Lea DeLaria The Last Butch Standing Speaks OUT

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with Lea DeLaria, comedian, actress and jazz musician about her new show THE LAST BUTCH STANDING, her comedic look at what it is like to be a bad-ass dyke daddy in the post Ellen 21st century. THE LAST BUTCH STANDING was presented at the OBERON, the American Repertory Theater’s second stage and club theater venue in Cambridge, Massachusetts on November 5th. It was one of the most fabulous shows we've seen in a while! Lea DeLaria was the first openly gay comic to perform on American television with her 1993 appearance on The Arsenio Hall Show. Since then she has had countless concerts, theater roles, movies, stand up specials and four Warner Brothers records. We talked to Lea about THE LAST BUTCH STANDING and her spin on our LGBT issues. 

When asked what her personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, DeLaria stated, “I have been completely out for thirty years. Everything I’ve done, every step I’ve taken has been to further a positive perception of queers within the world. There was a time in the early 1990’s where they wanted me to wear lipstick. That was the time when the lipstick lesbian thing was all the rage. I did it for about six months and then I went ‘I can’t do this anymore. This is not who I am.’ It’s not who millions and millions of dyke butches are out there and someone has to present that image. Someone has to be that person for those little butches out there to see. That one is going to be me every time.” 

Lea also weighed in on our queer identity in the 21st century, the presidential election, the Log Cabin Republicans, gay marriage, LGBT teen bullying and more. Besides her new live show THE LAST BUTCH STANDING she has recorded a new jazz album HOUSE OF DAVID featuring the songs of David Bowie due out in 2013. Lea is also appearing in the new musical AMANDINE in 2013 and currently is in production in the upcoming television prison series ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK playing BIG BOO. This will be released on Lionsgate TV and Netflicks in the Fall of 2013.
Currently Delaria is touring with THE LAST BUTCH STANDING worldwide which she hopes to make into a TV special.

For More Info: delariadammit.com

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Gay Filmmaker Ira Sachs Speaks OUT

 In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with filmmaker Ira Sachs about his new film KEEP THE LIGHTS ON. KEEP THE LIGHTS ON premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and received the Teddy Award for Best Queer Film at the 2012 Berlin Film Festival. It’s currently playing theaters throughout North America. The film chronicles an emotionally and sexually charged journey of two men in New York City through love, friendship, and addiction. Documentary filmmaker Erik (Thure Lindhardt) and closeted lawyer Paul (Zachary Booth, Damages) meet through a casual encounter but soon find a deeper connection and become a couple. Fueled by drugs and sex their decade-long relationship is defined by highs, lows and dysfunctional patterns as Erik struggles to negotiate his own boundaries and dignity while being true to himself. We talked to Ira about his deeply personal film and issues facing our LGBT community.

When asked what his personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Sachs stated, “You know I grew up in the 1960’s in Memphis and my father was a member of the American Civil Liberties Union. I was born three years before Martin Luther King was killed and I think that history of civil action was something that I had in my blood. Throughout college I was very involved as a gay activist. I got involved with Act Up when I moved to New York in 1988. I now work as a community organizer. I run two arts programs; Queer/Art/Film, which is a film series that invites inter-disciplinarian, inter-generational conversations between queer artist and also a mentor program. And for me it’s actually something I do because I believe in it but also something I do because I feel being an activist is so nurturing to my own being. I think for many years when I had my own issues of addition and was focused on things that were small and obsessive I forgot the world and I found that engaging in the world is generative to me, and sustaining. I also feel that I can make some change to be part of history in my own small way.”

Ira Sachs films include Married Life (2007), The Delta (1997) and the 2005 Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning Forty Shades of Blue. His short film Last Address, honoring a group of NYC artists who died of AIDS, has been added to the permanent collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art and MoMA. Sachs teaches in the Graduate Film department at NYU. Sachs lives in New York City with his husband Boris Torres.
For More Info: keepthelightsonfilm.com 
 
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The Real L Word Hunter Valentine Speaks OUT

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with lesbian rock band HUNTER VALENTINE who’s currently on tour. Coming off starring in Season 3 of Showtime's hit reality series The Real L Word into the release of their third studio album titled COLLIDE & CONQUER out October 23rd on Megaforce/Sony, no one can deny the momentum behind rockers HUNTER VALENTINE. It all began when lead singer/guitarist Kiyomi McCloskey met drummer Laura Petracca in a dark dirty bar in their hometown of Toronto and forged an unbreakable bond. Now eight years later with two studio albums under their belt, the band has grown into a veritable powerhouse that tours over 200 dates a year worldwide with bassist Veronica "Vero" Sanchez and newest member lead guitarist Aimee Bessada. We talked to the band literally on the road as they headed east from Chicago about The Real L Word, the new album and their spin on our LGBT issues.

