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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 19, 2001)
October 19. 2001 • J u t M t f .39 MUSIC ▼ 100 voices get a new face fritti cast, ere* and hostess Prison Water. after the show at Dragon fish As ipn Cafe r / GALA Night • November é, 2Ó01 Portland Gay Men’s Chorus fills a new position by A ndy S imon 0ffice jn the Galleria is sparsely furnished: a desk and chair, a small row of theater seats for visi tors, a cluttered folding table. A JlL boom box sitting on the floor plays music. A few posters are on the walls, but you hardly would call it decorated. It looks like someone just moved in. That someone is Tony Stroh, newly arrived in town to assume his responsibilities as executive direc tor of the Portland Gay Men’s Chorus. The position is as new as the office space. But Stroh isn’t waiting to get settled. He is already thor oughly immersed in the job. And it’s a big job. Stroh’s responsibilities include supervising financial aspects of the chorus, coor dinating marketing materials and overseeing all aspects of growth and development. But he also has a less tangible role: to be the face of the organization for the larger community. His position with PGM C is fund ed initially by the Meyer Memorial Trust. He points out with pride that the three-year grant, which covers his salary, is the first award the foundation has made to a gay or lesbian organization. Stroh brings to the job 15 years of experience in arts management. He has worked as a manager and director of marketing for several theater groups in Detroit, the Santa Fe (N.M .) Music Hall and the Desert Voices Chorus in Tucson, Ariz., just to name a few. In addition, Stroh has direct experience in music performance. He toured for three years with Main Street, U.S.A., a 10-person music and dance show that visited a variety of venues including state fairs and expos across the country. He describes it as “almost Vegas-style, 10 costume changes. We lived on a Greyhound bus. 1 also did directing and studio work for them in the ’80s. It was mainstream all-Ameri can but glitzy and slightly sexy,” he recalls, then laughs. “Thank God I got into performance management where I didn’t have to keep per formance weight, since 1 love food so much!” Although Stroh won’t be making artistic decisions for PGMC, he regards his perform ance background as important. For instance, once decisions about repertory are made, he will collaborate closely with artistic director Bob Mensel and the board to develop, coordi nate and market programs. Speaking just a few weeks after the terrorist attacks, Stroh realizes special challenges are ahead for groups like PGMC. “The entertain ment industry can pull the country through in the worst of times— maybe it’s a diversion, maybe it’s therapeutic.” Stroh’s presence represents a shift in the organizational structure of PGM C, but it’s not part of his mission to oversee any significant change in its course. He is enthusiastic about the direction the group already is headed in. “PGM C is not the biggest chorus within the Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses,” he says, “but it is on the edge of becoming one of the leaders.” He attributes its success to “the amazing level of passion and artistic integrity on the part of everyone involved.” A great strength of the chorus, he says, is its commit ment to commission and per form new works. The record is impressive: 30 pieces have been composed specifically for the Portland group. As these works become available to other choruses, PGM C has the potential to become a pos itive force worldwide. Stroh notes that the group’s presence in the commu nity is already a large one, but he would like to see it become even more visible. He envisions expanding collabo rative efforts with other or ganizations. Increasing audiences is another goal he’ll pursue. One way he hopes to do that is to expand the number and variety of guest artists the chonis performs with. Although a singer himself, Stroh does not plan to perform with PGMC, at least for the first year. He fears that roles might get a little too confused if he did participate. But folks will have a chance to hear Stroh sing before long. He is in the cast of a concert version of Falsettos taking place Nov. 17 at Metropolitan Community Church of Portland, 2400 N.E. Broadway. Before arriving in August to start his new position, Stroh’s only visit to Oregon was dur ing Pride 2001. “What an amazing city, when you take into consideration that Portland is much smaller than metro Detroit, yet the par ticipation here was four times that of Detroit. I knew I needed to be-involved here, and that openness took away a lot of my fears,” he notes, referring to his concerns about constant ly battling anti-gay ballot measures. “The com munity was visible and viable and lively.” Stroh already loves it here, although he still sees it largely in context of other places he has lived. Oregon has, he believes, the lush green ness of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, artwork similar to Santa Fe and a laid-back approach to the arts reminiscent of Tucson. After a bit of settling in— and some serious rain— he likely will have a clearer view of the area’s unique charms and qualities. JH The next P ortland G ay M en ’ s C horus performance will he Holiday Voices Dec. 15 and 16 at Reed College’s Kaul Auditorium. Call 503-226-2588 for more information. For tickets to Falsettos call 503-281-8869. A ndy S imon is a teacher and free-lance writer who lives m Southeast Portland. ' * H , n 503 . 274.6588 for ticket^ m it sciismi b n ^^^PO R TLA N O ichinv.' ( i m i visit a tJfi) WWW.PCS.ORG ! _____________________________________________________ FLESH O ctober 30 through N ovember 18, 2001m the N ewmark T heatre (uLipteJ by PETER G a TTENS from the novel Iry Pulitzer /Yirc-U’mncr MlCHAEL _____ ___ _________ “This is w hat’s happening. I live by m yself in a five-bedroom house. M y oldest daughter hardly speaks to m e. M y son loves other m en. M y youngest child gave birth to an illegitimate half-black baby whose father is god knows where. A n d I am trying to dress fo r a lunch with my grandchild’s ‘god m other’ who is my only point o f contact to my daughter, and 1 have no idea w hat to w ear because I’ve never had lunch with a m an who w ears d resses.’’ S panning from 1 9 3 5 to 2 0 3 5 , a family lives through the CATACLYSMIC CHANGES THAT SHAKE AMERICAN SOCIETY IN THE 6 0 S , 7 0 S , 8 0 S AND 9 0 S . A WORK OF GREAT HUMANITY AND STARTLING INSIGHT. N ote : this play contains graphic sexual content . S p e c ia l t h a n k s TO OUR BACKERS AND T O ... ^ ^ A R A M O U N T T ^ ÍO T T I. R e s t a u r a n t ft B a r ju s t r r n i —
