So, last weekend came and went so quickly!
I had a very interesting improv workshop with Jet Eveleth, a hilarious woman from Chicago. She focused a lot on the body, on natural reactions and removing the performativity from performance. I learned a lot, met some cool people, and Jet even gave me some comp tickets to her group, The Reckoning's, show in Chicago! One discomfort I had with the workshop was that every single one of the 20 participants were White. I know that improv is often a bunch of goofy White dudes, but when it comes to performance, I think it is so important that many perspectives be represented and many voices be heard. I hope that more people of color, more women, more queer people and differently-abled people begin to see that improv is a craft for everyone; an empowering, radical teaching tool about knowing oneself and body, as well as trusting others. It's something I still struggle with, being in improv spaces, but I hope it is improving.
Although I just joined the Quest cast and the Twin Cities improv scene, I am beginning to make friends and feel more comfortable in the scene. I had the incredible opportunity to improvise on Brave New Workshop's stage, one of the oldest satirical theaters in the country!
On Saturday night I began my Pride celebrating by attending the Dyke March, a smaller meeting of people, a more radical convergence than Pride. I had a really good time marching with so many strong people (not just women attended). Sunday's Pride parade was a beautiful day and a lot of fun, but could not have been more different than the night before. Pride was filled with people and families, which is awesome, but also filled with big companies and consumer-driven culture. Target was giving out rainbow flag (temporary) tattoos with a target/bullseye in the middle. While on the one hand it is great that target is reaching out to the LGBTQ community, but the corporate branding was so intense and blatant. I heard that the tattoos had a bit of sunscreen in them so that when the tattoo faded, the special tan mark of the Target symbol would remain intact. One of the chants that stuck out to me at the Dyke March was "We're here. We're queer. We're not going shopping!" While it was a little extreme, it definitely captured the reaction to a treating of LGBTQ as a consumer block. People sometimes ask me what I feel/do if/when I see religious Right protesters at a Pride Parade. While it is uncomfortable, I think it is important to remember that while there is oppression from the Right, there can also be oppression from the Left. A lot of the Gay Rights movement is sexist, classist/capitalist and downright racist. That seems to be rarely discussed, as gays are all lumped together as having common backgrounds and interests. I had a great time at both Pride events, but I am reflecting on the importance of each space in the fight for LGBTQ rights.
This weekend is a big weekend too. Jamila and I are headed to Chicago for July 4th weekend! We are staying with my cousin Joe, meeting up with my dad's college roommate Doug, hoping to eat a lot of Deep Dish pizza, see some comedy at Second City and iO, and enjoy ourselves in a new city! I am very excited. I've been to Chicago a few times with Fresh Concepts, but I have been wanting to explore it longer and more in depth. I'm taking a Megabus tonight. Pictures to come!
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