Latest / Queer Voices / July 1st - Chosen Family, Real Family with Gary Wood and STAGES Cabaret Star Holland Vavra

Transcript

July 1st - Chosen Family, Real Family with Gary Wood and STAGES Cabaret Star Holland Vavra · Queer Voices

• 0:02
  Brett: You're listening to Queer Voices, a radio show and a podcast that has been an outlet for the LGBTQIA Plus community since the 70s.
• 0:11
  Brett: Hi there, I am Brett Cullum.
• 0:13
  Brett: Coming up, we have author R.
• 0:14
  Brett: Lee Ingalls interviewing community figure Gary Wood, who is about to wrap up his term as president of the board of the Montrose Center.
• 0:22
  Brett: Then I get to speak with Holland Vavra about her upcoming cabaret at Stages Houston, which runs in July and commemorates her 30th show there.
• 0:32
  Brett: Queer Voices starts now.
• 0:41
  Lee: Welcome everyone.
• 0:42
  Lee: My name is R.
• 0:43
  Lee: Lee Ingalls, and today I'm joined by a close personal friend.
• 0:47
  Lee: He's an entrepreneur.
• 0:49
  Lee: He's been involved in our community and the city for as long as I have known him.
• 0:53
  Lee: Gary Wood.
• 0:54
  Lee: Thank you for joining us.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you, Lee.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_02: I really appreciate this opportunity to have a chat and talk about our lives in the LGBT community.
• 1:02
  Lee: Well, not only are you a close personal friend, but you have a very interesting story and a very interesting take on a lot of things that impact our community as well as the city at large.
• 1:11
  Lee: So can you just give us an idea of all those things that you're involved in now?
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_02: That's a loaded question, but it's also a great one.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_02: I've had the great fortune to work with a lot of different organizations.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, some of the ones that are top of mind that I think have been the most impactful and most meaningful for me in my life uh would be the uh being a co-founder and chair emeritus of the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_02: Tammy Wallace and I founded that 10 years ago.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm so very proud of where the chamber is now and the impact that it makes uh throughout our community, not only locally, regionally, but on the national level, as being one of the largest uh chambers uh in its participation with the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_02: The true impact that they make in today's lives of everybody, it's hard to put in perspective because it's not just about business, but business does influence uh politics, it influences policy, uh, it influences opportunity, uh, not only within LGBT businesses, but also in large corporations.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_02: So that's been an incredible gift of opportunity and experience.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_02: And uh I've also been very fortunate to be part of uh many other organizations, co-founder and president of Outreach United, which was a philanthropic organization that helped drive awareness and much-needed uh money to different LGBT organizations.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_02: So that was a great privilege.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_02: You were part of that as well.
• 2:42
  Lee: I was part of that, and I have to say it was very impressive.
• 2:44
  Lee: I don't think uh people know well enough that through that organization, you were able to supply the feed money to two important programs that still are ongoing today.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_02: You know, that is uh something that's always gonna be really meaningful to me because it made a huge difference in a lot of people's lives.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_02: Throughout work there, lead, you know, as well as I do.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_02: We raise a lot of money, directly and indirectly, because we influence organizations to get involved.
• 3:11
  Lee: You changed the needle on that or changed the direction on that whole raising funds and where it goes effort.
• 3:17
  Lee: So, yeah, no, kudos to you.
• 3:19
  Lee: That was a great job.
• 3:20
  Lee: Well, I was part of me part of it.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_02: Well, thank you for that.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_02: But actually, it was all of us working together.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_02: That very first meeting, I turned to you as friends and say, this is what my vision was, but uh then have so many come together, put it together, uh, create an organization that had so much reach and impact and making a difference in our lives and our community and our associations that we worked with.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_02: I couldn't have done it with everybody.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_02: And that was uh that was a very special moment, but one that uh has replicated itself time and time again with all my friends.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's uh amazing uh how incredibly close we are, but also how we rallied each other's help.
• 3:59
  Lee: We absolutely do that.
• 4:00
  Lee: Well, one of the things I wanted to talk about was going back to when we first met, because the community today is far different than what it was when we first met.
• 4:08
  Lee: So, do you want to talk a little bit about when you first came into the gay community and what it looked like then and your experience at that time?
