Stones to Rainbows: Gay to Queer Lives

06/05/2024

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11/20/2023

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Life's a Drag and We Love It...word and movement tell the stories... PDM In Print: Volume 32 Gratitude/Hope Sean Pfeiffer, foreground; Lonnie Stanton, right (photo courtesy of Gaynelle Gosselin) LAST

06/17/2022

🧚 If you are part of our local Boston dance community, you’ve likely seen Liz Roncka improvising on stage before. But did you know she also performs on pole? This woman is a beast, in all the best ways.

A graduate of Boston University, Liz still works for the college as the Assistant Coordinator of Dance, in addition to teaching pilates, dance improvisation, AND pole dance - all this AFTER practicing physical therapy for ten years. As a lifelong dancer, she has danced in local companies as well as presented work in NYC, Paris and Budapest. We told you: BEAST! 😍

So far, we’ve been paraphrasing artists’ answers, but Liz’s sharing regarding her identity was too eloquent to shrink: “I have always had difficulty comfortably fitting into any category: both socially and artistically, on the LGBTQ+ spectrum as well as other spectrums of identity. From certain perspectives, it may have seemed that I fit in a given category, but there was always an inner tension, a discomfort, a questioning: what does this label mean to me? to the community? to society at large? Who is a member of a given community? What are the characteristics of someone choosing a certain term to identify themself? Over time, I realized this questioning was really my own attunement with the fluidity, complexity, and dynamic nature of who I am. I am interested in learning more about honoring the multidimensional movement within me (mind/body/spirit) while maintaining connection with the community, to feel a part of a greater whole without feeling confined or rigidified by it.”

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Come see Liz in our LATE show TONIGHT, and prepare to be inspired.

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: Courtesy of the artist

06/14/2022

🤓 Leni Lunderman is a coder, an engineer, a geek, and - most relevant here - a singer. Equally proficient at writing Javascript as he is interweaving personal stories with soulful songs on stage, we love Leni for his immense talent and heart. 🎤

Leni touched a bit on adversity and hardship, but also on beauty and joy. When speaking of q***r ancestry, Leni noted: “When people don’t know their history, that can be directly correlated to why they’re oppressed or have fewer rights. That’s why it’s important to keep looking back at the past and keep fighting, to claim what is ours.”

In the same breath, when speaking of his own place on the spectrum of identity, Leni told us, “There are so many layers in the spectrum and I am still discovering them. Life is a journey, and I keep learning from others. It is an amazing experience.” 💫

Yes, yes it is, Leni.

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Leni is joining us for one night only, June 16, at the Central Square Theater. Don’t miss it!

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: Courtesy of the artist

06/14/2022

🕺🏻Olivia Moon self describes as a photographer, videographer, contemporary dancer, pole dancer, badass Asian American, and a hot mess. Don’t let her self deprecating banter fool you, though. This artist is seriously talented with a lot to say.

Olivia appreciates the elders in her q***r community, credited them with making the world a safer place for individuals such as herself. They also shared a bit about their q***r journey with us, noting how they went from thinking men are gross to realizing they are actually okay! At least sometimes 💁🏻‍♂️

Perhaps our favorite part of this conversation was Olivia’s reminder to us that the word “q***r” can be a beautifully open term to include so many facets of a person’s identity: “When describing myself, I use the word 'q***r' because for me, it encapsulates everything from sexual orientation to the way I dress, the way I style my hair to my pole dance. For me, anything that strays from the norm is q***r.”

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Come watch Olivia move through her identity and get a little q***r on the pole at the Central Square Theater June 17 & 19. We promise they will deliver a breathtaking performance!

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: , Courtesy of the artist

06/12/2022

You might know this vivacious dance artist as Nick, or perhaps as Nikki, but in either identity, Daniels is a wonder to watch on stage. Though born and raised in Pittsburgh, Daniels is no stranger to Boston, having performed at several times with Dancing Q***rly, PDM, and The Dance Complex in a number of festivals and showcases. Daniels was also a participant in our 2020 Duet Dialogues, and as such, you may very well have seen his face or heard his voice projected on and around our installation of closet doors at a previous Stones to Rainbows event!

When asked why q***r history is important, Daniels notes: "It is important to look to our ancestors because the past serves as a guide to the future: When Marsha threw that brick some 50yrs ago, she spearheaded a movement and gave us motivation to continue it."

