Illinois Eagle (https://illinoiseagle.com/tag/arts/)
People’s World talks to two openly queer actors who are currently helping challenge misconceptions of queerness by pushing the boundaries of LGBTQ representation on television.
SPRINGFIELD — The Rainbow Room is hosting its grand opening with a celebration and art show on Saturday, Oct. 5.
URBANA — The Spurlock Museum will host a new exhibit called n Her Closet—How to Make a Drag Queen, with the opening on Sunday, Sept. 15.
ST. LOUIS — Winner of numerous awards including an acclaimed Tony-winning run on Broadway, “Indecent” by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel, is the true story of a groundbreaking scandalous play and the courageous artists who risked their careers and lives to perform it. “Indecent” runs June 20th through June 30th at The Grandel Theatre in the Grand Center Arts District. Visit maxandlouie.com or call Metrotix (314) 534-1111 for tickets. After a rapturous reception in Europe, Sholem Asch’s drama, “God of Vengeance” debuted on Broadway in 1923 at a time when waves of immigrants were changing the face of America.
CARBONDALE — StageCo Carbondale is holding auditions for a staged reading of “The Normal Heart” at First Christian Chruch in Carbondale on Saturday, June 8. “The Normal Heart” is a mostly autobiographical play by Larry Kramer about the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the early 1980s. From the Facebook event:
Auditions for The Stage Company’s staged reading production of “The Normal Heart.” When: Saturday June 8th from 2p-5p
Where: First Christian Church
306 W. Monroe St. Carbondale, IL
*Actors are asked to come with some knowledge of the show.
NEW YORK — The Bi Writers Association (BWA) is kicking off Pride Month with their 7th Annual Bisexual Book Awards, which are being held on Sat. June 1st at the Westbeth Community Room in New York City’s West Village. The awards will highlight a wide range of talented authors and artists that have creatively expressed bisexuality through their art. These authors have used their literature as a tool to debunk stereotypes about bisexuals, shine a light on issues facing the bi+ community, and show bi+ characters in a variety of settings not seen before in bi lit. Some readings are romantic, some rip their soul open on the page and some are angry.
CHICAGO — GayCo Productions is bringing back their Pride comedy show for a second year with (P)ride (C)omedy (P)arty Pt. II. From GayCo’s press release:
In collaboration with the Russian government, GayCo productions proudly presents the hottest party in town — the Pride Comedy Party Part II! This June, let GayCo Productions launch you back into your carousing days where the world wasn’t so much of a sh%tstorm, as long as you were stuffed full of Pride! It’s as if “Whose Line is it Anyway” had a GAYBY with a frat house.
CHICAGO – Pride Films and Plays will mount a fully staged production this summer of “Grindr The Opera (An Unauthorized Parody)” – the satirical musical about the gay hookup app that changed the landscape of gay relationships. The musical was produced in the UK last year, in an extended, sold-out production at London’s Above the Stag Theatre (the UK’s only full-time professional LGBT+ theater), and won the 2019 Off West End Award (or OFFIE) for “Best New Musical” this past February. “Grindr The Opera,” by New York-based composer-lyricist-playwright Erik Ransom, was an entry in the 2018 Chicago Musical Theatre Festival following staged readings in New York in 2015 and 2017 and a full production in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in fall 2017. The Pride Films and Plays production will be directed by John Cardone with choreography, costume design, and co-direction by Shawn Quinlan.
CARBONDALE — The Big Muddy Film Festival at Southern Illinois University is now accepting submissions for it’s 42nd annual event in 2020. The Big Muddy is a student-run film festival that has been going on at SIU since 1979 to encourage film making of all kinds. The festival takes place annually at the end of February or beginning of March in Carbondale. Films featured represent all genres and lengths and are submitted from all corners of the globe. Big Muddy has served as a platform to celebrate and showcase innovative, diverse, and culturally important independent cinema in the Southern Illinois region.