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I look back and I uh I've been very fortunate and very lucky.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_02: I I've worked hard in my entire life.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_02: I think I have that's one thing that separates me from most people is my ability to work in just an incredible amount of hours at a time professionally and and personally and philanthropically.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_02: But it started very early in my career.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_02: I was uh in the grocery business, and uh, you know, I did very well just by uh who I was, my willingness to do whatever it takes to find success.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_02: But also it was uh just a great developmental point in my life.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_02: I worked with uh one company and then I worked with HEB for over 11 years, and they were fundamental in my development as a uh professional, but also they they gave me that empowerment for me to just do whatever I wanted to professionally because of opportunity.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_02: Unfortunately, that's what's missed out in something professionalized is lack of opportunity or not taking the opportunity.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_02: I tried to do both.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_02: I uh worked for my goodness, I guess uh the first three or four years and moved up very quickly into the point where I was the uh youngest store director to ever open a store.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_02: They gave me several projects, one of which were for two years they put me out of grocery operations and into warehousing, logistics, and transportation, where I took my knowledge and skills and understanding of the business and gave them perspective and information of why things happen the way they do on the store side.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_02: After a couple of years, I took all that experience that I uh had gleaned from the Transops and warehousing side and implemented that into the store operations.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_02: That was a just an incredible opportunity for personal growth, professional growth, and uh it was uh an amazing moment in my life professionally.
• 6:15
  Lee: I remember those days very, very well.
• 6:17
  Lee: So, talking about the community itself, what was the community like for you?
• 6:22
  Lee: What's the difference between then and now?
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that that's a great question.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_02: Uh so as an overlay to what I was doing professionally, because I was consumed and and worked a uh a lot, the uh the one thing that I found that was unique in experience uh to me is that I, as a career of of a gay man, I uh and during a time when it was not very popular to be gay, it was one of those uh parts of of my experience and and my professional development that I embraced.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_02: And to expand upon that, and what I mean is that I never let me uh let me being uh a gay man hold me back or prohibit me from advancement.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_02: I embraced who I was, and I was the very first openly gay store director at ATB, and it was an incredible moment because they supported me in so many different ways.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_02: They uh and once again, this is in the 90s, not the most popular time to be gay.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_02: And it it actually empowered me.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_02: It made me uh want to work harder and be uh be far more successful, and because I felt like I was representing our community in a professional sense to a company that is supporting me to be who I am authentically.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_02: So that was something that is very special to me and something that I think needs to be acknowledged with an extraordinary company like HEB.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_02: And the reason why I bring that up in your question about, you know, going out and uh who I was uh personally, uh my profession, my life, my personal life tied itself in together in so many ways and have always lived who I am.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_02: And I've always had the opportunity to be that individual that embraced not only my professional life, but I it I wasn't ashamed to be who I was in my personal life.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_02: If somebody asked me who I worked for, I proudly told them who I uh worked for or what I did philanthropically to have that freedom and that ability to be who I truly am, being able to interact with people with pride and with a positive image of who I am made a big difference.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_02: It increased my confidence.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_02: Uh it made me more effective.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_02: I was always driven and focused, but it also helped support me and make sure that I I thought about the perception of who I was and who I represented and who I worked with.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_02: And I wanted them to see that in a positive light.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_02: Out in those days, it why did we do that?
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_02: Well, we did that a lot because that was the only way to connect with our community and other people like me.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_02: That's how we met.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_02: That's how we had built our friend group, which is the biggest part of my life.
• 9:01
  Lee: The same here.
• 9:02
  Lee: One thing that I think not often that people recognize and appreciate the gifts that they're given in life.
• 9:08
  Lee: They're gifts that they are born with or developed over through their experiences or whatever, they don't recognize them or appreciate them.
• 9:15
  Lee: And then taking the another step, matching that up against your goals in life, and then using those gifts to actually reach your goal.
• 9:23
  Lee: I've seen far too many people try to get to a goal, but they weren't happy with the gifts that they had and they weren't able to achieve it.
• 9:29
  Lee: But you were just the opposite.
• 9:31
  Lee: You recognized what your gifts were and then made it work for you.
• 9:34
  Lee: Because you know, you worked for HEB for a number of years, but then you found a new career path that took you uh in a total different direction.
• 9:43
  Lee: But really, that was for me, that was what I saw as a turning point in your life as far as your success and career happiness, et cetera.
• 9:51
  Lee: So would you agree with that?
• 9:52
  Lee: And how would you how would you characterize that?
