Their Voices

If you recall, last year I wrote about a benefit for the Ruth Ellis Center called Kaleidoscope. And then, I went to it. And then? I meant to write about it but never got around to it. That’s a refrain you should be familiar with by now.

In the interim, I have gotten to know the Ruth Ellis Center quite a bit better than before, in part through my friendship with their outstanding executive director Laura Hughes, and also through a shopping event to benefit the Center we held at my pop-up store Hugh last March. It’s an outstanding organization that benefits some of the most vulnerable members of the Detroit LGBTQ community, homeless and at-risk youth. If you aren’t familiar with the Center please, PLEASE go to their website and learn about them.

Held at the Scarab Club, last year’s event featured the debut of a documentary on voguing produced at the Center that was … what’s the word? … oh yeah, fierce.  I met so many new people at the event, both supporters of the Center and folks involved with operations, and then I had the chance to watch a live performance by some of the young people at the Center. Which I recorded.

Werk.

In my visits to the Center I’ve learned how welcoming it is, and how a real family forms there. The Center’s Highland Park location is so unassuming, you’d never realize the beauty of the work that goes on inside. But the really wonderful thing about the Ruth Ellis Center is the community it has built. The young people who have benefitted from its programs. The staff that genuinely cares about the mission of the Center. And the supporters who are sincere in their dedication, but not so sincere that having a conversation with them is rash-inducing. Basically it’s a lot of great, unpretentious, interesting people.

Tomorrow night there is another benefit for the Ruth Ellis Center, called Voices, which I really encourage you to attend.  They’ve upped the ante in the party department – this one being held at MoCAD – and there is really not a single benefit event you’ll feel better about attending. Why? Well, the good works of the Center and the people who attend, but mostly getting a chance to see the youth who attend the Center put their best face forward and show you what they’re all about!

There will be spoken word performances, where youth from the center tell stories from the heart about their lives. And there will be art, where work produced by the young people of the center will be for sale in a silent auction. All in all, a brilliant night!

If you care about LGBT-related causes then figure out some way to show up. The Ruth Ellis Center is a big part of the Detroit gay community’s non-profit world, and you need to be a part of it!

Voices: A Benefit for the Ruth Ellis Center
Thursday, September 22  5:30pm - 10:00pm
Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, 4454 Woodward Avenue, Detroit
Tickets $175 for VIP, $125 regular admission, $50 for under 30
Dinner, beer, wine.
For detailed event information check out the Facebook invite.
To buy tickets, go to www.ruthelliscenter.org or call 313.252.1950

Kaleidoscopic Eyes

The Ruth Ellis Center was incorporated in 1999 and over the past ten years has emerged as one of the bright spots in the Detroit area LGBT scene, both for its great work with queer youth and for its appeal as a worthy LGBT charity.  I've written about a couple fun fundraisers right here on Supergay Detroit, in fact.

There is another one coming up that promises to be quite a good time, because not only does it benefit everyone's favorite cause, but it also takes place at one of the greatest venues in town, the Scarab Club. (Oh, the times I've been overserved there ...)  This event is called Kaleidoscope and it takes place next Thursday.  Check out the details:

click to make it bigger

Aside from the venue and the company, I am particularly excited about the documentary on vogueing, possibly the one gay thing that still thrills me when I stumble upon it!

So come out Thursday, September 23, to the Scarab Club, at 6pm.  It's right behind the Detroit Institute of Arts.  Tickets are $50 for the under-30 crowd and $125 for everyone else (ageism is the new heterosexism!) and you can buy your tickets here.  There's no note about what you should wear, but why don't you dress up a little bit, for a change?

Hope to see you there!  And in the meantime, why don't you enjoy this video, one of the few relatively authentic appropriations of vogueing in popular culture (nothing personal, Madonna).

Three Things

Number One

I'm going to take a break from not making any money off this blog to mention, just this once, that I'm clearing out a lot of merch from my retail endeavors in the Mezzanine clearance sale in the Hugh space.  Everything is really discounted, like 30-70% off!

