12
GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE JULY 9, 1993
Bob Wehn and Realty One:
ENTERTAINMENT
The Definitive Real Estate Resource
Beed
QUITCLAIM
(kwit'-klām)
Beed
n. 1. type of deed transferring real estate interest to another party, without warranty
or obligation.
Some real estate terms defy easy definition: they require the knowledgeable, caring expertise of a seasoned professional. Someone whose understanding of his clients' needs sets him apart for both buyers and sellers.
Call Bob Wehn today, and you'll quitclaiming anyone's better.
1
Realty One
Call 464-4970 or 975-2049
Leed
for new definitions of real estate excellence.
Beed
Beed
TECHMAN
SERVICE S
ELECTRICAL WORK
LOW VOLTAGE LIGHTING
CODE VIOLATION CORRECTIONS
391-9813
ELECTRIC PANEL UPGRADE COMPLETE HOUSE WIRING 220 VOLT LINES
Jerry Szoka
5611 HOUGH CLEVELAND OHIO 44103 Residential and Commercial Licensed Bonded Insured
Springhill Farm
Fireplaces Swimming
2
Hot Tub Trails Fishing
STATE FARM
INSURANCE
1
DELUXE CABINS
45 min. East of Columbus 614-659-2364
Reservations Required
* Gift Certificates Available
Susan & Kathy owners
•
Auto Life Health • Home • Business
BETSY WARNER
3091 Mayfield Rd. #217 Cleveland Heights, Ohio 44118 Office: (216) 932-6900
Agent
R
Wayne Corbitt tells of his S&M role as a slave to a white South African master in Sex Is...
Cleveland premiere of Sex Is... screens this weekend
by Kevin Beaney
Clevelanders will have their chance to see the acclaimed documentary, Sex Is... this weekend at the Cleveland Cinematheque. The 80-minute film which bluntly and humorously asks about gay male sex plays July 9 to 11.
The film won the Audience Award as Best Gay Film at the 1993 Berlin International Film Festival, premiered in the U.S. in Washington, D.C., during the March on Washington week, and scored box office records at San Francisco's Castro Theatre. Now touring the country, it is an informative, yet very engaging look at how gay men have dealt with sex in their lives.
The 15 "subjects" reveal their sexual lives, discoveries, hang-ups, fears, adventures and joy, talking about events from the 1940s to today. They cover a wide spectrum of ethnicities and experiences, ranging in age from 19 to 73.
This is not just a boring "talking head" sort of film. Each person at some point is given the opportunity to complete the sentence, "[To me,] sex is..." and the reactions are always different and intriguing. Stories are broken up with quick cuts of historical gay photos or film footage, or sexual scenes which visually accent the topic being discussed.
So why a film about gay male sex? Quite simply because, even in an age of AIDS and continuing sexual embarrassment, sex is. It exists. It's part of the human condition; gay men's lives revolve around it-or the lack of it and somehow people continue to be uncomfortable talking about or acknowl-
edging it, especially with today's medical risks. This was director Marc Huestis' observation and he set out through the film to open the door on this universally known yet taboo subject.
Huestis previously directed the award winning Chuck Solomon: Coming of Age, a documentary dealing with AIDS; he also co-founded the San Francisco Lesbian and Gay Film Festival.
In Sex Is... the subjects that are interviewed include a former porno star, a female impersonator working the streets, a bathhouse regular of the 70s who is now celibate, gay activists, a gay couple together for 10 years, a sex addict who now encourages romantic intimacy, a minister, and the film's director who reveals he is HIV positive.
It's an enlightening group. Not only are sexual practices described, so is modern gay history and culture: the rigid clothing guidelines and fear of the 1950s, the absolute sexual abandon of the 1970s, the quieter, safer routines for some-in the 1990s.
Most of the project's funding came from individual donations and fund raising events in San Francisco. Ironically it was also aided by a grant which came indirectly from the National Endowment for the Arts, awarded by the Western States Regional Fellowships. In another acknowledgment of how sex and the fear of it run our lives, the film is dedicated to the NEA and Jesse Helms.
Sex Is...can be seen at the Cinematheque, in the Cleveland Institute of Art, 11141 East Blvd in University Circle, Friday, July 9 at 9:45 pm; Saturday, July 10 at 10 pm; and Sunday, July 11 at 7 pm.
Suite Cinderella: Gender bender ballet at Cain Park
by Charlton Harper Cleveland Ballet dancer Joe Konicki will prove his versatility to Cain Park audiences when he presents members of Cleveland Ballet in "An Evening of Dance," July 23 at 8:30 pm in the amphitheater. The performance will showcase his well-known talents as choreographer and dancer, and producer.
He worked with both Bob Fosse and Jerome Robbins and cites their influence in the shaping of his own neoclassical, contemporary style. Currently he is working on a program for the Cecchetti Council, a Cleveland Ballet-sponsored national dance symposium, to be held here in July, and a commission from Columbus Youth Ballet for an August premiere.
The Cain Park performance will consist of Prism, an original ballet set to music by Vangelis, and the Swan Lake Pas de Deux, with Cynthia Graham and Mark Otloski in
Dennis Nahat's staging. The highlight of the evening will be Konicki's 1989 staging of Suite Cinderella, a re-telling of the fairy tale that was premiered in Konicki's hometown of Springfield, Ohio.
He calls the work a "Broadway-style" ballet because of the use of staging techniques familiar to Broadway shows. This can be seen in the approach to costume changes, all of which take place on stage; no grand exits and re-entries in yet another elaborate costume. There is also a surprise or two in the casting. The ugly, wicked stepsisters will be danced by Kevin Thomas and Jon Carlo Franchi, a neat trick that adds to the sisters' grotesqueness while also exploiting Konicki's acrobatic tastes. The gender, bending goes a step further with the casting of Diedre Byrne as the Dancing Master. Konicki thinks the familiar storyline will appeal to everyone, especially families and children.