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you for saying it in those kind words.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_02: Part of why I talk so much about my career is because I am so oriented to my professional life and is part of my personal life.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_02: So I don't really disseminate the two separately.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_02: I'm very much a professional uh in every sense of way, shape, and form, but that ekes into my personal life in so many ways as well.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_02: Having worked corporately and uh there was a big shift.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_02: There was a time that after my brother had passed away at a very young age, I redirected my life.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_02: I wanted to do something different.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_02: And I did.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_02: I started a different path, totally different path than what I'd done before.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_02: And that's when I really started my entrepreneurial efforts.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_02: And I once again I've been very fortunate in my life in regards to just not only working hard, but being who I am authentically.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_02: I uh became a recruiter.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_02: I worked for one of the biggest companies that there is in the in the world when it comes down to professional executive recruiting.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_02: I created one company, I sold that company, I created another recruiting company that I've had over 14 years and uh is doing extremely well.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_02: I took uh that uh experience and created another company, like I'm a glutton for punishment, I guess, but created another company, and that company is in real estate development, management, and investment.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_02: And I have been very fortunate that through that hard work that has given me the opportunities to have such a great life.
• 11:22
  Lee: The hard work is really what what I would have to attribute to to that.
• 11:25
  Lee: And like I said, uh you do have many life gifts that you were able to use in in developing your career as well.
• 11:31
  Lee: And and it's it's uh noticeable.
• 11:33
  Lee: So let's talk a little bit about our group of friends.
• 11:36
  Lee: We have been friends for many, many years, decades, in fact.
• 11:39
  Lee: Uh, and we do like to travel quite a bit.
• 11:42
  Lee: And travel quite a bit.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_02: Travel is one of my favorite things to do, and I love that adventure of going to a different culture, uh experiencing different food, history, architecture, and uh just immersing myself in uh wherever I'm at.
• 11:59
  SPEAKER_02: And to highlight that and to make it even better.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_02: It's even better when you can do it with friends, because then you can reflect upon all those moments, very special moments of connection or being able to reflect and say, Hey, remember when we did this?
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_02: And that amplifies that moment so much, but it also when you reflect back, it makes it so special as well.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_02: So our our travels are something that's very precious to me, and some of my fondest memories as I as I look back and think about all the all the crazy things we did, but all uh and all the fun things we did, but also the most meaningful things that I did in my life.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 12:37
  Lee: Yeah, we fully participated in those events as well.
• 12:40
  Lee: We did uh Southern Decadence for a number of years, and then we kind of abandoned that when we were invited not to return by the hotel.
• 12:48
  Lee: And then we did Halloween a few years, then we did Pensacola, and then we went to uh Cancun for several years.
• 12:54
  Lee: Here recently it's been more one-offs on different areas um in the US and outside the U.S.
• 12:59
  Lee: as well.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_02: Now that I think about it, well, we've done a lot of traveling together.
• 13:03
  Lee: Yes, we have.
• 13:04
  Lee: Because when we when I say we did New Orleans, we did it several years in a row.
• 13:08
  Lee: Pensacola, we did several years in a row.
• 13:10
  Lee: Cancun, we did several years in a row.
• 13:12
  Lee: So it's it it wasn't a one-off.
• 13:15
  Lee: It was, yeah, we did a lot of traveling together.
• 13:17
  Lee: And it wasn't our entire group, but parts of our group participating in each of those.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_02: That's exactly it.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_02: There are people that uh could make one trip, but maybe could not make another trip.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_02: Or then we have a totally different group, go back to the same place and have totally different experiences.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_02: And that was uh pretty exciting as well because it's like using making a cake with different ingredients and come up with a different cake.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_02: And you have to enjoy that uh for uh all those precious moments that you got out of that experience.
• 13:44
  Lee: One of the funny things that I, or one of the funniest things I think happened.
• 13:47
  Lee: So one of the trips to Pensacola, one of the larger ones, because I think we had 20 people staying under the same roof on that one trip in that house that was right there on the beach.
• 13:56
  Lee: And then how many years later, 15 years later, during one of my family trips, because my family does an annual trip as well, we ended up without really realizing it, rented the same house.
• 14:07
  Lee: And um with the family, there was 14 of us that were under the same roof.
• 14:10
  Lee: And I didn't realize it until I got in the kitchen and realized the kitchen was exactly the same.
• 14:16
  Lee: So yeah, just an odd story.
• 14:18
  Lee: Why not?
• 14:18
  Lee: But we keep talking about our friends.
• 14:20
  Lee: And I know in our community, uh friendships are at a different level than what we see in other communities.
• 14:26
  Lee: So you want to talk about that for a minute?
