Collaborative effort showcases Atlanta queer arts organizations with theater, musical numbers, performances, film, and special guests.
(April 12, 2020) Members of the Atlanta Queer Arts Alliance (AQuAA) have moved and revamped their Atlanta Queer Arts Showcase event, originally scheduled for April 18, to Sunday, April 26 at 7 p.m. on Facebook Premiere. Titled “AQuAA – At Home Together,” the landmark event will be streamed on each participating organization’s Facebook page.
The evening will bring together an unprecedented sampling of work by the six founding members of the Alliance – Voices of Note: The Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus and the Atlanta Women’s Chorus; OurSong: the Atlanta Gay and Lesbian Chorus; Atlanta Philharmonic Orchestra; Atlanta Freedom Bands; Out Front Theatre Company, Atlanta’s LGBTQ theater company; and Out On Film, Atlanta’s LGBTQ film festival. As well as readings, performances, musical numbers, and a short film, the evening will also feature looks at each company’s upcoming seasons with some special guests involved. Morgan Jon Fox’s award-winning short film “The One You Never Forget,” starring local actor Owen D. Stone, is among the offerings.
The evening will be hosted by local drag performer Miss Terra Cotta Sugarbaker, who has performed across the city as part of Drag Queen Storytime and other events. Sugarbaker made national news last year when she was invited by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms to read to children at City Hall after a library pulled sponsorship of a Drag Queen Storytime event.
The Atlanta Queer Arts Alliance formed in the summer of 2019 with the goal to increase efforts to enhance their own and each other’s work, to promote the value of cultural experiences and find additional ways to collaborate with each other and provide space for LGBTQ artists. Members of the Atlanta Queer Arts Alliance will continually look for opportunities to work together on joint events and fundraisers.
“The queer arts play a huge role in the economic and cultural fabric of Atlanta, the region and the Southeast,” says Jim Farmer, festival director of Out On Film. “Very few cities in the country can boast that they have a men’s and women’s chorus, a combined chorus, a philharmonic orchestra, a premiere band association, a theater dedicated to LGBTQ work and an Oscar® qualifying LGBTQ film festival in their backyard. The work that we all do serves thousands of patrons each year. At a time when COVID-19 has had a huge, overwhelming effect and put society on hold, we hope ‘AQuAA – At Home Together’ will bolster and serve as a reminder of the work we do as well as the importance of arts culture in our society – and some of the challenges we face.”
“AQuAA – At Home Together” can be seen Sunday, April 26 at 7 pm on
https://www.facebook.com/OurSongAtlanta/
https://www.facebook.com/outonfilmatl/
https://www.facebook.com/AGMChorus/
https://www.facebook.com/AtlantaWomensChorus/
https://www.facebook.com/AtlantaFreedomBands/
https://www.facebook.com/outfronttheatre/
https://www.facebook.com/atlphilharmonic/
Now in its 39th year, The Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus performed their acclaimed “Stonewall” concert in Hendersonville, North Carolina last year as part of that city’s inaugural Pride event, as well as in Atlanta, and stages concerts throughout the year. The 70-member Atlanta Women’s Chorus has been around for eight years and performed their “Legendary!” concert last summer and “Nature’s Voice” last March. OurSong: the Atlanta Gay and Lesbian Chorus has been around for more than 15 years and recently performed with Hugh Jackman on the Atlanta leg of his tour. OurSong has also performed in Europe, twice with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and had members perform at Carnegie Hall on the eve of the anniversary of Stonewall.
Atlanta Freedom Bands started in 1993, appears in the concert hall and at some of the city’s largest public events all through the year with performances from its Concert Band, Marching Band, Color Guard, and MetroGnomes Stage Band. Last summer, AFB presented a “Stonewall 50 Celebration Concert” with two world premieres and represented the city at the 10th annual Augusta Pride celebration and in the World Pride/Stonewall 50 March in New York. Founded in 2004, the Atlanta Philharmonic Orchestra is an all-inclusive orchestra and the fifth LGBTQ+ orchestra created in the world. The APO closed out its 15th season, titled “Transformations,” in June chronicling Broadway musicals and will be celebrating its 16th season this fall. Out Front Theatre Company is one of the nation’s only LGBTQ theater companies, with upcoming productions of “The Boys in the Band” and “Torch Song Trilogy” planned. Out Front Theatre Company is known throughout the LGBTQ community as a warm and welcoming venue for other organizations to showcase their work. Out on Film has been around for 33 years and is one of the oldest and largest LGBTQ film festivals in the country. Earlier in the year, Out On Film was designated as an Oscar® qualifying film festival, meaning that the short film that wins the Best Drama Short at the festival will now be eligible for Academy Award® consideration.
For more information, jim.farmer@outonfilm.org | (678) 237-7206