PRIDE GUIDe 1998 GAY PEOPle's ChroNICLE C-3

Pack your picnic baskets for Pride on the beach

by Michael Mahlèr

Erie The Erie, Pennsylvania region will hold the annual Pride picnic on Saturday, June 13 at Presque Isle State Park from 2 pm until sundown. The

event will be at the picnic shelter at Beach 11, the same as last year, and signs will be posted. There is a map at the park office near Beach 6. Beach 11 is an uncrowded picnic and beach area. The beach does not have a lifeguard.

Hot dogs, hamburgers and beverages will be provided. Please bring a dish to pass. Paper plates and plastic silverware will be provided. Donations will be most gratefully accepted.

As always, a hearty welcome goes out to straight friends and families. Feel free to bring your children or parents, but keep in mind that parents are responsible for taking care of their children.

Games, including the perennial favorite, volleyball, will begin at 2 pm. The annual family portrait will be taken promptly at 4 pm, with everyone invited, but not required, to be in the picture. The picture will be published in the August issue of the Erie Gay News, and on the brand new web site, http://www.eriegaynews.com.

After the family portrait, the new logo will be chosen for the local community group, Erie Community Pride Organization. The logo will be chosen by popular vote. Tapas Bodega has generously offered to donate a

dinner for 4 plus $200 cash for the winning logo. All logo submissions should have at least a line art, black and white rendition on paper no larger than 81⁄2 by 11. You may optionally include a color version if you wish. Bear in mind that the logo will be used for letterhead, in addition to being used at a larger size on posters and signs. Therefore, it should look good at a small size. Mail submissions to 115 W. 7th St., Erie, Pa 165021105. All submissions

must be received by Tuesday, June 9. Because of state law, alcohol and sales by outside vendors are not permitted.

There will be a literature table and also a book exchange. Bring your lawn chairs, blankets, rollerblades and sunscreen. Volunteers will be asked to help with clean up, cooking and setting up.

On Sunday June 14, the second annual Interfaith Pride Service will take place at the Unitarian-Universalist Congregation of Erie, at 7180 New Perry Highway. Service begins at 10:30 a.m.

Erie is setting it's sights on a first ever Pride Rally on Saturday, October 10 from noon to 4 p.m. in Perry Square. Speakers, performers and displays are currently being coordinated. Please contact Erie Pride coordinators if you are interested.

For more information, contact Michael Mahler, 1115 W. 7th St., Erie Pa. 165021105, phone 814-456-9833, Fax: 814452-1392, E-Mail: egcn@ncinter.net Web: http://eriegaynews.com/pride_98.html

Last year's “Family Portrait” at the Erie Pride Picnic.

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Detroit and Cincinnati choruses give joint concert

by Dawn Leach

The Cincinnati Men's Chorus and the Detroit Together Men's Chorus have joined together to form a combined chorus of 120 singers to present NakedMan: A Journey to the Soul.

NakedMan is an impassioned song cycle about the gay male's experience in the 1990s.. It has been called "the singularly most important work in the growing body of gaythemed choral expression." NakedMan is a homegrown opus commissioned by the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus in 1996, and it tells the raw stories of the lives of their members. Their recording of NakedMan was one of the Advocate's top ten CDs for 1997.

Cincinnati Men's Cho-

and students. The theater is handicap accessible.

Also on the bill for this event will be Los Angeles lesbian stand-up comic Mimi Gonzales.

The choruses will then travel south to perform again on June 13 and 14 at the Aronoff Center for the Arts Jarson Kaplan

rus treasurer Lee Chenault The Cincinnati Men's Chorus.

said that the directors of the two choruses decided to join forces to get the fuller sound needed to perform the piece, which is intended to be sung by over 100 voices.

While other groups have given partial performances of NakedMan, skipping over controversial sections, the combined chorus will perform the complete work, which lasts about 45 minutes. Chenault said it was important to them to present it in its entirety. He described the piece as deeply personal and moving.

"It's so powerful," Chenault said. "Everybody really needs to hear it.”

Both choruses have also prepared some lighter pieces in addition to the larger work, and they will perform the entire concert both in Cincinnati and Detroit.

The two choruses will first perform together on June 6 for the Detroit Together Men Chorus' 16th anniversary spring concert. The 8 pm performance will take place at the new Southfield Centre for the Arts, at 24350 Southfield Road between Nine and Ten Mile Roads. Admission is $15 in advance, $18 at the door, and $12 for seniors

Theater at 6th and Walnut Streets in downtown Cincinnati. A 26-piece orchestra will accompany the singers on those two dates. Tickets for the Cincinnati concert range from $12-$20.

The Detroit Together Men's Chorus is Michigan's oldest and largest men's chorus. It is a non-profit arts organization in its 16th year.

The Cincinnati Men's Chorus is a voluntary, not-for-profit community chorus in its seventh year, organized in 1991 to provide the opportunity for gay men and gay-supportive men to sing together.

In addition to musical excellence, both groups seek to promote diversity and provide a positive image of the gay community.

Tickets for the Detroit performance are available at Just 4 Us in Ferndale, A Woman's Prerogative Bookstore and Café in Ferndale, and Chosen Books in Royal Oak. Tickets are also available from any chorus member or by calling 248-544-3872.

For information about the Cincinnati conCért, call the Cincinnati Men's Chorus Hotline at 513-542-2626.

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Brighten up a late Spring afternoon with the sounds of

WINDSONG

DREAM CELEBRATION CONCERT

Sunday, May 31 at 4:00 p.m.

Archwood United Church of Christ 2800 Archwood

(W. 25th St. Exit off I-71, south to Archwood)

Cleveland's only feminist chorus sings: Music in My Mother's House Something About the Women Dream, Dream, Dream

Barbara Allen

and other

favorites

Sharon Marrell, Conductor

Freewill Donation

Interpreted for the Hearing Impaired