Brian Bantugan Archives

Raul Moarquech Ferrera-Balanquet: gay rebel
Mar 27 2013 | Raul Moarquech Ferrera-Balanquet - one of the most acclaimed artist, writer, curator and scholars from the Mariel Generation, which included artists and writers such as Reinaldo Arenas, Juan Boza and Carlos Alfonzo - screens two videos at the Alucine Latin Film & Media Arts Festival in Toronto &
Drinking as fundraising
Feb 25 2013 | Tutored Tastings, a wine-tasting event highlighting the bounty of Prince Edward County and the expertise of Richard Johnston, the owner of By Chadsey’s Cairns Winery and Vineyard, takes place this month to benefit Apology, a new contemporary dance piece by choreographer Gerry Trentham’s
Sky Gilbert offers advice to his youthful self
Feb 07 2013 | Sky Gilbert is a veteran of the gay theatre world and Spencer Charles Smith may be a neophyte, but they seem to be finding common ground while rehearsing Gilbert's new play, To Myself at 28. Brian Bantugan: What is it like to work with Sky? Spencer Charles Smith: Great! Slightly surreal I
Winter Wonderland Rainbow Party
Jan 24 2013 | The queer ballroom dancing club, Rainbow Ballroom Toronto, invites you to salsa and more at the Winter Wonderland Party. "Come as you like with or without a partner and wear a bit or a lot of white!" invites dancer and spokesperson Mae West. Rainbow Ballroom also offers an inform
Italy: Love It or Leave It
Jan 22 2013 | What could be more romantic than watching a movie together? Making a movie together. In Italy. About Italy. Luca Ragazzi and Gustav Hofer, a couple since 1999, did exactly that in 2011. Their film Italy: Love It or Leave It, a documentary meets road trip, attempts to answer one life-al
Capes, closets and butterflies
Jan 17 2013 | The Kapwa Collective, a group of Filipino Canadian artists, is presenting a program of short films from Canada and the Philippines on Saturday, Jan 19. One of the films featured is As Told by the Butterflies (trailer at vimeo.com/20046734), by emerging Filipino filmmaker/animator Nawruz Paguidopon.
Body 13 and First Dance
Jan 15 2013 | Trevor Copp -- theatre performer, gay activist and three-time regional Burlington Latin dance champion -- is set to return to the stage. After appearing in the emotionally charged The Last 15 Seconds, directed by Majdi Bou-Matar, Copp takes on another gay role, in Body 13, with Bou-Matar's
Murder and art on the TTC
Jan 07 2013 | Filmmaker John Greyson and trans media artist Chase Joynt go very public this month with Murder in Passing, the first-ever serial narrative project for commuters. New episodes will appear daily on Toronto’s subway platform screens and online. Foregrounding issues of trans and transit, Joynt ca
Shut Up, It's Christmas
Dec 12 2012 | The youngest student ever to be accepted into Ryerson Theatre School, Winnipeg-born Thom Allison, heads to Buddies for some holiday cheer. Gorgeous in drag and dashing in suits, Allison, who recently appeared as himself on television in Over the Rainbow, reveals the soulful crooner and sultry diva b
Singing Out shines
Dec 11 2012 | The holidays would not be complete without choirs singing seasonal favourites. Singing Out, Toronto's queer choir, was founded in 1992 to foster pride, music and belonging. The choir has since performed in festivals across North America and is a member of GALA Choruses, the Gay and Lesbian Assoc
Allen Shugar's Floating Leaf opens new gallery
Nov 29 2012 | Allen Shugar, a proud Torontonian and an established gay painter, turns a new leaf this fall with his exhibit Floating Leaf. His solo show officially opens Urban Gallery, a new arts and events space. Brian Bantugan: What are the advantages of being a gay artist in Toronto? Allen Shugar: I have
For Christian Jeffries, Christmas comes early and is far from a drag
Nov 27 2012 | Put a drag artist and a songstress together on one stage and what do you have? A “dragstress” named Christian Jeffries. Unlike drag queens, Jeffries has no alter ego -- just an alter image, which he brings to life in every cabaret act and show he takes part in. Fresh from a successful se
Artist Stev'nn Hall explodes with Creative Destruction
Nov 23 2012 | Stev'nn Hall, one of Toronto's most prolific gay visual artists and a supporter of the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT), is opening his new exhibit, Creative Destruction, this Friday, Nov 23. After a successful reveal of his dreamy landscapes and bold male portraits last year, he looks to the
Mad about Unconditional
Nov 13 2012 | With 20 years of experience in writing, directing, and producing award-winning documentaries and dramas in the UK, Bryn Higgins brings to Toronto his recent film feature Unconditional. The story puts together two of Britain’s fast-rising stars, Christian Cooke (Liam) and Harry McEntire (Owen),
Friends for life, activists forever
Nov 07 2012 | David France, an American investigative reporter and filmmaker, has documented the struggle of two coalitions fighting against AIDS in the 1980s and 1990s -- the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) and the Treatment Action Group (TAG) -- in his film How to Survive a Plague. It screened at the 2
Akin screens in the Regent Park Film Festival
Nov 07 2012 | The tenth Regent Park Film Festival, running from November 7-10, boasts not only a star panel featuring Clement Virgo and Atom Egoyan on its opening night, but also features a deeply engaging film by Chase Joynt. The personal documentary titled Akin, which won the EP Canada/Canada Film Capital
Pain and pleasure in the ink
Oct 30 2012 | The Kapwa (Self in the Other) Collective, a group of Filipino Canadian artists, critical thinkers and healers who work across different academic and applied disciplines, brings to Toronto narratives of tattooing journeys. The event titled BATOK-Kalinga Tattoo (Markers of Identity: From Indigenous to
Dancing behind bars
Oct 30 2012 | Before South Korea’s "Gangnam Style," there was the Filipino prison dancers’ "Thriller" routine on Youtube. Mix prison dancers and Glee and you have the Prison Dancer (PD) web series directed by Romeo Candido. At the center of this musical is Lola who gave th
Judy, Judy, Judy
Oct 10 2012 | After the critical and popular success of Mickey and Judy during the 2011 Toronto Fringe Festival, the show went on to win many prestigious international theatre and cabaret awards. Now Michael Hughes is back to perform his musical pseudo-memoir as part of the Global Cabaret Festival. Brian Bantu
Next gay film review: Keep the Lights On
Oct 09 2012 | Director Ira Sachs’s Keep the Lights On won the Teddy Award in the 2012 Berlin Film Festival. The film is utterly engaging not only for the eroticism but also for powerful realism and subtle complexity. The story is centered on Danish filmmaker Erik - played by Thure Lindhardt - and his dec

Sites We Like