August 1, 2007
Body Brilliance: Mastering Your Five Vital Intelligences, penned by Alan Davidson, the owner of Essential Touch Massage & Spa, received a bronze medal in the Body/Mind/Spirit category at the Independent Publisher Book Awards in June. (See “I Sing the Body Brilliant,” Read Out, March 2007 OutSmart.) Davidson is pictured here at the awards in New York City with The Genie in Your Genes author Dawson Church. Davidson had contributed to Church’s previous compilation, Healing the Heart of the World (Elite Books), which was honored as best inspirational book at the 2006 Independent Publisher Book Awards. Details: www.throughyourbody.com. To watch Davidson’s Body Brilliance movie, visit
August 1, 2007
Montrose Counseling Center offers a Sexual Assault Survivor Support Group for GLBT and questioning youth, ages 13-20, on Fridays, 5-6:30 p.m., at the counseling center. Register: Allison Vogt, LBSW, 713/529-0037, ext. 339.
August 1, 2007
Spotlight: WORLD DANCE FEVER
Sisters of Avalon doing it for themselves
The dance show is called In the Garden of Gaia, but don’t expect the kind of dancers you might see on your favorite gay-with-a-Y stage. On August 11, Sisters of Avalon premieres its theatrical dance production, In the Garden of Gaia, a “fascinating dance event merging the worlds of tribal belly dance, flamenco, and gypsy dance into a dramatic creation celebrating the progression of life.” Angela Flores directs the troupe, a Houston-based collective of dancers from a wide array of cultural and artistic backgrounds. Part of the $12-$15 admission from the 8 p.m. performance at the University of St. Thomas Jones Hall benefits AssistHers, the volunteer group that provides in-home support for lesbians with debilitating illnesses. Details: www.sistersofavalon.com. — Nancy Ford
August 1, 2007
Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys
Edited by Melissa de la Cruz and Tom Dolby
Dutton Books (us.penguingroup.com)
Subtitled True Tales of Love, Lust, and Friendship Between Straight Women and Gay Men, this book is a fabulous celebration of true sisterhood — gay men and the straight women who love them. Numerous essays cover everything from buying the perfect purse to complete heartbreak. Here is the final proof that true love isn’t about sex or gender, it’s about people who care for one another. This one is going in my permanent collection.
— Review: Angel Curtis
August 1, 2007
So your chums with the fabulous timeshare in Cherry Grove on Fire Island didn’t invite you to fly up and join them this year? You can relive past summers on America’s gayest island by whipping up a meal from the new Into the Pines Kitchen: Fire Island Pines Art Project Cookbook. Published by the Fire Island Pines Arts Project, the book includes 200 recipes—some featuring whimsical personal commentary—by 100 Fire Island denizens, including Houston’s own gift to Broadway, Tommy Tune. Proceeds from sales of the 150-page cookbook ($20, available at www.fipap.org) benefit programs of the Fire Island Pines Arts Project and its support of Whyte Hall, the recently upgraded community center on the island.
August 1, 2007
Coles Whalen
Nothing Is too Much
This L.A. folk-rocker girl played Chances before the Pride Parade, to the great appreciation of her new Houston fans. This disc’s quick six cuts span a number of emotions, from the plaintiff “Call on Me’” to the hard-driving “Honeyed Out.” Most enjoyable. Iconic Records (www.iconicrocks.com).
— Review: Nancy Ford
August 1, 2007
As a queer writer on a personal mission to dispel the myth that gay men only groove to disco and show tunes and that lesbians only listen to angry folk singers, I am thrilled to be able inform readers about GLBT bands making their own kind of music.
August 1, 2007
In its day, Splendor in the Grass (1961) set censors and other various Puritans frothing at the mouth simply by virtue of its steamy imagery-conjuring title. But 45 short years later, the thought of its young stars Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty struggling with their teenage hormones seems, if not downright innocent, at least quaint.
August 1, 2007
Anytime an Andy Warhol exhibition is in town, it’s worth a visit. Even 20 years after his death, the great gay artist still incites passionate feelings from admirers and detractors. The former camp asserts that Warhol changed the way we look at art through his use of pop-culture references and his own persona. The latter camp disdains Warhol as a marketer. We fall in the first group and have driven across Texas for Warhol exhibitions.
August 1, 2007
Upcoming DVD releases include more vintage musicals from the MGM vaults, some very noir double features and a couple of elegant swells….
