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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 2, 2002)
augia» 2, 2002 J W Krambeal and Owsley hold regular events in their bam, which they joke has become “southern Oregon’s gay bar” cant effort simply to he visible as positive role models among both the sexual minorities pop ulation as well as the community at large. “Being out helps people put faces with ‘gay’ that others may not have seen before," Kram- beal says. “As people see that we’re not the common stereotype of what they consider gay people to be, 1 think that helps, and that itself is a proactive activity." i n To learn more about the LESBIAN, G ay , BISEXUAL and T ransgender P o litical C aucus of S outhern O regon , call 541-482-5829 or visit the Internet site www.geocities.com/thecaucus. neighboring cities such as Medford, Klamath Falls and Grants Pass. For them, the Ashland campus offers a safe refuge where they are free to he themselves. “When they come to school, they can he who they are and they can he out,” Leitner says of some classmates. “As soon as they’re driving home, they turn it off, because they have to.” Although SOU’s liberal environment pro vides a relatively safe barbor, conflict occasional ly arises on campus, too, and another important focus for the student union is to address homo phobia in the residence halls. Leitner hopes members not only will participate in the hiring of a new director of resident assistants but also play a role in staff training. “It’s important to have a presence and let peo ple know we’re here,” she says. “To let them know who we are and that we shouldn’t be dis criminated against. To educate.” JH For more information about Southern Oregon University's L esbian , B isexual , G ay , T rans and A llies S tudent U nion and its new Queer Resource Center, call 541 '552-8531 or visit the Internet site www.sou.edu/suJlbgta. f it weren’t also the unlikely site of the country’s oldest and largest Shakespeare festival, some say Ashland wouldn’t be home to many queer folks, either. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a magnet for artists who ply their trade on its stages, for tourists who visit the countryside by day and theater by night and for transplants seeking an idyllic sprit to settle in where they still can be out. David Dreyfoos has worked with the festi val for six seasons and, as producing director and a gay man, he speaks from experience when he describes the dual role this venerable institution plays in the sexual minorities community of Ashland. The festival is one of the largest employers, with more than 400 on the payroll during high ■season, including 80 actors. It also is one of the community’s most significant economic forces, with an estimated $100 million impact on the surrounding Rogue Valley. The effect is felt throughout town. Main Street features trendy retailers and restaurants as unusual as their neighboring outdoor Eliza bethan stage. And within the city limits, those attracted by the likes of William Shakespeare, Noel Coward and August Wilson lend an air of diversity unknown in other rural towns. But for as much impact as the festival has m O [27 integrated/isolated relationship with Ashland residents. One particular way the theater nurtures its connection with the community’s gay, lesbian, bi and trans population is through its annual Daedalus Project. For 14 years, the program and its local partners have raised money for a variety of HIV/AIDS organiza tions. It distributed more than $53,000 in 2001, which included funding for the Abdill- Ellis Community Cen ter, among other area organizations and agencies. Last year’s event featured gay actor Dan Butler, known for his role as Bulldog on NBC’s Frasier, in a benefit performance of his one-man show The Only Thing Worse You Could Have Told M e.... Other activities have consisted of a courtyard show, a five-kilometer run and walk, a silent art auction and an evening ■jj performance by company £ members that concludes | with a brief “witnessing” ? ceremony honoring those 5 who have died of AIDS. The 2002 Daedalus Project is scheduled for Aug. 19. Although details still were being finalized at press time, festival spokes woman Amy Richard says this year’s program again will include a Green Show and an evening variety show featuring members of the acting company. Also scheduled is an afternoon play reading with Michelle Mora in of the first part of Tony Kushner’s play Home- body/Kabul. JP1 The Oregon Shakespeare Festival plays an integrated yet isolated role in the Ashland community - > - I M ÛÊÈÊÈmm David Dreyfoos on the stage and on the street, it’s not often that the twain shall meet. For Dreyfoos and many festival artists, juggling nine shows on four stages invariably leads to tunnel vision focused on work with little free time for con necting with Ash land’s traditional 9-to-5 community. For example, during the outdoor theater’s opening weekend in June, three actors sud denly need to leave town because of deaths in the family. Their absence affects numer ous roles across the several shows playing in repertory. Even as critics from around the country arrive in Ash land, Dreyfoos calmly keeps chaos at bay. He arranges understudy rehearsals while simul taneously nurturing the personal needs of a diverse company he knows must have strong relationships in order to work together effectively. 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