10th Annual Gay and Lesbian Theatre Festival, 2009

Bent
by Martin Sherman
January 15th & 16th at 8PM, January 17th at 2PM
Tickets $15

Rock the Line
by Kathleen Warnock
January 22nd & 23rd at 8PM, January 24 at 2PM
Tickets $15

Quilt: A Musical Celebration
Book by Jim Morgan and Merle Hubbard and John Schak
Music by Michael Stockler
Lyrics by Jim Morgan
January 29th and 30th at 8PM, January 31st at 2PM
Tickets $20

Performances at the Pikes Peak Metropolitan Church
1102 S. 21st. St. Colorado Springs, CO
Call 719.636.5089 for tickets

Bent:
A harrowing but ultimately uplifting evening of theatre that caused an uproar when it irst opened in London in 1979 with Sir Ian McKellen in the lead role of Max. Set against the backrop of Nazi Germany, taking us to Dachau Concentration Camp in Act II, Bent is the story of Max, a self-absorbed, hedonistic but lovable man who is good at 'making deals' and convincing people to do what he wants them to do. Max and his lover Rudy, a dancer in a nightclub in Berlin, are forced to be on the run from the Gestapo after bringing home an SS Storm Trooper for a threesome. They flee until the Gestapo finally catch up to them. Headed to Dachau Concentration camp, Rudy is killed; Max manages to get a yellow star instead of the dreaded Pink Triangle reserved for Queers. A pink triangle named Horst gives Max survival advice, and during the next few months they fall in love. Their love is doomed, but they find a way to be human in teh face of devastating odds and in the end, their humanity triumphs over the hell they are living in. Max, in a brave act of defiance, beats the Nazis at their own game.

Rock the Line:
Patti Roxx is the iconic female rocker of the century, adored by millions of lesbian and straight men across the country. Patti Roxx is a goddess to many; to this group of multi-generational lesbians assembled for latest concert, she is life itself. As a group of lifelong friends waits for the doors to open, they reminisce about the past, ponder the future and deal with the present. Candy File shows up, a drugged-out, life has been hard on her rocker with tales taht could be or could not be true about her closeness with Patti. Unrequited love, living ife in the closet and living life vicariously through another are explored in this often hilarious, sometimes touching and eventually deeper than you would think comedy where being a lesbian is just a fact, not an issue.

Quilt: A Musical Celebration:
Few who have seen the NAMES project AIDS Memorial Quilt can ever forget the experience or the powerful emotions evoked by this patchwork of panels celebrating the memory or a friend or family member who has died of this terrible scourge. The musical affirmation of life focuses on the universality of the AIDS epidemic with compassion, humor and anger. The series of stories for, from and about the Quilt is threaded together by a volunteer's experience while making a panel in memory of a friend. In monologues and songs that bring the audience through the full range of emotions, this play commemorates the victims and survivors as well as those left behind. This musical is a powerful and thought-provoking show that will leave you smiling with a lump in your throat.