as Vermonters, and I hope the signing of this bill will send a powerful message that that’s not the way we act.” “Two years ago, when I was running for governor, I was asked in a debate whether I would support gender-neutral bathrooms in public places or not,” Scott, a Republican, said at the bill-signing ceremony at the Vermont Statehouse in Montpelier. “I responded with a one-word answer, a simple yes. Because to me it was just that simple. Why wouldn’t we do that? And now two years later I am honored to be able to sign that legislation into law today.”

ALARMING STUDY RESULTS ON BULLYING LGBT YOUTH The latest bi-annual Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by the Vermont Health Department revealed some alarming results for LGBT youth.

26 | BOSTON SPIRIT

Dana Kaplan, executive director, Outright Vermont Nearly one in six students was bullied in a 30-day span, and LGBT students were twice as likely as heterosexual students to be bullied. Fifty-eight percent of LGBT students reported feeling sad or hopeless almost every day for at least two weeks, compared with 21 percent of the heterosexual students. And 33 percent of LGBT students made a plan for suicide with 18 percent attempting suicide. The results were based on responses from 35,000 students from 69 high schools and 122 middle schools. “Youth are not feeling a sense of having a life worth living. They’re not feeling connected to their community. There is a need for schools to recognize just how critical of a situation this is,” Dana Kaplan, executive director of Outright Vermont, told WCAXTV, the Burlington-based CBS affiliate. “Until we can reduce the stigma attached to certain genders and sexualities, we’re going

In late April, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and Green Mountain Crossroads co-hosted a daylong event to address challenges and needs of LGBT people in rural areas. The free event brought together local, state and national leaders and members of the community. “We at Green Mountain Crossroads are thrilled to be collaborating with The National Center for Lesbian Rights on this Vermont edition of Rural Pride. For us, this is such a natural partnership and outgrowth of our daily work building power of rural LGBTQ people throughout the Northeast,” said HB Lozito, executive director of Green Mountain Crossroads. “We continue to push back against the prevailing notion that LGBTQ people can and do only live in urban areas. LGBTQ people have been living in rural places and small towns forever!” they said. “Through gatherings like Rural Pride and our annual Out in the Open Summit, we’re excited to continue bringing rural LGBTQ people together to have both our LGBTQ identities and our love of rural communities seen, heard, and recognized at the same time.” “We are excited to be working with Green Mountain Crossroads to bring national and local perspectives together as we explore issues that affect LGBT youth, seniors, and families, including discrimination, access to health care, poverty, and the criminal justice system,” said NCLR Policy Director Julie Gonen. “In these challenging political times, Rural Pride represents an opportunity to come together to lift up and celebrate the diversity in the LGBT community everywhere we live.” For more on Green Mountain Crossroads, got to greenmountaincrossroads.org. For more on the NCLR, go to nclrights.org. [x]

JUL|AUG 2018 | 27

SPOTLIGHT News STORY Rob Phelps

Newsmakers | Maine

News from the Pine Tree State CENTRAL MAINE PRIDE DRAWS HUNDREDS There’s nothing like big-city Pride to feel the love and empowerment that comes with acceptance and celebration with tens of thousands. There’s also nothing like feeling that sense of love and acceptance and empowerment right at home with friends and neighbors. “It’s not just people in the cities that need to have pride, it’s people in the rural areas as well, and it helps to combat stigma. It helps to combat discrimination and it’s also helps to combat isolation that many queer people in rural areas have to deal with,” Hannah Ruhlin of Health Equity Alliance, explained to Bangor’s WABI 5.

Health Equity Alliance sponsored the Central Maine Pride Celebration in Waterville on Sunday, June 3. And hundreds came out for the music, dancing, silent auction, fellowship and celebration of diversity and community and love and empowerment and acceptance.

WEDDING CAKE RULING WON’T AFFECT MAINE, SAYS PORTLAND PRESS The editorial board of the Portland Press Herald was quick with an editorial aimed to reassure Mainers that the Supreme Court’s June 3 ruling on the baker who refused to make a wedding came for a same-sex couple because of his religious beliefs wouldn’t affect the rights of LGBT couples in Maine. The ruling, the board pointed out, “did not say that all religious bakers (or caterers, or

florists, or DJs) could refuse to provide their services to all same-sex couples. With that still up in the air, the message for Mainers in the court’s 7–2 decision should be that not much has changed. “Maine civil rights law still protects people regardless of their sexual orientation, and businesses that are open to the public should still know that they can’t discriminate against same-sex couples, any more than they could refuse to serve people because of their race or religion. The state should still be expected to step in, if necessary, to enforce the law and protect people’s rights, although the ruling does provide a useful reminder that both sides are entitled to due process.” “This ruling is most significant for what it doesn’t do. It does not challenge the constitutionality of state civil rights laws, and it does not establish a right to discriminate on religious grounds,” the board points out. “Until another case on this issue makes its way to the Supreme Court, nothing has changed.”

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recognize their contributions to this town,” Finnegan said.

CATHOLIC DIOCESE EXITS MAINE COUNCIL OF CHURCHES In objection to its position on LGBT issues, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland has withdrawn from the Maine Council of Churches. The decision came in late May following a council decision to allow a majority, instead of a unanimous, vote to determine its public positions.

Veterans Park, Ogunquit

OGUNQUIT TOWN OFFICIAL STANDS UP FOR RAINBOW FLAG IN DISPUTE For Pride month, a rainbow flag flew over the town’s Veterans Park, raising an objection from veteran John Mixon, who told Manchester, New Hampshire’s WMOR TV that he was “absolutely shocked to see it there. I couldn’t believe that someone was even considering it.” “If it flew 25 yards over there on the front porch, I’d go to the celebration. Nobody would care. But to put it in Veterans Park

and disrespect veterans, it’s a travesty,” Mixon said. The flag was displayed beside the POW MIA, American and state flags. Town manager Pat Finnegan told WMOR that the flag would remain where it was and that she hoped to hold a community forum on the issue. “The rainbow flag represents that we have a significant number of people who come to Ogunquit partly because of our welcoming nature to gay people, and we want to

“Remaining silent on issues, especially related to LGBTQ justice and equality, wasn’t tenable for all of our other seven denominations,” explained the council’s executive director Reverend Jane Field. For a Religious News Service report, Field said that the other seven denominations, mainly Protestant churches, have become more supportive of LGBT people in their ministries. “It was enough of a discomfort that it needed to be addressed openly,” Field said. “It wasn’t healthy to be silent anymore.” A spokesperson for the Diocese of Portland did not respond to RNS requests for comment. [x]

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SPOTLIGHT News STORY Kim Harris Stowell

Newsmakers | Rhode Island This Just in from the Ocean State CICILLINE CALLS ON CONGRESS TO ACT TO PROTECT LGBT RIGHTS U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline is criticizing the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of a Colorado baker who wouldn’t make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. Cicilline, who co-chairs the LGBT Equality Caucus, called on Congress to pass legislation amending existing federal civil rights laws to explicitly prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in education, employment, housing, credit, Federal jury service, public accommodations, and the use of federal funds. As a nation founded on the notion that everyone is equal in the eyes of the law, Cicilline argues that there is no religious tradition that holds as a central tenet that you must deny goods or services to people based on their sexual orientation or gender

U.S. Congressman David Cicilline

identity. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court declined to consider these facts in their decision. Steven Brown, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island, issued this statement on the court ruling: “While we are disappointed in [this] ruling, the decision was reached on very narrow grounds. It does not in any way affect the continued validity and vitality of Rhode Island’s strong laws banning discrimination in public accommodations against LGBT people.”

R.I. HOUSE VOTES TO END ‘GAY OR TRANS PANIC’ DEFENSE With only two lawmakers opposed, the Rhode Island House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation that, disallows

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defense was used this month in Texas, when a man who stabbed his neighbor to death claimed that the killing was self-defense and that he was in a “gay panic” after being hit on. The legislation is supported by the American Bar Association and the Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming and Intersex Network of Rhode Island.

State Rep. Ken Marshall the use of “gay or trans panic” as a legal defense for a violent act. The legislation says, in part: “A person is not justified in using force against another based on the discovery of, knowledge about or potential disclosure of the victim’s actual or perceived gender, gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation... [including] circumstances in which the victim made an unwanted non-forcible romantic or sexual advance toward the defendant.” The lead sponsor, Rep. Kenneth Marshall, was later quoted as saying, “I consider this common-sense legislation ... A victim is a victim, and no victim’s life is worth less than another’s because of his or her gender identity or sexuality.”

Rhode Island Pride

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC NAMES PROVIDENCE PRIDE ONE OF WORLD’S BEST Beyond the Pride observances in major U.S. cities such as New York, San Francisco and Chicago, says National Geographic, are an ever-growing number of celebrations in smaller cities all across the county. Rhode Island Pride in Providence is a perfect example, they avow: “First held with about 75 participants in 1976, participation has grown to more than 60,000 every mid-June, holding one of the few nighttime Pride parades in the U.S.”

While it is somewhat rarely used and has often been rejected by courts, the gay panic

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BISHOP TOBIN: “JUNE SHOULD BE ANYTHING BUT PRIDE MONTH” Meanwhile, Rhode Island’s Catholic Bishop James Tobin took to Twitter last month to proclaim the following: “Catholics should be very wary of events in the June LGBTQ month. It’s not a fun-filled, family-friendly celebration of respect. It promotes a lifestyle and agenda that, in the extreme, is morally offensive.” [x] Editor’s Note: We at Boston Spirit know at least 60,000 Providence Pridegoers (see item above) who would beg to disagree with the bishop. We’d welcome the bishop to come to Pride and see the fun-filled family-friendly celebration with us.

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SPOTLIGHT Community STORY Bob Linscott

Senior Spirit

Can’t Stop Dancing! LGBT SENIOR PRIDE COALITION’S ANNUAL SILVER PARTY BRINGS THE GENERATIONS TOGETHER For many LGBTQ older adults, the earliest memories of being gay are connected to dancing and gay clubs. This harkens back to a time when there were many places to truly be our authentic selves and to be with our community—even if it was for just a few hours every week. Many of those memories have a soundtrack. Just a few notes from a song that was popular when we were coming out brings back a flood of memories, and before long the feet start tapping and there is a yearning for the dance floor and the disco ball. But that was a different time, and it wouldn’t be the same anymore. Right? Wrong! Who cares if there is a cane in your life now, or maybe even a walker; there is no need to

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be ashamed of those at the LGBT Senior Pride Coalition’s Silver Party. This annual event is part of Boston Pride’s week-long celebration and it is the only event that is designed specifically for older LGBT adults. (See photos on page xx.) The Silver Party reconnects people with our past through the music, spanning six decades starting with the ’50s working right up to the present, thanks to the talented and beloved DJ Shelly Cullen.

Dancing at the The Silver Party PHOTO courtesy of Fenway

South End resident Brad Gregory said that “dancing was irreversibly linked with coming out, and the people I met at the clubs in those days became my family, I can’t imagine not having those connections or those spaces as I age, but the clubs that I loved then are gone now. But for one moment

every year I step back into those days at The Silver Party. YMCA comes on and I feel like nothing has changed.” The club scene today has moved in a different direction from its heydays in the

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“ Looking back at what we’ve accomplished since the 1960s gives me a great deal of hope for the future. If I can learn how to dance with my broken heart, I can take on the challenges that lie in store. ” —Brad Gregory ’70s and ’80s. Many older LGBTQ adults may not recognize the music or may feel selfconscious in a very young crowd. This is another reason why The Silver Party has become such a signature event because it is a truly come-as-you-are dance party. At any given moment, you will see people from

all generations on the dance floor. Over the years more and more young people have found their way to The Silver Party, enhancing the feel of community. Nobody wants to live in a generation silo. Youth in one corner, older adults in another and everyone else in the middle looking confused.

