I attended the OUTsider Festival again this year in Austin, and again they totally hit it out of the park. Five days of fabulous queer art and community here in Austin. So much discussion about the relationships between sexuality in art, queer space and place, diversity and representation in art, art and activism. I’m still […]
Gong Fu Cha in Austin at the Tea Spot
“It’s kind of like when we were younger. You couldn’t get craft beer. You could only get PBR and Miller High Life. You couldn’t get artisan chocolate. You could only get Hershey bars or Mars bars. You couldn’t get nice coffee. You could just get Folgers coffee. It’s the same thing with tea. The same […]
AGLIFF Review: Desert Migration
What does it mean to age? What does health look like? What does chronic illness look like? How do we face mortality without succumbing to depression? How can we create meaning and beauty in our lives, even and especially when the deck is stacked against us? When things are at their bleakest, how can you […]
Austin’s Ground Floor Theatre
You might be familiar with Austin local Lisa Scheps from “Off the Stage and On the Air,” a radio show she hosts each Wednesday on KOOP 91.7. Her latest brainchild is Ground Floor Theatre, a new theatrical venue in East Austin, at the corner of Airport and Springdale. The goal of Ground Floor Theatre is to foster “an environment […]
The Identity Project
What defines you? Finding the answer(s) to that seemingly simple yet hugely profound question is the cornerstone of Sarah Deragon’s LGBTQ portrait series, The Identity Project. The Identity Project is a series of portraits meant to reflect the beautiful diversity of the LGBTQ community, explore the labels LGBTQ individuals use to define their sexuality and […]
Austin International Drag Festival
How do drag performers network? What resources do new or developing drag performers have when it comes to getting their work seen by the right people? What might it look like to create an organization devoted to education and promotion of drag-related issues? These were among the questions Jamie Bancroft started to ask himself last […]
Austin’s Fusebox Festival: The Measure of All Things
There are times when I’m reminded that performance can be a transformative event, and am honored to witness the magic uniquely found when a group of individuals come together to share their time, energy, and attention with one another. The opening night of Austin’s Fusebox Festival proved to be just such a moment. When I […]
Austin’s Fusebox Festival
After the crowds and craziness of SXSW, many Austinites may feel ready to swear off the festival circuit all together. It’s important to remember, however, that all festivals are not created equal. Austin’s Fusebox Festival is coming back April 1-12, featuring over fifty events hosted in over twenty different Austin locations. This year, the Fusebox experience […]
Sideways Grimace Brings Hedwig to Austin
You don’t have to go all the way to New York City to get a taste of Hedwig and the Angry Inch in the flesh. Austin is home to The Sideways Grimace, a Hedwig Tribute Band. I had the pleasure of speaking with Richard Weiss, lead vocalist (aka Hedwig) and guitarist for the band. It […]
OUTsider: Pythia Dust
I really hate to end my coverage of OUTsider Festival on a negative note. I spent most of the day working another job, but I was excited to end the festival by seeing Pythia Dust at the Vortex. I figured it was too cold to really enjoy the closing party at Cheer Up Charlie’s anyway. […]