Entertainment :: Music
LGBT youth show choir is Chicago’s first by Joseph Erbentraut
EDGE ContributorThursday Aug 27, 2009 Ever look back on your adolescent days and wish you’d had a chance to sing and dance to your angst-filled heart’s content along with a legion of fellow LGBT youth? For a number of young Chicagoans, that dream has become a reality, thanks to the formation of the Chicago LGBT Youth Show Choir.
The show choir, founded by volunteers Perry Simmons and Paul Blievernicht, will start everything off with a bi-curious bang Sunday by hosting its first ever Benefit Concert and Silent Auction at the Center on Halsted’s Hoover-Leppen Theatre, beginning at 7 p.m. The benefit comes just on the brink of the choir’s inaugural season, which kicks off next month, and will help fund the new troupe.
As active members of the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus (CGMC), Simmons and Blievernicht are no strangers to song. They originally were inspired to start the youth show choir upon viewing the power of queer youth choirs at a national LGBT chorus festival in Miami last year. Upon their return, they approached the Center on Halsted to make the chorus part of the Center’s Youth Program, recruited a music staff of 14 and have never looked back.
The Chicago LGBT Youth Show Choir is the first of its kind in the city and one of only a few such groups in the country. Calling the Center on Halsted home, the choir offers a fun opportunity for musically-inclined 13-21-year-olds to perform outside the context of a school or church.
The experience of working with the youth has been one of many highlights for Evan Trad, the choir’s managing director.
"My favorite experience has been getting to know the youth, as well as learning all the ins and outs of starting a group," Trad shared. "We have an amazing group of music volunteers who come to the rehearsals to work with [them]. It’s exciting to watch them grow and see the youth’s confidence levels increase!"
In addition to performances from the choir, Sunday’s benefit will be hosted by Ethel Bourbon and Trad, and will feature performances from the Chicago Spirit Brigade Cheerleaders, singer-songwriter Ian Wilson and other members of the music staff. The silent auction will feature items from Orbitz, Prada, Mary Kay and even art created by the youth themselves.
Wilson, who originally got involved with the choir due to his work accompanying the CGMC, was excited to have the chance to perform in the benefit. He feels the choir plays a unique role in the lives of the performers and hoped members of the community would come out to support the choir.
"It’s a really neat idea to have a program set up for youth where you’re actually doing something together instead of it being group therapy or a discussion group," Wilson shared. "They’re able to show off and perform, which is important for a queer teen to have something like that to bolster their self-esteem."
And ultimately, in addition to being a great cause and raising money to support the choir’s efforts, those considering attending will also appreciate the post-performance VIP reception with champagne and desserts donated by Flourish Bakery Cafe.
To buy tickets or for more information on the Chicago LGBT Youth Show Choir Benefit & Silent Auction, visit www.centeronhalsted.org.
Joseph covers news, arts and entertainment and lives in Chicago.
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