One of the Silver Party’s organizers, Jane Roman shared her thoughts about the event: “Being in that energy, on that floor is pure pleasure. And we feed off each other out there. Everyone is dancing with everyone. Plus the LGBT standards make it so special. The floor is always full and even folks with mobility issues, are out there getting down. I love watching all the smiles, during and after the party. The air has an aura of fun, which is contagious. And dancing of course is exercise disguised as self-expression and pleasure.” There is something much deeper going on when we have moments like this when we can really put all our cares behind us for just a few hours. We did it decades ago when the world was not as accepting and some of the only places we could escape those realities were the clubs. Today there is a growing acceptance of LGBTQ people and marriage equality is the law of the land, but aging itself brings about new challenges and fears. The annual Silver Party is a place to go to slip back in time and put those fears aside for a few ours and move to the beat of a familiar drum. [x]

Bob Linscott is assistant director of the LGBT Aging Project at Fenway Health.

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The area from Boston, Massachusetts' doorstep extending to the New Hampshire border is a diverse and beautiful place with historical and cultural significance. Distances are short, prices are reasonable, and the people are friendly and welcoming. Known for cozy hotels and inns, delicious restaurants, fascinating museums and great beaches, North of Boston, MA is the ideal vacation destination for everyone. Request a free travel guide and map.

Photos: (Main Photo) The Crane Estate,The Trustees of Reservations, Ipswich © Mark Gardner; (Smaller Images) Salem Trolley © Kishgraphics; Standup Paddle Boarding, Marblehead © Little Harbor Boathouse; Lobster at Woodman’s of Essex © A.M. Casey/NBCVB; Wedding at the House of the Seven Gables © Lightshed Photography; Motif #1, Rockport © John Grant

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There’s a story in every mile North of Boston! Located only 30 minutes from Boston, the region offers 200 miles of coastline, restaurants, cultural sites, attractions, performing arts venues, and more. The Greater Salem area is rich in history, arts, and culture. Visit quintessential New England villages like Marblehead and Beverly. Salem, noted for the Witch Trials of 1692, transports visitors from the 17th-century to the 21st-century through literature, architecture, and maritime heritage. Kick back and enjoy family vacations, romantic getaways, ocean adventures, and fresh seafood in the Cape Ann communities of Gloucester, Rockport, Essex and Manchester-by-the-Sea. Gloucester’s world-famous Fisherman’s Memorial (“The Man at the Wheel” statue) stands testament to thousands of fishermen lost at sea. The harbor bustles with schooner sails, lighthouse tours, and deep-sea fishing with some of the world’s best whale watching off the coast.

Nestled where the Merrimack River meets the Atlantic, the Greater Newburyport area is filled with natural beauty. Newburyport’s quaint bricklined downtown features shops, restaurants, art galleries and festivals galore. See historic homes, farms, and marshes as you wind through the region on the Essex Coastal Scenic Byway. Just to the north and west on Rt. 495 lies the Greater Merrimack Valley offering skiing, biking, hiking, canoeing, strawberry picking, and concerts year-round. Visit the mill buildings that helped grow America. From the beaches of Salisbury to the rocky shores of Rockport, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

Please visit northofboston.org for additional information and calendar of events.

FEATURE Politics STORY Rob Phelps

Battleground State On November 6, Massachusetts becomes the first state where voters uphold—or repeal—public accommodations rights for transgender people Complacency can be a kind of complicity. It might be tempting to rest assured that a true-blue state like Massachusetts would never repeal the 2016 transgender rights law that Governor Charlie Baker signed with overwhelming support from Beacon Hill. But if Massachusetts voters sit back and relax and don’t reach out to friends and neighbors to make sure everyone understands the upcoming ballot referendum to repeal that law, basic civil rights may be rescinded in the Bay State

on November 6. (See “A Guide to the Vote” on page 38.) “It’s not just the transgender community that benefits from these protections but also the larger LGBTQ community, everyone, here in Massachusetts and nationally,” says Mason Dunn, executive director of Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition and co-chair of Freedom for All Massachusetts—both groups that worked hard to secure the rights in the first place and are now back on the front lines fighting the repeal. “It’s about what Massachusetts

36 | BOSTON SPIRIT

“ It’s not just the transgender community that benefits from these protections but also the larger LGBTQ community. ” Mason Dunn Executive director of the Massachusetts Political Coalition and co-chair of Freedom for All Massachusetts

stands for, whether we want to continue treating all people fairly and upholding the state’s

Mason Dunn. PHOTO courtesy Mason J. Dunn/Facebook

reputation as a place that values equality and freedom.” And yet a very large percentage of Massachusetts voters do not understand what this law, which is so much more than a “bathroom bill,” actually does and does not do—or even that a ballot to repeal people’s rights to go to a restaurant or ride the T or visit a doctor’s office or emergency room like everyone else is coming up on the November 6 ballot. A June 15 Suffolk University Political Research Center survey shows the ballot initiative is looking to be one of the closest battles the state has seen. Thirty-seven percent of Massachusetts voters would repeal protections for transgender people that everyone else takes for granted, with an additional 13 percent still undecided, according to the survey.

[ABOVE] Freedom for All Massachusetts transgender rights rally at King’s Chapel in Boston.

Once again, Massachusetts finds itself a battleground state on the verge of setting another precedent: on November 6, it will be the first state where voters uphold—or repeal— important civil rights.

Freedom for All Massachusetts leaders at Boston Pride spring open house: David Topping [FAR LEFT], Krina Patel [CENTER)]and Mason Dunn and Derek Palmer [SECOND AND THIRD FROM RIGHT].

[AT LEFT] Keep Massachusetts Safe representatives deliver the signatures for a ballot to repeal the transgender rights law.

Defending basic freedoms Freedom for All Massachusetts reported raising $356,805 in 2017. In addition to individual donations, $100,000 of that came from a single grant from Service Employees International Union with other large donations coming from Harvard-Pilgrim Health Care, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Human Rights Campaign. Factor in $2 million put in by the full coalition supporting the trans-rights advocates, which includes the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and the Boston Red Sox. With this funding, Dunn says, “we’ve put a very strong

field presence across the state. Right now we have 17 staff on our team, mostly field organizers working outside Boston in more conservative parts of the state on the ground talking to individuals about transgender lives and experiences. That’s where the majority of our funding is going—to making sure that we’re humanizing transgender lives and experiences.” Says the group’s field director David Topping, “we have over 900 volunteers knocking on doors, talking to voters about why these protections matter, starting every single Saturday at 10 a.m.” And not just on Saturdays, Topping says, but all week long, 24/7, you can go to the group’s robust website (freedommassachusetts.org) and check out the Volunteer Action Calendar. “We have a job for everybody,” says Topping. Compare all this with the only $13,368 donated in the same year to Keep

JUL|AUG 2018 | 37

A Guide to the Vote

Freedom for All Americans president of strategy Kasey Suffredini at pre-Boston Pride press conference. Massachusetts Safe, the group that collected the signatures for the ballot and is pushing for repeal. These donations came entirely from individual Massachusetts residents, the group reports, and largely through online donations. The funding may appear overwhelmingly on the side of the transgender rights advocates, but wait. Keep Massachusetts Safe has put most of its funds into misleading messages about public bathroom safety. The anti-transgender group’s highest profile ad to date was forced off the air by Wegman’s grocery stores because Wegman’s did not want to be associated with the antitransgender group, which shot the ad in a Wegman’s without permission. The ad showed a shocked little girl who peeked under a stall partition to find a transgender person in the next stall (questionable behavior on the child’s part further adding to this bizarre example of messaging). Still, as Freedom for All Massachusetts Campaign Manager Phil Sherwood told

the Boston Globe back in April, the anti-transgender activists “have a very successful playbook. Their playbook is really to lay low, be quiet, and then, the last few weeks, put up ads that really misinform the intent of the original protections law and use fearbased messaging.” And more financial backing for these ads could come through rightwing sources like the Massachusetts Family Institute, which houses the offices for Keep Massachusetts Safe. It can’t be said enough that safety and privacy are values both groups share. “As a transgender person as well as an advocate I am concerned about safety and privacy as well,” Dunn says. “I think I can speak for everyone on the coalition that we all prioritize safety and wellness for all people.” “This overemphasis on restrooms is really an intentional tactic to try to minimize the scope and impact of what this transgender and nondiscrimination law actually does. This law is about allowing

[CONTINUES 40] 38 | BOSTON SPIRIT

Voting “yes” or “no” on ballot referendums is often confusing because the wording can be tricky—does “yes” mean “for” or “against,” and what’s with all the legalese? Here’s the scoop:

Vote “yes” On Election Day—November 6, 2018—all Bay State voters face the first-ever statewide popular vote on protections for transgender people from discrimination: a referendum on “An Act Relative to Transgender Anti-Discrimination.” A “No” vote would take away basic civil rights—voting “no” would repeal our state law that protects transgender people from discrimination in public places like restaurants, stores and doctors’ offices. A “Yes” vote keeps the current law as it is. Vote “Yes” on November 6 to keep these basic civil rights in place.

Facts vs. myths Truth is, a lot of us don’t know much about referendum questions on the ballot before we get to the polls. Many voters don’t know much about this issue to begin with, so it’s very important to get the word out to friends and family, neighbors and coworkers. Here are some common misconceptions and facts to help clear them up:

Myth: “‘Public accommodations’ means restrooms and locker rooms.” Fact: Public accommodations are all the places we go when we’re not at home, work or school. These include movie theaters, restaurants, parks, public transportation, and coffee shops; and yes, it includes being able to do something as basic as using the restroom in these places. Myth: “Non-discrimination protections could be used as cover for

Auto Home Condo Renters Business HOA’s misconduct in restrooms and locker rooms.”

use the restroom just like everyone else.

Fact: The law explicitly prohibits people from asserting gender identity for any “improper purpose.” Nothing in this law weakens existing laws against illegal behavior. Assault and harassment remain illegal. The 18 states and more than 200 municipalities with laws protecting transgender people from discrimination have reported no problems. Gyms with policies protecting transgender people from discrimination report no problems— including Planet Fitness, the gym franchise with more than 50 facilities across Massachusetts.

Myth: “Prohibiting discrimination for transgender people in public places allows public school students to access oppositesex restrooms and locker rooms.”

Myth: “This law allows men to invade women’s spaces. Men can just claim to be women, then access women’s facilities.” Fact: It’s already illegal to enter a restroom or a locker room to harm someone, period. Anyone who does that can and should be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Police use these laws to prevent assault, keep people safe and hold perpetrators accountable. Updating Massachusetts law to protect transgender people from discrimination hasn’t changed that. Myth: “Transgender people who use restrooms and locker rooms will make others uncomfortable.” Fact: Transgender men and transgender women use restrooms and locker rooms for the same reasons everyone does. And when they do, they value safety, privacy and modesty just like everyone else. Transgender people are part of our workplaces and our neighborhoods, and they need to be able to

Fact: Since 2012, Massachusetts law has prohibited discrimination against transgender people in public schools and ensured students have access to facilities that match the gender they live every day. There have been no reported incidents. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education provides guidance for school districts to ensure safe and equal educational opportunities for all students. Myth: “This law is forcing businesses to spend money to remodel their restrooms to be gender neutral or to add restrooms or other sex-segregated facilities.” Fact: Businesses have not had to spend a penny on remodeling or new construction. This law simply guarantees patrons safe access to existing facilities that match the gender they live every day.

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Myth: “Discrimination against transgender people is not a problem in Massachusetts.” Fact: A 2014 survey revealed that 65 percent of transgender people in Massachusetts faced discrimination in a public place in the previous 12 months. [RP]

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Myths and facts compiled from the Freedom for All Massachusetts website: freedommassachusetts.org

1361 Cambridge Street Cambridge, MA 02139 617-492-4150

414 Washington Street Dedham, MA 02026 781-751-9080

[FROM 38]

David Topping, field director, Freedom for All Massachusetts.

TH IS VIEW U p s c ale D in ing Re f in e d Atmosp h e re F u lly Re n ovate d Transgender rights supporters at Boston Pride. transgender people to go about their daily lives,” Dunn says.

