Neighborhood stakeholders are pleased that the forthcoming 51st Castro Street Fair will be the first to incorporate the new Castro entertainment zone. The event, set for Sunday, October 5, will see fairgoers able to stroll the fair with adult beverages in hand if they so choose.
Founded by the late gay trailblazer and supervisor Harvey Milk, the fair is a quintessential San Francisco event that showcases the LGBTQ neighborhood. Milk founded it the same year he became a columnist for the Bay Area Reporter.
An early B.A.R. report on that 1974 event, penned by Milk, stated, “It was San Francisco’s first street fair to be enjoyed by the people and not one geared for the tourist trade and dollars ... while there were the usual street artisans selling their wares, a carnival spirit flowed thru the crowd that was so full of warmth that even one bad incident which took place could not dampen it.”
Count members of the Castro Merchants Association among those proud that legacy of commerce is slated to continue at this year’s event, which will run from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. There’s a suggested gate donation of $10-$20.
“I’m thrilled for this year’s Castro Street Fair. October is one of the most beautiful times to be in San Francisco, and the fair always shows off the Castro at its best,” Castro Merchants President Nate Bourg, a gay man, stated to the B.A.R. “With the new entertainment zone, our bars and restaurants will have even more opportunities to serve the community, while visitors can enjoy strolling the fair with a drink in hand.
“I’ve seen how successful these activations are in cities like Paris, Barcelona, and Lisbon, and I’m excited to see that same vibrancy here in our gayborhood,” he added.
The fair will be closing Market Street from Noe to Castro streets, Castro Street from Market to 19th streets, 18th Street from Diamond to Noe streets, and 17th Street from Castro to Noe streets. This is the same footprint as in 2024.
As the B.A.R. previously reported, the Castro Upper Market Entertainment Zone established by the Board of Supervisors and Mayor Daniel Lurie earlier this year allows for alcohol to be consumed outdoors during special events.
See page 10 >>
SF LGBT center names new ED
by Cynthia Laird
TFlexing their UK muscles at Folsom
The Folsom Street Fair is known for having visitors from around the world and the 42nd annual event Sunday, September 28, was no exception.
their muscles as they attended the celebration of leather and kink in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood. For more photos, see the Bay Area Reporter’s BARtab page on Facebook. https://www. facebook.com/lgbtsf.nightlife
he board of the San Francisco LGBT Community Center didn’t have to look far before settling on its next leader. Jen Valles, a queer femme who is currently the center’s deputy director, on Monday was named its new executive director.
by Matthew S. Bajko
LValles, who also previously worked at the center for two years during the aughts, succeeds lesbian longtime Executive Director Rebecca Rolfe, who announced in April that she would be stepping down at the end of the year. Valles’s first official day will be January 5, after the center reopens following its holiday break, she said.
See page 10 >>
Lesbian CA governor candidate Atkins suspends campaign
2017 Media Kit 0 a
esbian former legislative leader Toni Atkins has suspended her campaign to be elected California governor. She had been vying to become the first woman and first LGBTQ leader to lead the Golden State but had failed to gain traction amid the crowded, and still growing, field of gubernatorial candidates.
The Los Angeles Blade covers Los Angeles and California news, politics, opinion, arts and entertainment and features national and international coverage from the Blade’s award-winning reporting team. Be part of this exciting publication serving LGBT Los Angeles from the team behind the Washington Blade, the nation’s first LGBT newspaper. From the freeway to the Beltway we’ve got you covered.
Atkins, who missed a gubernatorial debate Sunday citing illness, made the decision to drop out of the 2026 race over the weekend, according to her campaign. She announced her withdrawal “with a heavy heart” to supporters in an email Monday afternoon.
“Despite the strong support we’ve received and all we’ve achieved, there is simply no viable path forward to victory. Though my campaign is ending, I will keep fighting for California’s future,” wrote Atkins, 63, a former San Diego city councilmember and interim mayor.
The out Democratic leader had gone on to break through several political ceilings in the state Legislature, first in the Assembly and then the Senate. She was the first out woman to serve as Assembly speaker and Senate president pro tempore and, in so doing, became the first person to lead both chambers.
Just last month, a number of her former LGBTQ
colleagues in Sacramento had personally endorsed her campaign. And the 14-member Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, made up of just Democratic legislators, had also backed Atkins’ candidacy.
“I entered this race because I still believe in the promise of California – and I’ve spent my life trying to fulfill that promise for more Californians. From my time on the San Diego City Council and as Act-
ing Mayor, to serving as Speaker of the Assembly, and later leading the State Senate, we’ve gotten a lot done,” noted Atkins. “My intention was to build on that progress, to bring real solutions from day one, and to do good work for the people. That’s why it’s with such a heavy heart that I’m stepping aside today as a candidate for governor.”
See page 10 >>
The Castro will have Sam Smith
SF bell choir's history
Kate Pierson
Vera, left, performed in front of an appreciative crowd at last year’s Castro Street Fair.
Rick Gerharter
Jen Valles has been named the next executive director of the San Francisco LGBT Community Center.
Sarah Deragon of Portraits to the People
Toni Atkins, a former state legislative leader, has suspended her 2026 gubernatorial campaign.
Courtesy the campaign
Eddie Boiii, left, from Scotland and Teddy Bryce from Liverpool, England, flexed
Rick Gerharter
New Mission Station captain hopes to stick around
by John Ferrannini
After about two months at the helm of Mission Station – the police precinct that oversees much of the Castro neighborhood – San Francisco Police Department Captain Sean Perdomo said it wasn’t hard to identify the biggest policing issue for the city’s LGBTQ neighborhood.
“That’s an easy one,” Perdomo, a 43-year-old San Francisco native and straight ally, said after having been asked that question in a sit-down interview at the station September 23. “Quality of life for sure, because fortunately we do not see a lot of violent crime in comparison to the rest of the district west of Guerrero [Street]. … It’s a citywide problem, not as publicized as what you see on Sixth Street, or here at 16th and Mission [streets].”
As the Bay Area Reporter previously reported, former police chief William Scott beefed up law enforcement in the Castro after gay Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman, who represents the neighborhood on the board as District 8 supervisor, complained that efforts to improve street conditions downtown led to some people with violent tendencies to relocate to the streets of the Castro. Mandelman told the B.A.R. at the time that Lurie promised “more officers, more foot beats, more drug enforcement, more motorcycle cops – more of everything.”
Mandelman did not respond to a request for comment.
Asked if the additional officers are working, Perdomo said, “I believe so.”
Asked if there are metrics to measure if that’s the case, he said it’s hard to objectively measure that, but that his general sense from interactions with Castro residents is that things are improving. Perdomo is looking for the pattern “behind the numbers,” he said.
“When you look at the quantity of reports, I look more about qualitative,” Perdomo said. “Numbers fluctuate. Today’s warm; I can tell you for sure there will be more calls for service.”
Perdomo said District 8 Public Safety liaison Dave Burke, a straight ally, has a “list of individuals” whom Castro businesses, residents, and visitors have repeatedly complained about having caused disturbances. He called these “frequent flyers.”
Reached for comment, Burke stated that, “I hesitate to roll out this word because it is so overused these days – but Captain Perdomo is truly ‘collaborative’ with the community he serves.
“He’s also smart, curious and a joy to work with,” he stated of Perdomo. “The captain relishes taking questions from groups of Mission neighbors focused on the myriad issues involving public safety. In my experience, that’s the best way to learn what people need, want and expect from the police.”
Perdomo said, “We are doing criminal history checks and pulling their police reports, so if we have ongoing violence … then we can take criminal action.”
Terry Asten Bennett, a straight ally who is the former president of the Castro Merchants Association and the coowner of Cliff’s Variety at 479 Castro Street, told the B.A.R. that she has had “very positive” interactions with Perdomo.
“I love that we have a captain at Mission Station that already knows the neighborhood,” Asten Bennett stated to the B.A.R. “Every neighborhood has its challenges, but the Castro requires that the police understand our challenges, listen to us, and work with us to continue improving. I think coming into the job with this already understood has given him a head start.”
She said that in responding to calls for service, “he listened and he acted … in a productive manner.”
Perdomo said this is his third goaround at Mission Station, having been assigned there in the 2000s and in the 2010s, first as an officer and then as a sergeant. For this stint, he replaced Liza Johansen, a straight ally, as the captain after her abrupt departure.
Johansen had just started as the captain last fall, as the B.A.R. reported at the time. She was the fifth Mission Station captain in four years responsible for the station.
Asked how long he intends to stay, Perdomo said, “I hope to be here as long as the chief will have me.”
A spokesperson for San Francisco interim Police Chief Paul Yep, who has replaced Scott as the city looks for a permanent chief, didn’t return a request for comment for this report.
Between Johansen’s tenure and Perdomo’s start on the job, Mission Station was led temporarily by Manny Bonilla.
A KPIX-TV report from February 2024 stated that Perdomo had been assisting with training a large new class of officers at the police academy. He formally was captain of the Police Academy and is a former treasurer of the San Francisco Police Officers Association.
Two years ago, Perdomo was involved in the department’s creating guidance on
police foot chases. As he told the city’s Police Commission, “Something that you learn, as you become a more senior officer, is weighing the costs and benefits of chasing after somebody.”
A 2017 report in the San Francisco Examiner called him a “top scorer” in the officer exam. It stated he was “a sergeant with a record of aggressive policing, according to news reports and department sources. For instance, a man was acquitted in a case that involved Perdomo tackling him and falsely identifying him as a suspect in a drug-dealing case. But Perdomo is also known for putting away a man who was posing as a police officer and sexually assaulting Latino men.”
Other Castro stakeholders shared positive views of Perdomo’s tenure thus far.
Nate Bourg, a gay man who is the current president of the Castro Merchants, stated, “It’s been a pleasure getting to know Captain Perdomo in his time so far as captain in what we hope will be a long tenure. The strong ongoing relationship between Castro Merchants and SFPD Mission Station is vital in helping keep our neighborhood safe and welcoming for residents, visitors and business owners.”
Andrea Aiello, a lesbian who is the executive director of the Castro Community Benefit District, also has a close working relationship with the SFPD. Aiello said Perdomo is leading with curiosity – and hopes he can stay longer than his recent predecessors.
“I have spoken with Captain Perdomo a few times and have found him welcoming, engaging, and competent,” Aiello stated. “He appears to have a fairly open door policy and is interested in getting to know the Castro, understand its challenges, and willing to dig into his toolbox to address those challenges that fall under his jurisdiction. I look forward to working with him and do hope he can stay at Mission Station for a few years.”
Perdomo promises officers will take reports
In the aftermath of a B.A.R. article featuring a gay man who alleged police discouraged him from reporting an alleged homophobic attack, Perdomo was asked if the perception San Francisco
police are indifferent to crime is a public relations problem, or if his officers are not taking reports when they should be.
“I think it’s just poor public relations in the sense we haven’t explained what goes into a call for service and what goes into the officer’s response,” he said. “A lot of people don’t know why police do what they do. It’s very apparent to police officers, but not to the public.”
Perdomo said taking reports is “a game of telephone – literally,” and that sometimes (though not in the case of the person in the B.A.R.’s report) people call 911 but don’t want to provide police the necessary information to file a report.
“If police can’t develop a case or a suspect, they aren’t left with much else to do,” he said.
Perdomo assured the B.A.R. he would talk to any officer who didn’t take a crime report when they should.
“They will take a police report,” he said. “If they don’t do that, I will talk to them, open an investigation, and there will be discipline.”
Perdomo also had thoughts about Scott’s assertion to the B.A.R. earlier this year that data backed up the department’s decision to have officers walking the Castro beat during the day and not at night. Scott had said SFPD had “researched” the best times for officers to be walking the beat.
“The waking hours most people are out … even in the Castro, where there’s a thriving nightlife, the daytime, is the swing watch hours of noon to 8 [p.m.], 11 [a.m. to 7 [p.m.], those are the hours when most people are out,” Scott had said.
Perdomo said that, “It’s not uncommon where you have a lot of bars and alcohol” that there are nighttime safety issues.
“They say nothing good happens after midnight,” he quipped, but added, “I guess you don’t have a lot of complaints” about crime at the bars.
“You don’t see a lot of assault with a deadly weapon cases in places like that,” he said. “I just don’t get a lot of calls for service about nightlife stuff. If I did, I would shift more resources around to do that.” t
Charges advance against man in pink triangle vandalism case
by John Ferrannini
ASan Francisco judge ruled that charges will go forward against a 19-year-old man accused of vandalizing the pink triangle installation atop Twin Peaks during Pride Month in June. The judge’s decision followed a preliminary hearing September 30 in San Francisco Superior Court.
As the Bay Area Reporter previously reported, Lester Bamacajeronimo was charged with a felony count of vandalism in the amount of over $400, and two other counts of possession of graffiti tools and resisting arrest.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins told the B.A.R. her office opted not to charge a hate crime in this case because, in her words, Bamacajeronimo “was unaware of what the pink triangle represented and he was trying to be artistic in modifying it.”
At the preliminary hearing in Department 12, Bamacajeronimo’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Sarah Gabriele Hashemi, told Judge Cecilia P. Castellanos that Bamacajeronimo, currently a high school student, should not have to carry the weight of a felony charge for the rest of his life. She asked that it be reduced to a misdemeanor.
“He has no previous criminal history,” Hashemi pointed out. “I do think that’s been impressed upon him, the seriousness of this conduct.”
Hashemi said it would be beneficial if her client volunteered with local LGBTQ organizations.
“The DA’s office did not charge this
as a hate crime,” Hashemi said. “This is a crime of ignorance.”
Assistant District Attorney Patrick McKuin, who’s prosecuting the case, asked the judge not to make that call herself.
“That may be appropriate,” McKuin said. “But it should be part of a negotiated disposition.”
Castellanos said whether Bamacajeronimo knew that the pink triangle was the symbol LGBTQ people had to wear in German concentration camps during World War II was not material to whether a felony charge should go forward. Hashemi claims he wanted to turn it into the symbol for the comic book hero Superman.
Patrick Carney, a gay man who cofounded the installation and who puts up the display annually – with the help of volunteers – had testified that the total cost of the damaged items when he bought them in 2023 was $3,845, including $1,941 for damaged sail cloth on
the borders, $985 for 26 damaged tarps, and $917 for the damaged grommet installations. However, the materials were bought from the United Kingdom and China before President Donald Trump slapped tariffs on the countries, meaning Carney estimates replacements will cost more now. Carney, who is a city arts commissioner, said he will fundraise to replace the items, which he initially bought on his credit card, but has not started yet.
“Mr. Bamacajeronimo, and without anyone encouraging him or helping him, decided to vandalize someone else’s property,” Castellanos said. “It doesn’t matter what it was.”
