Attention Fresno Readers: take part in one of the largest community events of 2017! Join us for the annual Fresno Rainbow Pride event, scheduled for Saturday, June 3rd from 10AM to 3PM in Fresno’s historic Tower District. We encourage everyone to attend! Join community members from all over California’s Central Valley as they take part in the largest annual event in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT+) community. With a bounce house and kids’ area, and various food vendors, this is sure to be one of the most fun-filled events you will attend this year. All ages are welcome and we encourage you to invite all of your family and friends. This is a great way to personally show your support for all members of our community as we work to show inclusion in the Fresno area. Join us for this amazing community celebration as we honor our 27th anniversary. This is a beautiful testament to Fresno’s growing support for everyone in the community, and you can be part of it.

Fresno Rainbow Pride includes a parade, from 10AM to 11AM, through the heart of Fresno’s historic Tower District with various contingents who march in support of the LGBT+ culture and pride of the LGBT+ community. Among the organizations scheduled to march are Peace Fresno, Trans-E-Motion, the Fresno County Library, FAB, Bobby Salazar’s, the Fresno Democratic Women’s Club, and the St. Paul Catholic Newman Center. The festival portion, from 11AM to 3PM, will include food and merchandise vendors and informational booths along with a dynamic live entertainment tent. This is the perfect event for anyone looking for a good festival, safe space, and friendly people. Among the organizations scheduled to have a table during the festival are Positive Life, Fresno Stonewall Democrats, Wells Fargo, First Congregational Church of Fresno, Promesa Behavioral Health, Turning Point, Pink Panthers Movement Fresno, LGBT Fresno, and Planned Parenthood. Attendees can look forward to enjoying delicious food from our vendors including Erlinda’s Shaved Ice, and Jay’s Specialty Ice Cream.

Don’t forget to visit the entertainment booth to watch dynamic performances from local entertainers as well as visitors from out of town. Those expected to grace the stage are the Ray Moore Band, Priscilla McNamara, Camilla P. Davis, Sasha Allure and Deja Sky. Attendees will have the opportunity to enjoy both live bands, singers, and lip sync performances. At Pride, we like variety. Like with previous years, we will kick off the fun in the entertainment tent with a series of performances by the Raging Grannies, whose lyrics are as poignant as their personalities.

The theme this year is “One Step Starts A Movement” to show that we are a part of a movement and together we can be a powerful unified front. Your visible support during this special day helps us to build a stronger community in the Fresno area. More information can be found at fresnorainbowpride.com. We hope to see you there!

Tickets start at only $33

Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA comes to the Saroyan Theatre May 16 - 17, 2017
Ticketmaster is the official ticketing source for Broadway In Fresno and the Saroyan Theatre.

Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA is the Tony Award®- winning Broadway musical from the creators of The Sound of Music and South Pacific that’s delighting audiences with its contemporary take on the classic tale. This lush production features an incredible orchestra, jaw-dropping transformations and all the moments you love—the pumpkin, the glass slipper, the masked ball and more—plus some surprising new twists! Be transported back to your childhood as you rediscover some of Rodgers + Hammerstein’s most beloved songs, including “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible/It’s Possible” and “Ten Minutes Ago,” in this hilarious and romantic Broadway experience for anyone who’s ever had a wish, a dream... or a really great pair of shoes.

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Tickets start at only $33

Direct from Broadway, the world’s best selling magic show is coming to Fresno, CA!
THE ILLUSIONISTS – LIVE FROM BROADWAY comes to the Saroyan Theatre April 26 - 27, 2017
Ticketmaster is the official ticketing source for Broadway In Fresno and the Saroyan Theatre.

This mind blowing spectacular showcases the jaw dropping talents of seven of the most incredible Illusionists on earth.
THE ILLUSIONISTS – LIVE FROM BROADWAY has shattered box office records across the globe and dazzles audiences of all ages with a powerful mix of the most outrageous and astonishing acts ever to be seen on stage.
This non-stop show is packed with thrilling and sophisticated magic of unprecedented proportions.