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As we approach November 6, we’re likely to see an onslaught of anti-transgender misinformation hitting the airwaves. The time for clearing up misconceptions is now, stresses Dunn. In the LGBT community, awareness is strong. Freedom for All Massachusetts—the entire group—was voted Grand Marshal for this year’s Boston Pride Parade, and the crowds cheered them on. But a lot of Bay Staters didn’t exactly make it to Pride this year. Not reaching out to these folks could cost us all. The word complacency hits home, says Dunn. “As someone

who worked on the Prop 8 campaign in California — where I’m originally from — I know what it’s like to see the voters not come out. We can’t do that here. We can’t rest on the laurels that we were the first state to pass marriage equality so we’ll naturally vote for transgender protections. We can’t just hope that will happen. And so I think for Boston Spirit readers who are predominantly members of the LGBTQ community, it’s important for everyone to come together around this— not only to vote for transgender rights but to help wherever you can. That means canvassing, covering phone banks or just having conversations about this so that people know this is on the ballot and what it means.” [x]

FEATURE Health & Recreation STORY Kim Harris Stowell Aja Atwood and Andres “Dre” Chamorro III

Elevating Cannabis As marijuana sales become fully legal in Massachusetts, local leaders bring enterprising mission to the business of pot Created to support the Northeast United States’s cannabis industry and the corresponding need for education, advocacy and networking, Elevate New England was created to build community while elevating the perception of what cannabis professionals are and can do. And because of their strongly held belief that businesses cannot succeed without the inclusion of multiple perspectives as well as an educated community and informed customer base, Elevate’s central

mission is to empower underrepresented populations to work and lead in the cannabis in-dustry, and to empower the larger community to be educated and responsible consumers. Aja Atwood, an Elevate member, got involved in the cannabis industry as a result of the deaths of her father and a colleague. “I found myself thinking a lot about health,” she begins, “and I found cannabis. Or rather, it found me. I was always aware of it for recreational use,

but I really didn’t know anything about the medicinal value. I started to do some research and found that there was a lot more to this plant then I ever knew, that it could be used as a powerful tool to help improve lives.” She knew she wanted to find a way to be involved with the cannabis industry, while using her educational background in mechanical engineering. She began to take courses, learning about growing cannabis, and eventually set up a grow of her own in the very small basement of her house. Atwood quickly came up against some issues. She wanted to produce a Sativa strain, which tends to be a taller plant than its counterpart, Indica. To grow it in the basement, she found she needed to figure out a way to control the height of the plant without stunting its growth. Along with colleague Andres “Dre” Chamorro III, she began to experiment with ways to manage a plant such that it doesn’t grow vertically. While they were cognizant of not wanting to stress the plants, they became convinced that they could actually train plants to grow horizontally. Eighteen months and five prototypes later, the two have come up with a product that they are happy with. It’s called Trella, an automated plant training system which guides the plant to grow horizontally until it is ready to produce flowers, at which point the system allows the plant to produce vertically. Elevate New England has been a useful resource to Atwood and Chamorro, in part owing to its unique mission, going beyond just supporting cannabis growers and consumers, to being intentional about considering workplace equity and diversity. As an African-American woman and a lesbian, Atwood’s experience is intersectional. She sees this as an opportunity, saying, “when you have access to people from different backgrounds, it gives you access to a wider range of ideas—there’s more opportunity for creativity.” Over her years in the business, Atwood has taken note of how many black lesbians are attracted to this industry. She’s not sure why this is, but thinks perhaps the experience of defying cultural norms

JUL|AUG 2018 | 41

makes queer people well-suited to the business. “We’ve already broken through some big taboos,” she says, “We aren’t as scared of taboos.” The greatest benefit to being a part of Elevate? “Networking,” Atwood says. “There’s so much information out there now, from blogs to videos and all; you can get overwhelmed. I depend on Elevate to help filter out what is not resonating with the industry.” Is there room for more growers? Yes, says Atwood, as long as one is “absolutely passionate” about it. The New England area is not as far along as places like California, she points out, where there is more farmable land and a longer growing season, as well as a longer track record of laws favoring the cannabis grower. North Eastern growers have to grow indoors or invest in a green-house if they want to grow year-round.

Trella, an automated plant training system which guides the plant to grow horizontally until it is ready to produce flowers, at which point the system allows the plant to produce vertically. Next steps for Trella include raising funds to build additional units for beta testing, patenting the design, and sharing it with other growers. They see it as applying to other types of farming as well, and hope to use their technology to accelerate the indoor farm movement.

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FEATURE Business STORY Kim Harris Stowell

The changing face of angel investing Pipeline Angels is creating capital for women and nonbinary femme social entrepreneurs Steph Speirs, an Bostonian working in India, became aware through her work that there was a great deal of solar energy being harnessed throughout the country. She was surprised to note that, even in remote villages, people there seemed much more likely to have access to solar power than those in the United States. Upon doing some research, she determined that most Americans are unable to have solar panels on their houses: either the roof is situated such that panels can not be installed, or there are trees blocking the sun. Some others are renting their homes or living in condominiums, and for many, their credit scores simply prevent them from getting a loan in the first place. Speirs saw an opportunity to enable more Americans to access solar energy and, working together with friends and colleagues, created a way to provide

44 | BOSTON SPIRIT

“ What’s different about Pipeline Angels is that they are extremely attuned to the inequity that exists, both in angel investing and venture capital. ” Steph Speirs community solar—localized solar farms whose shares are sold to customers—to those who couldn’t have their own panels. They called their Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company Solstice.

Attendees of the Pipeline Angels conference

As a member of the LGBT community, and with a very diverse staff and an alternative idea, Speirs needed to find the right investors, a group that would both see Solstice’s vision and be free from the constraints of the inequity that often exists in venture capital and angel investor groups. Enter Pipeline Angels—an investing group that is intentionally creating capital for women and nonbinary femme social entrepreneurs.

The Difference “The process is pretty standard with any angel group,” says Speirs. “You pitch your idea, and if the group is interested, you go through a due diligence phase. If all goes well, you get funded. What’s different about Pipeline Angels is that they are extremely attuned to the inequity that exists—both in angel investing and venture capital. And because of that, they seek to diversify the ranks of both entrepreneurs that get funding and investors that give funding. And as such, they can start to change the inequity in the system.

“I also appreciate that, in terms of language and vernacular, Pipeline Angels uses inclusive language. And they make a real effort to support entrepreneurs of color in addition to their focus on women [and nonbinary femme] entrepreneurs. That’s really unique in investing—to view investing through that lens. They go out of their way to look beyond the usual referral networks that fuel the flow of investment deals. We are indebted to Pipeline, but also proud to be associated with an organization that is pushing the boundaries on what an angel investor looks like, and where their money goes.” Pipeline member Cee Smith is equally enthusiastic about the organization. “Pipeline Angels,” she says, “is a one-stop shop for women and nonbinary femmes interested in becoming angel investors. You gain the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to navigate the investment world. “Joining Pipeline Angels has been an enriching experience. The program not only taught me the ins and outs of investing, but also the value and strength of women uniting to be the change we want

The staff of Solstice, a Cambridge-based solar company invested in by Pipeline Angels to see. Through Pipeline, I’ve been connected to a network of pioneering woman across the country and opportunities that have advanced my professional growth.”

And pioneers they are. According to the Center for Venture Research, only 26 percent of US angel investors are women (2016 figures). And there is good data to support the wisdom in funding firms

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five thousand dollars into at least one woman- or non-binary femme-led forprofit social venture. Since Pipeline Angels launched in April 2011, over 300 members have graduated from their angel investing bootcamp and have invested more than $5 million in 50+ companies. Smith, a graduate of bootcamp, has this to say: “Pipeline Angels Boot Camp was an amazing experience. As a kinesthetic learner, I appreciated the opportunity to learn by doing, and then applying all that I learned in the program and actually making an investment.” As the CEO of Rainbow Noise Entertainment Company, Smith has made her dream of owning an LGBT-focused record label a reality, and she credits some of her success to Pipeline Angels and the support she received there. “Pipeline Angels is a place where all types of woman are empowered, accepted and celebrated for being uniquely different. That’s extra special and hard to find.” [x]

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FEATURE Literary STORY Scott Kearnan

‘Gay & Lesbian Review Worldwide’ Celebrates Silver Turning twenty-five, storied publication started by Harvard alumni, staff and students keeps shaking up and celebrating LGBT sensibilities “The Gay & Lesbian Review Worldwide” published its first issue 25 years after Stonewall. Now the Boston-based magazine is celebrating its own silver anniversary: 25 years as the gold standard for smart, incisive discussion of the LGBTQ experience, the community’s history and its culture. That quarter-century was also arguably the most rapidly transformative period for LGBTQ people in modern history. So when the Review rolls out its first book next year, a 25th-anniversary “best-of” tome that will reflect on 50 years since Stonewall, readers will hold in hand the chronicle of a generation whose thinking, fighting, research and writing moved us out of the shadows and into a period of enlightenment. “Twenty-five years ago, I could never have predicted we’d have same-sex marriage right now,” says Richard Schneider Jr., the publication’s founder and editor-in-chief, reflecting on the massive sea change since the “Review”

debuted. Though the magazine is a more literary-minded institution, rather than a daily news mill, the “Review” has definitely reflected the evolving interests and insights of its LGBTQ creators and consumers. “We’re not a news magazine, but in our own way we’ve documented the second half of the modern gay rights movement,” says Schneider.

‘Oomph and energy’ The magazine was born out of his involvement with the Harvard Gay & Lesbian Caucus (now the Harvard Gender and Sexuality Caucus), a collective of alumni like Schneider, staff and students. Schneider, a doctor of sociology, had an idea for a Caucus newsletter supplement that would engage with the organization’s robust guest speaker program. But it quickly became a much bigger, more ambitious concept—and the first standalone issue of “The Harvard Gay & Lesbian

Review” was rolled out in winter 1994. The “Review” was initially published by the Caucus, but quickly became its own nonprofit educational entity. In 2000, the magazine renamed itself. After all, it had no official ties to Harvard (though Schneider is currently co-chair of the Caucus’s local chapter), and although academics certainly continue to comprise a significant swath of its writers and subscribers, today’s “Review” has much wider reach. Deemed the journal of record for LGBTQ Americans by the “Library Journal,” it has a bimonthly circulation of ten thousand, which includes about eight thousand subscribers. The rest are distributed at bookstores and newsstands, putting the readership well over twenty thousand. and has attracted esteemed bylines representing some of the community’s most influential personalities and brightest minds—from Barney Frank to Gore Vidal, Larry Kramer to longstanding contributor Andrew Holleran, a fixture since the inaugural issue. The “Review” itself has certainly evolved since it first put ink to page. The magazine felt “more political when it started,” recalls Schneider. That sensibility was owing to the turbulence of the early ’90s, when newspaper headlines and

JUL|AUG 2018 | 47

nightly newscasts were dominated by watershed moments in LGBTQ history: moments like the million-person March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation in 1993; the Baehr v. Lewin case, an important if shortlived early victory for same-sex marriage activists in Hawaii, also in 1993; and the introduction of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in 1994. The tragedy of the AIDS epidemic was a constant backdrop. All of this and more provided “a lot of the oomph and energy that got the magazine started,” says Schneider.

Agora of ideas Though the “Review” has continued to exist in dialogue with the LGBTQ political landscape, as the years rolled on it entered a stride that was more significantly defined by its emphasis on scholarly analysis of history and culture, scientific research, and literature and arts criticism. It both responds to contemporary works and mines figures of the past—from Walt Whitman to E. M. Forster to Emily Dickinson—for queer themes.