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_02: Friendship is uh very personal to me.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_02: I'm very thoughtful of who I associate with, uh, who I call a friend, because I look at individuals as true friends.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_02: If they if they're that category, there's a closeness and a bond that to me is very important.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_02: And I am so very fortunate, and I think you are equally fortunate that we have some of the most amazing friends.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_02: I'm lucky that I've met such amazing uh humans, people that share my same values, that are kind, conscientious, can be rambunctious, but still good friends.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_02: And when you find folks like that, that you have such a connection with, that's who I want to spend time with.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_02: That's where I find enjoyment.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_02: I don't probably express emotion really well and easily, but amongst my friends I do.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_02: I am who I am.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_02: I am authentically myself, good and bad, those times that I'm with my friends, which are the best times of my life, and where I want to spend my time, that's where I get the most enjoyment, and I truly am lucky.
• 15:34
  Lee: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 15:35
  Lee: No, I totally agree.
• 15:36
  Lee: And uh, our group of friends is very, very special to me as well.
• 15:39
  Lee: In fact, our group of friends were at one time called the Mansion Man because of the parties that we had every single week.
• 15:45
  Lee: And those went on for decades.
• 15:47
  Lee: We had those parties, and they were they were a lot of fun.
• 15:51
  Lee: Uh, we would have theme parties, uh, movie parties, uh, at uh Ron's house.
• 15:56
  Lee: There'd be a card game going on in one room, a roo- a movie in another room, pool going on somewhere else, and then a bunch of activity that went on for years.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_02: I remember how this all started.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_02: We were at Ron's townhome, and it was a card night.
• 16:10
  SPEAKER_02: And we did card night every Saturday.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, we didn't even miss a Saturday, I don't know what, two years.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_02: And then it grew from there, and we invited other people over.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_02: And then we we maybe we didn't play cars, we played other games, or we just talked, or just sat around and played another game or something like that, or uh, or watched a movie.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_02: But then Ron had moved into a huge house in uh the River Oaks area, then it was exponentially larger, and we still for uh every Saturday for a decade we had parties and we had events, and you could play pool or you could go and play cards or a different game or just socialize or swim outside or whatever.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_02: It was a lot of fun.
• 16:53
  Lee: It was, it was, and then all those years that we did bunnies on the bayou when they were doing the tent thing.
• 16:57
  Lee: How many years did we win the the tent contest?
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_02: We well here, I want to be very clear on that.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_02: We won every year until they won't let us win anymore.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_06: Well, that's true.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_06: That's true.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_06: Those were fun times.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_02: That that was a great time, but it also we raised money, um bunnies for them to help the community.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_02: So it was uh even better.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_02: And our costumes were fun, we brought great energy.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_02: Everybody loved coming to our tent, thought our themes were not only fun, but really creative and clever and interactive.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_02: Still look at those pictures, uh, they pop up on my feed every now and then, and it just makes me laugh.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_02: And I have very fond memories there.
• 17:36
  Lee: Me too.
• 17:37
  Lee: I have pictures of that spread around the office here.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_02: Most recently, I've had the incredible honor of working with the Montreux Center.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_02: For the last 11 years, I've been a board member of the Montreal Center five years on the executive committee and the last three years as president.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_02: And it is one of the greatest honors that I've ever had to be part of an organization that has helped so many in our community.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_02: The services they provide are unique, ones that are life-changing and actually saves lives as well.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_02: And that time as a uh as a member, a volunteer, as a as a donor, and most recently as president of the Montreal Center has made uh this a special moment in my life because I'm involved with an organization that is so unique and that does so much.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_02: When you can say that you're part of an organization that actually saves lives and influences policies and helps so many, that is uh that's something special.
• 18:38
  Lee: Yeah, yeah.
• 18:39
  Lee: It is, it's very special.
• 18:40
  Lee: And you've done a great job with them uh as well.
• 18:43
  Lee: You should be very proud.
• 18:44
  SPEAKER_02: Uh I am proud to be part of all the different organizations, but that one in the chamber really ring as something very special in my life.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_02: It's been an honor to serve each organization as well as our community in those aspects.
• 18:58
  Lee: Is there anything else that you would like to say or advice uh that you would like to give?
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_02: There's something special that I see in friendship.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_02: If I were to go back, the younger Gary back in the past, and I and there was friends of convenience, or there were people that I didn't know, but they invite me to parties, or they invite me or introduce me to somebody else.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_02: So there's those acquaintances.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_02: But then it gets to another level of friendship that uh is very special, and that is when you have that bond that I spoke to earlier.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_02: That bond is something that is priceless, something that is so important to me because I don't have the family dynamic that maybe some have, but I have my friends.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_02: And my friends often were closer to me than my family.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_02: They were there through good times and bad times.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_02: But at the end of the day, no matter what I was doing, I knew that I had the ability to pick up the phone and go, hey, I need you.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_02: And there'd be 10 people that would drop whatever they're doing and be there for me at any given time, just like I would do for them.
