Michigan Queer Artists Are Weaponizing Joy Against the Trump Era
Nobody said resistance would be fun — but Michigan's queer artists are making a strong case for it. As federal rollbacks on LGBTQ+ rights, attacks on DEI [...]
How The Ringwald's 'Somewhere' Echoes 1959 Displacement in an Era of ICE Raids
In 1959, a thriving Puerto Rican neighborhood in New York City's San Juan Hill faced demolition to make way for Lincoln Center. The residents were given no [...]
Ringwald Theatre's 'Silver Foxes' Delivers 'Golden Girls' Vibes — with a Queer, Palm Springs Twist
Picture it: Palm Springs, present day. Three older gay men rescue their best friend from a homophobic assisted living facility, befriend his younger boyfriend [...]
'Gilligan’s Island' Gets Naughty: Queer-Led 'Seven Castaways' Washes Ashore at Planet Ant
After six years in development, Sean Paraventi's musical parody "Seven Castaways" is finally ready for its full theatrical debut at Planet Ant Theatre from [...]
'Rent,' 'Hamilton' Producer Jeffrey Seller Returns to Detroit with Memoir about Growing up Gay, Transforming Broadway
Jeffrey Seller, one of America's most successful Broadway producers, returns home May 6 to launch his memoir "Theater Kid: A Broadway Memoir," a story deeply [...]
Recovering Forgotten Trans History: Storyteller S. Bear Bergman Brings ‘The First Jew in Canada’ to Ann Arbor Church
S. Bear Bergman has been a self-described "queer pain in the ass" since adolescence, when he helped found the first gay-straight alliance in the country in 1990 [...]
University of Michigan's 'Our Oz' Reimagines a Classic with a Trans Lion and a Queer Cast
Actors are often asked to leave behind their own identities and lose themselves in a character of someone else’s creation.But at the University of [...]
Spring Theater in Michigan Celebrates Queer Stories and Bold Premieres
In a world that feels increasingly uncertain, one thing remains in high demand: joy. This spring, Michigan’s theater scene is offering just that [...]
'No Limits': Michigan's Chuckie Benson Charts His Own Path in Historic Theater Tour
When Chuckie Benson returns to Michigan this month, it will be a homecoming where both his hometown and college community can see how he’s grown — [...]
Michigan Fall Theater Is Upon Us: 7 Queer Shows You Won't Want to Miss
Your season has arrived, theater lovers! Is there anything more satisfying than filling up your upcoming fall calendar with plans to see all the exciting new [...]
Breaking New Ground at Williamston Theatre: Playwright Terry Guest's Journey from 'The Magnolia Ballet' to 'Thirst'
Terry Guest gets compared to other playwrights — especially those who, like him, are Black, queer or Southern. But Guest’s voice is uniquely his [...]
5 Questions with Queer ‘On Your Feet!’ Cast Member Jake Dylan Ahead of Fox Theatre Performance
Detroiters will have only a brief opportunity to see the Broadway hit musical “On Your Feet! The Story Of Emilio & Gloria Estefan” when the [...]
Why the Ringwald Theatre’s Vince Kelley Wrote a Christmas Show About Barbra Streisand
When the curtain rises on the Ringwald Theatre’s latest production, “Jingle Babs,” audiences will be transported to 1967 New York City. [...]
One of the Actors Under the Sven Costume in ‘Frozen’ Production Is a Body-Positive Queer Michigander
Collin Baja, a dancer and actor who grew up in Northville and Traverse City, is returning to Michigan soon, though not as himself — not even close.
A Play About Jesus — With Jesus Seen Through the Eyes of an LGBTQ+ Activist
The show’s writer, Antonio David Garcia, wrote the play before becoming an atheist.
When Annaliese Wilbur Returns to the Fisher Theatre, This Time They’ll Be on Stage
Wilbur on their full circle journey and why they feel queer representation in artistic performance is so important
Planet Ant Couldn’t Let This 23-Year-Old Playwright Get Away
Planet Ant director Darren Shelton didn’t plan to produce a new play this year. Still resetting after Covid shut down the theater and arts center for an [...]
After Hamtramck Pride Flag Ban, Local Theater Shows LGBTQ+ Support Through Performance
In early June, Hamtramck’s City Council banned the Pride Flag from being flown on public property, a move that has prompted a wave of backlash across the [...]
Queer Play Marks a New Era for This Northville Theater
When Tracy Spada left Northville and her role as stage manager, director and actor at Northville’s Tipping Point Theatre in 2020, she couldn’t have [...]
Queering 'Don Pasquale': Opera MODO Considers LGBTQ+ Representation in New Imagining of the Classic Italian Production
When "Don Pasquale" first premiered in January of 1843, it joined a long tradition of opera buffa, or comedic operas, that had begun a century before. The [...]
Vince Kelley Left Michigan. When He Came Back, He Found a Family Who Changed Everything.
When the Ringwald Theatre’s “Who’s Holiday” star Vince Kelley took his first steps into the big wide world after high school nearly 20 [...]
The State of Local Theater Amidst COVID-19
While it will be impossible to tell the full impacts of the novel coronavirus pandemic on the arts until it is over, it has been almost a year since most [...]