When asked what their personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights HUNTER VALENTINE stated, “As a band, as a public figure, you’re constantly in the spotlight and we have a lot of young people that approach us and ask questions about their sexuality and our contribution is to be a role model within the LGBT community. So you know, whether we’re on stage playing a pride festival or we’re answering an email about a kid who’s getting bullied at school for being gay, that’s kind of how we contribute. Or having a fifty year old woman confused because she’s finding out that she’s a lesbian and has children and is married and doesn’t know what to do. Like we get all kinds of different sort of people, fans, friends that approach us and we feel that our part is trying to be there and answer as many questions possible because we want to try and help anybody in any situation. And the more people feel like they have that positive equal space it’s going to show the rest of the world that everyone deserves to have equal rights and that queer people are just the same as everyone else.”

HUNTER VALENTINE COLLIDE & CONQUER TOUR is currently playing North America through November. Then they’re headed to Japan and Europe. Their new Megaforce/Sony Album COLLIDE & CONQUER will be available on October 23rd.
For Tour Dates & Info: huntervalentine.com 

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InterPride 2012 Gay Activists Speak OUT

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with Anna Dubrowski and Sylvain Bruni, Co-Chairs of InterPride 2012 which celebrated its thirtieth anniversary in Boston, Massachusetts October 3rd through October 7th. InterPride is the International Association of Pride Organizers and Organizations from around the world. InterPride was created in Boston in 1982 after Pride organizers from Boston, New York, San Francisco, Chicago, San Diego and Los Angeles convened to form the National Association of Lesbian and Gay Pride coordinators. InterPride was established to promote Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride on an international level to increase networking and communication among Pride Organizations and to encourage diverse communities to hold and attend Pride events as an educational source. InterPride accomplishes its mission with regional conferences and an Annual World Conference (AWC). At the annual conference InterPride members network, attend events and collaborate on an international scale. We talked to Anna and Sylvain about this year’s InterPride Conference and issues facing our LGBT community.

When asked what their personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights Bruni stated, “I think my commitment is really about not necessarily giving back but really contributing to the level that I can. I think a lot of people are involved in InterPride or in a pride organization because they have some time or some money; they have some dedication; they have some energy they’re willing to give to make their community a better more accepting community overall, whether it is within the LGBT community or outside of it. I think from the point of view of Boston it is really good for us; things have moved forward really tremendously in the past years. So now it is also time for us to turn outwards and see what we can do to help other people. This is really where I find my energy and my inspiration being part of this, looking at how much we have done here. We’ve learned a lot, we’ve been able to amass that knowledge and make things move forward and now it’s what we can do to support others around the world.”

InterPride strives to create a world where there is full cultural, social and legal equality for all. InterPride hopes to raise awareness of cultural and social inequality through its network of Pride organizations and to effect positive change through education, collaboration, advocacy and outreach. InterPride 2012 Conference was hosted by Boston Pride.
For More Info: interpride2012.org

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Gay Icon Bobby Wetherbee 50th Anniversary

  In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with piano bar icon Bobby Wetherbee who is celebrating fifty years of entertaining audiences in Provincetown, Massachusetts. His talents have led him to perform at some top venues including The St. Regis’ King Cole Room, the Oak Bar at the Copley Plaza in Boston, New York’s Top of the Sixes, The Colony on Madison Avenue and The Carlyle; but it’s Provincetown on the tip of Cape Cod that has played an enormous part in the growth of Bobby’s career. Patrons from all over the world find their way to his piano bar. Bobby confesses that the show can change from very sophisticated to just plain sophisticated fun with lots of audience participation which he loves. He says he enjoys the diversity of the crowd and hearing from a gifted singer or two. We talked to Bobby about the longevity of his career and his spin on our LGBT issues.

 When asked what his reaction is to the Democratic National Platform finally coming out in support of marriage equality and a trans-inclusive ENDA (Employment Nondiscrimination Act) Wetherbee stated, “That was major but I also feel that because I do remember Stonewall and the thing is it was just a matter of time. I’m so thrilled that within my lifetime I’ve seen this happen. As a kid and as an early gay man everything was hidden. I was arrested three times for just coming out of a gay bar. I personally feel that along with the militants, the women, the gay women, keep it in the forefront and I think that is amazing.”

Bobby Wetherbee has had his years of ups and downs always battling his demons at the keyboard, finding a life of free expression in gay-friendly Provincetown where the crowds fill his shows nightly and treat him like a cultural icon in his renaissance years. Wetherbee now calls the Crown and Anchor lounge home and the entertainer carries the Key to the Town around with pride saying it was an honor to be called a 50-year destination. Wetherbee will be performing at The Crown And Anchor through October.

For More Info: onlyatthecrown.com 

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