Bamacajeronimo will appear in court again for another arraignment October 14 at 9 a.m. in Department 22.
In addition to Carney, San Francisco Police Officer Willion Wong testified that while responding to a call for service on June 17, he caught Bamacajeronimo with two black spray paint cans spraying the pink triangle installation and chased him 50 yards downhill, where he was detained. Wong said further that he explained the significance of the pink triangle to Bamacajeronimo.
“The pink triangle is a symbol they were forced to wear by the Germans in concentration camps during World War II, and they took that and made it their own symbol of resilience … and put that on Twin Peaks,” Wong explained.
After the vandalism, Carney left the damaged tarps up until the pink triangle was taken down June 29 following the San Francisco Pride parade. t
San Francisco Police Department Captain Sean Perdomo oversees Mission Station.
John Ferrannini
Portions of the pink triangle atop Twin Peaks were vandalized during this year’s display in mid-June.
Patrick Carney
Paris Opera Ballet
Red Carpet
A North American Premiere by Hofesh Shechter Performed to live music with costumes by CHANEL
Don’t miss the stunning dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet as they take on Hofesh Shechter’s explosive choreography in Red Carpet—an eagerly awaited North American premiere. A lush visual spectacle, the set includes moving catwalks, a monumental chandelier, and the CHANEL-designed costumes are a must-see.
Don’t miss this single West Coast engagement!
Oct 2–4
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Isidore Quartet
The celebrated quartet returns with a program that combines familiar repertoire by Haydn and Dvořák with Gabriella Smith’s exuberant Carrot Revolution
Oct 12
HERTZ HALL, BERKELEY
Nobuyuki Tsujii, piano
Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii— known to his legion of fans simply as Nobu—lends his emotionally direct, charismatic approach to much-loved music by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, and Prokofiev.
Oct 30
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Twelfth Night
Handel’s Aminta e Fillide
David Belkovski and Rachell Ellen Wong, direction Nicoletta Berry, soprano (Aminta) Megan Moore, mezzo-soprano (Fillide)
The exciting next-generation period-instrument ensemble makes its Berkeley debut with a lively concert performance of Handel’s romantic comedy Aminta e Fillide, sung in English.
Nov 9
HERTZ HALL, BERKELEY
Anne Sofie von Otter, mezzo-soprano
Kristian Bezuidenhout, fortepiano
The magisterial mezzo-soprano and acclaimed keyboardist visit for a performance of Schubert’s timeless Schwanengesang song collection, which explores complex emotional terrain, from love and despair to sorrow and serenity.
Oct 5
HERTZ HALL, BERKELEY
Philharmonia Orchestra Santtu-Matias Rouvali, principal conductor Víkingur Ólafsson, piano
The stellar London-based orchestra returns to Berkeley with Finnish maestro Santtu-Matias Rouvali in two programs featuring Grammy Award-winning pianist Víkingur Ólafsson! Get ready to hear a sublime collection of works including Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 and Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G Major.
Oct 18–19
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Third Coast Percussion & Salar Nader, tabla Murmurs in Time
In tribute to the late Zakir Hussain, Grammy-winning Third Coast Percussion performs the legendary tabla master’s only composition for a classical percussion group featuring tabla virtuoso Salar Nader, a Hussain acolyte.
Nov 1
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Jeremy Denk, piano
Bach’s Six Partitas for Solo Keyboard
Renowned pianist Jeremy Denk lends his keen interpretive insight and captivating virtuosity to Bach’s six keyboard partitas, compositions known for being as technically intricate as they are sublime.
Nov 14
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Kronos Quartet
Beyond the Golden Gate
by
The visionary quartet, as vital as ever 50 years on, performs new and recent works by an international cohort of women composers, along with Beyond the Golden Gate, a multimedia program exploring Chinese American history.
Oct 11
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Lila Downs
Día de los Muertos
Celebrate the Day of the Dead
Oct 25
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Sadler’s Wells and Shaolin Temple present Sutra
Cherkaoui
Gormley
Szymon Brzóska with
Nov 8–9
ZELLERBACH HALL, BERKELEY
Music
Dai Wei, Wu Man, Lu Yun, Victoria Shen, and others Featuring Wu Man, pipa, in conversation with David Lei Windy Chien, visuals
Handbell choir with LGBTQ ties seeks new ringers << LGBTQ History Month
by Matthew S. Bajko
As she was putting together her plans for the Dance-Along Nutcracker annual holiday concert presented by San Francisco’s LGBTQ marching band, then-director Jadine Louie fielded a request to have a handbell choir at the 1996 December performances. It came from Steve Rausch, then serving as music director at Bethany United Methodist Church.
Rausch, a gay man, had been wanting a handbell choir to perform during services and other events at the liberal congregation in the city’s Noe Valley neighborhood. That July, he got the opportunity to form one when he learned a city senior center had put three octaves of handbells up for sale.
“Jerry Lindberg, who tuned Bethany’s pipe organ, taught music and sign language (deaf signing) to the seniors there and he notified me that they were selling their handbells,” recalled Rausch, 65, who now lives with his husband in Rancho Mirage near Palm Springs. “We bought the bells for $3,000, primarily using my credit card and Susan Griffin, a member of Bethany and future handbell ringer, chipped in about $1,000 of the funds.”
The Winds of Freedom Band, the concert band of the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Marching Band and Twirling Corps, routinely performed free community concerts at Bethany church. So, when Rausch that summer was recruiting bell ringers, he had asked a band member to help spread the word. Half of the handbell choir’s first members ended up being Bethany congregants and the rest performers in the marching band, now known as the San Francisco Pride Band and designated as the city’s official band.
Rausch was among the inaugural eight bell ringers and had been urged by Bethany’s pastor at the time, the Reverend Karen Oliveto, to contact Louie
about incorporating the handbell choir into the annual nutcracker shows. Oliveto was a devoted attendee of them each December.
“I begged and pleaded with Jadine to get us to play,” Rausch, who first picked up handbells in the mid-1980s at a church in Chicago, told the Bay Area Reporter during a recent phone interview.
Louie, who could not be reached for comment, allowed the bell ringers to perform in the lobby as attendees arrived for the event. The following year, she incorporated the bell ringers into the nutcracker performances, having them play on two songs.
“In 1998, we were also invited to play and did some music on our own, silly songs like ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.’ We all wore reindeer antlers and had red noses,” recalled Rausch, who by 2012 had stopped performing in the handbell choir.
Since its inception, the handbell choir has been sponsored by Bethany UMC. There are currently nine people on the roster of handbell ringers, both LGBTQ and straight, and anyone is welcome to join it.
“It’s the church’s bell choir but it is operated independently,” explained Michael Eaton, 64, a gay man and lay leader at the church.
A founding member who continues to perform with it, Eaton said the handbell choir is looking to bolster its ranks as it readies for its fall and holiday performances this year, and prepares to mark its 30th anniversary in 2026. For the choir’s milestone year, Easton said, “It would be nice to have a little bit of a splash” from recruiting new members.
It ideally would like to have at least 13 bell ringers. Having a larger group, noted Eaton, would mean people could miss a rehearsal or performance if they have a schedule conflict.
Plus, the choir would have a greater repertory it could perform with more members able to play different notes with the handbells.
“We could try more difficult songs,” said choir member Andrea Peng. “I’d also like to see the group growing. It is a nice way to meet people. It is very casual; nobody is going to wag a finger at you if you play the wrong note.”
A choir with appeal
The handbell choir is officially known as Bell Appeal. The name plays off the musicality of the instruments the members use, explained Eaton.
“Bells have a pealing sound,” he said.
Darwin Choy, 57, a gay man who played with the marching band and was a founding member of the handbell choir, came up with the name. Born and raised in San Francisco, Choy took up the clarinet in the fifth grade and played it in college with the marching band at UC Berkeley, from which he graduated in 1990.
Now living in Vallejo, he continues to perform with Bell Appeal but is no longer with the Pride band, in which he had first played clarinet then percussion. One reason he likes to play the handbells is they have a unique sound, said Choy.
“I like the musicality and the diverse repertoire of songs. We do everything from the secular to the sacred,” said Choy, an administrative coordinator with McDonald’s corporate offices. “I
As one example, a choir member rearranged pop musician Sara Bareilles’ 2013 song “Brave” that she co-wrote with Jack Antonoff and drew inspiration from a friend’s struggle with their sexual orientation. Bell Appeal performed it at its Pride concert in June, and a video of it performing the song with a guest singer from its 2017 “Let Freedom Ring” concert can be seen on its YouTube page at https://www.youtube.com/@jetnefer.
“Each bell is a note, but it is different than playing the piano. The trick is to get all of the handbells to be playing at the right time but also the different handbells to be playing either soft or loud notes,” said Eaton.
Bell Appeal’s members throughout the years have been a mix of Bethany congregants, musicians from the marching band, and local residents. The group has also performed with the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, such as in 2004 at the choral group’s beloved Christmas Eve holiday shows.
“It was one of the first LGBTQfriendly handbell groups in the U.S.,” noted Michèle Sharik, who is the Area 12 chair for the organization Handbell Musicians of America. “Now we have several more across the country.”
Sharik and her wife, who recently moved back to the Bay Area and reside in Vallejo, both are handbell performers. A member of the Sonos Handbell Ensemble, Sharik is also the founding artistic director of the Timbré Ensemble based in Claremont, California.
On a recent Monday evening, she was holding a workshop for members of Bell Appeal in their rehearsal room at Bethany church about how to ergonomically hold and play their instruments to avoid injuries to their wrists, arms, or shoulders. Speaking to the B.A.R. beforehand, Sharik equated playing handbells as “the ultimate team sport” due to the members of a choir performing in unison to the music.
“Handbell ringing is fun and it is a big puzzle,” noted Sharik. “We have a saying, if you can tell your left hand from your right hand and count to four, you can learn to play handbell.”
When Peng and her husband relocated from Seattle to Noe Valley several years ago, Peng sought to meet new people and discovered Bell Appeal. Growing up in Washington state, she had performed with the handbell choir at her school, as had her mother, and later on her three children joined the handbell choir at their schools.
Last fall, Peng took part in her first rehearsal with the choir based at Bethany church. Having also played piano and the clarinet in her youth, she was able to put her music reading ability to use again.
“It is a fun outlet and not a huge commitment. It gets you to be playing in a group,” said Peng, 54, a world champion speed jigsaw puzzler.
with Bell Appeal over the years, but this is his first time having a formal role with the group.
He performed with the handbell choir at his middle school in Hayward.
“It is a great way to learn music,” Alparone, who is bisexual, said of being part of such a musical ensemble. “You are playing a couple notes but you get very involved. It is an interesting type of group ensemble.”
Being part of a handbell choir is a good option for someone who had musical training as a child but may have stepped away from it as an adult, he said, and now is feeling “an itch” again for an artistic or musical pursuit.
“It is a great way to get back into it, maybe in a new way but still utilizing your talents in a fun way and a social way,” said Alparone. “It is a great group of people who enjoy hanging out with each other.”
Members of the choir also can travel to perform in handbell choir concerts around the world, as Eaton has performed in Italy, Washington, D.C., and on a handbell cruise two decades ago that sailed around the Caribbean and Central America. He and others have also performed at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, with several planning to travel this December to the Florida vacation destination to take part in annual Christmas shows held at its Epcot theme park produced by Global Bronze Productions. (For more information about those shows, visit https://globalbronzeproductions. com/upcomingevents.html.)
Choy, a Disney fan, is planning to go. He first marched down Main Street at Disneyland in Anaheim with Cal’s marching band and then performed in handbell choir concerts at the theme parks in both Southern California and Florida.
Doing so “is pretty awesome,” he said, as it combines “two of my favorite things into one. It is the best of both worlds. ... I love that opportunity to play something I love in a place I love to visit.”
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“Handbells have such a unique sound, but you don’t hear them very often,” noted Choy. “I think it is very beautiful to hear them played for all kinds of songs, from popular songs and rock to jazz and music from musicals. It makes it so much more interesting than a regular handbell choir, which usually performs at Christmas time; that is huge for handbell choirs.”
Each member of the choir can cover four musical notes using three to six handbells. The handbells of differing sizes come in five unique octaves, said Eaton.
“The giant ones are 10 pounds, maybe, while the little ones are a few ounces,” noted Eaton, a San Francisco resident now retired from his career in finance.
He played guitar and piano as a child, so didn’t find it difficult to take up the handbells.
The choir uses a basement room at the church to practice in, as it allows the members space to set up tables to arrange their bells on. It does so on Thursdays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
“While the practices are held at the church, and we do perform there for services three-four times a year, it is independent, and we also perform our own mini concerts,” explained Peng. With its tagline of “not your mama’s handbell choir,” Eaton said they “tried to make it hip” for younger people to join and not just retirees.
Added Peng, “If you like it and are into it, it is hip.”
Assisting the handbell choir with its holiday performances this year as its conductor is Evan Alparone, 40, Bethany’s current music director who lives in Walnut Creek. He has held the part-time position since 2021 and has worked
As for Bell Appeal’s longevity, Rausch attributed it to the group becoming more secularly-oriented with its performances, which attracted interest from a more diverse array of people who wanted to join it. That occurred in 2011, his last year working at Bethany.
“The group wanted to morph and become a more community-based group and not do just church services,” he said. “I think that really led to its long-time appeal.” t
Bell Appeal has yet to finalize its holiday concert schedule. Its next public performance will be during the 10:45 a.m. service on All Saints Sunday, November 2, at Bethany church, 1270 Sanchez Street at Clipper Street.
To learn more about the handbell choir and its upcoming events, visit its website at https://www. bellappeal.org/. Those interested in joining the choir can email bellappealsf@gmail.com.
Members of Bell Appeal are seeking new members.
Courtesy Doug Litwin
Members of Bell Appeal stood on steps in front of Bethany United Methodist Church in the late 1990s.
Courtesy Doug Litwin
Volume 55, Number 40
October 2-8, 2025
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Lurie should find a seat for Natoli
Back in January, just after his inauguration, we offered unsolicited advice to Mayor Daniel Lurie.
Among the items was that he continue appointing qualified LGBTQ people to city boards and commissions. And he did that last week, moving Al Perez, a gay man, from the entertainment commission to the arts commission. He also named a gay man, Mawuli Tugbenyoh, as the new permanent executive director of the city’s Human Rights Commission. But the mayor missed an opportunity to reappoint a qualified transgender woman, Jane Natoli, to the San Francisco Airport Commission, and last week replaced her with Nancy Tung, a straight ally who is also chair of the San Francisco Democratic Party.
