“Using the Performing Arts for Social Justice in the LGBTQI+ Community.” Presented online, March 2, 2021.
On Tuesday, March 2, 2021, Dr. Beth Kattelman and Holling Smith-Borne gave an engaging and uplifting MLA session highlighting two notable arts organizations – Evolution Theatre Company (Columbus, OH), and Nashville in Harmony, a GALA chorus (Nashville, TN).
For the session’s first segment, Dr. Kattelman, a professor at The Ohio State University and curator of its Theatre Research Institute, focused on Evolution Theatre Company. Evolution, a professional equity theatre company founded in 2008, has achieved notable success in impacting both the theatre world and the LGBTQ+ community in Columbus. According to Kattelman, Evolution advocates within the theatre community by presenting non-sensationalized “LGBTQ+ experiences on stage, [so] that when audiences have a chance to watch queer characters and see that their struggles are just common struggles of humanity, it will build empathy and mutual understanding between gay and straight communities.” Beyond a simple performance venue, Evolution has become a pillar of the local LGBTQ+ community. From providing a safe space for those rejected by their families to raising awareness and support for the community via fundraising, Evolution’s work is vital.
Dr. Kattelman emphasized that libraries and archives play an important role in preserving the legacy of organizations like Evolution. It goes beyond preserving a collection of scripts, items, or recordings. Rather, one must not overlook the company’s “repertoire of embodied memory.” Evolution provides a meaningful experience to its members, audiences, and community – an experience that uplifts and affirms. In deciding what is preserved, how it is organized and described, and how it is made available to users, librarians and archivists must not lose sight of a fuller context of how organizations like Evolution achieve their aims. Patrons and researchers should not only have access to information about Evolution’s productions, but also be able to gain a sense of the overall mission and what it was like to be there.
For the session’s second segment, Holling Smith-Borne, director of the Anne Potter Wilson Music Library at Vanderbilt University, talked about Nashville in Harmony, a GALA chorus. Founded in 1983, GALA (The Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses) is the parent organization to over 200 choruses across the country and around the world. There is robust diversity from one GALA chorus to the next, both in terms of membership and repertoire performed, but they are united by the work they do and community they provide. Through advocacy, fundraising, networking, and pursuit of social change, GALA choruses have become key elements of the communities they represent, raising awareness and generating support. They have also become much more to their membership than most typical community choruses. As Smith-Borne explained, “Because of the shared struggles and discriminations that LGBTQIA+ people face, there is a sense of togetherness or family that does not exist in other choruses. The process of being together each week singing and sharing stories of discrimination and acceptance is often more important than the end product or final performance.”
For example, Nashville in Harmony (NIH) expresses these sentiments when they start rehearsals, often beginning by quoting Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” NIH was founded in 2003 and now has 140 members. The chorus describes itself as “Tennessee’s first and only musical arts organization specifically created for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, and their allies.” Through performances, strategic partnerships, fundraising, outreach, and advocacy, NIH is perpetually responsive to its community’s needs. In addition, NIH has been active in commissioning new works from a variety of prominent composers. Smith-Borne concluded his talk by sharing a performance clip from a 2019 NIH concert, TJ Cole’s commissioned work, Those Moments. The performance included recorded interview segments with NIH members on the topic of gender, and underscored the spirit and importance of NIH’s work to MLA session attendees.
Summary provided by Charley Roush (University of Texas Rio Grande Valley).