 

It's mostly Mezzanine stuff, big and small, so if you like Saarinen dining or end tables, I've got 'em.  If you like ebony knife rests made in Paris, I've got 'em.  If you like Nelson bubble lamps, I've got 'em.  And quite a few great gift ideas for Mother's Day (it's next week, I know you forgot).

There's some Hugh overstocked stuff in there too, so even though I will be selling on the web there are a few things I've just got too much of.  There is decorative stuff, kitchen stuff, tabletop stuff, furnishing stuff, rug stuff ... essentially, if you like good design and good bargains, you should stop by.  And it's only in the store, not much is online.

This weekend is the final weekend, it's open 1-8 today and tomorrow and 1:30-5 on Sunday (do be cognizant of the Tigers' home game schedule).  It's located right behind the Fox Theater, next to Centaur, in the retail space formerly known as Hugh. 

Number Two 
Someone posted this game on Facebook today and I found it to be a more than entertaining timekiller, plus it features unicorns and Erasure!  Perfect!

I hope Mark Maynard and his intellectual property people are on the Adult Swim folks about the clear copyright infringement, however. 

Number Three
Smoke 'em while you've got 'em!  Mercifully, the smoking ban kicks in tomorrow.  I'm proud to be from a state that barely avoided being in the last ten states to take this step.

I'm sympathetic to my smoking friends, but this was a long time coming and I have paid a lot of dry cleaning bills because of your nasty habit.  I am pleased.

If you are looking to see out the smoking era right, the Ruth Ellis Center has a Ferndale-based bar crawl called "The Last Drag" going on tonight that should be fun.  It starts at Loving Touch and ends with a drag show at Club Nine.  With plenty of drinking and smoking in-between.  More details at the Facebook event page.

And with that, I leave you to your weekend.  Have a good one.
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A Date with Hugh

I've given notice about benefits for the Ruth Ellis Center here in the past, specifically the very fun Detroit Massacre Halloween parties that have been held the past two years, and I'm about to do it again!

The Ruth Ellis Center, located in Highland Park, provides short- and long-term residential and support services for at-risk GLBT youth in the Detroit area.  This means all those kids who get kicked out of their homophobic homes have a place they can go and don't have to take to the streets.  The story of Ruth Ellis is inspirational for anyone interested in the history of the gay and lesbian community in Detroit, and the Ruth Ellis Center does an amazing job of carrying on the spirit of her work.

This Thursday there will be a super fun shopping event called "A Date with Hugh" that will benefit the center.  10% of all sales that night will be donated to the center, and as an added bonus champagne will be served and I am happy to report that Ruth Ellis Center supporters tend to be more attractive and interesting than your average gay bar riff-raff.  Everyone is probably familiar with the whole "shop for a cause" thing, so if you haven't done it lately now's a great time!

The event is this Thursday, from 5 to 10pm at Hugh, the bachelor pad boutique, located directly behind the Fox Theater on Park Avenue.  Read more about Hugh at www.lovehughlongtime.com!  And why not post this on your Facebook page and get your friends to come?

To get you in the mood, you may now listen to one of my favorite Pet Shop Boys songs!

The Return of the Detroit Massacre!

Fall is here and that means one thing: Halloween is approaching! And as expected, the gay good times are starting to line up.

Last year's Halloween was one of the best I've had in many years, and one of the highlights was the Massacre at the Mansion Party, a big gay benefit for the Ruth Ellis Center. Here is how the evening went:


So obviously I was pretty jazzed to hear that this year there will be another Detroit Massacre! This one is called Midnight MASSacre and it will be held at the Spirit of Hope Church, right at the corner of Martin Luther King and Trumbull (that weird intersection where West Grand River cuts through too, on the edge of Woodbridge).

This was a great party last year and you should put it on your calendar immediately or sooner. You will love it! Come in costume though, or else there is mocking and other forms of gay non-sexual punishment.


The party is next Friday, October 23, and it starts at 9pm. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door and proceeds benefit the very worthy Ruth Ellis Center. You can get more info and entertain yourself on the fabulous Detroit Massacre website.

The Midnight MASSacre is only the beginnig to a fabulous gay holiday season, because Saturday night is Macho City, starring special guest DJ moi, and after that is the return of Doggy Style! More on all that soon, in the meantime get to steppin' on that costume!