Natoli told us she was disappointed and would have liked to continue serving. Former mayor London Breed had appointed Natoli in 2021 and her term expired August 31, though she continued to serve through September 26. The airport commission does not run day-today operations at San Francisco International Airport; it offers guidance and sets policy.
And in this age of President Donald Trump, that’s important. In fact, Natoli told us that one reason she wanted to continue serving was because of Trump’s executive order from January stating there are only two genders, male and female. The “X” gender markers that some trans and nonbinary people use on their U.S. passports might soon be a thing of the past, and Natoli said that she had advocated on behalf of trans passengers with concerns to the Transportation Security Administration.
LGBTQ leaders have expressed their disappointment in Lurie’s decision, and we are disheartened, too. While there are several other trans or nonbinary people serving on commissions or advisory boards, none are as high-profile as the airport panel. And whether intended or not, Natoli’s ouster does send a message to the wider community.
This is an extremely difficult time for trans people, who are collectively disparaged nearly every day either by Trump himself, members of his administration, or MAGA adherents. Just Tuesday, during Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s address to the country’s top military brass at a Marine base in Quantico, Virginia, he said, “No more DEI, dudes in dresses, or gender delusion … prepare for war.”
Trump, recently writing on Truth Social about the funding standoff that threatens a shutdown even as his Republican Party controls all the branches of government, stated,
“[Democrats] are threatening to shut down the Government of the United States unless they can have over $1 Trillion Dollars in new spending to continue free healthcare for Illegal Aliens (A monumental cost!), force Taxpayers to fund Transgender surgery for minors [...] allow men to play in women’s sports, and essentially create Transgender operations for everybody.” (We’d like to see what “transgender operations for everybody” entails, but we digress.)
In fact, thanks to Trump, many health care providers have now stopped providing such surgeries for people under 19 or paused other gender-affirming care. He won. All Trump has to do is write or say “transgender” and that unleashes the MAGA fury, all over a relatively small number of people who are just trying to live their lives.
We don’t think many people actually believe all of this crap, but it gets amplified when the president of the United States says it. And that’s the reality we’re now living in.
So, yes, the mayor’s dismissal of a qualified trans city commissioner does send a message, and it’s not a good one.
And Trump has not forgotten about the city. Speaking at Hegesth’s military gathering Tuesday, Trump said he was going to “straighten out” San Francisco. “San Francisco and Chicago, New York, Los Angeles. They’re very unsafe places,” Trump said. “We’re gonna straighten them out one by one.”
“It’s a war from within,” the president added. The remarks came about a month after the president threatened to send federal troops to the city.
The San Francisco Standard reported that Lurie, speaking later in the day at a City Hall ceremony, said crime is down 30% and has decreased 40% in the Financial District. He did not mention the president by name, the outlet reported, and has kept to that practice.
Regarding Natoli, Lurie could quickly rectify the matter by appointing her to another city oversight panel. In fact, several LGBTQ leaders have called for that. Gay District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey told us he expects she’ll be nominated for another appointment. Equality California, the statewide LGBTQ rights organization on whose board Natoli sits, also encouraged the Lurie administration to work with Natoli to identify new opportunities for her to serve the city. Gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) said that LGBTQ representation on city commissions is a concern.
“I also think it is important to make sure we are maintaining and growing representation from many communities, including the LGBTQ community,” said Wiener.
None of this should be taken as criticism of Tung, whom we expect will be a good commissioner. We have observed how she has helped turn around the local Democratic Party, including by holding its meetings in various parts of town, including the Castro, to generate more interest and enthusiasm ahead of next year’s midterm elections. It’s just that at this moment, given the situation in this country, it feels wrong for the mayor not to have reappointed a trans commissioner.
Lurie needs to do the right thing and appoint Natoli to a city commission. t
Meta’s Instagram needs to stop flagging queer content
It wasn’t lost on us that the same week we reported how queer content creators are having their posts flagged on Instagram, we were also dinged for a newsletter we shared on the site highlighting activities ahead of the Folsom Street Fair. “Inappropriate” was the term used by Instagram, as we also found that the link couldn’t be shared for some people. Instagram, the popular social media app owned by Meta, which also owns Facebook, Threads, and WhatsApp, needs to end this double standard whereby queer content is censored or removed solely because it is LGBTQ.
Ever since Mark Zuckerberg, owner of Meta, cozied up to Republican President Donald Trump, the social media sites he controls have been less than LGBTQ-friendly, and even downright hostile. One of Meta’s first acts earlier this year, as we previously noted, announced it was doing away with independent fact-checkers. It now includes new exceptions expressly allowing hate speech, such as stating that LGBTQ people are “abnormal” and “mentally ill.” Zuckerberg, of course, was at Trump’s inaugural in January and gave him $1 million to help fund the event. More recently, he said that Meta would be investing $600 billion into the U.S.
If all of this sounds troubling, well, it is. Instagram has told some content creators that the appearance of a butt was synonymous with the solicitation of sex, which is ridiculous. (And, by the way, our Folsom-themed newsletter contained no nudity.) The Exiles, a storied San Francisco woman- and queercentered educational Leather/BDSM organization, saw its account taken down for no reason and no specific post cited, as we reported. Still others, such as Jesus Gutierrez, co-founder of the Yes Homo gay lifestyle brand, saw the company’s Instagram account suspended in February for the alleged
Instagram has lessened the ability of LGBTQ content creators to have their feeds shared, including the Bay Area Reporter.
violation of “encouraging sexual activities.” One Tshirt that listed New York City LGBTQ venues was flagged as “promoting dangerous organizations.” Lucky for him, Gutierrez told us that he had a contact at Meta who was able to reverse the suspension within days. Yes, Gutierrez said he knows that’s a privilege.
Instagram’s free-wheeling suspensions and shadow banning (where content is secretly hidden or downplayed in user searches and algorithms without notifying the creators) is just another example of bias geared toward the LGBTQ community by these giant social media companies that many of us use and rely on. At the core of this is the anti-diversi-
ty, equity, and inclusion emphasis pushed by Trump and his administration. Social media companies are only one example, albeit a big one since billions of people use the platforms daily. Especially in the LGBTQ community, sites like Instagram are a place to share information and promote events, not to mention businesses.
Paige Collings with Electronic Freedom Foundation told us that what Instagram is doing around LGBTQ content creators is “algorithmic silencing around content.” There has been a proliferation of censorship of LGBTQ content, she noted, that has been most evident over the past two years, but especially since last November. That was, of course, when Trump won the presidential election. He spent much of his campaign going after trans people, and that only intensified when he took office. Among his first executive orders was declaring there are only two genders – male and female – and he also signed an order banning trans people from serving in the military.
As we’ve weathered these first eight months of the second Trump administration, it’s been brutal for the community, especially trans people. There has been an unending stream of invective on social media, from MAGA adherents, top administration officials, and others. Meanwhile, finding strong supportive voices online has been a crapshoot, and none are in any real position of power to do anything, or if they are, they continue to balk at trans issues, such as California Governor Gavin Newsom. It is appalling that Instagram and its parent, Meta, hide behind vague policies and often don’t respond to creators’ concerns. They should. These companies can do what they like, however, and under this administration, it’s clear they’ve caved to Trump. t
From Instagram
Mayor Daniel Lurie, left, did not reappoint Jane Natoli to the city’s airport commission.
Lurie, John Ferrannini; Natoli, Courtesy Yimby Action
Concerns raised after Lurie bounces trans commissioner
by Matthew S. Bajko
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s decision to bounce a transgender member from a prominent city commission is raising concern among LGBTQ leaders. The move comes at a time when the trans community, in particular, is under attack by the Trump administration.
It also comes as Lurie continues to face questions about how supportive he is of the trans community. Since becoming mayor earlier this year, Lurie has been criticized for budgetary decisions that defunded trans programs and was booed out of the annual Trans March event over the city’s Pride weekend in late June.
In August, during Transgender History Month, Lurie had named social studies teacher Monroe Lace to the San Francisco Human Rights Commission. She had made history in 2023 as the first transgender woman to be crowned Miss San Francisco.
But last Friday, Lurie’s office announced he had named Nancy Tung chair of the local Democratic Party, to the San Francisco Airport Commission. In doing so, he decided not to reappoint Jane Natoli, a trans woman and prominent transit and housing advocate, to another term on the prominent city oversight body.
Natoli told the Bay Area Reporter she was officially informed of the decision on September 26 by the commission’s secretary. She had been appointed to the body by former mayor London Breed in October 2021, and her term had expired August 31, though Natoli had continued to serve through this month.
There are at least four trans members on oversight bodies for city departments and agencies. In addition to Lace, Joaquin Guerrero is a homelessness oversight commissioner, Jessy Ruiz Navarro is an immigrant rights commissioner, and Cecilia Chung sits on the Commission on the Status of Women. Guerrero and Navarro are supervisorial appointees, while Chung was appointed by Breed last year. She had previously served on the Health Commission for several years.
“I think, to some degree, I abide by the decision of the mayor. Obviously, I am disappointed and would like to continue serving,” said Natoli, San Francisco organizing director with Yimby Action, the pro-housing advocacy group. “At the same time, I don’t think it is some aggressive abuse of power. I think there are a lot of paths to serving the airport.”
Her feelings about the decision likely would be different, added Natoli, if she felt Tung wasn’t qualified to serve as an airport commissioner. Tung is expected to be seated by the next time the oversight body meets on October 7.
One reason Natoli wanted to remain an airport commissioner had to do with the Trump administration restricting recognition of transgender people by federal agencies, such as the transportation department, and ordering the X option on U.S. passports for people who don’t identify as male or female to be removed. She had spoken up about trans travelers’ concerns, Natoli said, with the Transportation Security Administration.
“It was one of the things I was excited to do and work on, and did do some advocacy for,” said Natoli. “On top of that, just looking at the times we are living in, everyday it seems like we are seeing some new national headline about how the Trump administration is trying to erase trans people today. It is really hard in this time to deal with all that, so that part of it really disappointed me in the sense of that.”
On Saturday, Natoli briefly spoke with Lurie. She said she stressed the need for trans people to be appointed to various leadership posts in the city.
Apart from the trans advisory committee convened by the Mayor’s Office of Transgender Initiatives, serving as vice chair on the city’s Sweatfree Procurement Advisory Group is Coyote Marin, who is trans and nonbinary. They are a supervisorial appointee to the body housed within the San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement.
“We need representation; we deserve it,” Natoli said. “Especially at this time, we need to live up to our San Francisco values. That is not just saying them, that is actually living them.”
Lurie spokesperson Charles Lutvak told the B.A.R. the mayor is open to finding another post for Natoli to serve in.
“Mayor Lurie is grateful to Jane for her service on the Airport Commission and, as he told her, is working with her to find her next opportunity to serve San Francisco. Nancy Tung has also dedicated years to serving our city, and we’re excited to have her joining the commission,” stated Lutvak.
One of the first people to publicly speak out about Natoli not being reappointed was Gary McCoy, a gay man who worked closely with her as a longtime board member and former co-chair of the Alice B. Toklas LGBTQ Democratic Club. In several social media posts Friday night, McCoy called Lurie’s decision “a missed opportunity” and noted having LGBTQ representation matters.
“Especially at a time when the trans community is under attack by the Trump administration – with nearly 1,000 anti-trans bills nationwide throughout 49 states targeting the trans community, and the constant harmful rhetoric coming from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. What we do in San Francisco matters, everywhere,” noted McCoy, widely expected to run for the District 8 seat on the Board of Supervisors next year. “When San Francisco leads, the nation pays attention. When we demote our strong LGBTQ community members from commissions, what message does that send to those in power that want nothing more than to eradicate our rights and our existence? And what message does that send to members of our community that are looking for the strength to be themselves in a difficult time in our country?”
Current Alice Co-Chair Martin Rawlings-Fein, a trans man, also expressed disappointment in the mayor’s decision. Speaking for himself, as the club had yet to take a formal position, he told the B.A.R. that the optics of the move are questionable.
“I think we need to look at representation on boards and committees and figure out is this the right move to remove a trans person from this position?” said Rawlings-Fein, particularly
in a case like Natoli, whom he said, “was a great find” to appoint to the oversight body for the city’s airport.
Outreach needed by mayor
Moving forward, he said he would like to see better communication from Lurie’s administration and the local transgender community, especially around the appointment process for city boards and commissions. He said many people don’t know when there is a vacancy to apply for on such bodies.
“I would love to see the mayor reach out to the trans community and actually find good people who can actually do the job, because he will find a lot of them in the trans community for lots of boards and committees,” said Rawlings-Fein. “But lots of people don’t really know about them when these openings happen.”
Equality California, the statewide LGBTQ civil rights advocacy organization, told the B.A.R. it had reached out to Lurie’s office to share its concerns and to encourage the administration to work with Natoli on identifying new opportunities for her to remain “as the visible leader and dedicated public servant San Francisco needs.” She serves on EQCA’s board and is vice president of its executive committee.
“Jane Natoli is a fantastic community leader whose service on the Airport Commission was exemplary,” noted Tom Temprano, a gay San Francisco resident who is EQCA’s managing director. “At a time when trans people are facing unprecedented attacks from Donald Trump and his extremist followers, San Francisco should be lifting up trans leadership on boards and commissions - bodies that remain far too lacking in trans representation. In this moment, Jane’s removal from the Airport Commission is especially disappointing.”
This is not the first time Natoli’s service on a city commission has generated headlines. In 2020, a bloc of progressive supervisors prevented her from being seated on the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s board of directors, to which Breed had nominated her to serve on, as the B.A.R. reported at the time.
Mayoral appointments to the fivemember airport commission are not automatically voted on by the Board of Supervisors. Any of the 11 supervisors can request a review of a nominee within 30 days of the announcement, though it requires a supermajority of eight votes to reject the person being seated.
Gay board President Rafael Mandelman told the B.A.R. he “is not thrilled about” Tung being appointed in place of Natoli, of whom he said, “by everything I hear, she was a good commissioner.”
Nonetheless, he doesn’t believe there would be enough support among the supervisors to sink Tung’s appointment. While he had not heard, as of Monday, that any of his colleagues would request such a vote, Mandelman said it could happen.
Mayor Danile Lurie decided not to reappoint Jane Natoli to the San Francisco Airport Commission.
From former mayor London Breed’s office
In defense of transgender people
by Gwendolyn Ann Smith
Arecent 19th News/Survey Monkey
poll found that four in 10 Americans want politicians to stop focusing on transgender issues. It is also worth noting that this is pretty evenly split between the right and the left.
I am one of that four in 10. The survey was conducted among 20,807 American adults between September 8-15.
Before I go much further, I also think it’s worth taking a moment to talk about those who do want that focus to continue, in that 29% feel politicians should protect transgender people, while 25% feel that the focus should be on restricting transgender medical care. I can take some heart in this.
