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Gayfest NYC is an annual theatre festival in New York City which showcases plays and musicals that feature gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender themes, plotlines, and/or creative teams. [1] The festival is produced by Bruce Robert Harris and Jack W. Batman. The goal is to produce professional showcases of new works, complete with an Actor's Equity Association cast and director.
Gayfest NYC is also a fundraiser for the Harvey Milk High School. The money raised by the festival has helped to send several students from Harvey Milk to college. [2]
2007 was the first year of Gayfest NYC. Three shows (A Kiss from Alexander by Stephan DeGhelder and Brad Simmons, Competing Narratives by A.B. Asher, and Revolution by Michael D. Jackson) were chosen to be presented as mainstage productions, and two shows (Edward the King by David Hopes, and The Casserole Brigade by Robert John Ford) were selected as staged readings.
In 2008, Gayfest NYC produced a full production of Edward the King, as well as The Wrath of Aphrodite by Tim O'Leary, Jumping Blind by Philip Gerson, Spill the Wine by Brian Dykstra, and Steve Hayes' Hollywood Reunion, written by and starring Steve Hayes.
Soulwax are a Belgian electronic band and DJ/production collective from Ghent, who formed in 1995. Centred around brothers David and Stephen Dewaele, other current members include Igor and Laima Cavalera, and Stefaan Van Leuven. The group first rose to prominence following the release of their album Much Against Everyone's Advice, and have released five studio albums to date. Outside of Soulwax, the Dewaeles also perform DJ sets under the moniker 2manydjs.
Denis Patrick Seamus O'Hare is an American actor, singer, and author noted for his award-winning performances in the plays Take Me Out and Sweet Charity, as well as portraying vampire king Russell Edgington on the HBO fantasy series True Blood. He is also known for his supporting roles in such films as Charlie Wilson's War (2007), Milk (2008), Changeling (2008), and Dallas Buyers Club (2013). In 2011, he starred as Larry Harvey in the first season of the FX anthology series American Horror Story, for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie in 2012. He returned to the show in 2013, playing Spalding in American Horror Story: Coven and once more as Stanley in American Horror Story: Freak Show, the latter for which he earned a second Primetime Emmy Award nomination. For his performance in American Horror Story: Hotel as Liz Taylor, O'Hare received critical acclaim.
Michael Korie is an American librettist and lyricist whose writing for musical theater and opera includes the musicals Grey Gardens and Far From Heaven, and the operas Harvey Milk and The Grapes of Wrath. His works have been produced on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and internationally. His lyrics have been nominated for the Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award, and won the Outer Critics Circle Award. In 2016, Korie was awarded the Marc Blitzstein Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
Dean Obeidallah is an American lawyer, comedian, and journalist. He is the host of SiriusXM Progress' The Dean Obeidallah Show and a frequent contributor to CNN, The Daily Beast, and MSNBC.
John Patrick Page is an American actor, low bass singer, and playwright. He originated the roles of the Grinch in Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical (2006), Norman Osborn/Green Goblin in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark (2011), and Hades in Hadestown (2019–2022), the last of which earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, has become a popular destination for the television and film industry, attracting dozens of film and television productions each year.
The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) was an annual event held each summer from 2004 to 2019 in New York City's midtown theater district. It mounted more than 30 new musicals each year, more than half selected through an open-submission, double-blind evaluation process involving prominent theater artists and producers. The festival's artist staff invited the remaining shows. NYMF premiered some 447 musicals, engaging more than 8,000 artists and attracting over 300,000 attendees.
Milk is a 2008 American biographical drama film based on the life of gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk, who was the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Directed by Gus Van Sant and written by Dustin Lance Black, the film stars Sean Penn as Milk, Josh Brolin as Dan White, a city supervisor, and Victor Garber as San Francisco Mayor George Moscone.
