PRIDE GUIDE 1998
GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLĘ
B-21
Canadian comic to emcee Cleveland Pride
by Melissa M. Soto
Cleveland-Watch out Cleveland! For Pride's 10th anniversary parade and festival we've pulled out all the stops. To guarantee a riotous, rollicking, fun festival, Pride will bring Elvira Kurt to town to be the guest emcee for the day.
Kurt is one of Canada's leading comedians and a veteran of Toronto's Gay Pride festivities. She brings a refreshing honesty with her very down to earth performances. All modesty and pretense aside, Kurt's humor can be simultaneously raw and biting, yet charmingly sentimental.
While she is most widely known throughout Canada, many Americans have seen Kurt perform live in Los Angeles, New York, and Las Vegas.
Kurt is also no stranger to television. She has performed on Comedy Central's Out There II, Showtime's In Through the Out Door, A&E's, Comedy Hour, and PBS' In the Life, just to name a few.
In addition to her solo performances, Kurt is also quite an accomplished writer. She has written for Canada's number-one comedy show, This Hour Has 22 Minutes, and all of the Canadian award shows, one of which was nominated for a Gemini (the Canadian Emmy) for best writing. She also has several film credits to her name, including the recently released We're Funny That Way.
Perhaps most striking and appealing about Elvira Kurt is her straightforward, no-nonsense approach to living an openly lesbian life. Most of her routine revolves around her skirmishes with her long-suffering Eastern European immigrant parents. With pride filling her voice, Kurt described calling her folks after Gay Pride Day and enthusing over the turnout.
"Imagine, mommy," she said, “700,000 of us and we all share one thing in common!" "Yah," Kurt continued in a thick Slavic accent, "a mother who is miserable'."
Elvira Kurt
As Kurt points out, there would be no use sending her parents to a P-FLAG meeting. Her mother, no doubt, would advise the others to "Geeve up, it vill only get
vorse.
Although Kurt's subject matter may be a bit dark at times, she deftly carries her audience with her. The challenge in doing "serious" humor with an edge is keeping the audience balanced between serious introspection and the ability to laugh at one's own phobias and frustrations. Kurt has mastered this delicate balance. Her delivery is smooth, rapid, energized, and hilari-
ous.
Support Pride with a night out at your favorite bar
by Brian Thornton
Cleveland-The easiest way to support Cleveland Pride is to hang out at your favorite area bar.
During May and June, bar owners and Pride volunteers work together to present bar nights, which serve as fundraisers for Pride. Fun and exciting nights have already been held in May at Code Blue, 5¢ Decision, U4ia, and Muggs.
At a typical bar night, patrons can purchase "Pride-wear" shirts and hats, and raffle tickets for a variety of gay-oriented merchandise. Volunteers are also on hand to provide information about upcoming Pride activities, and ways to become involved with event planning. At many bars, special attractions like bands and entertainers are also planned.
The community is encouraged to show its support through June at the following locations:
June 5: The Grid, 1281 West 9th St. June 6: M.J.'s Place, 11633 Lorain Ave. June 12: Oasis, 2909 Detroit Ave. June 13: Sexx, 11213 Detroit Ave. 5¢ Decision, 4365 State Road June 14: Rockies, 9208 Detroit Ave. June 21: U4ia, 10630 Berea Rd. Leather Stallion Saloon, 2205 St. Clair
More bar nights are being scheduled. Check the Cleveland Pride advertisements in upcoming issues of the Chronicle for these nights.
Brian Thornton is a member of the Cleveland Pride committee.
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Owner Christina Ermidis has owned the salon for six years and has been featured on WEWS-TV for braiding a hat out of hair. She's traveled and given classes on braiding hair.
Besides its specialized services, which also include wedding party styling, technical haircuts, and brush blow dry styling, Omega Cut offers color, perms and cuts for men, women and children.
Ermidis has trained extensively in Europe, including London and Paris. She also was enrolled in private classes of Vidal Sasson. She brings that cosmopolitan European flavor to her salon.
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Hours are noon to 7 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at 11833 Franklin Boulevard in Lakewood.
Call (216) 221-9008 for an appointment.
Elvira Kurt will be the guest emcee for the Cleveland Pride Festival, Saturday June 27 at Voinovich Bicentennial Park. The festival starts at 2 pm. She will also perform a comedy set during the festival itself.
You can also see Elvira perform a comedy set on Friday, June 26 at the Cleveland Center for Contemporary Art, 8501 Carnegie Avenue. She will be performing during their Center Cafe, which is a Pride fundraiser that evening, from 5:30-8:30 pm. There is a suggested donation of $5.
♡
Melissa M. Soto is a member of the Cleveland Pride board.
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