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_02: So that reciprocity that we had, that unique bond that we had was and is somewhat so special.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_02: And it is something that I truly have, I think is the most not only important thing in my life, but also the highest value that I have such an incredible relationship.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_02: Many people say that their friends are their chosen family.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_02: And I want to go beyond that and the way that I feel about those friends that are so special to me.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_02: They're not my chosen family, they're my real family.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_02: You don't know who your family member's gonna be when you're born, and you don't know half your family, or at least I don't know half my family members that are out there, but I know that when it comes down to that special connection, it's with my real family.
• 20:56
  Lee: Yeah, no, I absolutely agree.
• 20:57
  Lee: And the way that I characterize it, because it you're right, it doesn't sound right to call them a chosen family.
• 21:02
  Lee: I mean, they are family.
• 21:04
  Lee: They just happen to come through the friend portal, is what happened.
• 21:08
  Lee: But they're no less family members.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_02: And I think a lot of people uh maybe miss out on that, that they don't have they try to through quantity just have a bunch of friends, whereas uh the quality is very important.
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_02: Through all the organizations and businesses I've been involved with, I've got a lot of acquaintances and a lot of, you know, uh friends.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_02: But I also am very, very fortunate to have family.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_02: And that like you say, that portal that they come through that happens to be friends.
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_02: Uh matter of fact, I think it's even a tighter bond and more meaningful than your your relatives that maybe you don't even know and and you probably don't have as much in in common with.
• 21:50
  Lee: Yeah, true.
• 21:51
  Lee: I mean, given that we're all gay, we do understand each each other in a different way than we do with our family that is not gay.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_02: Couldn't agree with you more, and I share more.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: With my my real family, which are my closest and best friends, uh, than I do with my family.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_02: And part of that is that they have less understanding of who I am, and they unintentionally might say something that actually hurts my feelings a little bit.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_02: But they don't understand what they just said because they don't have that perspective of understanding life experiences that we have.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_02: And that, you know, you and I have gone through and done things that 90% of people will never do, yeah, or enjoy, or prize, or have that connection.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_02: It's greater than just having uh family by birth.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_02: It's more precious when you have through life experiences and through a connection.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_02: Yep.
• 22:43
  Lee: Yep.
• 22:43
  Lee: I agree.
• 22:44
  Lee: And actually, you touched on a point that is a much larger conversation.
• 22:48
  Lee: And I am going to put that together and invite you to back to have that conversation as well.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_02: You know, the what you're doing here in memorializing our community, our life experiences, our friendship, the historical perspective, so we don't lose these incredible life experiences, I think is amazing.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_02: I respect that and and applaud what you're doing, and I think it's just extraordinary.
• 23:13
  Lee: Well, thank you.
• 23:14
  Lee: Thank you.
• 23:15
  Lee: Yeah, it's it's something that not only I enjoy, but you know Brett does as well.
• 23:18
  Lee: Yeah.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_02: I think that you both are so your willingness, the energy you put out there, the time that uh you invest in this is really to be admired and respected because so many people are not as fortunate as you and I, our friends, and people that are a real family, and they miss out on so much.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_02: And if you can share that back, maybe it will make a slight difference, hopefully a pivotal difference in how they look at people that are special in their lives and can and we'll also share their information, their life story and experiences.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_02: True.
• 23:53
  Lee: Very true, true.
• 23:55
  Lee: Well, thank you, Gary Wood, joining us uh talking about the Houston gay and lesbian, well, the LGBT plus community.
• 24:03
  Lee: Thank you, Gary.
• 24:04
  Lee: Thanks, Lee.
• 24:13
  Deborah: This radio program, Clear Voices, has existed since the 1970s on KPFT.
• 24:22
  Deborah: We have this little crew of folks working every week to produce what's no longer unique because we're almost mainstream now, but we're still an important voice that might not otherwise get heard because it's not on that many places.
• 24:41
  Deborah: So KPFT is very important to give voices to those who might not otherwise have voices.
• 24:49
  Deborah: So as Glenn always says, you participate by listening, but you should also participate by supporting the station.
• 24:58
  Deborah: So please go to kpft.org and make your donation right away.
• 25:08
  Brett: Hi, this is Brett Cullum.
• 25:09
  Brett: Today I'm joined by Holland Vabra.
• 25:11
  Brett: She is a Houston-based performer who is marking her 30th production at stages with her own cabaret show, celebrating the milestone.
• 25:20
  Brett: The show is gonna run July 9th through the 26th.