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Nikki’s performances are always an embodiment of the power and presence of q***r identity, and we look forward to seeing what she brings to the stage this go-around. Catch Nick performing in our cabarets on June 18 and 19, at the Central Square Theater.

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: Courtesy of the artist

06/10/2022

👨‍🎤 Gordon Michaels shares his soul on stage through his God-given gift of song. At ease
singing anything from show tunes to the blues, pop to gospel, Gordon is proud to be a Southern bisexual black man, and we are proud to have him on our program! 🙏🏿

A regular at Boston’s Club Cafe, Gordon has also performed alongside some folks you might have heard of… including: Patti Labelle, Jennifer Holiday, James Taylor, Aerosmith, Rod Stewart, Cissy Houston, Keith Lockhart, Tramaine & Edward Hawkins, Natalie Cole. 😮

We particularly enjoyed Gordon’s response regarding the importance of honoring q***r ancestry and history: “Where would we be without the drag queens?” Really, is there anything else to say?

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Gordon will be performing at our Q***r Cabaret June 17-19 at the Central Square Theater. Mark your calendars, and don’t miss the incredible talent of this generous human.

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: Courtesy of the artist

06/07/2022

🥁Drumroll please for Reynaliz Herrera! Reynaliz is a musician, percussionist, composer and producer who can make art out of anything, even a bicycle! 🚲

Originally from Mexico, Boston-based Reynaliz Herrera is the producer of IDEAS, NOT THEORIES, a theatrical percussion company for unconventional instruments. The company has been performing regularly since 2012 across the United States, Mexico and Canada at festivals, museums, and theaters.

When asked why it is important to look to our q***r ancestors, Reynaliz answers simply: “Because it is history, history is important, from it we grow, learn, evolve, and also learn to respect and embrace each other.”

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Reynaliz will be performing her solo “Bicycle Beats” our Q***r Cabaret June 17 and 19 at the Central Square Theater!

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information.
📸: Meg Ramirez, courtesy of the artist

06/04/2022

✍🏼 Karen Klein moves hearts and minds with her pen and her spirit. A poet and a dancer, Karen continues to dance boldly and brilliantly toward her 9th decade of life. Proving it is never too late for anything, Karen is releasing her first published book of poems this year! Pardon our French, but she is an absolute badass. 🦹🏼‍♀️

We all benefit from Karen’s wisdom: she reminds us that cultural norms and social standards are always shifting. After all, the classical Greeks accepted homosexuality as a norm. She has witnessed first hand how social norms can bend toward and away and back toward sexual liberation in our family, both with her family’s eventual acceptance of a le***an cousin and her own acceptance of herself through her journey as a not-your-average-soccer-mom-and-wife.

Perhaps our biggest take-away from our conversation with Karen about the LGBTQ+ spectrum is this: there are so many ways to be q***r that is actually almost… normal. Hopefully with time, the spectrum of humanity will continue to move towards embracing the full spectrum of identity. Until then, thank goodness we have Karen. 🎉

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Karen will be dancing with Sean Murphy at our Q***r Cabaret June 16 & 19 at the Central Square Theater. Don’t miss this opportunity to see the wisdom of experience in motion at our celebration of free expression!

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: Courtesy of the artist

06/01/2022

🇬🇧 Hailing from the UK, Sean Murphy once believed himself to be the only gay man in all the British Isles. Luckily, he was wrong… but while he waited to find others like himself, he spent some quality time with Oscar Wilde, finding solace and connection in the words and work of one of Britain’s most famous men, who just so happened to be gay as well.

Having grown up in a small town in Northern Ireland divided bitterly by religious tension, learning to dance amongst a sea of girls while enduring an endless stream of slurs for doing so, there is much we could learn from a man like Sean Murphy about surviving times of political tumult and overcoming intense resistance to social change. With effortless humility, though, Sean notes all the ways he can continue to learn from and beside all of us, stating that he will continue to move forward on his journey looking to deepen and broaden his understanding of humanity.

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We were quite moved when Sean told us of his first love, at 15, gently touching his leg under a desk at school. We are confident we’ll be equally moved by his performance with Karen Klein at our Q***r Cabaret. The duo will be presenting their work June 16 & 19 at the Central Square Theater.

🔗 Link in bio for tickets and more information!
📸: Courtesy of the artist