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Filmmakers Speak Out In Ptown (AUDIO)

This week I talked to filmmakers at the 28th Provincetown International Film Festival (PIFF) in the first installment of this 2-part series. First I talked with visual conceptual artist Jay Critchley who created the PIFF trailer this year with production by Arvid Tomayko. Jay’s performance work & environmental activism have traversed the globe performing in Argentina, Japan, England, Holland, Germany, Colombia & the United States. Jay’s social art practice also includes running the Provincetown Community Compact which works with artists & sponsors the annual Provincetown Harbor Swim for Life & Paddler Flotilla that’s celebrating its 39th year on September 12th. Then we chatted with director Sam McConnell & Brock Yurich about their feature film “Test” that won the PIFF Audience Award Best Narrative Feature & was written by Yurich who also stars as Eddie. The film is about a small-town Ohio bodybuilder (Brock Yurich) who clashes with his devout mother as he pursues his dreams under a renowned coach. Next I talked with director Fredgy Noël about her short film “Hail Maya” about a faithful Catholic undergraduate on her last night in the dorms trades salvation for sin by diving headfirst into a tangle of lust, love & betrayal that confession can’t absolve. Currently she is working on her first feature film. Then I concluded this segement with director Fergus Campbell & producer Lola Lafia whose feature film “Sparks” was honored with a PIFF John Schlesinger Narrative Special Mention. “Sparks” is a beautifully strange & unexpectedly tender film about identity, friendship & the need to escape as a group of teenagers in Sparks, Nevada attempt time travel exploring an urban legend that a Nevada reservoir is a time portal. 
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Ariana Grande Launches Foundation

Ariana Grande has announced the launch of The Brighter Days Ahead Foundation that champions justice & equity through 4 core funds to support orgs that provide care & resources for communities in need. Ariana stated, “I am beyond excited to finally announce The Brighter Days Ahead Foundation. Our mission is to support, protect & provide resources for our vulnerable friends in need. Through four different funds, we will be supporting handfuls of incredible organizations that provide the safe space & care that is desperately needed by so many right now. It has been my privilege to be able to support these causes on my own over the years & I’m grateful to now be able to expand that reach & amplify the life-saving work that these organizations do through the brighter days ahead foundation.” This comes as a follow up in the wake of the White House TikTok post using unauthorized use of Ariana’s music. With a focus on protecting trans & LGBTQ civil rights, expanding access to mental health care & responding with care & compassion in moments of crisis the 4 funds are the Protect & Defend Fund, the Heal & Dream Fund, the Seen & Celebrated Fund & the Emergency Support Fund. Current grantees include Defending Our Neighbors Fund, Elevated Access, G.L.I.T.S, Lambda Legal, Transgender Law Center & Trans Youth Emergency Project. Recent grantees have included Humanity Crew, New York Cares, SAGE USA, Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Save the Children UK, This Is About Humanity & Troop 6000. 

Hear Audio Chats w/ LGBTQ Leaders @OUTTAKE VOICE
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Pulse Nightclub Massacre Revisited

Ten years ago we woke up to the horrific news about the Pulse Massacre in Orlando where 49 people were killed by a deranged person with an assault rifle & yet 10 years later Congress still can’t seem to pass obvious sensible gun legislation that would prevent future brutal, hate-fueled violence attacks. Brandon J Wolf, Pulse Nightclub survivor stated, “To every politician who scapegoats mental illness, saying that simply addressing our poor mental health infrastructure will end gun violence: show me the bill. Show me the bill to make physical & mental health care free at the point of care for people in this country. Show me the bill to end the for-profit scam that is our healthcare system & put in place a system that does what you say we need.” After the demise of the onePULSE Foundation Orlando City Hall is presenting a free event called “Created in Community: Portraits of Pulse” a powerful exhibition features 49 portraits honoring the lives lost created through a deeply collaborative community effort. Designed by local artist Jeff Sonksen in a paint-by-number format the works were completed in 2017 by victims’ families, friends & members of the Orlando community. Each portrait emerged through a shared process of painting, transforming grief into collective remembrance & healing. In 2018 I talked to Brandon about his experience on that horrendous night that claimed the lives of 49 people & left 53 injured most of who were LGBTQ Latinx people & people of color in this exclusive podcast. LISTEN  

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Billy Porter & Wayne Brady La Cage NYC

New York City Center presents the Encores! production of La Cage Aux Folles starring Emmy, Grammy & Tony winner Billy Porter as the fabulous Albin & Wayne Brady as Georges June 17th through 28th. The iconic play is about longtime partners Albin & Georges who are proprietors of a vibrant drag nightclub in St. Tropez whose world turns upside down when their son brings home his fiancée’s conservative parents. What ensues is a whirlwind of farce & heart reminding us all of the importance of living authentically & proudly. This fabulous concert staging features legendary Broadway composer Jerry Herman’s lush original orchestrations not heard live since the show’s original run in 1983 from Lifetime Achievement Tony Award winners Harvey Fierstein & Herman. Featuring an all-black cast joining Porter & Wayne are Alaman Diadhiou, James Jackson Jr., Peter Francis James, Michael McElroy, Tonya Pinkins, Sharon Washington, Rachel Webb, Lance Coadie Williams, Jordan Alexander, Sai Anthony, Jordan Chin, Joshua Dawson, Jamal Christopher Douglas, Michael Samarie George, Aaron Graham, Ari Groover, Jaquez, Karma Jenkins, Christian Kidd, Kendall Lashanti, Andre Malcolm, Kareem Marsh, Morgan McGhee, Ernest Mingo, Wesley Ryan, Julian Amari Smith, Jordan Simone Stephens, Wade Watson, Anthony Wayne & Travon Williams. At the helm is director Robert O’Hara with guest music director Joseph Joubert, choreography by Edgar Godineaux & tap choreography by Dormeshia. This must-see Tony-winning La Cage Aux Folles revival is performed on stage by a 38-piece orchestra closing out the 2026 Encores! season. New York City Center is dedicated to a culture built on the values of curiosity, collaboration, accessibility & inclusivity. Tickets start at $45. 
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Iconic Poet Mary Oliver Documentary