The thing I’m concerned about, however, is that there are two ways people can read the 40% who do not feel politicians should focus on transgender issues.
You see, if you ask me, I really would prefer politicians stop with what feels like a never-ending drumbeat of attacks on transgender people.
In the wake of the Charlie Kirk killing, for one, the conservative Heritage Foundation urged the FBI to add “Transgender Ideology-Inspired Violent Extremism” as a domestic terrorism category. The same week, President Donald Trump signed a vaguely-worded executive order that would also press law en-
forcement – in particular the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force – to crack down on “domestic terrorism and political violence.”
Likewise, as our government once again endures another shutdown, the right has injected several anti-trans policies into the spending bill, stripping transgender people from health care.
Or, as Trump put it in yet another social media post, Democrats want to “force Taxpayers to fund Transgender surgery for minors. ... allow men to play in women’s sports, and essentially create Transgender operations for everybody.”
So, yes, I have to say, I’m pretty tired of having to listen to the right, and in particular, Trump, talk about transgender issues.
Yet, what I see in this survey is an America that is weary of hearing the right wing using trans people as political pawns, rather than offering up actual policies that help our country. But I fear that the takeaway for Democratic leaders is that they need to talk even less
about transgender people.
In the 2024 election, Democratic presidential hopeful Kamala Harris – who many in the transgender community were wary of due to her history in San Francisco and California politics – largely avoided mentioning transgen- der issues on the campaign trail.
While Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, her vice presiden tial pick, did not shy away from this, Harris would only offer to “follow the law” on transgender rights. Anyone who was paying attention could easily read that statement and conclude that she would not be a very strong ally.
trans woman who has been around these blocks more than a few times over the last couple of decades.
What I feel people want to hear out of Democrats is not a message that’s so diluted it makes La Croix sparkling water seem flavorful. Rather, they want a party that knows how to lead –and part of showing that leadership is knowing when to stand up and address injustice head-on.
Indeed, the only party who pressed on transgender issues was the Republicans, as the Democrats sought to avoid the issue altogether. Now, as the 2026 midterms already start to heat up, the right has made it clear that their playbook will once again focus on transgender rights.
Meanwhile, some Democrats are flirting with turning away from transgender issues entirely, questioning their need to work with us and trying to seek the elusive support of right-leaning centrists in their “big tent.”
Now, I’m not a well-paid pollster or a Washington lobbyist. I’m just an older
I feel it is remarkably easy to deflate the ani-trans talking points of the right, even now, by taking them head on.
Ask Republicans why they are so obsessed with this issue, to the point of neglecting the needs of everyone in the United States. Stop running from the topic, and put conservatives on the defensive.
By not addressing transgender issues, by just remaining silent and pretending they don’t exist or – like California Governor Gavin Newsom – by weighing ignorance and ceding ground on trans rights, Democrats let the right continue to pummel them.
After having a year or so to come up with a coherent response, so far all I’m hearing from Democrats is a general chorus of, “la la, we can’t hear you,” as they cover their ears. Meanwhile, this
SFAF unveils name for new bike ride
compiled by Cynthia Laird
The San Francisco AIDS Foundation, which ended its AIDS/LifeCycle endurance bicycle ride with the Los Angeles LGBT Center this year, announced that its new stand-alone three-day fundraising ride planned for May 29-31 will be Cycle to Zero.
Registration for the event opens Monday, October 6. The ride takes participants north from San Francisco to Guerneville in Sonoma County, and then back along the coast to the city, a news release noted. On the second day, riders may choose a 38-mile, 65-mile, or 104-mile route starting in Guerneville or stay and play in the Russian River Valley for the day.
The release stated that the name was selected with significant input from community members and previous AIDS/LifeCycle participants. Cycle to Zero is not only about cycling in order to reach zero new HIV diagnoses, it speaks to the foundation’s larger goals of achiev-
Did you know Rob Hobbs?
In search of people who knew my Uncle Ron Hobbs! He sadly died of aids in 1990 at age 33. He spent his last couple of years living in San Francisco after moving from Chicago. I have been able to connect with a couple of his old friends but have reached a dead end in my search. From what I have learned of him he was so kind and thoughtful and creative. My name is Laura and you can reach out to me by my email (laurierost2003@yahoo.com) if willing to share your memories of him with me!
Endurance cyclists took part in an AIDS/LifeCycle ride. The San Francisco AIDS Foundation’s new fundraising bike ride is called Cycle to Zero and takes place in May.
ing health justice for all and reaching zero stigma, zero overdose deaths, and zero inequity, the release stated.
“We are honored to share the name and event details of Cycle to Zero with our community, so many who have been supporters of SFAF, longtime participants of AIDS/LifeCycle, and champions of our HIV and LGBTQ communities,” stated Tyler TerMeer, Ph.D., a gay Black man living with HIV who is CEO of the foundation. “As our systems of public health continue to come under attack, now is the time for our communities to come together to protect and prioritize health care and services we need.”
Registration opens October 9 for the LA center’s new ride from Los Angeles to San Diego, taking place April 24-26, and costs $95, with riders expected to raise at least $2,500, according to a recent announcement by the nonprofit. The route and new name for the event is set to be announced soon via the LA center’s Instagram account at https://www.instagram.com/lalgbtcenter/.
As the Bay Area Reporter previously noted, the AIDS/LifeCycle, a seven-day, 545-mile ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles, saw its last event in June. Both SFAF and the LA center made the decision to end the ride due to increased costs and a decrease in fundraising. The ride started in 1994 and brought in $300 million for the two organizations over three decades, according to the agencies. The final ride raised over $17 million, officials of the two nonprofits stated in June.
SFAF officials have more modest goals for Cycle to Zero, hoping to raise about $1.5 million next year, they previously told the B.A.R. The new ride has a $2,500 fundraising minimum for participants. Alternatively, riders can sign up for the event for only one day, Saturday, May 30, for $175 with no fundraising minimum, the release noted.
The new ride and fundraising effort come as SFAF is the lead plaintiff in an ongoing federal lawsuit against President Donald Trump and his administration over defunding HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ nonprofits. As the B.A.R. reported, a federal judge in San Francisco issued a preliminary injunction against the administration this summer. Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, which is representing the nine nonprofits, announced in July that $6.2 million in federal funding had been restored to the plaintiffs.
SFAF also had to announce some layoffs this summer amid an uncertain budgetary future.
The Castro Country Club, a sober space in the city’s LGBTQ neighborhood, will also have an en durance fundraising bike ride in 2026. Its inaugural Recov ery Ride will take place Sep tember 11-13. It will consist of a round-trip bike ride from Sausalito to Guerneville. The fundraising minimum is $1,500.
Upper Lawn. People can pack a picnic and bring blankets and lawn chairs. The event is free and family-friendly.
The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department is co-sponsoring the event with the friends group.
For more information, visit https:// friendsofdubocepark.org/eventsactivities/movienight/
Castro Wine Walk
The Castro Merchants Association is uncorking the Castro Wine Walk, where people can sip, swirl, and stroll through 11 participating businesses Thursday, October 9, from 6 to 9 p.m.
In an email announcement, the merchants group noted that attendees can enjoy seasonal pours, from bold reds to sparkling, while taking in the fall vibes and neighborhood spirit. Each stop will feature a unique wine and warm welcome, making it the perfect evening to connect with friends, neighbors, and fellow wine lovers, all while supporting local businesses.
For more information on Cycle to Zero, visit sfaf.org/biketour.
For more information on the Recovery Ride, visit castrocountryclub.org.
Duboce Park movie night
Outdoor Movie Night returns to Duboce Park Saturday, October 4, at 7 p.m. Join Friends of Duboce Park as the group screens “Coco.” The 2017 Pixar film won two Academy Awards, including best animated feature and best original song (“Remember Me.”) The park is located at Duboce and Scott streets.
The movie is about a young boy named Miguel, who, on Día de los Muertos, is transported to a colorful Land of the Dead, where he embarks on a journey to discover the truth about his family’s past. Along the way, he meets charming new friends, uncovers long-kept secrets, and learns the importance of remembering and honoring loved ones.
The film will be screened on the park’s
will just remain at the forefront while they try to duck and weave around it, looking weak and feckless in the process. I want our Democratic leaders to go practice this in a mirror, preparing for the next time they are asked about transgender issues – “I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m so tired of hearing the GOP go after transgender people. Like always, they don’t seem to have a way to solve issues, so they just attack a small and powerless minority. It’s bully behavior, and we know how to treat a bully, don’t we?”
Now, isn’t that easy?
Again, I may not have all the answers here, but between this 19th News/Survey Monkey poll pointing out a growing weariness of trans issues in politics, coupled with a small minority wanting more protections for transgender people, this should seem obvious.
It certainly makes more sense than letting the right continue to dominate the issue. Especially when that issue is making life more and more fraught for actual, factual transgender people. Such as myself, for example.
Those who want to win need to step up and lead, and this is an issue you most certainly could – and should – lead on. t
Gwen Smith is holding out for a hero. You can find her at www. gwensmith.com
Tickets, which are $40 or two for $70, include one to two wine tastings per location, a souvenir wine tumbler, and a map and “punch card” to win prizes.
The Castro Entertainment Zone will be activated, meaning people can stroll and sip between stops. Participating businesses include The Academy, which will serve as the first stop and check-in point at 2166 Market Street; La Med Noe, 288 Noe Street; Blush! Wine Bar, 476 Castro Street; Millay, 691 14th Street; Bar 49, 2295 Market Street; Copper, 4092 18th Street; Lobby Bar, 4230 18th Street; Canela Bistro and Wine Bar, 2272 Market Street; Castro Village Wine Co., 4121 19th Street; Swirl on Castro, 572 Castro Street; and Poesia, 4072 18th Street.
For tickets and more information, go to https://tinyurl.com/2by5chtc
Vinyl sale nets $8K for LYRIC
Drag artist Juanita MORE! sold her vinyl collection and that generated an $8,000 check to LYRIC Center for LGBTQQ+ Youth. The sale took place September 21.
In her newsletter, MORE! identified the buyer of the collection as her friend Pete, a record collector. She added that Gael Lala-Chávez, who is nonbinary and the executive director of LYRIC,
was on hand at Dark Entries Records to accept the donation.
According to the newsletter, LalaChávez said the funds will go directly to the agency’s queer and questioning youth, providing support for housing, shelter, and food. MORE! noted that an additional $500 from merchandise and extra vinyl records was also donated.
“Thank you to everyone who came to support,” MORE! stated. “I love and appreciate you.”
Inaugural Pride event in Folsom, CA
It seems that Northern California Pride celebrations are not over. The city of Folsom, outside of Sacramento, is holding its inaugural LGBTQ+ Pride event Saturday, October 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Lions Park, 403 Stafford Street. The event is free.
A news release stated the family-friendly event invites residents and visitors to celebrate joy, resilience, and the strength of the queer community and its allies.
The festival will feature inspiring speakers, local food vendors, a picnic area, arts and crafts, and activities for all ages.
Folsom Family Pride, which is producing the event, noted that community backing has been strong across businesses, nonprofits, and civic groups.
“Pride is about people – our stories, our families, and the everyday kindness that turns a city into a community,” stated Sarah Perrin, lead organizer of Folsom Family Pride. “We’ve built this celebration to be joyful, accessible, and welcoming for everyone. Whether you’re bringing kids to make crafts, listening to music, or simply curious to connect, Folsom Family Pride will be a place where you’re seen, respected, and celebrated.”
There are volunteer opportunities available; people who help out will receive a T-shirt and refreshments. Interested people can fill out an interest form on the group’s website.
Julian Sarafin, head of marketing for Folsom Family Pride, noted the organization aims to create a positive space for people in the queer community.
“This is about love – for each other, for our community, and for the simple fact that love knows no ethnicity, creed, gender, politic, or age,” Sarafin stated. For more information, visit folsomcapride.com. t
Illustration: Christine Smith
Courtesy SFAF
Castro Theatre reopening in February
by John Ferrannini
The Castro Theatre will reopen in February and is hiring now, according to a post on its website. The announcement comes as an over $41 million renovation and restoration project by Another Planet Entertainment nears completion.
It also comes as APE announces the first shows at the venue – now branded as simply The Castro.
On February 10 genderqueer and nonbinary singer Sam Smith will take up a residency through February 21. Smith was recently seen filming in front of the theater.
Smith, who’s British, stated to the B.A.R., “I love San Francisco and The Castro especially has been so central to the queer community here over the years. These shows will also celebrate the official reopening, so it’s truly an honour to become part of this iconic venue’s history.”
Tickets for the Smith shows go on sale Tuesday, October 7, at 10 a.m. on Ticketmaster.
Smith teased the announcement in a TikTok video September 29.
APE stated, “We can’t think of a better
Political Notebook
From page 7
“I am not going to oppose Nancy Tung’s appointment. But I believe a member of the board could request it be heard by the full board,” said Man delman, who represents District 8. Gay District 6 Supervisor Dorsey, a former chair of the super visors’ rules committee, also said he would not object to Tung’s appoint ment. At the same time, he praised Natoli as a “tremendous leader” and said he expected she would be nomi nated to another role either by the mayor or the supervisors.
“It is the prerogative of the mayor to make appointments, but I have a feeling Jane will be working on other things. I certainly will be advocating for her,” said Dorsey, who was first appointed by Breed to his supervi sor seat before winning it outright. “I tend to take the view, if it is a may oral appointee, I feel there is defer ence owed to the mayor on who he wants or, in London’s case, who she wants. I think the world of Jane and I can imagine her being sought after for appointments we, as a board, may get.”
As for perceptions that Lurie doesn’t support the trans community, Man delman told the B.A.R., “I can’t speak for the trans community. I have found him generally to be a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community. But I do think this, the non-reappointment of Jane, is unfortunate.”
Added Dorsey, “I do understand the sensitivities. It is a difficult time for our community, and no more difficult than for the trans communities.”
Gay state Senator (D-San Francisco), a former city su pervisor and local Democratic Party chair, told the B.A.R. that both Tung and Natoli “are fantastic people.” At the same time, he said that LGBTQ repre sentation on city regulatory bodies is a matter of concern.
way to celebrate the historic reopening of the Castro Theatre than Sam Smith: an artist whose talent, embrace, and elevation of diversity and compassion mirrors the importance of the Castro to all of San Francisco and especially the LGBTQ+ communities for which it is a touchstone.”
Representatives of Smith didn’t return comment for this report by press time.
Reached for comment about the reopening, APE spokesperson David Perry, a gay man, stated, “Curtain up and light the lights.”
