Lethbridge‘s gay and lesbian community will be coming out to entertain you, April 1 at the David Spinks Theatre for the eight annual Pretty, Witty and Gay cabaret.
“It’s a gay themed theatre cabaret that celebrates sexual diversity,” described organizer Jay Whitehead.
“And gender identity,” added co-organizer Génevievé Paré, who is excited about being involved with her second Pretty, Witty and Gay, which she has had to juggle with performing the role of the Duke of Buckingham in the university’s production of Shakespeare’s Richard III.
“We have over 10-15 different acts of a wide scope from theatrical, comedy, musical and dramatic acts,” she continued.
“This year we will also be having confessionals or testimonials. Members of the community have the opportunity to share their stories about coming about them and their families,” Whitehead added, noting Lethbridge has a significant gay population.
“It’s hard to say. When I moved to Lethbridge and started this in 2004, they didn’t have much of a voice at all but they are starting to be heard. Lethbridge has an annual pride event now and the university has a very active gay and lesbian club. I’d say relative to our population it’s comparable to most cities,” Whitehead observed.
“The community is starting to see that we’re a contributing part of the community,” he added.
“It’s something that we do every year and it is always a big success,” Whitehead said, noting a number of high profile stories in the media, including a spate of gay teen suicides, gay marriages and a lot of other issues in the news relating to the gay community have convinced organizers to put a more sombre edge on this fun evening.
“This year we wanted to add a more human perspective to the event,” Paré said adding they are having fun with it as the theme of the evening is a debutante ball.
“Debutante balls have been around for centuries and they still happen in some of the southern united states. they are predominately for the upper class as a coming of age or coming out for young women,” Paré continued.
“They symbolize girls coming out of childhood and moving into womanhood, so we wanted to have some fun with a play on those words,” Whitehead added.
“I’m very excited about this event. Richard III closed (Saturday) so this week has really opened up, it’s going to be a hot week. It’s a lot of work to make sure the show is polished, but I enjoy it,” Paré said adding she is looking forward to performing with Whitehead.
“It’s going to be an engaging evening of theatre,” Whitehead said.
“For me, I like to be able to give a voice to a community that might not otherwise fell they are being heard. Of all the things I do artistically, this is the one I feel most passionate about,” Whitehead said.
Pretty, Witty and Gay takes place in the David Spinks Theatre, April 2 at 8 p.m.