• 25:22
  Brett: Now, Holland has been seen on many Houston stages, not just stages, and mostly you would know her from her musical incarnations.
• 25:30
  Brett: My favorite, probably Kira and Xana do.
• 25:33
  Brett: She was most recently Carol King's mom in Beautiful.
• 25:36
  Brett: She was appeared in Honky Tonk Laundry, Dusk Barbecue, Glinda and The Wizard of Oz, Sideshow, The Great American Trailer Park musical, Big Fish, Honky Tonk Angels, and a lot of folks know her from always Patsy Klein.
• 25:50
  Brett: And I am exhausted reading this, and I know it's not even a sliver of what you've done, but welcome, Holland.
• 25:56
  Brett: Thank you.
• 25:57
  Brett: I mean, my gosh.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much.
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, I just I I'm remembering some some more shows I did at stages that I just don't I don't even include in things that I do.
• 26:08
  Brett: No, it's it's wild.
• 26:09
  Brett: I feel like I just associate you with that.
• 26:14
  Brett: But I mean, I know you do other places, but how did you come up with the idea of this cabaret there?
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: I to be fair, I didn't.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_01: That's the honor in this.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I joking said to Derek, I said, you know, let me do well.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_01: So I let me let me back up a little bit.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_01: I have recently been given the opportunity to headline on celebrity cruises.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm a I'm a guest entertainer for them.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_01: I've built my own shows.
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_01: My main show's called Old Time Rock and Roll, and it's it is just that, and it's all men's stuff.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_01: So it's kind of it's I've I've turned everything upside down to make it my kind of spin on those old 70s and 80s songs, and it's fabulous.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_01: And back to the feature is my favorite thing in the entire world.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_01: So of course I've got Huey Lewis in there, and but I I knew I was going to be home this summer, and so I jokingly said, Can I do my show uh to Derek at stages?
• 27:04
  SPEAKER_01: And he actually was really into it because they want to make the Levit, the black box at stages, into a cabaret setting.
• 27:12
  SPEAKER_01: So he came back to me later.
• 27:14
  SPEAKER_01: This was a while ago, and he was like, I have an idea.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_01: Originally it was supposed to be my my ship show.
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_01: That was that the idea at first.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_01: And then he had an even better idea, and he's like, Why don't we do your 30th show?
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_01: Why don't we produce your 30th show?
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_01: Because honky tonk laundry was my 29th.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_01: And there are a few that I don't even count, but I don't even count a couple of these that are silly.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_01: That I mean, like I did, I can talk about it later, but I did I did next to normal.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_01: I was it was a really interesting story about how that happened, but I don't I don't count that as one of my shows there.
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_01: Forget it.
• 27:46
  Brett: But you should definitely count that.
• 27:47
  Brett: I mean, come on, it's an extra normal.
• 27:49
  SPEAKER_01: It was a really it's a it's a really interesting story about how that how it ended up working out, but and I actually never went on stage, but I was there.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, it's really interesting story, actually.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_01: But they came to me, Derek came to me and he was like, we want to do it.
• 28:03
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember getting a little emotional about that because this place is my whole heart, and I find that stages has been well, stages has been in my life for over half my half of my life.
• 28:16
  Brett: Now Derek told me that you have a tattoo.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_01: I do.
• 28:20
  Brett: That's like a stage's tattoo.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: I do.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh.
• 28:23
  Brett: Okay, that's hardcore.
• 28:24
  Brett: That is gangster.
• 28:25
  Brett: Yeah.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_01: I know.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_01: They know.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_01: After we were we were saying goodbye to the building at 3201, Allen Parkway.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_01: And they had invited some people, Ted Swinley was there, he was speaking, and I think at this point I had done twenty twenty-something shows there.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_01: So they they invited me, and they knew that I was a thief too, so I was probably going to steal things, which I did, including George Lancaster's A1 chair from Bethrust, which is in currently in my studio where my guinea pigs live.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_01: So I did take that.
• 28:55
  SPEAKER_01: But then also looking around, I knew exactly I was leaving for Vegas the next day, and I knew exactly what I was gonna get tattooed there.
• 29:02
  SPEAKER_01: And it was the it was the Art Deco address that used to be there.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_01: So I have 3201 on my rib cage.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, I am everything in my life happened at stages.
• 29:13
  Brett: That's amazing.
• 29:14
  Brett: Okay, so how did you decide on the songs for this?