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The box was too small for a toaster.

There was no pony in there, no new car, not even a stuffed animal. The box was too small for all that, but it held so much more: dreams, ideas, happiness, congratulations! And if you’re lucky, your wise new fiance tucked “Before I Do” by Elizabeth F. Schwartz in the box with your beautiful engagement ring.

So you put a ring on it, made the proposal, and now you’ve got a wedding to plan. It’s all quite exciting, but slow down a minute. If you’ve grown up thinking that this day would never come, then you might not have thought about what marriage entails.

“LGBT people,” says Schwartz, “have not lived in a world with premarital guidance for LGBT couples. We have suffered systemic exclusion.”

Just because you can be married now is no reason that you should, she points out. Yes, you’re in love, and yes, you’ve been together forever but now’s the time to be sure you know exactly what you’re in for. That starts by asking yourselves a series of difficult but important questions.

Once you’ve gotten that (perhaps uncomfortable) part out of the way, be sure that any past relationships are completely and legally finished and “do not create confusion with multiple statuses with multiple people.” Know what paperwork you need in order to proceed, and what questions you’ll be asked as you’re filling it out.

This pre-wedding period is a good time to talk to a financial expert, a tax consultant, and a lawyer. Don’t trust word-of-mouth to protect your finances; the laws in your state may horrify you, if wedded bliss goes bust. Talk about debt: how much each of you has, and how you perceive it. Educate yourself on insurance coverage, asset protection, pre-nups, and estate planning.

And if all this preparation makes you start to think that maybe marriage isn’t such a good idea after all, Schwartz says it’s okay. There are valid reasons for not taking the plunge, and there are alternatives. One of them may be a much better fit for you.

Getting engaged is such an exciting time. Putting the brakes on everything isn’t the most romantic notion, but it’s maybe the most prudent. “Before I Do” explains why.

Though she says her advice in this book is appropriate for anyone, author Elizabeth F. Schwartz focuses more on gay and lesbian couples, as well as trans individuals and their prospective spouses. She does so, in part, because she feels that they’ve only seen marriage “on the fringes.”

That somewhat sets this book apart from the thousands of other wedding-planner books on bookshelves; what really makes it different, however, is that Schwartz admits her no-nonsense words may talk prospective brides and grooms out of having a wedding. Truth: Readers who might’ve somehow taken marriage lightly before will absolutely be convinced otherwise.

“Failure to plan has terrible consequences,” says Schwartz, and this book erases that omission. Read “Before I Do,” though, and rest assured that you can toast one another smarter.

Dirty Dancing really started off on the right foot with the amazing female vocals on "This Magic Moment," sang by Chante Carmel. Right away I thought Chante you stay. The male vocalist, Jordan Edwin Andre, as Billy wasn't lacking in any way either. His talent was featured well in his solo, "In The Still Of The Night." That guy had some major air flowing through his pipes.

The choreography was full of jazzy musical theater flair. Exciting lifts, dips, lay outside and splits were performed with a sense of ease through out the performance. The female dancers, especially Jennifer Mealani Jones, who played Penny had flexible backs and beautiful legs that sensually arched and extended. Even more exciting were the unison sections which included sexy hip movements, cha cha and merengue.

The standard I held them to was the performances in the movie. I really wanted them to dance as well as Jennifer Gray and Patrick Swayze. Understudy Angelica Bette Fellini, who played baby, did not fully transform from awkward virgin to passionate performer, as Jennifer Gray did in the film. The actor who played Johnny Castle looked good shirtless, and was an OK dancer. He moved his hips well while ballroom social dancing and while he lead the formation in unison. His solo lacked the power that Patrick Swayze had in his performance. His coupe jete was weak and low to the stage. He could not do a double pirouette into a double tour. His singles weren't all that great because his parallel retire was too low and he lacked a nice fifth position in the air. I would have preferred "Hungry Eyes" to be a dynamic vocal and dance solo rather than a video montage. Although the digital technology was impressive through out the show.