Richard Schneider Jr. Each “Review” issue is also anchored by essays related to a common theme: from “Let’s Dance,” which looked at bodies in motion, to “Virtual Times,” an examination of LGBTQ life in cyberspace. Up next, says Schneider, is an issue focused on Massachusetts-born Leonard Bernstein that coincides with global events

celebrating the centennial of the seminal gay composer’s birth. Along the way, the “Review” has been an agora of ideas, and its multitude of voices has not been shy about tackling controversial topics—many of which continue to remain divisive within the LGBTQ community. Among the earliest and most memorable pieces, recalls Schneider, was an open letter from writer David Bergman responding to “A Place at the Table: The Gay Individual in American Society,” a 1993 manifesto by gay conservative Bruce Bawer that criticized the community’s more outré tactics for advancing equal rights. Bergman, on the other hand, advocated for the more radical potential of queer culture to shake up heteronormative sensibilities. The assimilationversus-revolution debate is one that continues to rage in gay circles today, and is representative of the kind of theoretical back-and-forth the “Review” has fostered. That being said, science has been as central as philosophy to the identity of the “Review.” Schneider has devoted significant space in the magazine to research and discussion about the scientific

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determinants of sexual orientation, investigating genetic factors, environmental impacts and everything in between. Though the “Review” is one of the few outlets for lay readers to access vetted information about the science of LGBTQ sexuality, providing a platform for that material has not been without blowback, says Schneider. “When I first started this, it was almost taboo to raise the question of what causes people to be gay,” says Schneider. “We’re not supposed to ask that. It was as if asking the question was homophobic, that trying to figure out why people are gay suggested an abnormality or fed into a mental illness model.” “I never agreed with that,” he says. It’s a disservice to critical thinking, he says, to take certain topics off the table. “I think everything should be explored. Nothing should be off limits.” That might be a harder case to make in an era when even academic circles—those important sites of scholarly interrogation where old beliefs are challenged, new theories are posited and critical thinking of all kind is pushed forward—seem

increasingly reticent to leave the exchange of ideas unpoliced. Every platform is seen as an endorsement. “The phenomenon of political correctness, to which I think you’re alluding, is not one the ‘Review’ has encountered in a really direct way,” says Schneider when asked if the current climate has seemed stifling to the work of the publication. “But there’s certainly a lot of controversy about whether things that make people feel squirmy should be discussed.” Probably the best example of that in LGBTQ discussions is the “radioactive” issue of “intergenerational sex, which is the euphemism for boy love,” says Schneider. It’s probably the prickliest topic the “Review” has examined. It certainly “hasn’t been approached in an advocacy way,” says Schneider. But from Greek pederasty to Japanese shudo, intergenerational sex between males has been “one of the most common expressions of homosexual activity” across cultures, says Schneider, and “however horrifying we find that in our society,” it merits discussion that can more broadly illuminate our

understanding of the historic evolution of sexual norms. Engaging challenging material will continue to be central to the “Review” as it heads into the next 25 years, says Schneider. Given the state of affairs in the age of Trump, he also predicts a potential pivot back to more political concerns. Although there are no plans to stop producing hard copies of the magazine, he foresees a greater emphasis on the digital format and says the upcoming, anniversarytimed “best-of” collection could provide a blueprint for additional “bookazines” in the future. “The Gay & Lesbian Review Worldwide” will also roll out a new logo that emphasizes its ampersand, an inclusivityminded branding tweak that will better represent the wide breadth of sexual and gender identities covered in its pages. Plus, there’s an eventual successor to find. “I’m no spring chicken,” chuckles Schneider. “I can’t do this forever.” Maybe not—but with the “Review,” Schneider has built a legacy to outlast us all. [x]

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Adding Value to Community and Business At Burns and Levinson, we practice law differently. While our attorneys agree that results drive our business, building relationships with our clients and providing value-added service is the key to our success. We work hard to provide the legal experience and industry knowledge you need, as well as the personal attention you deserve — adding value to your life and the life of your business. Here, our attorneys answer a few questions, some of which may be on your mind and of particular importance to the LGBTQ community. Q: How do custody disputes between LGBTQ parents differ from other custody disputes? A: O en, the disputes are exacerbated by the particularities of LGBTQ relationships. In our predominantly straight world, we are raised, acculturated and indoctrinated to assume certain gender specific roles and responsibilities. However, in LGBTQ relationships there are no rules, there is only unspoken expectation, which can lead to competition and acrimony. Additionally, the LGBTQ community is a small one. When a relationship fails, we o en continue to run into our former partner/spouse. With this backdrop, individuals in the LGBTQ community o en maintain emotional connection and day-to-day contact long a er the relationship ends. This ongoing contact can create or exacerbate emotional strife related to custody disputes. For these reasons, it's important to have somebody on your side who understands the nuances of LGBTQ relationships when dealing with a custody dispute. For custody-related issues contact: Lisa Cukier | lcukier@burnslev.com Q: I am claiming I was discriminated against in my employment. I was told I do not have a right to bring a lawsuit against the employer because, when I was employed, I signed an agreement that has a clause in it requiring all my claims to be "arbitrated." Is that correct? A: That is correct. Mandatory, or compulsory, arbitration clauses have been upheld by the Courts to be fully enforceable (assuming well dra ed as to scope of claims to be arbitrated, including discrimination). When you signed the agreement, you gave up your rights to the filing of a lawsuit and, more importantly, rights to a jury trial and rights to appeal. It does not matter if you did not "understand" the clause when you signed the agreement. It also does not matter if you had no choice but to accept arbitration of all your claims because you would not have gotten the job if you refused to sign. Fee shi ing provisions (as to who pays the arbitrator), language about where arbitration will take place (your state or the Company's home state), which rules of

arbitration apply, and allocating attorneys' fees to the losing party are all provisions that should be read carefully. You may be giving up more than just a right to ďŹ le a lawsuit. For employment discrimination issues contact: Laura Studen | lstuden@burnslev.com Q: I am a consultant and small business owner. About a year ago I hired an independent contractor/web developer to create my website and to help keep it updated. The developer did a nice job on the website and I paid him for it, but I had to let him go because he wasn't keeping the site updated the way I wanted. We never had a signed agreement. Now he's emailing me saying he owns my website because he "authored" it and he's threatening to sue me if I don't take the site down. Can he do that? A: Maybe. If there is anything on the website that is eligible for copyright protection (and there probably is), then the developer or author of that site owns the content unless and until he or she assigns his or her rights in that content to you in writing. Now, if there is content on the site that you or an employee of yours created, then you do own that content, but the coding for the site (if it was original to the web developer) and any content that he or she authored to create the site belongs to the developer, even though you paid the developer to create it for you. It's always a good idea to have a contract with independent contractors, but that's especially the case when they are creating content for you. For contract-related issues contact: Deb Peckham | dpeckham@burnslev.com Q: We enjoy traveling with our friends and want to buy a vacation home with them. How do we deal with shared ownership and use, and whether to rent out the place? Is there anything else we should be thinking about before we sign an oďŹ&#x20AC;er? A: There are a host of things you should be thinking about, not least of which is, what will entering into a business relationship with friends do to the friendship? The important action to take is to enter into a written agreement that addresses main issues, such as what percentage of the property each party owns, how use is divided over the year, how expenses are paid, whether the property will be rented to third parties, how the work involved in this will be shared, how disagreements between the owners will be resolved, and whether one party can force a sale by the others. Q: We're thinking about moving our investments from a mutual fund to a wealth manager. Are there factors to consider other than cost? How important is LGBTQ sensitivity in a manager? A: A good wealth manager will be comfortable talking with you about his or her costs and fees, and how those compare to mutual funds or managers linked to mutual fund products. Is this manager someone you feel comfortable talking with, and is he or she a good listener who gives you answers that are responsive and understandable? If you get a sense that the manager you are speaking with is not comfortable with you, or you are not comfortable with them, it's probably best to try interviewing someone else who is more compatible with you. For real estate or wealth management issues contact: Donald Vaughan | dvaughan@burnslev.com

SEASONAL Arts & Entertainment STORY Loren King

52 | BOSTON SPIRIT

Oh, Those Summer Nights Whether you’re a daytripper or a weekender, New England’s summer LGBT arts and entertainment scene offers something for all tastes. The Berkshires abound in beauty and culture with daily concerts at Tanglewood and dance performances at Jacob’s Pillow; Providence boasts a gay film festival; the local theater scene presents classic plays and musicals; art houses will unspool with exciting new LGBT films. And, of course, there’s Provincetown with its vibrant scene rich in theater, music, drag shows and art galleries. Boston Spirit has compiled some suggestions for checking out events just a car or ferry ride away. No excuses; pack that bag and soak up the summer fun.

The lights are back on Boston’s Broadway The footlights blaze again at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, the jewel in the crown of Boston’s glittering theater district. After being dark for nearly three years, the restored and refurbished Emerson Colonial opened its doors on July 10 with a splash: the world-premiere, Broadway-bound stage production based on the 2001 Baz Luhrmann movie “Moulin Rouge!” Already extended to August 19, “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” is, like the movie that starred Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor, set in the Montmartre Quarter of Paris at the turn of the century. The stage version will also feature a contemporary pop soundtrack — the movie boasted songs by, among others, David Bowie, Madonna and Pink — against the story of a doomed romance between cabaret singer Satine (who’ll be played by Tony Award-winner Karen Olivo) and writer Christian (Aaron Tveit). Danny Burstein plays the owner of the Moulin Rouge nightclub and Sahr Ngaujah is the struggling artist Toulouse-Lautrec who introduces Christian to the underworld of bohemians, brothels, drugs and divine decadence. If that’s not enticing enough for fans of glamour and camp, the show boasts an impressive creative roster. It’s directed by two-time Tony nominee Alex Timbers (“Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” and “Peter and the Starcatcher”) with a book by John Logan (Tony winner for “Red”) and it’s choreographed by the edgy “So You Think You Can Dance” Emmy-winner Sonya Tayeh. As anyone who watched that popular FOX dance competition knows, Tayeh’s athletic but sensual moves for the musical will go well beyond the cancan. She’s become a force in the dance world since SYTYCA and is one of the hottest choreographers

54 | BOSTON SPIRIT

in the country, winning Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards for “Kung Fu.” This summer, Tayeh’s “you’ll still call me by name,” an emotionally charged dance symphony for 10 dancers and six musicians with live music, will be staged at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in the Berkshires. It’s fitting that it is the lavish “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” that brings audiences back in time to the storied Colonial which opened in 1900 with “Ben-Hur.” Many legendary Broadway shows had pre-Broadway tryouts at the majestic house, including Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Oklahoma”; Stephen Sondheim’s “Follies”; and, more recently, the landmark musical “La Cage aux Folles” in 1983. “We’re thrilled to be part of history and part of the future,” said Erica Lynn Schwartz of the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) which has a long term-lease with Emerson College to operate the Colonial. The London based ATG, which also operates two Broadway theaters (the Lyric and the Hudson), is said to be the world’s number one live-theater company. ATG invested several million dollars in much-needed capital improvements to the historic theater that will make it easier to stage large productions. But Schwartz stressed ATG’s commitment to a diverse slate of productions, from comedy acts to children’s shows, that builds audiences for the future. Emerson College, which has owned the Colonial since 2006, announced in 2015 that it was considering turning the building into a campus performance space and dining hall, to much public outcry. But in early 2017, Emerson entered into the long-term lease with ATG which collaborated with Elkus Manfredi Architects and

The Renovated Emerson Colonial Theatre, grand staircase, view from stage. Photo by Patrick Farrell]

Consigli Contracting Co. on the restoration. Among the upgrades are a new rigging system that will allow for faster, modernized load-ins; new seats throughout the orchestra; reupholstered seating in the mezzanine and balcony with the addition of handrails; and a completely revamped backstage area. Although no additional women’s restrooms could be put in due to tight space, all the sinks and toilets were upgraded to work more efficiently, Schwartz said, and a genderneutral restroom was added in a former men’s bathroom. One of the showpieces of the Colonial was the opulent lounge off the lobby outside the women’s restroom. The lounge now features a second new bar, restored plaster work and a different entrance to make it open to everyone (it’s also available for private events).