Wiener argued that five years ago, due to her being “a fantastic transit advocate,” Natoli should have been approved to serve on the SFMTA
“We are thrilled that Another Planet continues to fulfill its promise and bring jobs and economic vibrancy to the Castro,” Perry continued.
Earlier this summer, APE announced that it was accepting bookings for the theater starting in 2026.
The Bay Area Reporter most recently reported that the new HVAC system was being installed in the space, which has been shuttered since 2024, and that a new organ is going to be installed in November.
board. He again hopes her talents don’t go to waste.
“There were people on the Board of Supervisors who rejected her, and
Nate Bourg, a gay man who is president of the Castro Merchants Association, said he’s excited the iconic landmark – which due to new movable seating will be more versatile than in the past – will be reopened.
“We could all use some good news lately, so I’m thrilled to join our community in celebrating this announcement,” Bourg stated. “The reopening of our iconic neighborhood theatre will bring much-needed energy back to the area and continue the Castro Theatre’s legacy as a historic cultural landmark. I invite residents and visitors alike to experience the magic, history, and community spirit of the Castro at this beloved venue once the lights come back on.”
Gay Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman, who represents the Castro as District 8 supervisor, is excited as well, speaking positively about the changes to the space.
“The neighborhood has been waiting for this for a long time,” he stated.
“Businesses that have struggled since COVID should benefit from an increase in foot traffic, and I think patrons will be impressed with the improvements to the venue itself.”
so let’s make sure we are looking at the big picture here,” said Wiener.
“Jane Natoli is a great leader for San Francisco, and we need to make sure
The B.A.R. also reported that as of September 8, a compromise had not been reached between the Nasser family that owns the space, APE (which took over management of the theater from the Nassers in 2022) and the Khoury brothers, who own the Castro Coffee Co. and Castro Nail Salon on either side of the theater. APE announced it wanted to utilize the two storefronts for box office space after the Nassers did not renew their leases. A 60-day deadline for negotiations set by Mayor Daniel Lurie came and went.
Both businesses remain open for the time being. The B.A.R. asked Ken Khoury, proprietor of the coffee shop, if he’d consider moving to the newly-shuttered former space of Starbucks coffee at 4094 18th Street.
Khoury responded that, “It’s an idea but I do prefer my block,” referring to the 400 block of Castro Street where he is presently doing business.
Anyone interested in working at the renovated movie palace can submit their resume to APE at apeconcerts.com/careers. t
we are utilizing her incredible talent to benefit the city, and we all have a role to play in making that happen.”
“I also think it is important to make sure we are maintaining and growing representation from many communities, including the LGBTQ community,” said Wiener. “Jane is a fantastic person and a great leader, and I want to see her in leadership in San Francisco.”
He said he hopes Lurie considers naming Natoli to another leadership position in the city.
“The mayor has been supportive of the trans community, but it would be, and I think it is, important to have LGBTQ people, including trans people, in positions of leadership,” said Wiener. “And Jane is someone who is really an exceptional person and an exceptional leader. She really is just fantastic, and I want to make sure she is in a position of leadership.”
The Castro Theatre is expected to reopen in February.
Scott Wazlowski
In a September 23 phone interview with the Bay Area Reporter ahead of the formal announcement, Valles said that she’s looking forward to implementing several initiatives, even as she’s acutely aware of the challenges the center faces. Already, the center’s budget has decreased to about $6 million from the $6.5 million Rolfe stated in April. Some of that is attributed to funding cuts the center experienced from the city during its budget process.
Gay Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman had told the B.A.R. at the time that the center expected to lose a few hundred thousand dollars.
Valles, 45, said she does have a top priority for when she takes over.
“My first goal, honestly, is to reestablish our culture internally and externally,” she said. “I think it’s important to be solid collectively going forward.”
Valles said her second goal is “reconnecting with members of the community.”
“I think we’ve not been engaging with large chunks of the community,” she said, adding she wants to “amplify the entire community.”
She wants to expand the center’s role as both a trusted local resource and a national leader in LGBTQ+ liberation, strengthening programs and shaping solutions for those most impacted by systemic injustice, a news release noted.
“I think the center is where people come together,” she said.
She noted that most of the center’s focus is on San Francisco and the wider Bay Area. Yet, she said that nationally “people are looking toward us.”
“We’re a small organization that’s Bay Area-based but iconic, we’re the San Francisco LGBT center,” she said.
To that end, Valles expects to have the center “comment more on what’s happening in the world.”
In recent years, the LGBT center has
Atkins
The LGBTQ caucus issued a statement late Monday.
“Toni Atkins’ run in this race is only the latest chapter in a career defined by trustworthy service and lifting up others – a legacy that will continue to shape California for generations to come,” the caucus stated. “As the first openly LGBTQ+ individual and woman to lead both houses of our State Legislature, and as a proud member of our Caucus, Toni has shattered barriers once thought unbreakable and led with compassion, courage, and conviction. We were proud to support her campaign for governor because it was more than a candidacy – it was a powerful testament to how far our community has come and a beacon for what is possible. We are deeply grateful for her courage to run, and decades of service and unwavering commitment to justice and equity. We know her leadership will continue to shape a brighter, fairer, and more secure future for all Californians.”
not always issued statements on national or global developments. Valles hopes to change that.
“Yes, with a ramping-up process,” she said when asked if the center would have a more robust media presence. She added, “It comes with a responsibility of” determining what to comment on.
“Writing more op-eds, reaching out to partners, working on being prepared for that,” Valles explained, emphasizing the center is a small organization and needs to prioritize, for example, whether to work on a grant or be in the media.
“We’ll look at capacity,” she said. “It’s a struggle with what to comment on but I have identified that as important to do.”
The center has 46 staff members, Rolfe had told the B.A.R. this spring. Its main programs are financial services, employment services, youth services, community programs, cultural programs, and room rentals, according to the release.
The release stated that Valles has played a pivotal role in rebuilding the center’s core programming after the COVID pandemic, strengthening financial and employment services and expanding community and youth programs centered on arts, wellness, and youth mental health.
Valles, who first worked at the center 18 years ago, said back then people would walk through the doors saying they had just gotten off a Greyhound bus. Now, it’s phone calls from people seeking assistance, she said.
Valles assumes the role of executive director leadership at a time when LGBTQ+ organizations are facing a sharp rise in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, strained funding, and surging demand for services, the release stated. Each year, the center welcomes over 100,000 visitors and provides direct services to nearly 7,000 people, many of them transgender individuals, youth, and immigrants.
Atkins’ decision is hardly a surprise, as the Bay Area Reporter’s online Political Notes column in August had reported how Atkins was battling perceptions her bid was a lost cause. Various headlines in recent months had played up former congressmember Katie Porter, a Democrat from Orange County, as the one to beat in the race.
Atkins reported raising less money during the first half of the year than Porter and Democratic former Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa had netted for their gubernatorial bids. And she remained in the bottom of polling in the race, with Emerson College Polling this month showing her at 1.4% of support in the governor’s race.
In that poll, Porter was at nearly 16%, with Republicans Steve Hilton in second at 9.9% and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco at 7.9%.
The next Democrat with the highest polling was former U.S. health and human services secretary Xavier Becerra with 4.8% and Villaraigosa garnering 3.8%.
Former state controller Betty Yee,
Activating space
As the B.A.R. noted in its story on Rolfe, she is credited with turning the center around. She restructured the center’s finances to create more rentable space, and that included nonprofits and a city agency leasing offices.
A 2016 remodel that Rolfe oversaw was due in part to major financial challenges the center has faced over the years, as the B.A.R. noted. It opened March 3, 2002 amid great fanfare. But about a year later, then-executive director Brian Cheu, a gay man, was out and the center’s finances were in peril. The board brought on Rolfe as a consultant as Cheu was exiting, she said. Formally named the Charles M. Holmes Campus of the Center, after the late philanthropist and gay video pioneer, the center has weathered the issues. Thom Lynch, a gay man, was then brought on as executive director. When Lynch departed, Rolfe, his deputy director, took over the center’s leadership in August 2007.
Currently, the San Francisco Community Health Center has a suite of offices at the 1800 Market Street center, as does Bay Area Legal Aid.
Valles said that the center is expected to lose the San Francisco Office of Transgender Initiatives, which occupies a portion of the ground floor. The city’s 2025-26 budget, adopted by the Board of Supervisors in July, has the office moving out of the center and relocating to the San Francisco Human Rights Commission’s offices in the building at 25 Van Ness Avenue, according to Honey Mahogany, a Black trans person who is executive director of the agency.
Valles said she expects the Office of Transgender Initiatives to remain at the center through the end of the calendar year.
Asked about future plans for the space, Valles said that she would like to see it go back to a cafe model. The center used to have the 3 Dollar Bill Cafe on the
a San Francisco native who is popular among Bay Area LGBTQ leaders, netted 3% in the poll. But those undecided about the race stood at close to 38% in the poll.
Last week, Democratic former majority leader in the Assembly, Ian Calderon of Whittier, jumped into the race, while talk has built that U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-California) could also enter the contest. Under the state’s open primary system, the top two vote-getters regardless of party will advance out of the June 2 primary to the fall ballot next year.
During a recent editorial board meeting with the B.A.R., Atkins addressed the constant second-guessing of her chances and reports about other Democrats being encouraged to enter the race.
“It can be frustrating, but, you know, I’ve been in this position most of my life. No one expected me to be here,” said Atkins. “You know, when I say, and I’ve said it more than once, I could never have imagined, you know, this lesbian kid, too gay, too country, too poor, I could have never imagined that I would have the
ground floor but a rental dispute saw the business shuttered years ago and its space subsequently remodeled for use as offices.
“What we’d love to do is turn it into a job training program or have a pop-up,” she said of the street-facing ground floor. “It’s a great space.”
And it would bring foot traffic to the center, as it did previously.
There’s also the vacancy created by the closure of AGUILAS, an agency that provided HIV/AIDS services to Latinos. It shuttered its fourth floor offices last fall, Rolfe said in April. The B.A.R. had reported last year about its financial struggles and decision to end direct services.
In an email, Valles stated that the space is available for rent and she’d like to see another nonprofit “join our building.”
Background
Valles has had two stints working at the LGBT center. The first was from 2007-2009. She started as a contractor and then was hired as the community programs coordinator, she said.
Originally from Chicago, Valles said she returned to the Windy City to take care of family. From 20092020 she said that she held different jobs in nonprofits there dealing with gender-based violence and environmental justice. Her LinkedIn page also notes she worked from 20142019 as a managing partner at Bottle and Branch, a full-service horticultural company.
Valles, who now lives in Oakland, said she returned to the Bay Area in 2020, during the COVID pandemic. She was an independent business owner before again joining the LGBT center in 2022 as director of programs. She became deputy director in June.
Valles has a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology and environmental science from the University of
opportunities I’ve had in California.”
Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom is term-limited from running again next year, as is Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis, who dropped her own gubernatorial bid and is now running for state treasurer. Seeking to succeed her is Janelle Kellman, a gay woman who served on the Sausalito City Council but, like Atkins, has struggled to breakthrough in her statewide contest.
Equality California, the statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization, has yet to endorse in either the governor’s or lieutenant governor’s races. In a statement to the B.A.R., EQCA Executive Director Tony Hoang, a gay man, praised Atkins for her storied political career to date.
“Pro Tem Emeritus Toni Atkins has been a trailblazer for California and for LGBTQ+ people – leading with integrity, mindfulness, and heart,” he stated. “We’re grateful for her decades of service and steady leadership, and we know she will continue to be a powerful voice for equality, working families, and our democracy. As this race moves for-
Illinois Urbana-Champaign, according to her LinkedIn page.
Smooth transition
The center’s release stated that an executive search committee appointed by the board conducted a formal, multi-stage interview process before recommending Valles.
“We are proud to welcome Jen as the center’s next executive director,” stated board Co-Chairs MK Johnson and Travis B. Mitchell. “Jen stands out for her charisma, passion, and strategic vision, as well as her ability to bring people together around shared purpose.”
Johnson and Mitchell added, “She has earned the respect and trust of the center’s staff and the San Francisco community over many years, and we have full confidence in her ability to lead the organization into its next chapter.”
Rolfe said the center is ready for the change.
“I feel incredibly excited and confident about this transition,” she stated. “Jen brings the leadership, vision, and values needed to carry the organization forward. She’s deeply aligned with the community and well-prepared to guide the center into its next chapter.”
Valles said her salary will be $195,000 and that she will receive the same benefits as other center staff.
During these next few months, Valles anticipates a smooth transition.
“Rebecca and I worked together in the past,” Valles said, adding that Rolfe “gave the center tremendous notice” to plan for the change in its top leadership.
“I’m really humbled and honored,” Valles said. “Being an executive director was never a career goal; my goal was always to have the most positive impact.” t
ward and we begin our endorsement process, Equality California remains focused on protecting our community and ensuring California continues to lead.”
Currently, the only West Coast state to be led by an out governor is Oregon, where lesbian incumbent Tina Kotek is seeking a second term in 2026. She had endorsed Atkins’ gubernatorial bid this summer.
As for Atkins, she did not disclose whom she would be endorsing to be California’s next governor in her September 29 email to supporters, nor say if she would enter a downticket race on the 2026 ballot. But due to the policies of the Republican Trump administration, Atkins said it is imperative one of the Democratic candidates succeeds Newsom.
“With Donald Trump and his allies threatening everything we’ve worked for – gutting health care, cratering our economy, and stripping away fundamental rights and freedoms – we’ve got to make sure California has a Democratic governor leading the fight, and that means uniting as Democrats,” wrote Atkins. t
Thus far, it has only been utilized by the Castro Night Market, which has been a monthly occurrence this summer and fall.
The entertainment zone is only possible because of state legislation – Senate Bill 76 in 2023 and SB 969 in 2024 – that allow local jurisdictions to designate outdoor areas where people can consume open containers of alcohol during special events, such as when streets are closed to traffic for street fairs or night markets. They were introduced by gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a Castro resident. He framed the legislation applying to the Castro fair as a common sense reform.
“Castro Street Fair is exactly the kind of event that should be an en-
tertainment zone,” Wiener stated. “It makes no sense to exclude the Castro bars – which are part of our neighborhood’s backbone – from this celebration. I’m so happy Castro Street Fair will benefit from our entertainment zone law.”
Last year, as the B.A.R. reported, a spokesperson for then-mayor London Breed stated that outdoor alcohol consumption would not be allowed within the fairgrounds. However, that exhortation was widely ignored by enthusiastic attendees.
Gay Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman, who represents District 8, including the Castro, on the board, also touted the entertainment zone in his remarks to the B.A.R.
“This year is the first time the street fair will be able to take advantage of our entertainment zone,”
Mandelman stated. “I always love the Castro Street Fair and am looking forward to spending much of the day visiting Castro residents, merchants, and visitors.”
