Gay City Arts presents
LUSH US: GAY CITY ARTS SHOWCASE
featuring special guest performer Sonya Renee Taylor

Friday, April 28
Doors: 6pm / Meet & Greet: 6pm-7pm / Showtime: 7pm
Town Hall Seattle / 1119 8th Ave
General Admission: $25 / Meet & Greet: $75-125
BUY TICKETS

In these frightening times, many many of us are finding ourselves under attack because of our bodies. Because we are trans or nonbinary and defy gender roles. Because we are LGBTQ and shamed for how our bodies love and experience desire. Because we live with disabilities and our bodies refuse to submit to the demands of capitalism. Because we are black and indigenous and brown and we live in fear of physical violence by the police or the right. Because our bodies aren’t the shapes and sizes that are named desirable. Because we are undocumented and our bodies are called illegal in this state. Because we are cis women still fighting for the right to make choices about our own bodies.

The resistance against our current administration is beautiful, multifaceted and strong. And yet we are still sometimes cut off from each other. There is deep need for all of us to come together and celebrate the beauty of our bodies, our Lush Us.

Gay City is proud to present Lush Us: Gay City Arts Showcase, featuring performances from artists in Gay City Arts Season 4: UNCONTAINED and special guest Sonya Renee Taylor, founder of The Body is Not an Apology, an international movement and organization committed to radical self-love and body empowerment as the foundational tool for social justice and global transformation. Other performers include The Lady B, Ebo Barton, L Henderson, Ms. Briq House, Ilvs Strauss, and Dani Tirrell. Be prepared to be challenged, moved, and inspired—all while helping to support Gay City’s vital and growing Queer Arts program.

Join us for our Meet & Greet and you’ll get access to front row seating during the show, plus a pre-show reception from 6pm-7pm featuring lite bites, and a chance to meet and talk with Sonya Renee. Only 50 Meet & Greet tickets will be sold.

ABOUT GAY CITY ARTS:

Art is the voice, spirit and conscience of every community and is a vital tool for community reflection, dialogue and pride. Through Gay City Arts, we collaborate with local LGBTQ artists to galvanize an audience for queer arts, foster the development of LGBTQ artists and works and facilitate artistic excellence that is accessible. Gay City Arts is committed to presenting challenging, dynamic and excellent queer art across a wide range of disciplines, including theater, music, dance, film, spoken word, literary and visual arts.

ACCESSIBILITY AT TOWN HALL:

Town Hall offers a variety of accessibility services. For questions or alternate accommodations, please call Town Hall’s Patron Services at 206¬652¬4255, ext 13 or email patronservices@townhallseattle.org. Feedback on enhancing these services is always welcome. If assistance is needed at a Town Hall event, look for a staff member with a silver name badge on.

ASL Interpretation will be provided.

Wheelchair/walker accessible available in the Great Hall and Downstairs. Patrons should plan to enter the building through the front/main entrance on 8th Avenue. Wheelchair seating is available in both the Great Hall and Downstairs. Reservations aren’t necessary, but to reserve seating ahead of time, contact Patron Services at 206¬-652-4255 ext 13. Additional seating accommodations¬ Seating is available for patrons who need clear sightlines to the stage or for those with hearing loss issues. To reserve seats in advance, please call Patron Services or ask a Town Hall staff member on site.

Non-gendered restrooms will be available for this event.

ON SONYA RENEE TAYLOR:

Sonya’s work as an award winning Performance Poet, Activist and transformational leader continues to have global reach. Sonya is a former National and International poetry slam champion, author, educator and activist who has mesmerized audiences across the US, New Zealand, Australia, Germany, England, Scotland, Sweden, Canada and the Netherlands as well as in prisons, mental health treatment facilities, homeless shelters, universities, festivals and public schools across the globe.

Believing in the power of art as a vehicle for social change, Sonya has been widely recognized for her work as a change agent. She was named one of Planned Parenthood’s 99 Dream Keepers in 2015 as well as a Planned Parenthood Generation Action’s 2015 Outstanding Partner awardee. She was named one of the 12 Women Who Paved the Way for Body Positivity by Bustle Magazine and in September 2015, she was honored as a YBCA 100, an annual compilation of creative minds, makers and pioneers who are asking the questions and making the provocations that will shape the future of American culture; an honor she shared alongside author Ta’Nahesi Coates, artist Kara Walker, filmmaker Ava Duvernay and many more.

Sonya and her work have been seen, heard and read on HBO, BET, MTV, TV One, NPR, PBS, CNN, Oxygen Network, The New York Times, New York Magazine, MSNBC.com, Today.com, Huffington Post, Vogue Australia, Shape.com, Ms. Magazine and many more. She is a regular collaborator and artist with organizations such as Planned Parenthood, Advocates for Youth 1in3 Campaign, Association for Size Diversity and Health, Binge Eating Disorders Association (BEDA), Yerba Buena Cultural Art Center and numerous others.

With a B.A. in Sociology and an M.S.A. in Organizational Management, Sonya continues to be a fierce advocate and activist for intersectional, global justice. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Split This Rock, an organization calling poets to a greater role in public life and fostering a national network of socially engaged poets. Additionally, she serves on the Board of Directors for SisterSong, a pioneering Women of Color reproductive justice collective. She is also actively engaged in the movement for Black Lives and the Anti-Police Terror Project in Oakland, CA.

Sonya founded The Body is Not An Apology, an international movement and organization focused on radical self-love and body empowerment. In 2015, The Body is Not An Apology joined the world of digital technology, creating a comprehensive tech platform to connect the globe around issues of radical self-love and intersectional social justice. TBINAA’s content reaches over 250,000 thousand weekly, with website visitors from over 140 countries. Sonya lives in the California Bay Area with her Yorkie, Anastasia Duchess but continues to tour globally sharing lectures, workshops and performances focused on radical unapologetic healing and personal transformation.