Community Compass
Community Compass is a service of OITM. GLBT organizations from around the state are invited to provide brief — 200 words or less — descriptions of recent or upcoming activities and events. Send your submissions to us by email by the 15th of the month.
Pulitzer
and Tony-Winning Play Offers Vermont Premiere in Weston
The award-winning I Am My Own Wife is playing at the Weston Playhouse
from July 26 - August 13. Doug Wright’s play tells the true story
of German cross-dresser Charlotte von Mahlsdorf who eluded both Nazis
and Communists with a combination of cleverness and deceit. Director Hal
Brooks will be at the helm of the Weston Playhouse production, and actor
Brad Heberlee plays the character Charlotte.
Reservations are available by phone at 802-824-5288 or at www.westonplayhouse.org.
Ask about Vermont resident, youth and student discounts.
Kate’s
Send-Off Party and Grand Opening of New Outright Space
“Celebrate Good Times - COME ON!” There is a lot to celebrate
at Outright Vermont this summer and we thought it was time to throw a
PARTY!
Our fabulous Kate Jerman is leaving Outright; we are finally getting settled
into our HUGE new space at the McClure Multi-Generational Center in Burlington’s
Old North End (next to Dairy Queen); and thanks to the new Queer Youth
Fund, Children’s Trust Fund Grant and a bunch of other foundation
support, we will be doubling our staff this fall with a new Americorps
VISTA, an Education & Outreach Coordinator and a Health & Wellness
Coordinator.
Party details: Thursday, August 3rd 5-8pm for Outright supporters, donors,
staff, volunteers and youth! at 241 North Winooski Ave., Burlington, in
the McClure Multi-Gen Center next to Dairy Queen.
Womyn’s
Night Relocates to Higher Ground
Now that 135 Pearl is closed, Womyn’s Night, or First Friday, will
happen each month at Higher Ground in South Burlington. Steph Pappas,
Antara and Karen Grenier will share the stage for the first time in a
Round Robin this First Friday, August 4th, from 8 to 10 pm at Higher Ground.
They will be followed by DJs Llu and Precious. Get your $5 tickets early
(strongly recommended) at www.highergroundmusic.com, or buy them for $10
at the door.
1st
Annual Kopkind Grassroots Film Festival
Brought to you by John Scagliotti, who has helped launch two gay film
festivals this summer, and fellow organizers, the Kopkind festival will
be held in the Organ Barn at Treefrog Farm in Guilford, Vermont.
From August 10-12, the festival will offer the following films: Anti
Nuclear Films from an Anti-Nuclear Family, films about nuclear weapons
and energy; Cruel and Unusual, a movie about transgender women
in men’s prisons; The Peace Patriots, about New England
activists; and The Devils Miner, a film portraying teenagers
working in the silver mines of Bolivia.
Go to www.netvenders.com/blogs/kipkind.php
for more information. Reservations are encouraged for members.
C.
Cambrea Surreal Art Show at Phoenix Rising
Cristine Cambrea Stone, prolific local artist and former owner of Montpelier’s
Karma Imports, will feature her original artwork at Phoenix Rising, a
metaphysical gift store located at 34 State Street in Montpelier. The
show, which continues through August, is Cristine’s first major
public showing and features abstract art in canvas and wood. For more
information, call 802-229-0522.
Public
TV Special
A special TV program of interest to our community will air on Saturday,
August 12th, at 11 p.m. “The Power of Harmony” takes an intimate
look at the struggle for acceptance and other issues facing the gay community,
through the personal experiences of men who find inspiration and courage
in The Turtle Creek Chorale, a gay men’s chorale that manages to
thrive in the heart of America’s Bible Belt. For more information,
call 802-655-4800 or check the web at vpt.org
Mass
Red Ribbon Ride
On August 12th and 13th, Evan Spigelman will be bicycling 175 miles from
the Berkshires to Boston as part of the Mass Red Ribbon Ride. The event
will raise funds for “some of the most incredibly effective HIV/AIDS
advocacy and support agencies throughout Massachusetts,” Spigelman
says.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the recognition of AIDS and as
Spigelman notes, U.S. residents continue to contract the disease at a
rate of about 40,000 a year. He hopes to raise $2,500 to help the cause.
Spigelman can be reached through the website at massredribbonride.org
Outright
Wants YOU
Outright wants YOU to volunteer with us! Be part of the really cool group
of folks who help keep Outright Vermont’s programs going.
We are currently seeking queer or LGBTQ adults, ages 23 and older, to
become facilitators for our Friday Night Group or to become volunteers
for our Saturday Night Drop-Ins. If you are interested check out further
details on our website at: www.outrightvt.org or call the office: 802-865-9677
and ask for Llu.
