St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Gay arts, culture in St. Louis have come a long way, baby
Sunday, June 16, 2002
By Diane Toroian
Of The Post-Dispatch

THE NEWS: PrideFest began 23 years ago as a political rally with 1,000 participants.

THE ISSUE: Since then, gays have become more visible and engaged. And cultural groups focusing on gay issues and entertainment have thrived, so much so that local artists and producers are feeling pressure to provide evermore challenging material.

St. Louis PrideFest '02 and Parade

WHEN: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. June 22 and 23. Parade starts at 11 a.m. June 23 at Utah Place and Grand Boulevard

WHERE: Tower Grove Park

HOW MUCH: Free

MORE INFORMATION: 314-772-8888 or www.pridesaintlouis.com

PrideFest may rate as the biggest event for gays in St. Louis, but it is no longer the only one.

On Tuesday, for example, the Sheldon hosts a cabaret produced by gay playwright Chris Jackson. Two days later, Mostly Harmless Theatre will stage "The Laramie Project," which explores the murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard. And next weekend, local production company Wired Woman will stage a Pride Dance.

Between events, gays and lesbians can clink glasses at the newest hangout, Absolutli Goosed, talk fiction at the Left Bank Books lesbian reading group, hit the art house to catch gay-themed flicks like "Trembling Before G-d" or stay home and watch popular television shows that spotlight gay characters like "Queer As Folk" and "Will & Grace."

Gays and lesbians, once barely visible in the city's cultural landscape, say that having more options has meant better options. Along with their status in the community, the quality of their cultural lives has improved.

With more gay-themed events taking place, the law of supply and demand now rules: Producers find they must offer better work and boost their budgets.

"It is no longer enough just to be gay," said Brad Graham, an observer of the St. Louis theater scene. "A lot of (performance) groups found early success because they were the only game in town. Now if you want to matter you have to produce good, challenging work."

That logic extends to St. Louis PrideFest. The annual event started 23 years ago as a political rally with 1,000 participants and now ranks as one of the region's most popular celebrations. Though PrideFest still honors its political roots, the entertainment is what attracts many visitors.

PrideFest spokesman Rolf Rathmann said the festival has emerged as a destination for gays and lesbians across the Midwest and is a must-see event for the local community. The festival also is drawing a growing number of straight revelers who want to check out big-name musicians like Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, last year's headliner, for free.

Rathmann expects some 60,000 people to visit Tower Grove Park this year to see comic Judy Tenuta and dance diva Kim English, and to participate in numerous forums about gay political, civic and health issues. A complete schedule is available at www.pridesaintlouis.com.

"The community will absolutely support Pride no matter what," said Rathmann. "However, high expectations will often drive how the festival turns out." The more professional the event, he said, the more people it draws. The PrideFest committee now puts on a show that costs $150,000 to produce. "Many used to leave town to enjoy festivities elsewhere. Now, most in our community truly look forward to seeing what we have in store each year."

Other cultural organizations that cater to the gay community also have increased their budgets and programming. Gateway Men's Chorus started 15 years ago with $5,000 and a group of guys who liked to sing. Now, it operates on a $150,000 budget, employs an artistic director and stages three major concerts a year.

"There are a lot more options out there even from television shows. So we have to compete with all of that even as we try to complement it," said past president Kenneth Haller. "When we first started out we had a concert and that was pretty much it. Now there really is a whole arts calendar."

That new reality prompted Joan Lipkin, artistic director of That Uppity Theatre Company, to rethink how she should reach the gay audience. A decade ago she started Alternate Currents/Direct Currents, a series that featured gay characters and themes. At the time, gays and lesbians were relegated to sidekick status on television and barely visible on the local stage. Now several theater companies including Hot House Theater Company and New Line Theatre stage gay-themed works regularly.

"Wanting to address this shift in the landscape, I have chosen not to duplicate or compete with their efforts and have gone in a different direction altogether," said Lipkin, who also leads The DisAbility Project. "I wanted to shift some of the focus in the gay theater-going audience from primarily being consumers to being more active participants."

She recently started "Meet Me in St. Louie, Louie," a workshop for gay men who want to act and write. Currently, she is leading acting classes and the group is scheduled to perform this fall at Blueberry Hill.

While the quality of work has improved, so have the institutions themselves, says Jill McGuire, executive director of the Regional Arts Commission. Her job is to distribute some $3.3 million in tax dollars to nonprofit arts groups.

"We have absolutely seen more and vastly improved offerings," said McGuire. "That is not surprising. The ability is usually there, but finding the time and money to be professional is not always (there). Developing a good board and good administrative practices, that is what will sustain these groups and I've seen all that."

Reporter Diane Toroian writes about cultural trends, the arts and entertainment.\Reporter Diane Toroian:\E-mail: [email protected]\Phone: 314-340-8343

Published in the newswatch section of the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Sunday, June 16, 2002.
Copyright (C)2002, St. Louis Post-Dispatch