Opening Night Tonight! Get your tickets here!

Submissions Now Open for All Out Arts’ 11th Annual
FRESH FRUIT FESTIVAL
A Celebration of LGBTQ Arts & Culture Running July 8-21 in NYC

NEW YORK, NY – All Out Arts is now accepting submissions for the 11th Annual Fresh Fruit Festival, New York City’s grassroots, multidisciplinary international festival of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer arts and culture.  A cornucopia of various forms of artistic expression, the festival is presented across lower Manhattan each July. Entries are accepted through February 11, 2013, and there is no
submission fee.

“Going into our 11th year, we have thus far featured performers from every group within the national LGBTQ community, as well as artists from as far away as Kenya, the Philippines, Japan, the Caribbean and Israel,” says Festival Founder and Artistic Director Carol Polcovar. “We’re excited for what lies ahead as we begin a new decade in amplifying artistic voices traditionally unheard.”

The Fresh Fruit Festival showcases the whole spectrum of LGBTQ lives as expressed in theatre, performance art, dance, film, spoken word, graphic arts, music and beyond.  Thus, if it is “art” and it reflects any aspectof the LGBTQ community and its culture, you are welcome to submit.  Last years' festival featured a “high stakes” poetry slam, two weeks of theater and performance art, dance, jazz, an art exhibit, variety acts, and a comedy show, among other works.

The Festival seeks diversity, “color,” and things less traditionally available in mass media.  Applications are accepted through February 11,
2013, and are available at the festival’s official website, www.FreshFruitFestival.com. There is no submission fee.  Entrants will be notified in mid-March 2013.  Accepted artists are showcased in a full-staffed AEA-approved venue, and also receive marketing assistance, networking opportunities and a share of ticket sales.

Established in 1992, All Out Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit devoted to bringing together the diverse artistic, organizational, political and financial resources of the LGBTQ community in order to fight intolerance. All Out Arts fulfills its mission by supporting arts organizations within the community through fiscal sponsorship, events, contests, collaborations, networking events for emerging artists, and by sponsoring productions, concerts and exhibitions of visual arts.

The Fresh Fruit Festival is presented by All Out Arts to celebrate the LGBTQ community's unique perspective, creativity & diversity, and to build links between the LGBTQ artistic communities, be they local or international.

Additional information on the Fresh Fruit Festival, including guidelines and details, is available by visiting www.FreshFruitFestival.com.

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First preview tonight for Beautiful Thing at the Athenaeum. 

Do you have your tickets yet?  Find more information on Beautiful Thing here. 

TWO GREAT SHOWS - One Low Price!

Get a special offer for tickets here.

Check out the list of nominees for The Dorian Awards from the Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association.

The Bachelors staged reading is today at Noise Cultural Center in Evanston at 2 pm. The event is free! Find more information here. 

Get the backstage scoop about Beautiful Thing from star Robert Hilliard.

Previews start next week .Get your tickets here now!

The Bachelors Staged Reading This Sunday at 2 pm at 

Piven Theater in Evanston!

See PFP Ensemble Member Cyra K. Polizzi in Feminist Plays about Nothing, an evening of staged readings on Saturday, January 26. Find more information here: http://www.fullvoice.org/theatre.html#feminist

Here are the details:
"Feminist Plays about Nothing" Free Staged Reading and Talk-Back!
"Feminist Plays about Nothing," an evening of free staged readings of comedic short plays, takes place Saturday, January 26 at 7:00pm at Center on Halsted, 3656 N Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60613. Quirky, fast-paced, and layered, the plays zip from topic to topic, finding humor in simple misunderstandings, intricacies of relationships, and the seemingly mundane. Audience members are invited to stick around after the readings to participate in a talk-back to help shape the future of these short plays.

The scripts, all credited to queer feminist playwright Lucca Suvi, were workshopped in Stockyards Theatre Project's "Play for Keeps" program and are now being further developed by Full Voice. The ensemble of actors and directors includes Ashely Bagot, Laura Elleseg, Elana Elyce, Crystal Hartford, Lauren Hearter, Richard Paro, Breahan Eve Pautsch, Francesca Peppiatt, Cyra K. Polizzi, and more.
So that everyone is welcome, the performance is absolutely free and accessible on the 2nd floor via an elevator. Seating in the conference room is first-come first-served once the doors open at 6:45. For more information, or to arrange for special needs, please email info@fullvoice.org
ABOUT THE PLAYS:
Retail
When Jacky's distaste for furniture shopping doesn't sit well with her girlfriend, Jacky's day is ruined... until she meets an unconventional salesperson named Parsley... and Parsley's equally unconventional friends.
Outside My Cubicle
Miscommunication and mistaken assumptions abound for coworkers Marcy, Deb and Kathy. When Marcy's fiancee and Deb's boyfriend join them for a night out, all the confusion comes to a head.
Important Issues
In this short playful sendup of the feminist fundraising scene, Astrid agonizes over a risque silent auction, Eve would rather focus on the cutie in pigtails behind the bar, Vanessa is intrigued by a play about healthcare, and Karen gets excited about some organic corn.
Downsizing, Or Jos & Brit Make Toast
Flatmates Jos and Brit deal with dating, jobs, and philosophies of everyday life, as they struggle to make city living more fulfilling.
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATIONS & LOCATION:
Full Voice projects question assumptions, often mix humor with multi-issue and gender/queer activism, and employ a vegan philosophy. www.FullVoice.org
Stockyards Theatre Project is devoted to giving volume to the voices of women.www.stockyardstheatreproject.org
Center on Halsted is the Midwest's most comprehensive community center dedicated to building and strengthening the LGBTQ community. www.centeronhalsted.org. At the end of the evening, there will be an opportunity to donate $5 to Center on Halsted. Donations are completely voluntary.

An exciting theater project in Italy that deserves support! Find more information here. 

Look for PFP Ensemble Member Nelson Rodriguez in Six Degrees of Separation at Eclectic Theater Company starting February 22. Find more information here. 

The Bachelors 

Pride Films and Plays Ensemble Members Nick Stockwell and Nelson Rodriguez are the stars of The Bachelors, an enhanced staged reading of a new screenplay by Marthat Meyer and Rick Kennebrew. This free event is a Noyes Cultural Center in Evanston on January 13 at 2 pm. 

Other PFP Ensemble Members in the cast include David Besky, Joan McGrath, Beth Richards, Kris Hyland, Tom Chiola, and Jamie Smith. 

Find more information on The Bachelors here. 

Watch for PFP Ensemble Member Joan McGrath to star in Picolo Theater's Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit this spring. Find more information here. 

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