Celebrate Pride in East Midtown
Musical Performances
Join us as we welcome the New York City Gay Men's Chorus and Tonewall at engagements during June, including a special Juneteenth concerton Monday, June 19th at 7:00 PM at Christ Church NYC, 524 Park Avenue.
Black & Queer: A Juneteenth Concert celebrates and highlights the intersectionality of being Black and queer for members of the New York City Gay Men's Chorus. A group of the NYCGMC’s Black singers will share what Juneteenth means to them through their own stories, solos, and favorite songs.
Backed by a formation of the full chorus, NYCGMC is proud to center and spotlight these singers for this celebratory and essential concert to center voices and experiences too long unheard. Big Apple Performing Arts and the NYCGMC are committed to combating discrimination in all forms through the power and unifying nature of our music.
“We are absolutely thrilled to host the NYC Gay Men’s Chorus Juneteenth concert at Christ Church NYC. This concert, as I see it, is a perfect opportunity to illuminate through music the unique and important nexus of racial justice and the advancement of LGBTQIA+ equality and advocacy. As a congregation that prioritizes both the critical work of antiracism and the full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons, we at Christ Church NYC are particularly honored to have the exceptional music of the NYC Gay Men’s Chorus resonating in
our sanctuary space on the occasion of Juneteenth. We hope that you will plan on being present for this historic concert, the spirit of which moves us forward toward a preferred future in which all forms of discrimination give way to equity, inclusion, justice, integrity, and compassion."
— Rev. Dr. Eric S. Park, Senior Minister, Christ Church, United Methodist
OUTspoken Literary Readings
Hear your favorite LGBTQ+ writers read their own words throughout the month during our OUTspoken Reading Series, a literary collaboration with The Publishing Triangle, The full schedule:
Wednesday, June 7, 7:00 PM: Tom Cardamone, Wo Chan, Felice Cohen, Dale Corvino, Ron Goldberg, David Groff, and JP Howard
at Society of Illustrators, 128 East 63rd Street
Saturday, June 10, 2:00 PM: Ryka Aoki, Mary Burns, Gerard Cabrera, Robyn Gigl, Sue Landers, Catherine Maiorisi, and Marie Sinclair
at Bloom’s Tavern, 208 East 58th Street
Tuesday, June 13, 7:00 PM: Paperback Publication Launch Event for Big Girl, featuring author Mecca Jamilah Sullivan
at SUNY Global Center, 116 East 55th Street
Wednesday, June 14, 7:00 PM: Kathy Anderson, Allen Ellenzweig, JP Howard, Thomas March, Kate Rounds, and Emanuel Xavier
at Society of Illustrators, 128 East 63rd Street
Saturday, June 17, 2:00 PM: Rob Byrnes, Allen Ellenzweig, Stephen Greco, James Earl Hardy, Nina Kennedy, and Daniel W. K. Lee
at Bloom’s Tavern, 208 East 58th Street
Wednesday, June 21, 7:00 PM: Morgan Adams, Jameson Currier, Nina Kennedy, Jerome Ellison Murphy, Eric Orner, Carol Rosenfeld, Anne Shade, and William Christy Smith
at Society of Illustrators, 128 East 63rd Street
Thursday, June 22, 7:00 PM: Josh Aterovis, Mary Burns, David Santos Donalsdon, Wayne Hoffman, William Christy Smith, and Jonathan Vatner
at SUNY Global Center, 116 East 55th Street
Tuesday, June 27, 7:00 PM: Lauren Melissa Ellzey, Fay Jacobs, Donna Minkowitz, and James Villanueva
location to be announced
AIDS Memorial Quilt Panels
The ever-growing AIDS Memorial Quilt, begun in 1987, is comprised of nearly 48,000 three-foot by six-foot fabric tributes to more than 100,000 loved ones lost to AIDS. Considered the largest community art project in history, The AIDS Memorial Quilt is a powerful and colorful reminder of the names and faces behind the statistics. It tours the nation and the world, helping dispel fear and stigma while offering solace to millions.
During June, we'll be displaying eight panels from the Quilt memorializing New Yorkers at the following locations:
875 Third Avenue, Lobby
(between East 52nd Street and East 53rd Street)
641 Lexington Avenue, Lobby
(at East 54th Street)
Phyllis & Lee Coffey Community House at
Central Synagogue, 123 East 55th Street
(between Lexington Avenue and Park Avenue)
Sunrise at East 56th, 139 East 56th Street
(at Lexington Avenue)
Hotel 57, 130 East 57th Street
(between Lexington Avenue and Third Avenue)
The A&D Building, 150 East 58th Street
(between Lexington Avenue and Third Avenue)
59E59 Theaters, 59 East 59th Street
(between Park Avenue and Madison Avenue)
Click here to learn more and view the Quilt.
Thank you to Hotel57, Rudin Management, Central Synagogue, Vornado Realty Trust, Global Holdings, Elysabeth Kleinhans Theatrical Foundation and 59E59 Theaters, Sunrise Senior Living and Sunrise at East 56th for donating the space and displaying the quilt.
Live Theater
Join our friends at 59E59 Theaters (59 East 59th Street, between Park Avenue and Madison Avenue) for two special presentations during June of special interest to the LGBTQ+ community.
- Orlando - Lucy Roslyn's play is the story of a person looking for escape - just as Virginia Woolf imagined her own freedom in the pages of "Orlando", a book which strains at the boundaries of identity: are we any one thing? Or are our selves “stacked like dinner plates,” one on top of the other? (Performances May 23 through June 11)
- Foxes - Foxes follows Daniel, a young black man trying to keep up with his life in London’s Caribbean community while balancing his own goals with his family’s expectations. When his relationship with best friend Leon brings an unexpected change it creates turmoil, bringing a taboo into his family home that has the power to tear the closest and most loving relationships apart. (Performances June 1 through July 2)
Supporting LGBTQ+ Business
As part of our mission to support businesses and promote economic development, we'll be presenting an informational session and networking reception with SUNY Pride and the New York Chapter of the National LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, June 15. This event will take place at the SUNY Global Center, 116 East 55th Street, and will be especially beneficial to LGBTQ+ business owners and employees. Click here to watch video from last year's event, and click here for the photo gallery.
Revisit WorldPride 2019 with the East Midtown Partnership
In 2019, the East Midtown Partnership celebrated WorldPride 2019/Stonewall 50 through the month of June. Relive East Midtown Pride during June 2020 with these photos and videos from the celebration:
East Midtown Pride Block Party on East 55th Street, held with SUNY Pride
(video) (photos)20 panels from the AIDS Memorial Quilt Panels displayed at 9 area venues
(video) (photos)Special Offerings by area businesses, with sales benefitting The Trevor Project
(video)East Midtown WorldPride Kick-Off Reception
(photos)SUNY Global Pride Conference
(photos)