The Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles is kicking off its 35th season following a successful year that saw a start to the Chorus's national it gets better Tour, an Oscars performance, a shared stage with Broadway legend Stephen Schwartz and the first ever GMCLA Season Sponsor, Wells Fargo, which has signed on as season sponsor for its second year in a row.
This year, GMCLA will celebrate 35 years of making change within the LGBT Community. Each concert will be a continuation of the visibility that the Chorus has achieved, as well as a celebration of LGBT pride and culture.
GMCLA's annual "Holiday Spectacular: Festival of Carols" will be held on Saturday, December 14, 2013 and Sunday, December 15, 2013 at the
Alex Theatre in Glendale, CA. For a special holiday twist, GMCLA will present the sounds of brass instruments throughout the performance and welcome some very special guests to an unforgettable evening of merriment. It will be the Chorus's celebration of its 35th holiday concert, which always sells out! Last season's "Holiday Spectacular" featured 46 students from the Creative Planet School of the Arts harmonizing onstage alongside the 200+ members of GMCLA in a moving tribute performance of "Peace on Earth," dedicated to the victims of the tragic shooting that took place in Newtown, CT.
GMCLA's spring show, "God Save the Queen(s) - A Not-So-Proper British Invitation," will take place at The
Ricardo Montalban Theatre in Hollywood onSaturday, March 29, 2014 and Sunday, March 30, 2014. This will be the Chorus's first time performing at this venue, located in the heart of Hollywood!
Journey back in time, from the 1960s through to today, as GMCLA basks in the bloomin' brilliance of British rock-and-roll. From The Beatles to
George Michael to
Elton John, GMCLA will unleash a full monty of a choral British invasion!
In summer, 2014, GMCLA will present performances of its 35th Anniversary Concert at
Walt Disney Concert Hall in Downtown Los Angeles. Act One, "City of Angels," will salute the entertainment capital of the world, paying homage to the finest music to rise out of LA. Act Two, an oratorio entitled I Am
Harvey Milk, words and music by Tony Award-nominated Broadway Composer
Andrew Lippa (The Addams Family, Big Fish), will celebrate the remarkable life of
Harvey Milk from his childhood through to his rise as the first openly gay man to hold public office in California, to his untimely assassination. Part choral work and part theater piece, I Am
Harvey Milk is an emotional celebration of a true American icon, co-commissioned by six gay men's choruses, including GMCLA. Produced in association with Oscar winner
Bruce Cohen (Silver Linings Playbook, American Beauty, and Milk), I Am
Harvey Milk will star
Andrew Lippa as
Harvey Milk. The 200+ singers of GMCLA will also be joined by special guests from visiting members of the other co-commissioning choruses for a combined powerhouse performance featuring over 500 voices!
"The Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles was founded on the principles of visibility and exposing new communities to our message of equality; challenging homophobia wherever it might be," said
Chris Verdugo, Executive Director of GMCLA. "For thirty-five years, we've delivered on the promises of our mission. And we look forward to continuing our tradition of acceptance through music, laughter and joy."
GMCLA's 35th Season program also includes a sing-along viewing of "Saturday Night Fever" at
Hollywood Forever Cemetery on August 30, 2013; Fred Arens and Jason Duguay's annual Halloweenie event, otherwise known as the party with a purpose in which GMCLA continues to be honored as the beneficiary, to be held on Friday, October 25, 2013 at the Los Angeles Theatre; a performance on Saturday, November 16, 2013, when select members of GMCLA will join
Vox Femina Los Angeles for its "Songs of Wisdom" concert; the it gets better Tour, wherein chorus members will join local communities in Texas, Utah, Wisconsin and Nebraska over the course of nine months to get involved in workshops, rehearsals and multimedia theatrical performances in rural parts of the U.S. to bring visibility to LGBT rights and issues; GMCLA's community outreach programs supporting L.A. youth through Outside Voices (an LGBT youth chorus) and the Alive Music Project (AMP), a unique music education outreach program for middle and high school students that uses song to create a powerful anti-bullying message, which is in a joint production with Speak Theater Arts and The It Gets Better Project; and the Chorus's own recognition event, The Voice Awards, to be held in April, 2014.
For more information on Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA), or to become a subscriber for the 35th Season, visit
www.gmcla.org.
GMCLA has garnered international acclaim for artistic excellence while remaining deeply rooted in service to the Los Angeles community and beyond by promoting civil rights, tolerance and acceptance through music. Founded in 1979, critics have proclaimed the Chorus "inspired," "expressive, innovative, and utterly moving," and hailed it for presenting "meaningful entertainment." It is one of the largest and most influential men's choruses in the nation; the first gay chorus to perform for a sitting president -
Bill Clinton - and recently for President
Barack Obama. The 220-member Chorus has toured internationally, released 15 compact discs, commissioned over 300 new works and guest starred on such TV shows as "$#*! My Dad Says," "Will & Grace", "Six Feet Under" and "The 2013 Oscars." In October 2010, in response to the sharp rise in anti-gay related suicides, GMCLA produced an It Gets Better video featuring
Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors," a viral sensation that has received more than 800,000 hits. Presenting several concerts each season in Los Angeles including the popular "Holiday Spectacular," they perform frequently at the Alex Theatre,
Saban Theatre and
Walt Disney Concert Hall and feature music legends such as
LeAnn Rimes,
Melissa Manchester and
Jerry Herman. GMCLA is committed to supporting L.A. youth through Outside Voices (an LGBT youth chorus) and the Alive Music Project (AMP), a unique music education outreach program for middle and high school students that uses song to create a powerful anti-bullying message. Their original musical "it gets better" is currently on a US tour. (
www.gmcla.org)