The night markets are a project of the Civic Joy Fund, whose Executive Director Manny Yekutiel, a gay man, is running to replace Mandelman on the board when elections are held next year. Yekutiel, a District 8 resident who owns Manny’s cafe in the Mission district, announced his candidacy in September, as the B.A.R. reported.
Yekutiel co-founded the Civic Joy Fund with Lurie, before Lurie was elected mayor last November.
“I’m definitely excited to continue the listening tour that I’ve been on this whole first week of my campaign to the Castro Street Fair,” Yekutiel stated September 25. “I will be there to hear directly from
my neighbors about what they care about, what makes their life hard, and what they expect to see from their next supervisor.”
‘Radical Happiness’
The fair’s theme this year is “Radical Happiness,” according to Redge Roberts, a gay man who is the president of the fair’s board of directors. Roberts stated that the theme “reflects the power of joy in uncertain times.”
This is Roberts’ first year as president of the board, though he has been on it for five years.
“Across the country, LGBTQ+ communities are facing renewed attacks. Our answer? To be visible and to remind the world that joy is resilience, and celebration is resistance,” Roberts stated. “This year’s fair will feature three stages of entertainment, performances from local favorites, and the unique diversity and
vibrancy that defines the Castro. It’s a place where old friends reconnect, new friends are made, and community thrives.”
The fair is sponsored by the Castro Community Benefit District, Local Take, Recology, and SF Mercantile. It has returned over $1.6 million to community partners since 1998.
This year, it will be benefiting Buen Dia Family School; Castro Community On Patrol; the Everett Middle School PTSA; Haight Ashbury Community Nursery School; the Imperial Council of San Francisco; Instituto Familiar de la Raza (IFR – Sí a la Vida); Maitri Compassionate Care; the Most Holy Redeemer AIDS Support Group; McKinley Elementary School; the San Francisco Court Appointed Special Advocates; and the San Francisco Pride Band. For more information, visit castrostreetfair.org. t
Kate Pierson
by Gregg Shapiro
It’s likely a testament to the commitment of the members of the B-52s that each of its remaining long-term members; Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider, and Cindy Wilson, has only released two albums apiece under their own names over the course of the band’s 45-year recording career. Pierson’s latest album, “Radio & Rainbows” (Long Meadow Music/Crush Music/ SongVest Records), arrives almost ten years after 2015’s “Guitars and Microphones.”
Dedicated to Pierson’s wife, Monica Nation, the album takes Pierson in a variety of musical directions, including dance (“Take Me Back to the Party,” co-written with Jimmy Harry, and the soaring “Wings”), the suitably spooky “Every Day Is Halloween” (co-written with and featuring Sia), the island breeze of “Pillow Queen” (don’t miss the music video!), the funky “Dream On” and “Living In a Monet” (featuring queer musician Gail Ann Dorsey), as well as the colorful title cut. Pierson, who played some solo shows over the summer, is joining her B-52s bandmates for what sounds like an amaz-
‘Plainclothes’ make the men
Tby Gregg Shapiro
he directorial debut by queer filmmaker and screenwriter Carmen Emmi, “Plainclothes” (Magnolia), is not as simple as the title might suggest. There is also a double-meaning at play as neither of the main characters – Lucas (Tom Blyth) and Andrew (out actor Russell Tovey) – is dressed in their respective “uniforms” when they first meet.
“Plainclothes” features such stellar performances by Tovey and Blyth, that it’s likely to be the movie that will not only make the actors bigger stars than they already are, but also earn them well-deserved Oscar nominations. Tom and Russell kindly made time for a Zoom interview shortly before the film was released in theaters.
Russell and Tom, I’d like to begin by asking each of you to say a few words about what attracted you to the roles of Andrew and Lucas, respectively, in “Plainclothes.”
Tom Blyth: Lucas, for me, is someone who’s going through immense difficulty and is facing up to some self-truths. I’m always drawn to characters who are trying to understand themselves in a serious, deep way. Probably because I’m doing that as well. I come at this from a psychological standpoint, so I think I’m drawn to a character who is going through psychological turmoil. And the script is absolutely beautiful. That was my main draw.
Russell Tovey: I second that the script is beautiful. For me, dialogue connects me straight away to a character. When I started reading Andrew, I was like, “Oh, yeah, I want to say these lines. I wanted to do a film in Syracuse. I thought Syracuse sounded like a beautiful, wonderful paradise. Parts of it are like paradise, and other parts, not so much. But it was a great experience. It’s new writing and a new director. It always feels so exciting when you get a script like this. These don’t happen all the time. So, it was an easy yes.
ing tour as they hit the road with Devo.
Kate Pierson performs with The B-52s and Devo, Oct. 16 at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View.
Gregg Shapiro: Kate, your 2015 solo debut album was titled “Guitars and Microphones” and your 2024 follow-up solo album was titled “Radios & Rainbows.” What can you tell us about your fondness for the coordinating conjunction?
Kate Pierson: “Guitars and Microphones” is the name of one of the songs on my first album.
I didn’t plan on that being the name of the album, but it had a good ring to it. The song itself is pretty autobiographical in a lot of ways, about my childhood and having a protest band with my friends in high school. That song meant a lot to me. Then I thought, “I have a song called ‘Radios & Rainbows,’ might as well…” That song means a lot to me, too, because it has a lot of political references in it and it’s prescient, if I may use that word, with rainbows and rainbow flags. I think it’s good.
by Brian Bromberger
After having screened successfully at Frameline49, the new indie tense psychological thriller, “Plainclothes” played at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and won the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for the Ensemble Cast. At the Provincetown Film Festival, it was voted the Audience Award for Best Film. It was not only one of my favorite films at Frameline, but is still one of the best gay films of the year.
It’s a period piece, based on the director’s memories of the culture at the time. Set in 1997 in upstate Syracuse, New York, Lucas (Tom Blyth) is a young closeted gay cop assigned to a special task force on undercover “plainclothes” duty at the bathroom of the local mall, a wellknown gay hook-up site. The police cruise and entrap gay men, getting them to expose themselves and then arrest them for lewd conduct.
He falls for one of his marks, the older, attractive Andrew (Russell Tovey), whom he lets go free. Andrew is also closeted and married with
children. There’s a shocker when Lucas discovers what he does for a living. They meet in theaters and greenhouses for sex, despite Andrew having a strict rule about not engaging with a guy more than once. He’s torn between duty and desire.
I met with debut gay writer/director Carmen Emmi at the Hilton Hotel in June when he was in town for Frameline to discuss “Plainclothes.”
Shaping expectations
Emmi has been interested in making films since he got his first Hi8 camera at age 10 and created short films in high school. He couldn’t picture himself doing anything else. He attended USC’s School of Cinematic Arts and realized he wanted to direct, but knew he would have to write something in order for that to happen.
“I had come out in 2014 and I knew my movie would center on my feelings on coming out and what that time was like when I was a boy,” said Emmi. “I remembered deepening my voice, lying about my favorite music and movies to
An interview Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey
Magnolia Pictures
Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey in ‘Plainclothes’
Palmer/Magnolia
Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey in ‘Plainclothes’
would go to the writing session, and I didn’t know who this person was, but it worked every time.
You co-wrote the song “Every Day Is Halloween” on “Radios & Rainbows” with Sia (Furler) with whom you also co-wrote six songs on “Guitars & Microphones.” What do you like best about collaborating with Sia?
That was also (written) with Sam Dixon. I love to collaborate. The way the B-52s have always written has been, with some exceptions, by jamming together. Even the instrumental part, usually, started out as kind of jamming. We’d all jam together, and that way, a very unusual, collective unconscious and consciousness comes forth, that melds the craziness of all our minds and melds. All this stuff that is swirling in our brains comes out in a very unconscious way; an unconscious way from the subconscious. That kind of template has always worked for me.
But when I started working with Sia, she had already co-written a lot of songs with these different sorts of star songwriters: Jimmy Harry, who wrote with Madonna, and Chris Braide, who works with Lana Del Rey and a lot of other artists, and Sia, of course, I was kind of terrified. We
Then Sia’s career started really blowing up in the middle of this, and so I started going by myself to these writing sessions. I worked with this artist named Bleu McAuley. We did all this in L.A., and the collaborations with every person I went to meet and play with and jam with worked. I was amazed at how it all clicked, and it was fun. I just continued that process, and one of the songs on (the) “Radios & Rainbows” (album), “Every Day is Halloween,” that I wrote back then, it was the first song, and I don’t remember why I didn’t put it on “Guitars & Microphones,” but it wound up on this album.
The new music video for “Pillow Queen,” from the album “Radios & Rainbows,” features drag queens Billy LaMour and Raja Gemini, and the song “Mister Sister,” about a drag queen called Debbie Delicious, appeared on “Guitars and Microphones.”
Please say a few words about the role that drag queens play in your life.
When the B-52s formed, people said Cindy and I were drag queens! I think drag queens have always been so im-
portant to the gay community, as have trans people, and the whole rainbow of different LGBTQ+. We’ve always had trans people and drag queens in our lives, and as friends. They were always friends. Going to the Pyramid Club or different clubs in New York, there’d always be a drag queen. It was just a natural part of the whole community. Who would ever dream that they would be pilloried, and treated today as outcasts? It’s just horrible!
But back then, it was such a joyful part of the community. Drag queens have always been important and friends. Of course, RuPaul was in our “Love Shack” video. We went to see RuPaul back when we lived in Athens. We went to Atlanta. RuPaul had a band called Wee Wee Pole and we went to see them perform. RuPaul was so amazing and positive and wonderful. I always saw drag queens as fairy godmothers. The performances, the joy, and the fun of drag queens was always present.
Drag queens have always been a symbol, kind of the face of Pride parades and performances. Especially now, since they’ve been sort of banned, I wanted to feature them. John Stapleton, who’s done most of my videos, has sort of taken the reins on doing the videos. He did “Evil Love” and he
did others. We work together on that. I’ve known Billy LaMour. I would have liked to feature more drag queens, but getting availability and trying to cut to the chase [laughs]…two drag queens equal many!
The “Pillow Queen” video is set at a drive-in theater. Do you have any drive-in movies or memories you’d like to share with the readers?
Drive-in movies go along with my love of Airstream trailers. It’s a kind of mid-century pipe dream to have. Going to the drive-in in your Airstream. They always say a lot of the B-52s’ references are sci-fi, B-movies, and surf, and all this kind of stuff mixed together. I think drive-in movies have a special place there in the list of influential things that are kind of a nostalgic dream. There is a great drive-in theater on the Cape, and every year they are always showing “Jaws.”
Speaking of drive-ins and movies, you were in the Indigo Girls-inspired film “Glitter & Doom.” How did that come about, and what was that experience like for you?
They asked me to be part of it. It was a very small part. I’ve known the Indigo Girls forever. They’re compatriots and they’re Georgia girls. I saw them last year at the Town Hall in Provincetown. I said yes when they asked me to be in the movie. They came to my personal studio and workspace here in Woodstock (New York). I record my own vocals there a lot of time and rehearse. Oh, my God, they tricked out the place! I believe it was during COVID-edge time. They put plastic everywhere. It looked like a kill room;
there was so much plastic. They set it all up there, so it was easy. I went down the road and did my part.
Yes, I also thought that. Additionally, I love the dance-oriented and funkier songs. Are dance and funk part of your musical vocabulary?
Absolutely! When I’m working out in my gym, the first thing I do to warm up is say, “Alexa, play ‘Hot Pants’ by James Brown.” She’s answering now, I hear her in the other room. She’s gonna play “Hot Pants.”
Of course, The B-52s started as a dance band. We always love to dance. I still love to dance every chance I get. We dance around the house a lot. I love any kind of funk and soul, and I also love African and Brazilian music. My taste is very eclectic. I love old-style country music. I love Willie Nelson, and I love Bebel Gilberto, and I love French music and some rap. But my favorite music is funk and soul.
Just a little over three years ago, the B-52s announced its farewell tour. However, you and the band have embarked on a concert tour with Devo. Not that I want the B52s to ever stop performing, but how did this change come about?
Well, I always said it was the Cher-well Tour. I never said farewell, actually.t
Kate Pierson performs with The B-52s and Devo on Oct. 16, 7pm, in at Shoreline Amphitheatre, 1 Ampitheater Parkway, Mountain View. $32-$263. mountainviewamphitheater.com katepierson.com theb52s.com
Folsom Street Fair 2025
Photos by Steven Underhill
Kink unleashed was the theme under slightly overcast skies, with a humid flair in the air for the annual Folsom Street Fair, held September 28. Hundreds of thousands of people either dressed up or down, or wore nothing at all, and in between live performances and DJed grooves, wandered the packed streets on Folsom Street filled with community booths, beverages, and some naughtiness… well, a lot of naughtiness. www.folsomstreet.org
For more photos, visit www.facebook.com/lgbtsf.nightlife and www.stevenunderhill.com. For upcoming nightlife and arts events, see Going Out each week at www.ebar.com.
<< Kate Pierson
From page 13
Left: The B-52s’ Cindy Wilson, Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson Right: Kate Peirson
Joseph Jasso
by Tim Pfaff
There are many kinds of premieres: local premieres, national premieres, and the more exalted world premieres. Christophe Rousset, the out leader of Les Talens Lyriques, one of the finest and most enduring of “early-music” ensembles, has shown no fear in reviving scores that have not been heard in centuries, and breathing new life into them.
Now comes Antonio Salieri’s “Cublai” (Aparté), in the premiere recording of its original Italian version. The opera might as easily have fallen off the cliff of time had it not been strangled at birth; film at 11.
Jaundiced observers of the music scene have been quick to point out that labeling a composition or production a “premiere” has often proven a self-defeating move on the part of development departments. Instead of the desired “putting bums in the seats” (the bums in this case being derrières, not the indigent), the label has as often reduced target audiences by scaring them off.
But a first is a first, and premieres of all types enhance performing institutions’ reputations. San Francisco Opera has had an illustrious way with its presentation of new operas of all kinds. This season there’s the premiere of Huan Ruo’s “The Monkey King” on November 14.
The Metropolitan Opera, by contrast, has long taken brickbats for its stubborn adherence to the “traditional.” But under the music directorship of Yannick Nezet-Seguin, the company has turned over a leaf, with mixed results. Remarkably, it has opened its new season with Mason Bates’ “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Klay,” based on Michael Chabon’s novel, with its significant gay subplot. In the wild world of opera, this is news.
Opera-goers of a certain vintage remember when “opening night” –anywhere– was relegated to pieces no newer than “Tosca.” Now SF Opera has opened its new season with “Dead Man Walking,” the 2000 company premiere that launched the major international career of Jake Heggie, an official in the company’s public relations department at the time he was composing it.
