20 GAY PEOPLe's Chronicle FEBRUARY 7, 1997

EVENINGS OUT

Womyn's Variety Show to be in smaller hall, with video

by Doreen Cudnik

Cleveland-There are certain occurrences that are synonymous with February in Cleveland; thermometers dipping below the freezing mark, treacherous driving conditions, and of course the Womyn's Variety Show, Oven Productions' annual fundraiser.

This year is no exception, as Oven is gearing up for what will be the 22nd show in

"Whether you're sitting and watching the live show or watching it on a video, at least you'll get in."

as many years. The women-only show and post-show after party will take place on Saturday, February 22 at 7:30 pm. As usual, the event will be held at The Civic, 3130 Mayfield Road in Cleveland Heights, but unlike other years, limited seating conditions may make it necessa for more women to purchase their tickets in advance.

"Normally, the show is in the Great Hall, but since it's being renovated, we are now in the party room," said Marcia Sindelar, coordinator of the event. "Our hall capacity is smaller, and the seating is limited, so advanced ticket sales are very necessary in order to assure that you're going to get in and see the show."

Oven will try something new this year, a live simulcast which will be seen and heard in the lower-level room that in previous years has been the smokers' party room.

"We're going to do a live video feed that we'll show on a 40-inch TV screen," Sindelar said. "We're making every attempt to ac-

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commodate all the women so that everybody has an opportunity to see the show."

Even though there will be some juggling of space this year, the post-show party will still take place upstairs. Smokers, though, will have to be patient, as both the upstairs and downstairs party rooms will be smokefree while the show is in progress.

"The downstairs [simulcast] room will also be non-smoking until the show is over, and then that room turns into a downstairs smoking and party room," Sindelar said. "When the show is over upstairs, that will become our upstairs, non-smoking party room," she added.

In addition to the show and party, there will be a vendors area downstairs, with items ranging from Variety Show T-shirts to lesbian-oriented books and CDs.

Tickets are $18 and will be available at the Inn on Coventry, the 5¢ Decision, and the Red Star Cafe. Tickets are also available through the mail by sending a check

or money order for $18 and a self addressed stamped envelope to Oven Productions, P.O. Box 18175, Cleveland Hts. 44118.

While there will be a number of tickets available at the door on a sliding scale for women who may not be able to pay full price, Sindelar said that all advance tickets will be $18.

"Sliding scale only applies to people coming to the door," Sindelar said, adding that there is work exchange available. "If you can't pay the full price, there is always work exchange," she said. Interested women should call 216-321-7799 and leave their name and number. Someone from Oven will call back to set up work exchange.

Sindelar stressed that having an advance ticket does not necessarily guarantee a seat for the live show, and that seats are available only on a first-come, firstserve basis.

"Even if you get your tickets in advance, you still want to arrive at the Civic early,” Sindelar said. "The idea with having a ticket in advance is that it guarantees that you'll get into the show, whether you're sitting and watching the live show or watching it on a video, at least you'll get in. We may have to cut the sales off at some point, since our space is limited, but if you buy your ticket, you will get in."

The doors will open at 6:00 pm the evening of the show. Music and refreshments will be available from the time the doors open up until the 7:30 pm showtime.

Sindelar said that all of the acts are secured at this point, and that some of the scripts are "very funny." As always, the show will be interpreted for the deaf and hearing impaired.

"It looks like it will be a very high-energy show this year," Sindelar said, “and as always, it's not without controversy . . . what would the Variety Show be without some controversy?"

Gay opera 'crams too much in,' says conductor

by Richard Berrong

Cleveland-As its valentine to Northeast Ohio, Cleveland Opera is offering The Daughter of the Regiment, Gaetano Donizetti's wonderful comedy about a woman who likes to dress in soldiers' uniforms and a guy who finds her attractive in the male uniform. One of the attractions of the production is that it brings conductor. Stephen Lord back to Cleveland.

When I last interviewed Stephen (he asked that we use his first name) for the Chronicle

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in October 1995, he had just come out in his "real life" he had long been out professionally-and was still exhilarated at the loving reception he had received. The complete comfort and happiness that being out has produced in his life made him an extremely engaging and attractive interviewee, bursting with a thousand things to discuss.

Stephen said that he is thrilled to be doing Daughter here in Cleveland. He has done the piece many times before, and worked with all the principles previously, so for him it is a reunion of old friends. He also emphasized that, since the opera is about everyday people, he is using the original, lighter orchestration, and spoken dialogue in between the musical numbers, rather than the sung recitative that Donizetti added for later Italian productions. An English translation of all the words, both sung and spoken, will be projected on a small screen above the stage.

"The lovers should sound like two sweet people, not opera singers," Stephen explained.

One of the more interesting productions with which he was involved since we last met was contemporary gay composer Benjamin Britten's Rape of Lucretia. While he is convinced that the work is one of Britten's best scores, he admitted that staging it as written, set in antiquity, did not work with the audience. Instead, he feels, the piece needs to be done in an updated setting, so that it will "resonate with today's people."

From there it was easy to ask him about modern operas with specifically gay subject matter, several of which have pre-

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miered in the last few years. While he applauds these efforts, Stephen told me that he has found the works done so far along these lines to be too intent on "cramming too much in," on selling ideas. What he would like to find, he explained, is an opera that simply presents gay individuals for what they are and deals with their involvement in universal problems to

Stephen Lord

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which all audience members can relate.

A musician is also a person, of course, and dealing with those two existences was another topic he was eager to discuss. Stephen has purposely cut down on his out-of-town engagements in the last year, spending much more time at home with his partner, and as a result he has been able to experience "lots of personal growth."

"Knowing someone for a really long time is one of the great discoveries, challenges," he confided, "one of the real eyeopeners about what real life is." Indeed, this last year has been one of great selfdiscovery for him.

Becoming ever more comfortable with who he is has had professional benefits as well. He now feels even more at ease when the making music, because he can express emotions that are so much a part of it without worrying about what someone else might think.

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"I'm kind of excited about my life." he exclaimed more than once, and that excitement literally radiated from him. In fact, spending time with Stephen Lord makes you feel good about yourself, will his forthcoming performances of The Daughter of the Regiment, at the State Theater, February 14 and 15, at 8:00 p.m. at February 16 at 2:00 p.m.

For tickets call 216-241-6000 or 800766-6048.