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_01: Well, he won he was like, add some of your own He wanted me to do some songs that I I really like and things that are just from regular musicals.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's kind of the first part of the show, but not much because there is so much to sing from my time at stages.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_01: So he's like, throw in a couple of tunes at the beginning just to just to get the place going a little bit, and then and then we'll start.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm starting backwards.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm doing honky tonk first, honky tonk laundry with Brooke, and Brooke is coming and she's gonna sing with me.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_01: She's a little not really a surprise, but I think people will forget that I've been tagging her on Facebook.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_01: So it'll be fun when I bring Brooke out, and we're gonna sing from Honky Tonk Laundry and from Trailer Park, and then I'm going back in time.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_01: So after that, that was 2018, and then I just went in order.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_01: I picked the most meaningful shows to me, and the most meaningful, meaningful shows to the people who are going to end up seeing this, like Wonderett's, trailer park, honky tonk angels, honky tonk laundry, big fish, all the wonderettes, not all the wonderets get included, but the good the good stuff from the wonderets is included.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_01: And what else is there?
• 30:23
  SPEAKER_01: Xanadu.
• 30:25
  unknown: Yeah.
• 30:26
  Brett: It has to be.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_01: It has to be, it has to be.
• 30:29
  Brett: I would charge the stage if it wasn't.
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_01: I don't think you'd be the only one.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_01: I think I'd get tomatoes thrown at me, honestly, if I didn't include Xanadu.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm I won't give it away where it's located in the show, but it is the last song.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_01: So everyone can be just, you know, it's pride right now.
• 30:46
  SPEAKER_01: Just it's pride in July with me, too.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_01: So everyone just get real weird with me at the end of the show.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's I'm a perpetually celebr celebratory person.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_01: It's not just June.
• 30:55
  SPEAKER_01: But my very first show ever when I was 21 years old at stages was The Spitfire Grill.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm singing from that, which has it holds a story in in itself as well.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm telling stories in between each song, but I'm going backwards from like the most successful ones and the most fun ones and the ones that have that have the the reputation that stages had.
• 31:17
  SPEAKER_01: Even moving over from 3201 to 800 Rosine.
• 31:21
  SPEAKER_01: I guess I've got to get an 800 Rosine tattoo now.
• 31:23
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my god.
• 31:24
  Brett: I know.
• 31:25
  Brett: Gotta get on the other rib, maybe.
• 31:27
  SPEAKER_01: On the other rib, but I can't just be 800 because that's Tuts address.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_01: So people would get confused.
• 31:32
  Brett: But no, then it's it's good.
• 31:33
  Brett: You can like if you're casting a show at stages, you can say it's theirs.
• 31:38
  Brett: If you're cast in a show at Tuts, it's like, hey Dan, I got this just for you.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_01: They're moving, they're moving now in in years, apparently.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_01: So I can't do that.
• 31:47
  Brett: Well, I haven't done it yet.
• 31:48
  Brett: We'll just say it's the old address.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's the old address, just like 3201.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_01: Essentially, the most memorable one I sang from that show.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_01: It really I mean, I had so much to choose from.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_01: That, and I think what I've got is there's 15 songs in the show altogether.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_01: So what I've got is is like kind of the the top of all of that, at least for people that remember it.
• 32:16
  Brett: Well, and then I one of the things that I thought was really dangerous, I saw you on social media saying that it's not even scripted, that you're just gonna kind of shoot from the hip.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I don't, you know, you know Mitchell Greco.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_01: He's directed me in uh pretty much more shows than anyone has.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_01: And the joke is you can give Holland a script, but she may or may not read it.
• 32:35
  SPEAKER_01: So it's that that is a net.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_01: There's something really correct in that.
• 32:40
  SPEAKER_01: The joke the joke I thank you for the outline.
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_01: I'll take it from here.
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_01: Because I never really, so especially if it's my own show, I I don't want to be scripted on stage on the ships.
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_01: I I have like an outline, and I also have to have cues for the operator to start the click track for the band.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_01: So that I have to be scripted with, but the whole show, like I just I don't want to be script.
• 33:02
  SPEAKER_01: I want to see the audience, I want to talk to them.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_01: And especially if they remember some of the same things that I remember, I want to talk directly to them.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_01: That's it, there is nothing, there's there's absolutely nothing written down, basically.
• 33:16
  Brett: So like live without a net.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_01: That's how I prefer it.
• 33:20
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, if you if you gave me a script, joke the joke would be, well, she's not gonna do it.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's that's basically how it is.
• 33:28
  Brett: You are so funny because I I literally like I interview people all day.
• 33:32
  Brett: Like, even in my real job, I interview people all day.
• 33:34
  Brett: That's like my thing.
• 33:35
  Brett: And everybody thinks that I just have a conversation with them.
