Out There :: Cultural Trifecta

It was a one-two-three knockout punch of San Francisco culture for your gay uncle Out There last week. Let us walk you through our cultural calendar.

Last week's Tuesday night was a very special evening at Davies Symphony Hall, where music director Michael Tilson Thomas conducted the San Francisco Symphony in a "Symphony Pride" concert replacing their scheduled tour dates in state-sponsored homophobic North Carolina. The composers represented on the program were all LGBT; MTT himself is out & proud (he brought his lovely husband Joshua Robison to the stage); and the sold-out audience had that special gay vibe that spells fab-u-lous. We were treated to Bernstein's "Candide" overture; out & proud pianist Peter Grunberg's virtuoso turn with Henry Cowell; a great John Cage snippet; members from the San Francisco Symphony Chorus in a wonderful Meredith Monk chant; the finale from Lou Harrison's thunderous organ concerto (Michael Hey on keys); soprano Audra McDonald resplendent in Sondheim , Bernstein, Styne (the straight ringer), and the immortal Laura Nyro; Copland's "Lincoln Portrait" (so poignant now, with the anti-Lincoln disgracing the office), narrated by McDonald; and for dessert, a muscular Mahler movement. Afterwards, OT was honored to be invited along with B.A.R. music writer Philip Campbell to join the swells in the Wattis Room for a celebratory soiree. We'd say MTT and the SFS do gay very, very well.

Wednesday night found Out There among the opening-night crowd for the 60th SFFilm Festival screening of director Gillian Robespierre's new film, "Landline." We enjoyed this period-piece comedy that takes place in 1990s New York City. Landlines! Record stores! Boom-boxes! Mixtapes! Pay phones! Floppy discs! It really wasn't that long ago, but feels as far away as Victorian England. The stellar cast includes Edie Falco, John Turturro, Jay Duplass, and the luscious Finn Wittrock, but the film's heart and soul are really the performances, playing sisters, of Jenny Slate and Abby Quinn. The glamorous afterparty transpired at the historic Regency Center. It was a certifiable blast.

Thursday night found us making the scene at the charming Oasis nightclub South of Market for the annual Besties bash, the B.A.R.'s LGBTQ Best of the Bay readers' choice party, hosted by comedian extraordinaire Marga Gomez, with stellar performances from Veronica Klaus (her last in SF!), Jason Brock, Alex U. Inn & Kingdom, and DJ MC2, with fabulous accompanist Tammy L. Hall. It was a rollicking good affair, and everyone who came in out of the rain seemed to have a great time. OT was happy chilling at a table with our bestie pals Wilder, Jim James , and of course the indispensible Pepi. We're rich indeed in masculine company.