The entire theater, top to bottom, was given a makeover with retouched painting, cleaning, and repaired moldings, said Schwartz who recalled that when she first walked into the Colonial her reaction was, “‘Oh my God, it’s so vibrant.’ There was a real elegance and we respect that in a building that’s 120 years old.” To that end, the team saw no need to improve on the Colonial’s grandeur. The famed hall of mirrors in the ornate entrance, for instance, was cleaned and re-touched but remains intact. “That was a conscious choice. It is spectacular,” said Schwartz. “It was important to preserve the historical aspect and the integrity of Boston’s crown jewel.” [x]

Sonya Tayeh

Aaron Tveit. PHOTO Nathan Johnson

Karen Olivo

www.EmersonColonialTheatre.com

JUL|AUG 2018 | 55

Leonard Bernstein thanks participants in the “Bernstein at 70!” concert (front row, from left) Louise Edeiken, Adrienne Albert, Patricia Rutledge and Kitty Carlisle Hart. PHOTO Walter H. Scott

Maestro, please It’s fitting that as the music world celebrates the centennial of internationally-renowned composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s summer season at Tanglewood, in Lenox in the Massachusetts Berkshires, offers one of the most ambitious tributes. Serge Koussevitzky, once the BSO’s music director, was Bernstein’s mentor. On August 25, the actual date of Bernstein’s 100th birthday, the BSO hosts a gala at Tanglewood’s Koussevitzky Music Shed featuring five conductors and hosted by Broadway icon Audra McDonald. The BSO devotes much of its summer program to the Lawrence-born, Harvard-educated Bernstein. On July 7, Keith Lockhart leads the Boston Pops in a complete, semi-staged performance of Bernstein’s musical, 56 | BOSTON SPIRIT

Tahiti.” The Knights, a Brooklyn-based chamber orchestra, will give two fully staged performances of his operetta “Candide” at Ozawa Hall.

Leonard Bernstein at Tanglewood in 1981. PHOTO Walter H. Scott

“On the Town,” which opened on Broadway in December 1944, when he was just 26. On July 12, Jamie Bernstein will direct a semi-staged performance of her father’s one-act opera “Trouble in

Like so many of his contemporaries, Bernstein was gay but not out during his prime of the the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s. married actress Felicia Cohn Montealegre in 1951and they had three children. In her 2013 book “The Leonard Bernstein Letters,” Montealegre quoted from a letter she wrote to Bernstein: “You are a homosexual and may never change— you don’t admit to the possibility of a double life, but if your peace of mind, your health, your whole nervous system depend on a certain sexual pattern what can you do?” Also on the schedule is a fully staged performance of Bernstein’s ballet

“Fancy Free” using the original Jerome Robbins choreography. Robbins, also gay, is enjoying his own tributes this season, notably at the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in neighboring Becket. Robbins’ and Bernstein’s most famous collaboration, “West Side Story,” takes center stage at Tanglewood with a screening of the Oscar-winning 1961 film accompanied by the BSO performing the score live. The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s summer season at Tanglewood runs from July 6 to Aug. 26. www.tanglewood.org

‘Pillow’ talk The quartet of LGBT/Jewish creators— choreographer and director Jerome Robbins; composer Leonard Bernstein, writer Arthur Laurents and lyricist Stephen Stars of American Ballet perform tribute to Jerome Robbins at Sondheim—responsible for aJacob’s Pillow. PHOTO Paul Kolnik the landmark musical “West Side Story” still stuns today. Coinciding with The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Bernstein Centennial Summer at Tanglewood which celebrates the 100th Birthday of American composer Bernstein, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in the Berkshires pays tribute to his long-time collaborator Jerome Robbins August 22-26. Daniel Ulbricht’s “Stars of American Ballet” brings together a cast of principal dancers from the New York City Ballet for a collaborative celebration of the legacy of choreographic legend Robbins with a program dedicated to his masterpieces, including Suite of Dances, Interplay, Concertino, and more. A principal dancer with New York City Ballet since 2007, Ulbricht is lauded as “one of the best male ballet dancers in New York” by Dance Magazine. [x] www.jacobspillow.org

Brian Calhoon. PHOTO Robert Torres

Get down with Marimba Brian Calhoon’s Marimba Cabaret has been drawing Boston devotees ever since the show debuted at Boston’s Club Cafe in June of 2016. This summer, Calhoon takes his unique act and instrument — a marimba is “like a xylophone, but bigger and more fabulous,” he says —on the road. He’ll perform in a seven-week residency at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House in Provincetown on select Tuesdays through August 7. All performances are at 7 p.m. Marimba Cabaret is an evening of songs and stories featuring musical theater, pop hits, and classical covers re-imagined for marimba, vibraphone, and voice. Calhoon is a classically-trained percussionist by way of the Boston Conservatory with a love of theater. He plays marimba, sings, and (at times) stands 7-feet tall in a fierce pair of stiletto heels. He’s accompanied by percussionist Greg Jukes who directs the shows. Marimba Cabaret will feature new songs and special guests at each show, including Provincetown’s own pianist and producer John Thomas. There’s something for everyone in this eclectic evening of 58 | BOSTON SPIRIT

mash-ups and marimba covers. Recent shows feature covers from Broadway veterans Stephen Sondheim, Jason Robert Brown, Tom Kitt, and Stephen Schwartz next to pop icons like Adele, Whitney Houston, Alanis Morissette, Radiohead and Outkast—with even a little Disney princess songs sprinkled in for good measure. Calhoon, first profiled in Boston Spirit in 2016, attributes much of his onstage flair to his stint with the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus in 2013, when he made his “stiletto heels debut” as a marimba soloist when he accompanied BCMC member Chad Weirick who performed as Liberace in a medley called “Candelabra Cantata.” The mix of visual playfulness, theatricality and accomplished musicianship gave Calhoon a new stage persona. He later met Jukes through the Boston percussion scene, and the act was born. Calhoon’s showmanship and mastery of a relatively unusual instrument proved a welcome addition to Boston’s cabaret scene. So get ready, Provincetown! [x] marimbacabaret.com

“Every Act of Life”

“The Miseducation of Cameron Post”

“Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood”

“Studio 54”

Must-see summer movies for LGBT cinephiles “The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” arriving in theaters in August, was a hit at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and won the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize. Director/co-writer Desiree Akhavan’s followup to her 2014 hit “Appropriate Behavior” follows a gay teenager (Chloe Grace Moretz, giving an understated, naturalistic performance) who, after getting caught making out with her best friend on prom night, is dispatched

to a conversion therapy center called God’s Promise. At the live-in camp, Cameron must juggle the authoritarian rule of the center’s Nurse Ratched character in Dr. Lydia Marsh (Jennifer Ehle) who aims to squelch all “SSA” (same sex attraction) out of the young residents. Cameron befriends a pair of rebels, Adam (Forrest Goodluck) and Jane Fonda (Sasha Lane of “American

Honey”), who help her navigate her identity within the strict doctrines of the center. Moretz and Lane create a believable friendship in sync with the movie’s mix of drama and dark comedy. You don’t have to be a theater geek to love “Every Act of Life,” a lively, moving portrait of gay playwright Terrence McNally whose gay-themed plays such as “The Ritz” and “Love!

JUL|AUG 2018 | 59

Valor! Compassion!” broke important ground on the American stage. Directed by Jeffrey Kaufman and produced by Marcia Ross, who made the excellent 2015 documentary “State of Marriage,” about the fight in Vermont to legalize gay unions, “Every Act of Life” details the now 78-year-old McNally’s difficult childhood in Texas; his move to New York where he met and began a long relationship with the closeted playwright Edward Albee; his early stage successes and failures; the impact of AIDS on his work; and his life with his husband, Tom Kirdahy. The archival footage is terrific and the interviewees in the film are like a who’s who of the American theater: Nathan Lane, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, Edie Falco, John Benjamin Hickey, Larry Kramer, Joe Mantello, Audra McDonald, Rita Moreno, Jack O’Brien, Billy Porter, Chita Rivera and

many more. It’s illuminating and irresistable. Opening July 27, the documentary “Scotty Bowers and the Secret History of Hollywood” is a must-see for movie buffs. You’ll never be able to watch TCM in quite the same way again. Based on the now 94 yearold Bowers’ book “Full Service: My Adventures in Hollywood and the Secret Sex Lives of the Stars,” director Matt Tyrnauer (“Valentino: The Last Emperor”) recounts Bowers’ juicy claims that during the ‘40s and ‘50s he procured gay lovers for numerous, then-closeted screen luminaries including Cary Grant, Randolph Scott, Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, Cole Porter, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and even Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. Besides Bowers himself, interviewees include local gay writer William Mann, author of

“Kate,” a Hepburn biography. The subject may be sensationalistic but what emerges from the film isn’t just salacious gossip but a sad reminder of how repressive life was in the postwar years, even in Hollywood. Tyrnauer has directed another documentary that will no doubt appeal to LGBT movie-goers: “Studio 54,” about the Manhattan disco at the epicenter of 70s hedonism that came to symbolize an entire era. Although the film is scheduled for release in the fall, audiences can get a sneak peek at “Studio 54” when it screens August 2 as part of the newportFILM outdoor screening series on Rosecliff Lawn, 548 Bellevue Ave., Newport, followed by a Q&A with Tyrnauer and producer Corey Reeser. [x]

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Stages, present and past Now in it’s 86th season, the Ogunquit Playhouse is the perfect destination for theater-lovers heading to the popular LGBT-friendly Maine town for a summer weekend. The Playhouse July 11-August 4 presents the first regional production of the musical “An American in Paris.” Inspired by the Academy Awardwinning film and featuring the music of George and Ira Gershwin, the musical won four Tony Awards in 2015. It’s about World War II veteran Jerry Mulligan who, hoping for a fresh start, chooses newly-liberated Paris as the place to make a name for himself as a painter. But Jerry’s life becomes complicated when he meets Lise, a young Parisian shop girl with her own secret and realizes he is not her only suitor. The combination of classic music, timeless story, breathtaking dance and a beautiful, all-new design created exclusively for the Ogunquit Playhouse results in a spectacular musical that includes such Gershwin favorites as “I Got Rhythm,” “Liza,” “‘S Wonderful,” “But Not for Me” and orchestral music including “Concerto in F,” “2nd Prelude,” “2nd Rhapsody,” “The Cuban Overture” and “An American In Paris.” For theater aficionados with a bit of extra time, the venerable playhouse, which is listed on the National Historic Register, this season is offering backstage tours called “Walk in the Footsteps of Theatre Legends.” The Ogunquit Playhouse over the years has showcased some 300 Broadway, television and film stars on its stage such as Bette Davis, Myrna Loy, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Walter Matthau and Steve McQueen, A group of knowledgable docents will share the history of the Ogunquit Playhouse as they take visitors through the stage door and behind the scenes. The live

Ogunquit Playhouse Director and Choreographer Jeffry Denman

tour highlights the history of the theatre, including how it survived the Great Depression, thrived after WWII (when hundreds of summer theaters closed permanently), and how it became America’s Foremost Summer Theatre. Tours are scheduled on Fridays, August 3, 24, and 31, and September 14, 21, and 28; Sundays, July 15, August 26, and September 16 and 30; and Mondays, July 30. A 90 minute tour is $10. The abbreviated 60 minute tour is $5. Tours can be purchased directly through the Box Office at 207-46-5511. [x] www.ogunquitplayhouse.org

Bob the Drag Queen

Bianca Delrio

Drag divas & grand dames For years now, Mark Cortale’s summer lineup at The Art House has brought Broadway entertainers par excellence to Provincetown. Audra MacDonald, Patti LuPone, Faith Prince, Christine Ebersole and Kristin Chenoweth are just some of the A-list, Tony Award winning performers who have belted and bantered in the intimate confines of the Art House (okay, sometimes in the larger Town Hall). But besides Broadway and cabaret legends, the Art House summer series also brings top-notch drag performers who get to showcase unique personas and wild theatrics on a proper stage and for appreciative and enthusiastic audiences. One of the most reliable performers is Varla Jean Merman, who’s been bringing a different, provocatively titled show to the summer season for many years. Merman is a seasoned

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performer whose accolades include a 2010 Elliot Norton Award for Best Musical Performance in a Boston production of “The Phantom of the OPRAH.” This summer, she performs “Under a Big Top,” running to August 31 Tuesdays-Fridays Written by Jeffery Roberson (a.k.a. Varla) and Jacques Lamarre; featuring Gerald Goode on piano and directed by Michael Schiralli, the show is the perfect vehicle for Varla’s voice and comic style.

written by Peaches Christ and running Wednesdays and Thursdays July 4-Sept. 7. Not to be outdone, Monsoon also takes the stage for “Beach City Bimbo” accompanied by Major Scales on piano Saturdays through Mondays to September 9.