Peter Kellogg is a musical theater book writer and lyricist. He wrote the lyrics and the book for the 1992 production of the Broadway musical Anna Karenina, for which he received two 1993 Tony Award nominations, one for Best Book of a musical and one for the Best Original Score. He also wrote the lyrics and book for the musicals Chasing Nicolette, Desperate Measures, Lincoln In Love, Stunt Girl, Money Talks, and The Rivals which have been read and produced regionally. Kellogg also received the New York Musical Theatre Festival 2006 award for Excellence in Musical Theatre Writing (Book) for Desperate Measures. On June 3, 2018, Kellogg won the 2018 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics for Desperate Measures.
Signature Theatre Company is an American theatre based in Manhattan, New York. It was founded in 1991 by James Houghton and is now led by Artistic Director Paige Evans. Signature is known for their season-long focus on one artist's work. It has been located in the Pershing Square Signature Center since 2012.
Felix Angel Solis is an American actor, film director, and film producer. Born on the Upper West Side and raised in Chelsea/Greenwich Village area of New York City, to parents who were both born in Puerto Rico, Felix considers himself a Nuyorican.
Marcia Milgrom Dodge is an American director, choreographer and stage writer. After working in regional theatre, Dodge directed and choreographed her first Broadway production, a revival of Ragtime in 2009. The production received four Helen Hayes Awards in 2010, including one for Best Director, and garnered 7 Tony Award nominations, including one for Dodge for Best Director of a Musical.
Swimclub is a New York-based rock band formed in Brooklyn, NY in 2007. The group is composed of Greg Adams, Gene Davenport, and Kevin Bryant (drums). While rooted in Rock & Roll the band draws on several different musical styles.
Neil Berg is an American composer/lyricist best known for the hit off-Broadway musical The Prince and the Pauper, as well as the Award-Winning rock musical "THE 12", and Grumpy Old Men: The Musical. He is the creator and co-producer of Neil Berg's "100 Years of Broadway," a Broadway concert tour, performing over 100 shows a year since 2006. Neil was also one of the lead Producers, and driving force of the Award Winning 2013 Off-Broadway revival of Maltby and Shire's Closer Than Ever, at The York Theater. He studied Piano/musical composition with Walter Ponce, Robert Printz and Sue Peters, and is a product of The BMI Workshop, mentored by Maury Yeston and Skip Kennon. His theater songs are featured in various Hal Leonard's Musical Anthologies.
Neal Marshad is an American film and television producer, director, cinematographer, advertising executive, internet strategist, and designer.
Shakespeare in the Park is a term for outdoor festivals featuring productions of William Shakespeare's plays. The term originated with the New York Shakespeare Festival in New York City's Central Park, originally created by Joseph Papp. This concept has been adapted by many theatre companies, and over time, this name has expanded to encompass outdoor theatre productions of the playwright's works performed all over the world.
Harvey Milk Day is organized by the Harvey Milk Foundation and celebrated each year on May 22 in memory of Harvey Milk, a gay rights activist who was assassinated in 1978. Milk was a prominent gay activist during the 20th century. He ran for office three times before becoming the first openly gay person elected to California public office, where he served as a city supervisor. Harvey Milk Day came about as a day to remember and teach about Milk's life and his work to stop discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community.
Showtime at the Apollo is an American variety show that first aired in syndication from September 12, 1987 to May 24, 2008. In 2018, the series returned on Fox with Steve Harvey hosting. Filmed at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, the show features live performances from both professional and up-and-coming artists, and also features the Amateur Night competition. In many cities such as New York, it often aired after Saturday Night Live during the late Saturday night/early Sunday morning hours, and was often paired with the similarly-syndicated Soul Train.
Ars Nova is an Off-Broadway, non-profit theater in New York City's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. Ars Nova develops and produces theater, comedy and music created by artists in the early stages of their careers. Besides its Off-off Broadway home in Hell's Kitchen, Ars Nova also operates the former Barrow Street Theatre at Greenwich House as a space for Off-Broadway productions.
Ina Norris is an American playwright, poet, producer, mentor, and educator. She lives in The Bronx, New York. Her first play Nobody Loves a Black Little Girl When She Becomes A Woman, was an examination of the experiences of a Black woman.