The highlight of the night was when Baby and Johnny went to bed together, much to the audience's delight. The acting was overall very good. However when it came to the moment of truth, the lift, they fell short. They did not do it very well. Neither did the couple pictures on the program.
Lisa's Hula and Besame Mucho provided much necessary comic relief. These two performers maintained the integrity of Broadway performance art.

So in the end I was a little disappointed by their final performance of the night. I would suggest that, the two lead actors spend some time in a grassy field, and pool practicing that iconic lift, that is the high mark of difficulty in the history of dance on film and stage. I am happy I watched this performance because although placed in the height of the Civil Rights movement, it still remained relevant to today's audience.

There was a time when homosexuality wasn't as well accepted as it is today. During the Stonewall Riots of 1969, and the turbulent civil rights movement in the 1970s, families of the LGBT community had to come together, and accept themselves, in order to fight for what was right.

"When We Rise" is an eight part mini-series that will air on ABC beginning February 27 through Friday March 3. This important series chronicles the history of the LBGT community, and activists within that community who paved the way for the rights and liberties the LGBT community enjoys today. The series follows the life of Cleve Jones, who was a large contributor to the AIDS quilt, and Ken Jones, who was a Vietnam veteran who addressed the issue of racial bias in the gay community. The series also follows the life of Roma Guy, who founded the San Francisco Women's Building, and Diane, who worked as an HIV/AIDS nurse at the San Francisco General Hospital. The miniseries will take all who watch it, regardless of sexual orientation, through a journey of understanding of how the LGBT community struggled through the years, and inspire others to stand up against social injustices to make the world a better place.

Starring:

Guy Pearce as Cleve Jones
Micheal K. Williams as Ken Jones
Mary-Louise Parker as Roma Guy
Rachel Griffins as Diane
Ivory Aquino as Cecilla Chung
Carrie Preston as Sally Gearhart
Rosie O'Donnell as Del Martin
Whoopi Goldburg as Pat Norman

Premieres February 27 at 9pm on ABC

Earlier today I watched a facebook video of the London based company warming up slowly doing  modern dance technique bartnieff fundamentals.   I found that interesting because I expected them to be diligently perfecting their turn out at the barre like many other ballet companies. This is not your ordinary dance company.   They have dancers who have no formal training,  dancers who graduated from ballet schools, and everything in between.

The first piece "Rabbit" choreographed by Pontus Lindberg,  started with a soloist who had his hair in a man bun doing slow movements, and a dancer on a wood and rope swing with a rabbit head.   The contemporary choreography slowed down and sped up and had inversions,  falls in fourth position, and low arabesque turns.  The smoothness was juxtaposed with Nijinskyesque parallel stomping,  skipping,  and leaping.   There were animal like gestures.  The most exciting dancing was when the dancers came on stage without the rabbit heads and danced and partnered in unison and canon.

The second piece "Fiction" choreographed by Javier de Frutos was performed to recorded voices infused with a cover of Donna Summer's "Last Dance."  The voices saying "Catholic homosexual," "Naked man," "biggest piece of crap we have ever seen," and "received death threats," stood out to me.  The idea behind this piece was de Frutos had imagined his own death due to a plastic shard falling from a set piece killing him.  There was a ballet barre on stage that the dancers did classical ballet warm ups like turn in,  turn out battement second,  and plies and contemporary rolls, falls, and partnering.  The voices may have represented the choreographer's worst criticism that could have been heard after he died.

Life 2017 was an entertaining evening length show that had simple skipping and paddle turns, and difficult inversions and partnering.  It ended with a post modern back fall.  It left us with the paradox that sometimes in life we think about what happens after we die 

Tickets start at only $38

DIRTY DANCING comes to the Saroyan Theatre February 21 - 22, 2017.
Ticketmaster is the official ticketing source for Broadway In Fresno and the Saroyan Theatre.

DIRTY DANCING – THE CLASSIC STORY ON STAGE is an unprecedented live experience, exploding with heart-pounding music, passionate romance and sensational dancing.

February 21 & 22, 2017 * 7:30pm * William Saroyan Theatre

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