Varla is a busy gal. She will also perform opposite Peaches Christ in “The Whining,” a spoof of the classic horror movie “The Shining,” but set during a Provincetown winter. It runs Friday and Saturdays from July 6-Sept. 8. Peaches Christ also joins with popular performers Jinkx Monsoon and Liza Lott for another wild parody, “Hocum Pokem,”

Bianca Del Rio, the RuPaul’s Drag Race season six champion, returns to Town Hall, where she made her debut last year, with an all-new show, “Blame it on Bianca Del Rio,” on July 9 as part of Cortale’s Town Hall Series. Another RuPaul’s Drag Race champ, from season eight, is Bob the Drag Queen who’s currently starring in Tony Kushner’s “Angels in America”

Varla Jean Merman

Bryan Batt

with Stephen Spinella at Berkley Rep. Bob brings his antics to Town Hall on Sept. 2. The 2018 Town Hall series is raising funds for Sandy Hook Promise sandyhookpromise.org First time ever in Provincetown, Miss Conceptions performs “Forbidden Diznee” featuring live singing with seven costume changes before your eyes. Snow White is no doubt ripe for roasting as the show promise favorite storybook characters with a twist, all set to Miss Conceptions’ comic dirty lyrics. This perfect-for-Provincetown show runs to Sept. 4, Saturdays to Tuesdays. Among the many stellar non-drag performers at the Art House this summer, several have strong ties to LGBT culture. Among the many roles played by acclaimed actress Patricia Clarkson is Greta, the lesbian heroin addict in Lisa Cholodenko’s debut feature “High Art.” Gay pop culture mavens will recognize actor Bryan Batt for another iconic gay character, the closeted Salvatore Romano, an art director for the Sterling Cooper ad agency, on “Mad Men.” These two veteran actors will play opposite each other in a one night only performance of A.R. Gurney’s Love Letters, directed by Tom Cianfichi (who happens to be Batt’s husband), on August 6 at Town Hall. Judy Kuhn is a veteran Broadway and cabaret performer but most gay audiences will recognize her for her Tony-nominated role Alison Bechdel’s mom in the Tony-winning musical “Fun Home.” Kuhn appears at the Art House with Seth Rudetsky as pianist

Patricia Clarkson

and host July 15 and 16. Rudetsky also accompanies Broadway royalty when two-time Tony winner Christine Ebersole, the woman walked onstage in “the revolutionary costume” as iconic Edie Beale in “Grey Gardens,” returns to the Art House July 19 and 20. [x] provincetownarthouse.com

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“Anything Goes!” at Reagle Theater. PHOTO courtesy Reagle Music Theatre

Matthew Broderick stars in Douglas Carter Beane’s “The Closet.” Photo by Tawni Bannister

Song and dance The Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston (at 617 Lexington St., Waltham) continues its celebration of the company’s 50th anniversary summer season with the Cole Porter musical “Anything Goes” (July 5-15), helmed by IRNE award winning director and choreographer Eileen Grace and starring IRNE and Norton Award winner Leigh Barrett as “Reno Sweeney.” Then IRNE Award Winner and local favorite Jennifer Ellis stars as “Marian” with Mark Linehan as “Harold Hill” in “The Music Man” (August 2-12), directed and choreographed by IRNE award winner Susan Chebookjian. [x] www.reaglemusictheatre.org

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Simira Wiley stars in “Dangerous Houses” at Williamstown Theater

A gay season in Williamstown Two notable plays with strong LGBT content bookend the season at Williamstown Theatre Festival in the Berkshires. Running to July 14 is the world premiere of gay playwright Douglas Carter Beane’s comedy “The Closet” starring Tony Award-winner Matthew Broderick as a man who pretends to be gay in order to avoid being fired from his job. Beane’s credits include “The Nance” starring Nathan Lane as a gay vaudeville star, which ran on Broadway in 2013; and “The Little Dog Laughed” (2006) about a closeted movie star who falls for a male hustler. Beane based “The Closet” on French writer Francis Veber’s movie comedy “Le Placard.’’ Jessica Hecht and Brooks Ashmanskas costar alongside Broderick, whose stage and screen credits are so long and varied that many may forget his gay roles in

Harvey Fierstein’s “Torch Song Trilogy.” Broderick played a gay youth in the off-Broadway version of the show, and the boyfriend of Arnold Beckoff (Fierstein) in the movie version. The WTF season closes with “Dangerous House” (August 8-19), a new play by Jen Silverman. It stars out actress Samira Wiley (best known for playing Poussey Washington in “Orange Is the New Black” and Moira in “The Handmaid’s Tale”) as Pretty, whose ex-lover Noxolo (Alfie Fuller) is an aspiring footballer from Cape Town who moved to London for a fresh start. With the World Cup coming to South Africa and the mounting sense that Pretty is in peril, Noxolog is pulled back. Will she risk her safety to unravel the secrets of a life she swore to leave behind? [x] wtfestival.org

Adam Ross, Mark Boucher and Tommy Walsh star in Terrence McNally’s Tony Award-winning hit “Love! Valour Compassion!”

Fresh take on a classic While filmgoers can look forward to the excellent documentary about Terrence McNally, “Every Act of Life,” theatergoers in Provincetown will have the chance to see one of McNally’s most popular and acclaimed plays. “Love! Valour! Compassion!,” about an intergenerational group of gay men who gather over the course of one summer at a farmhouse in upstate New York, runs July 16-August 30 at the Provincetown Theater. A groundbreaking smash when it opened on Broadway in 1995, “Love! Valor! Compassion!” won the Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and New York Drama Critics’ Circle awards for Best Play. In 1997, a film adaptation written by McNally reunited much of the original cast (but famously not Nathan Lane, who was replaced in the film by Jason Alexander). The Provincetown Theater production of “Love! Valour! Compassion!” is directed by David Drake, who in November was named the theater’s artistic director. Drake is best known as the author and star of “The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me,” his semi-autobiographical, Obie-winning one-man show which opened off-Broadway in 1992. Drake adapted and starred in the 2000 film adaption of the play. [x] provincetowntheater.org

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HBO unfurls its P’town flag Provincetown just got even gayer, if that’s possible. This summer, HBO will open an immersive, pop-up experience called The Studio at 331 Commercial Street. From gay ice cream socials to screenings of HBO programs to conversations with top-tier talent, the project will incorporate HBO’s programming with various weekly events and activities aimed at the LGBTQ community from July 2 to August 19. HBO describes The Studio as “part community space, part content studio that will provide an inviting space for visitors to discover highly-curated queer programming designed to attract different subsections of the LGBTQ community.”

Scene from HBO’s original program “Believer.”

Starting on July 2, The Studio offers regular events such as yoga, queer art gallery tour and drag queen trivia cocktail parties hosted by a rotating cast of Provincetown’s popular performers. Screenings of HBO programs include “Believer” on July 5. Directed by Don Argott, “Believer” follows Mormon Dan Reynolds, frontman for the Grammy Awardwinning band Imagine Dragons, as he takes on a new mission to explore how the Mormon Church treats its LGBTQ members. With the rising Rendering of The Studio, which will be open in Provincetown July 2–Aug. 19.

suicide rate amongst teens in the state of Utah, his concern with the church’s policies sends him on an unexpected path of acceptance and change. On July 10, there’s a screening of “High Maintenance” as well as a panel talk between the creators of the show and filmmaker and Provincetown legend John Waters. Based on the web series from Katja Blichfeld and Ben Sinclair, “High Maintenance” stars Sinclair as “Guy,” a bike-riding weeddelivery salesman with an eclectic variety of Brooklyn clients. In late July, guests can look forward to an evening inspired by the unlikely mash-up of Cape Cod and Long Beach hosted by the cast of “Insecure” featuring a delicious BBQ and beats by two influential queer DJs. HBO plans more Studio events that will intersect with Provincetown’s ongoing themed parties and weekly collaborations with LGBT media partners to “refresh the programming on a weekly basis and drive the experience beyond the four walls of The Studio.” Sounds like the Provincetown playground just got a bigger, brighter merry-go-round for the summer. [x]

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Sing, sing, sing! For anyone who’s been under a rock for the past few years, Miranda Sings, the campy, clueless alter ego of comedian Colleen Ballinger, is one of YouTube’s most popular performers, with a channel that surpassed 1.6 billion views and 8 million subscribers this year. Miranda’s tacky makeup tips and bad Broadway belting is even more inspiring live. The multi-hypenate Ballinger can currently be seen as “Miranda” on the newly released second season of her Netflix original series “Haters Back Off.” But

New England audiences will have two chances to see Ballinger-as-Miranda on her “Miranda Sings Live” tour this summer. She’ll be at the State Theatre in Portland, Maine on July 17. Then “Miranda Sings Live… No Offense with special guest Colleen Ballinger” comes to The Vets in Providence on July 18. Shows are all ages, and a VIP ticket includes a preshow meet and greet. [x] www.statetheatreportland.com, www.thevetsri.com Miranda Sings

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“Out of Breath”

LGBT films in PVD, RI Need a dose of good gay cinema before Boston’s annual LGBT film fest? Then head to Providence Aug. 7-12 for the annual Providence LGBTQ Film Festival, which has for many years been a sidebar to the annual Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival, now in its 22nd year. Features and shorts about all aspects of the LGBTQ experience will screen at various venues throughout the city. Program highlights include “The Most Dangerous Year,” directed by Vlada Knowlton, “The Most Dangerous Year” which documents a group of Washington State families Arnaud Siad, a young man’s with transgender kids who life changes when he must join the fight against the confront his darkest fears. wave of discriminatory “#HASHTAG,” directed by anti-transgender legislation Atzin Ortiz, explores what sweeping through the happens when a young nation and into their state. Mexican’s virtual infatuation “One Leg In, One Leg Out” clashes with his reality. “The is a short documentary, Pornographer,” directed directed by Lisa Rideout, by Gabrielle Demers, takes that follows Iman, who after place in the fall of 1970, being a sex worker for a when a girl catches the eye decade decides to pursue of a female porn director. her dream of becoming a “Femme,” directed by social worker. Alden Peters, chronicles Carson’s journey towards While waiting for a bus self-acceptance by way of a that will never come in manic existential crisis and a “Out of Breath,” directed by

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drag queen fairy godmother after being rejected for being too “femme.” “The Red Tree,” a short documentary directed by Paul Rowley, tells the little known story of Italian gay men being arrested and exiled to a remote island during Mussolini’s Fascist regime. In “Black Lips,” directed by Adrian Chiarella, a lonely abalone trader is awakened by a longing he’s never explored before. [x] www.statetheatreportland.com, www.thevetsri.com

Out on the North Shore Musical theater fans won’t want to miss two shows at the NSMT in Beverly The only thing better than seeing at musical at the North Shore Music Theater in Beverly is seeing a musical with your LGBT peers. The NSMT has been doing its OUT AT THE NORTH SHORE evenings for the LGBTQ community, including a post-show reception with the cast at The Backstage Bistro, for awhile now, so if you haven’t checked it out, summer is a great time to do so. The NSMT presents the timeless tale of “Peter Pan” and its enduring songs such as “ Never Never Land” and “I Won’t Grow Up” July 10-22 with “Out at the North Shore” set for July 19

Elena Ricardo (Peter Pan)

Paul Castree (Smee in “Peter Pan”)

at 7:30 p.m. “Mamma Mia!” follows August 7–September 2, which will have audiences dancing to the 22 ABBA hits in the show like “Take A Chance on Me” and “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!” LGBTQ night is August 16 at 7:30 p.m. [x] nsmt.org

PRIDE IN OUR PEOPLE AND OUR PRODUCTS

Ocean Spray is proud to sponsor the 2018 Boston Spirit LGBT Executive Networking Night!