Twist
Week at World Outgames in Montreal
July 30th through August 7th is Twist Week at the Outgames; including
a parade and party on July 30th, Official Twist Dinner on August 2nd,
Sun Dance on August 3rd, Leather & Jeans Twist party and Twist Party
Main Event on August 4th, Gay Day at the Beach on August 5th, Brunch,
dance and encore on August 6th, and Morning Party (Twist Week closing
event) on August 7th.
For more information, please visit www.bbcm.org
XVI
International AIDS Conference in Toronto
The world’s largest AIDS/HIV conference will take place August 13-18
at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, where 20,000 worldwide participants
will convene. Those attending will include scientists, health care providers,
political, community and business leaders, journalists, government leaders
and people living with HIV and AIDS.
The program includes symposiums and skills building workshops intended
to help reach out to those in the developing world where the epidemic
is most entrenched, and will include cultural and youth programs. For
more information, check the web at aids2006.org
Congressional
Summer School
National Center for Transgender Equality’s 3rd Annual Congressional
Summer School takes place this month. Educating members of Congress might
not be the first activity that comes to mind when you think of summer,
but the August Congressional recess is actually one of the best times
to meet with your elected officials while they’re back in their
home districts.
The campaign takes place in Congressional district offices across the
country during August, to educate members of Congress about transgender
issues and to build legislative support for the transgenderinclusive Employment
Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).
To request a Congressional Summer School Kit, contact Simon Aronoff at
saronoff@nctequality.org
TOAS
Schedules August Play Reading Group
TOAS will hold its next Play Reading Group on Wednesday, August 23 at
7 pm at Ed Levin’s home on Iris Lane in South Burlington. This is
a fun evening of reading different plays in a comfortable, safe, and noncompetitive
environment. Please RSVP no later than Monday, August 21st by emailing
us at playreading@theatreshoe.com or by calling toll free at 888-212-
5884.
If you would like to host a meeting or have a play suggestion, please
contact TOAS President Dean Pratt via e-mail at president@theatreshoe.com
A copy of the script can also be mailed to TOAS Play Reading Group, PO
Box 1012, Burlington, VT 05402-1012. We like to receive potential scripts
to be read at least one week in advance of the meeting.
Gay
Teens and the Church Are Subject of New Play
Rehearsals began in Burlington last month on a new play by Burlington
playwright, James Lantz. The Bus is set to be staged at Burlington’s
FlynnSpace, September 12 - 17, and will be directed by Seth Jarvis.
Set in small-town America, The Bus is the story of two gay teens
caught in the middle of a dispute between the owner of a small gas station
and a large church. The play addresses several themes, including community
tensions caused by a large church and small town homophobia.
An official selection of the 2006 New York International Fringe Festival,
Lantz and Jarvis declined their invitation to the prestigious festival
in order to premiere the play in Burlington. More information is available
on the production’s website at www.TheBusThePlay.com
Transcending
Boundaries Makes Plans for October
Less than three months away, planning is going great! This year’s
Transcending Boundaries Conference, in alliance with the PFLAG Northeast
Regional Conference, is going to be held at the DCU Center in Worcester,
Massachusetts, October 27-29.
We are very excited to announce the keynote speaker line-up: Jenny Finney
Boylan, author of She’s Not There; Lani Ka’ahumanu, bi-activist
and editor of Bi Any Other Name; Sam Thoron, national president of PFLAG;
and Matt Kailey, F-to-M, author of Just Add Hormones. Registration online
is now available at
www.transcendingboundaries.org
Transitions
in Academia
Increasing transgender inclusiveness on campus: a one-day Student Affairs
conference for faculty, staff, and students at the Stony Brook University
campus 60 miles east of New York City on October 20th.
Please check the Stony Brook University Wo/Men’s Center website
at studentaffairs.stonybrook.edu/wom/ for more information.
Creating
Change Conference in November
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force has opened registration for the
19th Annual Creating Change Conference to be held in Kansas City, Missouri
from Nov. 8th to the 12th.
Early registration is available until September 7th, and reduced prices
are available to those with limited income. The conference, which attracts
thousands of activists nationwide, will be held in the heartland this
year “to help build a movement in an increasingly LGBT unfriendly
area.” Contact thetaskforce.org for more information.
Student
Government Association Also Sponsored Ad
In July’s Out in the Mountains, a number of University of Vermont
offices sponsored an ad celebrating LGBT community and pride.
Inadvertently the Student Government Association (SGA) was left off the
ad. Please know that the SGA joined with 33 other UVM departments and
groups in sponsoring this ad and supporting LGBT peoples.
Our apologies for this mistake,
Dorothea Brauer and Eli Clare of
LGBTQA Services.
Interactive
Website Pinpoints Progress
A new website launched in May provides state-by-state information on GLBT
rights, a first-of-its-kind site. The Advocate says “mappingourrights”
also ranks states as to their relative progressiveness.
Set up by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Ipas, a woman’s
health rights organization, the site can be found at mappingourrights.org,
or look for the link at www.ipas.org