There’s no overstating the significance of that. Few new operas find their footing in the repertoire. Heggie’s has found international success, the most-performed new opera this century.
If a tree falls…
It will salve the ears of anyone sick of the word unprecedented that the new Rousset confection does not count as the first time that an opera has had its world premiere centuries on. In the 1970s, out early-music guru Alan Curtis, then a professor of music at UC Berkeley, recorded and played live at Hearst Hall the 20th-century premiere of the “corrected” “Goldberg Variations.”
A few years later, Curtis, not shy of publicity, led a concert performance of his edition of Antonio Cesti’s “Semiramide,” a 17th-century opera composed as a wedding celebration for some Italian aristocrats. The wedding was called off after the bridegroomto-be booked, and this “Semiramide” (there are many) followed him off the boards until the Curtis restoration. A late local dubbed these “rediscoveries” of lost works “exhumations.”
In the case of “Cublai,” it was powerful government censors who pulled the plug on the libretto before its announced premiere in 1786. An essentially comic opera, its satire of the sitting government was virtually de rigueur for opera plots at the time, and in this instance a victim of cancellation.
Who’s on first?
The full title of the Giovanny Battista Casti libretto is “Cublai, gran ka de’ Tartari,” so the Khan we see here is not the infamous warrior Genghis Khan but his grandson, Kublai, with his own claims to fame. Famously, he negotiated with Marco Polo on the latter’s sweep through Asia, but his reputation now centers on his enormous expansion of territory in consolidating what is now mainland China.
But this being an 18th-century opera, actual history can only interfere with the plot. The operatic Kublai Khan is closer to the Samuel Taylor Coleridge critter who “decreed” “a stately pleasure dome,” which has its own 21st-century successors. Casti’s title character is basically a buffoon with problems handling his liquor.
In his sober moments he wishes to see his dimwit son Lipi married to the Indian Princess Alzima. The plot to arrange the wedding is, of course, a classic (and classical) case of hidden loves and cloaked identities improbably leading to the love marriage of the khan’s nephew Timur and Alzima.
The overlooked Salieri Rousset, whose previous recordings of Antonio Salieri have demonstrated his point that there is far more to Salieri than the F. Murray Abraham villainy in the movie, “Amadeus,” as foul a biopic as has been committed to celluloid. The French maestro, whose
repertoire all too seldom allows for unabashed comedy, has scored another win for Salieri while adding to his own luster.
The playing of Les Talens Musique emerges as always with the winning mix of finesse and fizz, leading to the necessary propulsion in the music. Singers, who have a habit of sticking with the Rousset ensemble –many of whom, over the years, have become stars in the constellation of today’s singers, not all Baroqueniks– are here augmented with exemplary newcomers, reflecting Rousset’s unerring knack for discovering musicians of promise soon realized.
Outstanding in an ensemble cast that has no ringers is Mirco Palazzi, who nimbly negotiates Salieri’s eccentric music for the dipsomaniac Cublai. Marie Lys sparkles and engages as Alzima, and Anicio Zorzi Giustini –a “Cosi fan tutte” Ferrando in the making– sings a meltingly beautiful Lipi –who has absorbed the lessons of his tutor Posega, Äneaus Humm, promoting the notion of the calculating cruelty of women. Ana
Quintans, a Rousset regular, pairs her sparkling coloratura with the vivid characterization of Memme, one of the libretto’s essential commedia delle’arte figures.
It’s an easy call to say that Salieri is no Mozart, but you don’t even have to squint your ears to hear Papageno and Papagena in the explicitly comic characters and Mozart’s deeply engaging, if sometimes bewildered, lovers. The orchestral music is both advanced and theatrically colorful.
For good measure, there are duplicitous Russians and scheming courtiers in this fantasy of imperial ambition in ancient China and other characters who mirror some political features of our own, arguably insufficiently lampooned time. There’s nothing the least academic or pseudo-oriental about this engrossing romp through Salieri’s quick-witted satire.t
Antonio Salieri, ‘Cublai, gran kan de’ Tartari’ Christophe Rousset, ‘Les Talens Lyriques,’ soloists, Aparté Records, 2 CDs and streaming www.apartemusic.com
Left: Composer Antonio Salieri Right: Conductor Christophe Rousset
An extra twist enhances ‘The Motion’
by Jim Gladstone
The September 26 performance of ‘The Motion,’ San Francisco playwright Christopher Chen’s provocative mind game drama, at Shotgun Players’ Ashby Stage in Berkeley, was one of the most thrilling evenings I’ve ever spent in a theater.
The production continues through Oct. 12. Your experience, inevitably, will vary. One of theater’s essential attributes is its aliveness. No matter how tightly a script is written, the best performances are never rote. Actors will tell you that, even playing a role as many as eight times each week, every performance is different.
Over the run of a show, they continue to excavate deeper nuance in their characters; palpable feedback loops connect a cast to each audience; an understudy steps in and subtly alters the ensemble chemistry. During the performance of “The Motion” I attended, actor David Sinaiko had a nosebleed.
Four shadowing
Siniako plays Dr. Alan James, one of four articulate, well-educated authorities gathered for a public intellectual debate. Theatergoers are cast as debate attendees: On entering the auditorium, they see stage techs and performers (in character) conducting sound checks, adjusting chairs, straightening ties, and smoothing hair as if preparing for a program at the Commonwealth Club.
The proceedings begin, a pontificant moderator (Erin Gould, amusingly starchy) asking the crowd to place advance Yes/No votes on the motion to be debated: “Ban animal testing now.” A clicker-wielding assistant counts raised hands and shares the results.
Dr. James and Professor Lily Chan (Gabrielle Maalihan), champion the
Hear it as the first audiences heard it!
Fury &
absolutist anti-testing argument, seem outmatched by the boilingly self-righteous Dr. Matthis (Erin Mei-Ling) and smooth self-amused Professor Neel Serrano (Soren Santos).
Playwright Chen arms the members of this foursome with provocative aperçus such as “Animals pay our unhealthy lifestyle bills,” in regard to research conducted in pharmaceutical development; and “sentience is elusive,” regarding the degree to which animals think and feel relative to humans.
Heartbreak
Praised for her “intelligence, vulnerability, and a rich, soaring soprano” (Opera News), Maya Kherani stars in a Baroque program of love, betrayal, and dazzling vocal fireworks. Handel, Marcello, and Vivaldi—performed on period instruments, in the style of their time.
SAN FRANCISCO OCT 16 | 7:30 PM
Herbst Theatre
BERKELEY OCT 18 | 2:30 PM
First Congregational Church
MOUNTAIN VIEW OCT 19 | 2:30 PM
Performing Arts Center
Dramaturgical derring-do
Clairvoyance is just the springboard of Chen’s ballsy leap into genreblending. “The Motion” gleefully Vitamixes social drama, comedy, science fiction, and horror. And it’s an immersion blender, pulling the audience into its whirlpool of seemingly contradictory elements as it mashes and macerates them into one spooky smoothie.
Director Patrick Dooley is also allin, handling unruly material with unwavering confidence. His poker-faced
production never winks at the audience or calls boastful attention to its deeply embedded ironies.
As they question their partial mind meld, the Docs and Profs are abruptly addressed by a deep, electronically distorted off-stage voice belonging to some higher power. And they’re subsumed into a thrumming forcefield (In the show’s weakest moment, they do Marcel-Marceau-invisiblebox schtick to acknowledge their entrapment).
The production then takes an even sharper left turn with a blackout, then a frightening explosion of light and clamor (Christian V. Mejia designed the bold lighting; Matt Stines, the impressively complex, layered soundscape). It’s a paradigmshifting moment for characters and audience alike.
The moderator and debate set whisked away, our brainy quartet finds itself in a sleek split-level home fully stocked with plenty of wine and other bourgeois necessities. But their memories of the past are becoming fuzzy and there seems to be no way out. It’s a midcentury modern mindfuck.
Chen’s blissfully tortuous plot then took its final turn. Without revealing too much detail: Some of the main characters were forced to consider the morality of destroying the nearly-human robot on behalf of a greater good.
As far as I was concerned, Chen’s script and this world premiere production of “The Motion” were already unqualifiedly good, verging on great. But I can’t deliver an assessment on where it falls within that scale, because after the final curtain, still feeling uncertain, I asked a Shotgun staff member, who let me know that David Sinaiko had indeed suffered a nosebleed.
All I can say is that at the performance I saw, the indecipherable blur of art and reality, the transformation of an audience into an invested community, and the cross-linked imaginations of theatermakers and spectators made “The Motion” profoundly moving.t
It’s impossible to consider “Kim’s Convenience,” the rib-tickling, heart-stirring comic drama now playing at A.C.T.’s Toni Rembe Theater, without noting its kinship to television sitcoms.
That would be the case even had the play not been the source material for a successful long-running Canadian Broadcasting Company series of the same name (2016-2021), which became a bonafide global hit after being picked up by Netflix.
The play, by the Korean-born Canadian writer Ins Choi, whose script draws on his own family’s experience as immigrants to Toronto in the 1970s, has a small cast, a sentimental streak, broadly appealing characterbased humor that leans into archetypes (stern but secretly soft dad; soft but secretly strong Mom; hellion son; daughter with gumption), and primarily takes place in one location.
The show’s single set even does double duty as the sit-com genre’s two favorite settings: a living room and a workplace. The Kim family lives above their convenience store, where most of their domestic drama tends to play out.
Ins Choi not only wrote this show, he stars as the family patriarch and retail proprietor, called Appa, not a given name, but a Korean word for Father. While endearing, like “Pop,” the term is also unspecific; and the character views himself in kind.
A first-generation immigrant, he considers being a father and giving his children opportunity for advancement more important than his role as an individual.
“What is the story of me?” he asks more than once during the play, con-
fused and forlorn. While proudly making sacrificing for his family, Appa has filled his own unconscious well of bitterness. At times, it erupts volcanically, pushing his loved ones away.
Appa’s wife, called Umma, or mother, played by Esther Chung, is a less-distinctly written role. Still, with a lightness in gait and voice, Chung helps us understand that she has tempered much of her own self-abnegation. Umma’s involvement in Christian church, provides a balm, not just through faith, but through a sense of community that extends beyond her family.
The grown Kim kids are both in their 30s. Jung (Ryan Jinn), left home at 16 after a father-son altercation. Like his father, he has a lostness to him; and by play’s end, both men find some of what they’re missing need in reconnecting with each other.
Daughter Janet (Kelly Seo), an aspiring photographer, still lives with her parents above the store and serves
as the family diplomat, helping bridge rifts even as she asserts her own sense of independence. By virtue of her age and position in the family structure, Janet is free to display a wider range of feelings than the other Kims, and Seo flies with the opportunity. Her performance is the show’s least sitcom-like. She seamlessly works her way from emotional peaks to valleys and through everything in between within the show’s swift single act.
As Appa, Choi, is a treasure. His love and respect for the Korean immigrant men of his father’s generation imbues his portrayal, making the audience feel for the character even at his most tyrannical. At only 85 minutes long, “Kim’s Convenience” leaves you wishing you could binge it for days.t
Convenience,’ through Oct.
Soprano
Maya Kherani
Gabrielle Maalihan and David Sinaiko in ‘The Motion’
Jay Yamada
Ryan Jinn, Esther Chung, Ins Choi, Kelly Seo, and Brandon McKnight in ‘Kim’s Convenience’.
Dahlia Katz
‘Hokus Pokus Live!’
by David-Elijah Nahmod
“Hocus Pocus,” the 1993 comic fantasy film, didn’t do well upon its initial release. The movie starred Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as a comedic trio of witches who are inadvertently resurrected by a teenaged boy (Omri Katz) on Halloween night in Salem, Massachusetts. Over the years the film has developed quite a cult following thanks to annual airings on cable outlets The Disney Channel and Freeform. “Hocus Pocus” went on to spawn a franchise, with a recent sequel, another film in development, a theme park attraction and a novel. The film has also enjoyed robust sales on DVD and Blu Ray.
The film is a favorite of drag artist Ginger Minj. The “Drag Race” alumnus is touring for the third time with a show called “Hokus Pokus Live!” which is a love letter to the original film. But don’t expect to see the same show you saw before. This version will feature new songs and includes in its cast a who’s who of “Drag Race” alumni. Besides Minj, expect to see Sapphira Cristál from season 16, Jujubee from both “Drag Race” and “Drag: the Musical,” and drag king Landon Cider from “Dragula.”
“Hokus Pokus Live!” will be seen on October 5 at the Palace of Fine Arts. The 8pm show is sold out but there are still seats for the 2pm show.
Besides starring in the production, Minj is also serving as the writer and director. In an interview with the Bay Area Reporter, she recalled her “Drag Race” experience and spoke about this new show.
David-Elijah Nahmod: What moved you to do drag and try out for “Drag Race?”
Classic Bette Midler film takes to the stage with drag queens
Ginger Minj: Like a lot of queens, I stumbled into drag through theater. I grew up on the stage and I suddenly discovered that I could not only star in the show, but also write, direct, costume, choreograph and produce it too. “Drag Race” gave me the opportunity to do that on a much bigger level.
Please describe your “Drag Race” experience. What was your impression of RuPaul?
It was all amazing. Even in the bad moments, there were a lot of really great opportunities for growth. I wouldn’t be the person or performer I am today if it wasn’t for RuPaul and “Drag Race.”
You started out as a child actor, correct? Can you please tell me about this and how this may have informed your later work in drag?
Like I said before, I grew up on the stage. I feel more comfortable in the spotlight than I do anyplace else on earth. I feel like drag gives me the opportunity to fully realize productions from top to bottom. Theater gave me the know-how not only to create all the elements but pull them together for a singular experience.
What is it about the original “Hocus Pocus” that appeals to so many people in your opinion?
Nostalgia, baby. I remember lov-
ing Halloween when I was a child, but not being into the cartoons or the bloody slasher films at the other end. “Hocus Pocus” felt like the first time a big budget spooky movie was made for us. Not to mention those three iconic witches played by three even more iconic actresses was and is spectacular.
What does the original film mean to you?
Bette Midler as Winifred Sanderson inspired my drag persona more than even I probably realized. She’s strong, she’s sassy, she knows what she wants, and she’s not afraid to burst into song at any given moment.
How will your production differ from the film?
I like to call it the unofficial three-quel. It’s got the moments you love from the original, some great nods to “Drag Race,” and more pop culture references than you can shake a stick at. And all of it wrapped around eighteen incredible songs. There’s literally something for everybody.