Come GrowWithUs!

OCEANSPRAYJOBS.COM

Calendar Janelle Monáe Earlier this year, Monáe came out as queer (she has identified as both bisexual and pansexual) and social media feeds blew up with the news. Though it’s certainly noteworthy when a major entertainer puts a familiar face to LGBTQ issues, hopefully the headlines didn’t entirely eclipse the fact that her latest album, “Dirty Computer,” is by any standard a masterful work of pop neo-soul, a record The Independent called a “perfect celebration of queerness, female power and self-worth.” It’s accompanying tour comes to Boston, where you can expect will Monáe turn out some “Dirty Computer” highlights—like the feminist ode “Pynk”—alongside past hits like “Yoga” and “Make Me Feel.” WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Saturday, July 21

Blue Hills Bank Pavilion, Boston

ticketmaster.com

Rochester NH Pride

Dragathon: Season 10 Boston Takeover Every season, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” manages to introduce us to a new slew of colorful entertainers, and the just-wrapped tenth installment was no exception. It gave us searing social commentary from The Vixen, eye candy in buff beauty Kameron Michaels, and one of the series’ most memorable exit lines from Vannesa “Vanjie” Mateo. All of the above—plus Aquaria, Eureka, Asia O’Hara and several more—will be among the recent contestants lured by local nightlife producers Chris Harris and Rafael Sanchez to a Boston blowout reuniting the girls for what’s sure to be a hell of a show. Splurging fans can even opt for VIP tickets for access to a pre-performance meet-and-mingle with the stars. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Wednesday, July 11

Royale Nightclub, Boston

Tickets start at $49, dragathon.com

Boston. Providence. Portland. Rochester? The New Hampshire town of 30,000 people doesn’t quite have the same name recognition as these large New England cities, but perhaps that’s why Pride matters so much there. Smaller communities can be even more isolating for LGBTQ people, which only underscores the need for celebrations like this third annual installment of Rochester NH Pride. Downtown will transform into an afternoon celebration with an outdoor festival featuring various vendors, an appearance by the New Hampshire Gay Men’s Chorus, remarks by the mayor and other community leaders and a fivehour dance party to close things out. Rochester is also a relatively short drive from the gay-favorite beach town of Ogunquit, Maine, so build this Pride soiree into your summer escape. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Saturday, Aug. 25

Downtown Rochester, NH

rochestermfa.org

Boy George & Culture Club with The B-52s It’s hard to believe that the (karma) chameleonic Boy George and his Culture Club band first burst on to the scene nearly 40 years ago, and that The B-52s got us dancing to “Rock Lobster” right around the same time. Both acts are unabashedly queer, and this summer they’ve teamed up for a co-headlining tour complemented by opening act Tom Bailey of the Thompson Twins. In a music industry meant for younger stars, it’s impressive that these icons have maintained such relevancy; Boy George is currently a judge on “The Voice” Australia, and The B-52s have been mainstays on the live show circuit with no signs of slowing down. Take a seat for some LGBTQ entertainment legends. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Friday, July 27

Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, CT

ticketmaster.com

Summer Thursdays: Drag The best drag entertainers create looks that could only be described as “otherworldly.” So it’s pretty appropriate that Boston’s Museum of Science is hosting these drag-themed events, part of its annual “Summer Thursdays” series, inside the colossal Charles Hayden Planetarium. The season-long lineup also includes live music, sci-fi film screenings and more. But one installment per month will focus on drag artists: July will bring out the “Drag Kings of The Slaughterhouse Society,” with wild acts like Throb Zombie and Whorey Feldman paying tribute to rock legends like Meatloaf and Marilyn Manson, and August’s “Boston’s Best Drag Queens” night features Sham Payne, Severity Stone and several more of the Hub’s reigning performers backed by planetarium-scale visuals. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Thursdays, July 12 and Aug. 9

Museum of Science, Boston

mos.org

“Brokelahomo!” If you missed the latest Gold Dust Orphans show during its run at Machine in Boston, fret not. The edgy troupe’s playwrightperformer, Ryan Landry, is bringing his Western-themed show to P’town for a summer Sundays run. This satire, which takes inspiration from musicals like “Oklahoma!” and films like “Brokeback Mountain,” is set in a town dominated by ruffian gay cowboys that do their best to keep out threatening “breeders” from the outside world. But that goal gets more complicated with the advent of a new railway—and the arrival of a heterosexual outside lawman who wants to clean up the town. Expect all the usual Orphans antics, including song parodies, raucous dance numbers and non-PC humor that will draw fans in herds. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Saturdays, 7:30 PM, thorugh Sept. 9

Fisherman Hall, Provincetown

brownpapertickets. com

La Boum

New London Pride Weekend If you thought Pride season was over ... break out your rainbow attire for one last summertime celebration. Late August is when the Connecticut seaport of New London hosts its annual celebration, and this year it’s a multi-day doozy. Thursday sees a Pride kickoff party at Avalon nightclub in nearby Mohegan Sun casino, Friday brings a festival eve fete at O’Neill’s Brass Rail, a gay Irish pub and Saturday is the big bash at Ocean Beach Park on the waterfront. Don’t snooze in on Sunday, though: there’s still an interfaith service at the local UU church and a “People of Color Cookout” to look forward to. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Aug. 23–26

Provincetown

ptown.org/provincetown-carnival

Sadly for Jamaica Plain’s vibrant LGBTQ community, last month marked the final installment of “Boyfriends,” a popular monthly gay night at Bella Luna & the Milky Way. But dry your eyes—that restaurant-lounge is also home to La Boum, a “queer dance party” that goes down every first Friday. Resident DJ Stella always spins a festive mix of ‘80s, ‘90s and contemporary jams—from indie synthpop to icons like Madonna and Price. And the crowd is reliably diverse, a refreshing change from more homogenous spaces. As queer nightlife options become even leaner, it’s all the more important to support these grassroots parties in neighborhoods across the city. So pull on your dancing shoes and get into the groove. WHEN

WHERE

HOW

Fridays, 10 PM to 1 AM, July 6, Aug. 3 plus first Friday of month thereafter

Bella Luna & the Milky Way, Jamaica Plain

No cover

Provincetown Carnival: Mardi Gras by the Sea Weekend at the Pillow Jacob’s Pillow Festival is famous in the dance world for the caliber of its international talent. And it’s legendary in LGBT history for its founder, modern dance pioneer Ted Shawn, who blazed trails with an all-male troupe that included his longtime lover. A gay-focused weekend at the Pillow is a natural fit, and bursts with special events. Besides the expected excellent dance performances, unique “Weekend OUT” elements include an evening dance party with DJ BFG, a brunch sponsored by “The Gay & Lesbian Review,” historic tours, special performances and appearances by world-renowned artists and choreographers, and the chance to mix and mingle with other queer culture vultures in the beautiful Berkshires. WHEN

WHERE

Friday, Aug. 3 through Jacob’s Pillow Dance, Sunday, Aug. 5 Becket, MA

HOW

jacobspillow.org

Some folks pitch a fit when they turn 40. But as it struts into its fourth decade, Provincetown Carnival is throwing one hell of a birthday bash. This year the annual celebration is taking on a “Mardi Gras By the Sea” theme, bringing a bit of New Orleans flavor to the outer Cape. Events like “The Nights of Bacchus” costume ball, “Rajin Cajun” pool party, and “Fat Tuesday Boxers and Beads” bash will prove that P’town parties just as hard as The Big Easy. There’s also a special dance party at Town Hall featuring a performance by Betty Who, the Australian electro-pop darling who previously attended Boston’s Berklee College of Music, and of course, the signature parade down Commercial Street. WHEN

Friday, Aug. 10, through Friday, Aug. 17

WHERE

HOW

throughout Provincetown

ptown.org/ provincetowncarnival

SCENE Foodie Fundraiser PHOTOS Caitlin Cunningham Photography

Taste of the South End Cyclorama | Boston | March 20, 2018

Where better to host a culinary fundraising gala for the AIDS Action Committee than Boston’s “foodie” neigbhorhood? This year the South End played host locale to more than 40 of its finiest dining establishments, which served up samples in bite-sized noshes, live cooking demonstrations, wine tastings, beer samplings and more— including a silent auction that helped raise $155,000 for AAC. Mark your calendars for March 19, 2019, same spot, same great food and great cause!

JUL|AUG 2018 | 73

Kristin Beck

SCENE Networking PHOTOS Leise Jones Photography

Boston Spirit Executive Networking Night Copley Marriott Hotel | Boston | May 9, 2018

With her message of strength and empowerment, Kristin Beck, the first transgender member of the United States Navy SEALS, inspired a crowd of more than 1,000 LGBT professionals and friends at Boston Spirit’s annual LGBT Executive Networking Night. Along with more than 45 exhibitors mixing, mingling and many sharing culinary samples with attendees, the evening featured a series of side sessions geard toward profesional and personal development.

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Victory Programs President and CEO Jonathan Scott [LEFT] with Joe Castellana and Jim Seligman

Victory Programs CFO Christopher Lawrence [RIGHT] and husband Philip White

Chris Montani gets the bidding going

SCENE Fête PHOTOS Anand Parikh and Sally Rabinowitz

Victory Programs Dinnerfest Red Party City Winery | Boston | April 25, 2018

For the fourth year in a row, more than 250 Dinnerfest Red Party + Auction attendees set another fundraising record to support the vital health, housing and prevention services provided by Victory Programs. At this year’s event, they raised a record-breaking $140,000, which directly supports the 2,500 who turn to Victory Programs every year for help recovering from substance addiction, overcoming homelessness and managing chronic illness like HIV/ AIDS and Hepatitis C. Co-chairs Tiffani Faison, Rochard Gordon and Scott Kearnan connected the event with an abundance of participating restaurants and other contributors that provided more than 100 prizes and silent auction items for the guests to take home.

Boston Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence

Jonathan Fenelon [RIGHT] announcing live auction prizes

Client Speaker Alan B tells his inspiring story

Eastern Bank’s Pam Feingold (left) with Carolyn Crowley

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Dinnerfest Co-Chair Richard Gordon [RIGHT] with Ted Pietras

Dinnerfest Co-Chair Scott Kearnan [RIGHT] addressing the guests

SCENE Pride PHOTOS courtesy of WoCW

Womxn of Color Weekend Crown & Anchor | Provincetown | May 30–June 2, 2018

Womxn of Color Weekend (WoCW) is an annual four-day Pride designed to elevate, strengthen, educate and celebrate LGBTQIA women of color, non-binary and gender-fluid people of color and their allies. And that’s exactly what the 12th annual WoCW did again this year in P’town through a series of workshops, shows, parties, meals and so much more. For details on WoCW 2019, go to womenofcolorweekend.org.

JUL|AUG 2018 | 77

Fenway Board Chair Liz Page [FROM LEFT], Diana Nyad, Fenway Health Interim CEO Darlene Stromstad, Dinner Party Co-Chairs Theresa Murray, Amanda Preston-Sicari and Katelyn Dolan.

SCENE Gala PHOTOS Marilyn Humphries

The Dinner Party Marriott Copley Place | Boston | April 21, 2018

1,100 lesbians and bisexual women, transgender people, friends, supporters and volunteers attended the 2018 Dinner Party gala fundraising event for Fenway Health. The event raised more than $560,000 in cash and pledges to support Fenway’s life-saving services and programs.

Fenway Health Interim CEO Darlene Stromstad, FACHE

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Boston Mayor Marty Walsh

Fenway Healthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 2018 Dinner Party Co-Chairs [FROM LEFT TO RIGHT] Katelyn Dolan, Theresa Murray, and Amanda Preston-Sicari

Tiffani Faison of Tiger Mama and Sweet Cheeks and Karen Akunowicz of Myers + Chang, who teamed up to offer an amazing brunch experience as part of the Live Auction.