This moving documentary portrait about the Pulitzer Prize & National Book Award-winning poet Mary Oliver will premiere at the Provincetown Film Festival on June 11th & June 14th. Sasha Waters’ Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World features interviews with Oliver's close friends including John Waters never-before-seen personal photos, notebooks & correspondence from her archive & recitations of her work by Stephen Colbert, Lucy Dacus, Steve Buscemi, Maria Shriver & Oprah Winfrey. Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World explores the poet’s long lifetime of work in context capturing the uniqueness of her world & the natural beauty that inspired her. Oliver was America’s unlikely contemporary mystic stalking the ponds & forests of Cape Cod for nearly 50 years in order to open herself & her readers to the known & unknowable world. Richard Lorber Kino Lorber Chairman & CEO stated, “It’s so hard to make a movie about poetry, but cinematic translator Sasha Waters has nailed it. Oliver’s words & Waters’ frames work together to dissolve that elusive membrane separating interior & exterior worlds, with enthralling, vividly visualized correlatives of what Oliver learns from nature in examining her own complex emotions. Fueled by poetry, it’s filmic fusion to be cherished.” Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World is a production of American Masters Pictures & is directed & produced by Sasha Waters. The film was originated by Executive Producer John Keith & Leah Weinkle & produced by Waters’ Pieshake Pictures & American Masters Pictures led by Executive Producer Michael Kantor. Director Sasha Waters is scheduled to attend on Thursday’s June 11th Town Hall screening for a Q&A following the film. 
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Provincetown Celebrates Its Stories

The Provincetown Community Compact will showcase its 33rd year with 5 storytellers who will participate at “Its Stories” fundraising event on Sunday June 21st at the Provincetown Theater 238 Bradford Street in Ptown, MA beginning at 6P. The Compact’s 3rd annual story night is directed by Compact board member Gail Strickland with storytellers Lauren Shea, Emma Fillion, Ethan Herschenfeld, Pastor David Brown & Ginny Binder. Jay Critchley, Founder & Compact Director stated, “The Compact’s mission of nurturing community is more relevant now than when we began 33 years ago. We are grateful to be part of a supportive, safe & thriving community.” The Provincetown Community Compact is a non-profit organization established in 1993 to nurture community in Provincetown & the Outer Cape. Its mission is to enhance the well-being of the community through projects that incorporate the arts, the environment & the economy. It has helped develop dozens of individual Outer Cape projects & birthed 12 non-profits including Provincetown International Film Festival, Tennessee Williams Theater Festival, Provincetown Commons, Summer of Sass, Tim McCarthy Human Rights Champion Fund, Wellfleet Porchfest, Wellfleet Porch Fest & Pilgrim Bark Park. Provincetown Community Compact initiatives include a project through the National Park Service, Underrepresented Communities, to document LGBTQ sites & structures in Ptown’s Historic District, the Think-ubator project, the Swim for Life on September 12th, dune shack residencies & Prayer Ribbons that will be installed in front of Orlando City Hall in Florida June 8th to 14th to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub Massacre. The “Its Stories” fundraising event on June 21st will be catered by Angel Foods with donations from Hog Island Beer, Truro Vineyards, Scott Cakes & The Lobster Pot. 
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New Interfaith Alliance Marriage Report

Interfaith Alliance a leading national advocate for religious freedom & civil rights released a new & updated edition of its landmark report “Same-Gender Marriage & Religious Freedom.” It makes the urgent case that the US can & must respect both civil marriage equality & religious freedom. The new report is the result of years of dialogue with religious leaders & significantly updates earlier iterations released by Interfaith Alliance in 2009 & 2013. Subtitled “A Call to Quiet Conversations & Public Debates” it focuses on the post-Obergefell need for intensive efforts by faith-based advocates to lift up the positive impacts of marriage equality & to discuss, debate & confront those who pose theological objections or obstacles to marriage equality in religious communities & traditions. Authored by Dr. Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons, Interfaith Alliance’s Vice President of Programs & Strategy stated, “A decade on from the Obergefell decision, we’ve seen the incredible impact of marriage equality – but the struggle to protect & uplift LGBTQ+ dignity in our laws & faith communities is very far from over. In this report we stress we need to talk to people who disagree with marriage equality theologically & to call the key questions: Has civil marriage equality harmed your house of worship’s ability to function? Does your marriage matter less because other people are equal under the law? Interfaith Alliance is committed to carrying the conversation forward.” ‍Interfaith Alliance & Interfaith Alliance Foundation are a network of people of diverse faiths & beliefs from across America working together to build a resilient democracy & fulfill this country’s promise of religious freedom & civil rights not just for some but for all.
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Filmmakers Speak Out In Ptown (AUDIO)

This week I talked to filmmakers at the 28th Provincetown International Film Festival (PIFF) in the first installment of this 2-part series....

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