How elaborate will the show be? Special effects? Costumes? All of that and more. It’s the biggest production we’ve ever put together, a massive undertaking, but every surprise gets a great reaction from the crowd every night.
Your press release said that you know Bette Midler and that she encouraged you to bring “Hocus Pocus” to the stage. Can you tell me about that experience and about your impressions about her?
She’s my new drag mom whether she realizes it or not. In the two weeks that we spent filming together on “Hocus Pocus 2,” she went out of her way to give me professional advice and life lessons. On our last day she suggested that I take the character and do something with it, and that’s where this show was born.
What do you hope the audience will take from “Hokus Pokus Live!”
Just come and have some fun. Life is hard, things are crazy, but we all deserve a few hours to laugh, sing along, and just enjoy each other’s company.t
‘Hokus Pokus Live!’ October 5, 2pm, $62-$154, Palace of Fine Arts Theater, 3301 Lyon St. www.palaceoffinearts.org www.instagram.com/gingerminj
Jujubee, Ginger Minj, Sapphira Cristál and Landon Cider in ‘Hokus Pokus Live!’
Words: Rodney Rhoda Taylor
by Michele Karlsberg
Rodney Rhoda Taylor is a dynamic voice in contemporary queer storytelling, known for their sharp wit, emotional honesty, and theatrical flair. They graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in Creative Writing and Rodney took a non-linear path to the page and stage, eventually finding his footing in the world of playwriting.
They co-founded with Joe Frank the Left Coast Theatre Company, San Francisco’s home for original LGBTQ+ theater. Rodney has written,
directed, and acted in a range of productions including “Eros,” “Poolside,” “Good-Bye Cupid,” and “P.S. I Love You.” Their work balances humor and heart, often exploring themes of love, identity, and resilience with a distinct narrative voice.
Inspired by Carrie Bradshaw and driven by a deep love for storytelling (and stylish shoes), Rodney’s creative journey recently expanded into memoir with the release of their debut book, “A Life in Letters: A Story of Resilience, Sequence, and Hope.” In addition to writing, they blog weekly about food, life, and his ongoing
search for Cupid. Rodney crafts stories that celebrate the complexities of queer life with warmth, vulnerability, and unapologetic charm.
Michele Karlsberg: Your memoir is written as a series of letters. What inspired you to choose this format rather than a traditional linear narrative?
Rodney Rhoda Taylor: I was taking a letter-writing class when I was working towards my degree and thought it would be an interesting idea to write a collection of letters to the thoughts, feelings and emotions we all have.
However, when I graduated, I ended up concentrating on the theater company and didn’t complete it. It wasn’t until about three years ago when I started writing again that I began working on the book. At the time it was still a more generalized collection of letters. It was in the editing process that it turned into a memoir because the original book didn’t have any depth or emotion. I figured itd be more relatable to people if I put myself into it.
In a more traditional narrative, I wouldnt have been able to pointedly share how these thoughts and emotions and events affected me. By writing letters to them, I’m able to address them directly and share more about your interactions better than saying, this is how I felt. I think the letters make the story more relatable because of the subject matter, plus to the best of my knowledge, it hasnt been done before.
You mention being inspired by Carrie Bradshaw. In what ways did her character shape your approach to writing or storytelling?
Well, she most defiantly influenced my choice of cocktail, which is the Cosmopolitan. The way Carrie writes is very unique, or I thought it was. She always asks questions at the beginning of her writing and then spends the rest of the piece by providing her own answers. At some point in any “Sex and the City” episode, we always see her writing and proposing a question about that episode’s theme or obstacle she faces. It s that element of creating questions about certain
Author Rodney Rhoda Taylor
topics that I’ve used in my own writing, especially in the book. In many of the letters I proposed questions to whomever the letters were addressed, and then I explore answers to the question I asked throughout the rest of what I m writing.
After graduating with a degree in Creative Writing, you experienced a period of uncertainty. What advice would you give to new graduates facing a similar crossroads?
I’d say that it’s okay to be uncertain and to embrace that feeling. We ve all been there at some point in our life of not knowing what we wanted to do. Instead of stressing out about it, let life flow and the universe will point you in the direction you should go.
After I got my degree, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it, so I dabbled and experimented with various forms of writing. Then a friend showed me an invite he found for an LGBTQ playwriting group. I joined and that helped kick off my writing career. Sometimes you just have to let the universe point you in the direction you should take.
You co-founded the Left Coast Theatre Co., which champions LGBTQ voices. How has your identity influenced your writing, both in theater and memoir?
As an out gay man, I ve tried to share what it means to be gay with
Funds for life
by Jim Provenzano
others outside the community. That we are searching for the same thing as everyone else is: love, acceptance, and happiness. The flip side of that is I ve also tried to share what it s like when society tells us that we shouldn t exist and the hate and prejudice receive.
Your book resonates with themes of resilience and self-acceptance. What do you hope readers, especially young queer readers, take away from your story? I hope they come away with a few things, but for me I’d say there are three important take ways: They are not alone and that there are other people who are experiencing the same feelings as they are. Whether these feelings are about attraction to a person of the same sex, or the need to be loved, or self-doubt, we are all going through the same things. Even in the darkest moments, never give up. I’ve been there. I’ve had some serious dark moments, but I kept on pushing forward and was able to use that as part of my book.
And the last thing is to always be oneself. Don t let other people tell you who you are or dampen your spirit. It s your life, you have to do what makes you happy, not make them happy.t
Read the full interview on www.bar.com.
www.rodneyrhodataylor.com
Two local fundraisers aim to help the archive project of local artist and a prominent DJ who is recovering from injuries. And a film about the history of AIDS
Crash
He’s been playing classic disco at nightclubs in the Bay Area for 25 years as well as in Los Angeles. DJ Bus Station John, a favorite award-winning expert on disco music classics, recently had a trip and fall accident in South of Market on Seventh Street where he fractured his shoulder. To make matters worse, he was robbed while incapacitated.
He does have some health insurance, but his other bills and necessities like rent need to be paid until he can return to DJing, which may be several months.
So far, more than $3000 has been raised of a $7500 goal. If you’ve ever enjoyed one of his Disco Daddy nights at the Eagle or Tubesteak Connection at Aunt Charlie’s, you know, we owe him a debt of gratitude as well as a couple of bucks. Paypal him at hottraxx82@aol.com or the GoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/upliftdisco-daddy-postshattered-shoulderstreet-robbery
Stash
Conceptual artist Adam Paulson has been making arts for most of his
life. The 86-year-old is unfortunately being evicted from his studio of 50 years. To preserve his archives and move them safely, Seth Eisen, known for his intergenerational art focus, performances and walking tours, is helping Adam into a new space and archiving his decades of art work to be processed.
This is the first step in launching Eye Zen’s FabLab: InterGen, an LGBTQIA+ Archival Internship that teaches essential preservation skills to emerging archivists, while actively processing the archives of elder artists.
They’ve already raised $10,000 and need another five with a goal of $15,000, but they’ll take what they can to help support Paulson with his move, and in preserving his artwork.
People of a certain age remember when mostly gay men with AIDS sold their life insurance policy so they could live with the cash remaining. But it had a down side, too, as some PWAs outlived their funds and had to scrape for a living.
Cashing Out, the short film examines this forgotten time in AIDS/ HIV history. Filmmaker Matt Nadel revisits the morally complex world of “AIDS-profiteering,” and how it enabled both survival and exploitation for people living with AIDS at a time when institutions failed them.
The executive producing team includes gay actor Matt Bomer, Angeria Paris Van Micheals, and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Julie Cohen. The 40-minute documentary, hosted by The New Yorker. is available free online. www.cashingoutmovie.comt
Left to Right: Adam Paulson, DJ Bus Station John, Sean Strub interviewed in ‘Cashing Out’
I’m glad you mentioned that because “Plainclothes” is the feature-length directorial debut for Carmen Emmi, who also wrote the screenplay. What are the advantages of working with a first-time filmmaker for an actor?
RT: I don’t know if it’s an advantage, but you feel the excitement. You feel a responsibility, I guess, to be your best for them. You want them to have the best experience ever. In the way that Andrew wants Lucas to have the best experience ever in this film, with his first time with someone, with a gay man, with a man.
We, as actors, want to make sure that Carmen wants to continue working after we finish his film, for sure. You’ve got someone who is so excited and so full of gratitude. He’s experimental. That’s what’s so shocking about the way that Carmen made this film. I had no idea what was going on when we first started. When he pulled the camcorder out, when he was doing certain shots. I was like, “I don’t understand this,” but it was so intoxicating working with him on his first film. What he does next and where his trajectory is going is so brilliant.
TB: There’s a bravery in a firsttime filmmaker, I’ve noticed, that is simultaneously bravery and anxiety. They know what they want to do, and they’re working from instinct because they’ve not been told no too many times by producers, or financiers, or whatever it may be.
RT: They’re not jaded yet.
TB: They’ve not gotten the outside critiques which filmmakers throughout their careers get. There’s this bravery of, “I’m just gonna enact my vision.” Then there’s this anxiety because it’s their first big film. That anxiety feels collaborative because they don’t think they know it all, and they lean on everyone else as much as they lean on their own vision. So, it creates this incredible mix of boldness and collaboration, which you don’t always get.
“Plainclothes” is set in 1997, almost 30 years ago, at a time before Grindr and other hook-up apps, when there were limited options available to gay men for casual interactions. Do either of you find it shocking to think about how much things have changed and advanced in 30 years?
RT: Thirty years is basically Tom’s whole life.
TB: [Laughs]
RT: The world just gets faster and faster, doesn’t it? I mean, what can you do? It is shocking for so many other things, that it’s terrifying at the speed of the way that everything’s going. I miss CDs. I miss them. You can quote me on that. The way that queer people, or anybody, can find connections with people online now is fascinating and brilliant and terrifying and rewarding and depressing, and all of those feelings completely.
But there’s something romantic about the way that these guys meet that feels furtive and dangerous. That’s the situation that so many people were in. There weren’t safe spaces created for people, so they were pushed to the margins, and they ended up in dangerous situations. This is a very dangerous
appear more masculine, more straight. I realized that, shaped by societal expectations of what a man should be, I suppressed my feelings and became my own harshest enforcer. In the 1990s, being gay felt like a death sentence, amplified by the pervasive fear of AIDS.”
Emmi’s brother was becoming a police officer and acquainted him with that world.
“I read an article in the Los Angeles Times about undercover police officers arresting men as part of a sting operation in a park bathroom in 2014, shortly after I was beginning to live openly as a gay man,” said Emmi. “I was shocked, as I believed it was now safe to come out in our culture, yet I didn’t feel that way anymore. I had spent so many years trying to stay safe before anyone could ask about who I really was. It forced me to confront the reasons I had closeted myself for so long, bringing up those feelings I experienced as a boy.
“Based on a true story, I wanted my film to explore what it means to police your feelings, to hold back one’s true self, or hide in plain sight and how that can alter your mind from living that way. It’s a quiet internal struggle that can happen whether you’re queer or not. That anxiety builds over time and I wanted to explore where it went.”
Who plays gay?
Emmi was very happy with the sizzling chemistry between Blyth and Tovey.
“It was electric on set,” he said.
“Tovey is gay and Tom is open. I don’t think he’s identified one way or another. What’s so great about this younger generation is their fluidity. But while it’s easier for many gay people to come out now, I still feel we have a lot of boxes to dismantle within our community.”
Does Emmi feel only LGBTQ actors should play queer roles?
“I’m the writer and director of my movie and I’m gay, so I can pick who I want to play in the film,” he said. “It was really important for me to look at queer actors. I’m really thrilled Russell is in the movie, since he’s so out and proud. Yet it was also important to me to find theater-trained actors.
“Tom went to Julliard, but I didn’t want to ask him about his sexuality in a casting call. If we get too rigid with rules about who plays what roles, it can stifle creativity. I would cast
situation, but through this place of adversity and danger, something beautiful grows.
TB: Russell and I have both talked about this recently. I do think we have this feeling, even more so this year than last year when we were making this film, that it is more necessary than ever because it does feel like we’re moving backwards at the moment, politically and socially. I don’t think we even knew a year ago, when we were making it, how much a year later it would feel like the wheel of time is going backwards. I’m very proud to be able to champion this film, right now especially.
The thrill and risk of sex in a public place, whether a mall men’s room or a greenhouse, gives “Plainclothes” a distinctive eroticism. The scene in the greenhouse was especially touching. Can you both please comment on that?
RT: Well, it was hot. And we’re playing that it’s cold outside, so we’re bundled up in layers. Not much sex goes on in the bathrooms because everyone seems to be caught, or it’s very momentarily sexy and fraught, and
then it ends. So, for our characters to have that time where we can be free – it’s not a bed, it’s not a house, it’s not domestic – it is still somewhere that’s furtive.
But for us to have that moment where we can close the door and be free with each other is so beautiful. Someone said the other day that when they watched it, that when you go into the greenhouse all the flowers feel like “The “Wizard of Oz.” It goes into Technicolor. Before that, everything’s grey and muted, and that door opens and you’ve got all of this sort of Oz. This beautiful world where they exist and they’re amongst flowers and foliage and botanicals, and it’s historical. That’s so true! I’m sure Carmen’s considered that, because one of his favorite films is “The Wizard of Oz.” That is such a beautiful way to turn the story, and that is the truth of that scene. These guys are finally in their utopia. t
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the same actors again. Even if it was a straight actor, it would be okay because he was living out my experience as a queer man. I think queer films should be messageoriented, yet I also feel they don’t have to be. It’s whatever creative energy as a filmmaker inspires you.
“It’s more important than ever to keep making queer content, to keep being visible, that we do exist and matter, he continued. “My family is supportive and gives me excellent feedback on my work. I’m inspired by books (I’m reading ‘Gay Bar’ and want to revisit ‘Maurice.’) and music, which is how I stay grounded. I played it on the set to help actors drop into character.”
Emmi says the message of the film is not to suppress your feelings or acknowledge if you are doing so, but to love each other. He wished he had seen a film like “Plainclothes” when he was growing up.
“I made this film so that my sevenyear-old self could exhale. I made it for the countless people –queer and nonqueer alike– who hold their true selves back. I made it because of a familiar image that resurfaced while I was writing: a kid in the grocery line watching their mom turn over a magazine to hide the cast of ‘Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.’ That kid can’t watch this movie, but they can watch me turn the magazine back around. I wanted to leave the audience with a feeling of hope, maybe for someone who was struggling with not even their sexuality, but any secret they had. That was the goal for me.”
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Tom Blyth (left) and Russell Tovey (right) in ‘Plainclothes’
Both photos: Magnolia Pictures
Director/writer Carmen Emmi with actors Tom Blyth and Russell Tovey on the set of ‘Plainclothes’
