Disver Toronto’s bt gay bars, queer events and LGBTQ culture wh Andrew Murphy, programmg director of the Insi Out LGBT Film Ftival.
Contents:
- TORONTO’S BLUE BELL THEATRE (THE GAY)
- THE 5 BEST TORONTO GAY CLUBS & BARSGAY CLUBS & BARS TORONTO
- GAY FOR PAY WITH BLAKE & CLAY
- FILE:GAY (BLUEBELL) THEATRE, TORONTO (I0026860)
TORONTO’S BLUE BELL THEATRE (THE GAY)
* gay theatre toronto *
Popularized to be known as the Toronto Gay Village, this queer neighbourhood is clive, safe and welg for all.
The Toronto Queer Theatre Ftival was Found 2012 as Gay Play Day by Darren Stewart-Jon and was rebrand 2019 wh s new name to better reprent s clive mandate. Followg their participatn the Toronto Queer Theatre Ftival, artists have gone on to produce their shows around the world, cludg the Edburgh Ftival Frge and the Dubl Internatnal Gay Theatre Ftival. Bluebell Theatre, Gay Theatre.
It was renamed the Gay Theatre 1954 and closed for a while the early-1970’s. In September 1954, the theatre was remolled by Murray Sklar, and s named was changed to the Gay. The Gay was owned by Zelif Unger, who was well known for matag strict ntrol durg children’s Saturday-afternoon mate.
THE 5 BEST TORONTO GAY CLUBS & BARSGAY CLUBS & BARS TORONTO
Planng a gaytn to Toronto? You won't lack optns. The bt gay bars and safe spac and fun thgs to do gay Toronto. * gay theatre toronto *
The theatre after was remolled 1954 and s named changed to the Gay. Neher of them stayed wh the theatre pany past a year; neher of them was gay. But I had lots of gay feelgs, feelgs I was very nflicted about.
Some of that nflict me om the gay theatre that I had seen town the late 1970s. And Bob Whe at the Playwrights Co-op told me stori about a real life drag queen named John Herbert, who hadn’t seen much succs sce his huge ternatnal gay h Fortune and Men’s Ey (all about how prison life uld lead to gay sex) the 1960s.
GAY FOR PAY WITH BLAKE & CLAY
The gay world that I had imaged my head barely existed theatre and films, and certaly not on TV — surfacg ocsnally, for stance, as a dark unrbelly of Nazi Germany Cabaret, oras a shockgly erotic bisexualy The Rocky Horror Picture Show. I was obssed wh the beat poets (who were kd of gay, but more bisexual) and Patti Smh — so our first plays were about them.
— featured poetry by “gay poet” Frank O’ Hara. By 1986, I was brave enough to classify Buddi as a gay theatre on grant applitns.
My plays The Drsg Gown and Drag Queens on Trial, created que a splash — the first beg my own crique of the gay muny’s excs, the send beg a celebratn of promiscuy and effemacy. By the late 1980s gay playwright Brad Fraser had had a huge succs wh Unintified Human Remas and the Te Nature of Love.
FILE:GAY (BLUEBELL) THEATRE, TORONTO (I0026860)
But his work — though jt as gay as me some rpects — seemed to get away wh beg labeled ‘ntemporary urban edy. Some of my plays alt wh AIDs, and some gay plays our 4-Play Ftival alt wh the issue too.
Now there were gay movi and gay TV shows. But AIDS also brought an creasg nservatism to the gay muny, and gays and lbians began to fight for the right to marry.
I had spent many years enuragg gay artists to tell the tails of our queer liv.