Comedian Gina Yashere, the 2018 Dinner Party emcee

Activist and athlete Diana Nyad, the 2018 Dr. Susan M. Love Award winner JUL|AUG 2018 | 79

SCENE Pride PHOTOS courtesy Hull Pride and Joe Berkeley

Hull Pride Hull Yacht Club | Hull | June 2, 2018

The sixth annual Hull Gay Pride Event was a full day of activities for the young and old alike. Highlights included live entertainers Los Gallos Locos and Kristen Merlin, and the overwhelming support from local elected officials Jen Constable, Domenico Sestito and Joan Meschino. Pastor David Weekley delivered a blessing, and two Hull High School graduates were awarded scholarships towards future endeavors. This year’s theme was “Freedom by the Sea,” and LGBT and allies’ families, friends, neighbors, summer visitors, volunteers and vendors came out once again to make it a great big fun success. There were field games, live music, dancing, cocktails, a 50/50 raffle and more.

80 | BOSTON SPIRIT

SCENE Volunteering PHOTOS courtesy Gay for Good Boston

AIDS Walk Volunteer Day Back Bay/Esplanade | Boston | June 3, 2018

The good folks at Gay for Good Boston came out in force to enforce good cheer and assistance as course marshals at Boston’s AIDS Walk & Run 2018, Each month, Gay For Good Boston selects different nonprofit and local community groups, projects and organizations to donate time to community service projects. Find out more at gayforgood.org/chapters/boston.

SCENE Fundraiser PHOTOS courtesy of BAGLY

Heels for Hope Club Café | Boston | June 4, 2018

Kudos to Michael Labrecque and Club Café for organizing and hosting Heels for Hope 2018, which raised nearly $11,000 at the fundraiser for the Boston Alliance of Gay Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Youth’s programs and services. And hats off to the fabulous entertainers Stevie Psyclone, Mizery McRae, Yune, Neon Calypso, Qya Cristal and Penny Tentiary. And to the bighearted, hard-working efforts of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and Gay for Good Boston.

JUL|AUG 2018 | 81

SCENE Fundraiser PHOTOS Caitlin Cunningham Photography

AIDS Walk & Run Boston Back Bay/Esplanade | Boston | June 3, 2018

The 33rd Annual AIDS Walk & Run Boston took off under beautiful skies on Boston Common this year. 5,000 walkers, runners, donors, volunteers, their families and friends came together to help raise more than $600,000 in cash and pledges for the programs and services of AIDS Action Committee, as well as to support members of the statewide Getting to Zero Coalition in their pledge to end HIV by 2020. AIDS Walk & Run Boston is New England’s largest HIV/AIDS fundraising awareness event.

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SCENE Gala PHOTOS Dan Vaillancourt/Patrick O’Conner Photography

Safe Homes Gala AC Marriott | Worcester | May 4, 2018

Award winners (from left, back row) Dr. Diane Blake, Patti Serpa (Saint-Gobain), Craig Miller, Senator Michael Moore, Rhys Stuller, Peter Bacchiocchi, Nathan Manna, and Kristen Eck.

More than 250 came out once again to the annual Safe Homes Gala and People of Courage Awards. This year’s awards included the Youth Award to Rhys Stuller; Safe Homes Peer Leader and Collegiate Award to Nathan Manna, College of the Holy Cross; Public Service Award to Senator Michael Moore; Health Equity Award to Professor of Pediatrics and co-director of UMass Memorial Health Care’s Youth Gender Program Dr. Diane Blake; Media Award to WBZ Traffic Reporter Kristen Eck; Corporate Award to Patti Serpa Saint-Gobain Abrasives; Volunteer Award to President of Worcester Pride Peter Bacchiocchi; and Social Justice Advocacy and Action Award to Craig Miller of the Mass. Coalition for Suicide Prevention.

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SCENE Pride PHOTOS Soulful Life Photography and Amy Wasserman

NoHo Pride Northampton | May 5, 2018

“Unbreakabale” was the theme for the 2018 NoHo Pride, and as organizers put it best: “Although the fight for the rights of all humans has made leaps and bounds, there is still too much hate. We must remain unbreakable in everything that we do. Whether you are an activist marching on Capital Hill or simply living day-to-day out and proud, we must not bend or break because you are making a difference!” And the whole community came out to prove it at the annual Pride Parade followed by a festival featuring LGBTQ and ally vendors, nonprofits, a youth space, fabulous entertainment and a whole lot of love.

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LETâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S DANCE!

www.mochadj.com INFO@MOCHADJ.COM

SCENE Pride PHOTOS Courtesy Provincetown Business Guild

Provincetown Pride Provincetown | June 1–3, 2018

Provincetown celebrated its first-ever Pride Weekend Festival this year. The event featured a 20-mile long global rainbow laser light installation, parties, cultural events and presentations, a drag brunch, a boat cruise, the first P’town Pride Sashay & Stroll to the Boatslip and more. The first Pride Weekend commemorated the opening of the new LGBTQ center, “The Shack,” created to promote a healthy environment for all and foster diversity within the Provincetown community. The Shack will host talks and exhibitions to showcase and celebrate the lives and experiences of Provincetown’s LGBTQ community, and provide resources, support and referrals, with a mission to inform, enrich and provide connections.

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SCENE Pride PHOTOS Rob Phelps and courtesy Boston Pride

Boston Pride Boston | June 9, 2018

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The theme of the 48th annual Boston Pride Parade was “Rainbow Resistance,” which harkens back to the parade’s roots, recapturing for these current political times the spirit of activism that brought together the first Pride marches almost 50 years ago. Tens of thousands from all stripes of the rainbow flag filled the streets again this year with more than the 300 groups marching. Leading off this year were some 100 mayors from all over the United States. The mayors were attending the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, which coincided in Boston with Pride week, and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh invited all of them to march in the spirit of Pride.

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SCENE Pride PHOTOS Matt Frank

DOT Pride

Peggy O’Neil’s | Dorchester | June 7, 2018

On Thursday June 7th Peggy O’Neil’s and Fields Corner rung in the start of Pride Month with the second annual Dot Pride event. The hostess for the evening was the fabulous local drag diva Penny Tentiary who entertained the crowd with a smashing performance after RuPaul Drag race came to its startling conclusion. Cocktails were sold to benefit local charities, attendees learned more about efforts to make Fields Corner a better place for all residents and visitors, and Fast Freddy even stopped in unexpectedly to ring in Pride in Dorchester!

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SCENE Pride PHOTOS Silke Hasse

Boston Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Boston | June 9, 2018

The Boston Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence came out on Pride Day in a big, beautiful way. No surprise, considering the Sisters mission to “pledge ourselves to Promulgate Universal Joy, Expiate Stigmatic Guilt, and to always Serve our Community, our Fellow Sisters, and the Ministry of The Sisters of the Perpetual Indulgence.” Considering all the great work they do out and about in our community and for the well-being of all, we simply can’t celebrate the Sisters enough! For more, check out www.thebostonsisters.org.

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SCENE Pride PHOTOS Steve Lord

The Silver Party Holiday Inn | Brookline | June 3, 2018

The LGBT Senior Pride Coalition’s annual dinner dance, a.k.a. “The Silver Party,” is always a festive occasion for LGBT seniors and their friends, featuring a sit down meal, music by DJ Shelly, “Best Use of Silver” outfit competition, plenty of dancing, and much more. See related story on page 32.

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SCENE Gathering PHOTOS Courtesy The Boston Foundaton

Paul Glass, Co-Chair of LGBT Elders of Color, shared experiences and perspectives on the “Bringing Data to Life” panel.

Advancing the LGBT Community in MA Edgerley Center for Civic Leadership | Boston | May 24, 2018

The Boston Foundation and the Equity Fund, along with Fenway Health and supporting partners, held a special gathering of civic, community and business leaders to release its new report, “Equality and Equity: Advancing the LGBT Community in Massachusetts.” The report examines the state of the LGBT community in Massachusetts. During the event, new data was shared, lived experiences highlighted and space created for discussion and action.

City of Boston Chief of Health and Human Services Marty Martinez encouraged extending the conversation beyond the bounds of an LGBTfocused forum and into less comfortable arenas.

Boston Indicators’ Senior Manager of Research in Race and Equity Anise Vance presented highlights from “Equality & Equity: Advancing the LGBT Community” in Massachusetts.

Stephen Chan, vice president of strategy and operations, Boston Foundation

Sean Cahill, director of health policy research, Fenway Institute

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CODA Satire STORY Scott Kearnan

Meet Deven Green The woman behind Mrs. Betty Bowers, ‘American’s Best Christian’ From the hinterlands of rural Canada to the digital landscape of cyberspace, it’s been quite a curious ride for Deven Green. The Manitoba native started off as a professional figure skater before pivoting to a career in comedy. Now she gives us major guffaws through standup shows and her many YouTube clips, especially those starring “Mrs. Betty Bowers, America’s Best Christian,” Green’s uproarious caricature of an ultra-religious right-winger. Between Bowers, guest-starring on “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and her “Welcome to My Home” videos—campy, comedic lip-readings of Melania Trump and soap opera star Brenda Dickson—Green has garnered a devoted legion of gay fans along the way. They’ll be turning out for her slate of shows at the Provincetown Art House this summer (July 23–27). Besides busting our gut, Green will strut her stuff as a musician, playing electric ukulele-based covers, mash-ups, and other sing-along friendly versions of her favorite tunes, plus audience requests. She spoke with Boston Spirit about memories of P’town, playing the ukulele and her glorious gay appeal. (For tickets, visit provincetownarthouse.com) [SPIRIT] We’re excited to see you in your Art House debut! [GREEN] I’m excited to see you in the audience! I will seat you in the splash zone.

[SPIRIT] What’s your favorite thing about visiting P’town, and your fondest, weirdest or wildest memory from your time there? [GREEN] My love affair with P’town started when the CapeAir plane landed safely. Trust me, I kissed the ground! I performed several complimentary “free cookie” shows on the patio of the Rose & Crown and met the nicest tourists and the most engaging locals who all sang along! Varla Jean Merman sat right up front and we have now become sweet friends. I will do it again this year. Oh, and I saw a boy walking down the street with a ukulele so I invited him to my ukulele show. In mid-sentence I realized it was [“South Park” creator] Matt Stone! [SPIRIT] This year’s Provincetown Carnival theme is: Mardi Gras by the Sea. If you were in town for it, what would your costume be? [GREEN] I was going to say “a sea horse” so someone could mount me, but thought it too crass. The correct answer is: Sea Monkey! [SPIRIT] How’d the ukulele become your instrument of choice? Why’d you first pick one up and what is it about the ukulele that makes it your preferred method of musical madness? [GREEN] I’m light-hearted by nature, so the ukulele is perfect for my temperament since I have never seen an angry ukulele player! My instrument is not for Hawaiian songs—it has a very full, guitar-like

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k.d. lang in concert. PHOTO Matt Duboff

Deven Green

sound and that sound resonates with me. It is the only instrument I have ever played other than the mouth organ. [SPIRIT] Cher’s “Believe,” Madonna’s “Vogue” and Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way”: If your stool was placed on a trap door over a pit of sharks, and you were forced to perform one of these gay anthems to survive, which one would you choose—and why? [GREEN] I play song mash-

ups in the show! So the anthem would be, “I Believe I Was Born To Vogue This Way!” Actually, I will play “Believe” in the show—but instead of using auto-tune I will give some audience members kazoos. It will sound exactly like the original. [SPIRIT] I understand you grew up in a pretty rural part of northern Canada. Who was the first gay person you ever met? [GREEN] I grew up as a professional figure skater, so my list is lengthy and girthy.

[SPIRIT] As Betty Bowers how many messages have you received from crazy Bible-thumpers who think Bowers is the real deal? [GREEN] Most people think Betty is a man in drag! [SPIRIT] Why do you think LGBTQ folks relate so well to your sense of humor? Is it the style, the substance, the cadence—the hair? How’d the gays come to love you so? [GREEN] Because I am a staunch advocate for the community, they know they will never feel alone with me, I have a face full of fashion—and I believe that it was you, Scott, who said, “Take the ingredients of camp and then play up the camp and then play it as not-camp.” [x]

Deven Green evidently scoped this writer’s Facebook page, and is quoting my characterization of a Lana Del Rey concert.