• 33:37
  Brett: They're like, oh, well, you just kind of shoot off the hip and everything.
• 33:39
  Brett: I'm like, I have everything scripted.
• 33:41
  Brett: Everything.
• 33:42
  Brett: It's so horrible.
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_01: Well, that's just gonna be a different show for me every night.
• 33:46
  Brett: Yeah.
• 33:47
  Brett: Well, that's the exciting part though, is that people can kind of come back and see how it varies.
• 33:52
  Brett: You don't want that.
• 33:52
  Brett: Because like I know that like I've seen cabaret shows where they the pattern is so scripted.
• 33:56
  Brett: And it's like if you saw it in New York and then you see the touring version at Houston, you're like, wait a minute.
• 34:01
  Brett: No, no, no, no.
• 34:02
  Brett: Is that that?
• 34:02
  SPEAKER_01: It I just don't be, I don't want to be bogged down with having to stay on some kind of script, especially when these are my own stories, too.
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and it's my silliness, even in the even in the dramatic stuff, it's my silliness.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna tell you how it is, and I can't really stay in that mode for long anyway, even in a regular show.
• 34:23
  SPEAKER_01: There was a couple times, even in Beautiful, where I was just adding just a little bit here and there.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_01: Which was such a fun show to do.
• 34:31
  SPEAKER_01: Gosh, I could do it every day.
• 34:33
  SPEAKER_01: I love that show.
• 34:33
  Brett: Yeah, it was really it was a fun, fun show.
• 34:36
  Brett: But let me take you back to like little Holland.
• 34:39
  Brett: How did you start in this?
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_01: Both of my parents were in theater.
• 34:44
  Brett: Really?
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_01: Mm-hmm.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_01: My mom, she performed professionally, and my dad worked backstage, and they met.
• 34:51
  SPEAKER_01: I was in Utero when my mother did Pippin.
• 34:55
  SPEAKER_01: She was Christ Christine, is that it?
• 34:57
  SPEAKER_01: Catherine, sorry.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_01: Oh gosh, Stephen Schwartz is gonna come out of nowhere and hit me.
• 35:01
  SPEAKER_01: Was Catherine in in Pippin.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_01: And then I ended up doing it again when I was five years old because I was bored, and she was directing it at Casa Mignana, and I went and found a dress, you know, and I took I walked out on stage.
• 35:14
  SPEAKER_01: I wasn't being watched.
• 35:15
  SPEAKER_01: It was 1987, so people were watching.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_01: I was just backstage doing my own thing, and I thought, you know what?
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_01: I'm really not into this.
• 35:25
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna go be in the show.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_01: And my parents were sitting in the audience and watching, watching this and watching me walk out on stage.
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_01: So I don't think I had any other option.
• 35:35
  Brett: Yeah, no, it sounds like an Yeah.
• 35:37
  SPEAKER_01: Had I wanted to go into anything else, especially in college, they probably would have disowned me because this is a you know, you have to go get a degree in musical theater.
• 35:45
  SPEAKER_01: And neither one of them did musical theater.
• 35:47
  SPEAKER_01: Neither one of them could sing.
• 35:49
  SPEAKER_01: My dad can s could sing, he's passed away, but my dad could sing, but my mom cannot sing.
• 35:53
  Brett: And so did you take lessons growing up?
• 35:55
  Brett: No.
• 35:56
  Brett: When did you start singing?
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_01: Probably late high school.
• 35:58
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I always sang.
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_01: I always sang.
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_01: I was constantly singing.
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_01: So I was singing four things, but I never took voice lessons until until actually consecutive voice lessons over and over, like maybe once a week, not until college.
• 36:12
  Brett: That is amazing to me.
• 36:13
  Brett: Yeah.
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_01: So I guess I was born with, I guess, one of those people that says that.
• 36:17
  Brett: Well, you know who else?
• 36:18
  Brett: I I I interviewed Cheyenne Jackson one time, the guy from Xanadu.
• 36:23
  Brett: And he told me the same thing, and I was like, I'm so over you, Cheyenne.
• 36:26
  Brett: So I'm so over you, Holland.
• 36:29
  SPEAKER_01: I've always musical theater's always been in our life, and we went to everything.
• 36:33
  SPEAKER_01: I have very vivid memories of going to the state.
• 36:36
  SPEAKER_01: I'm going to Six Flags over Texas.
• 36:38
  SPEAKER_01: I'm from Dallas originally and watching the shows.
• 36:40
  SPEAKER_01: Not writing the rise, watching the shows.
• 36:43
  SPEAKER_01: And I end up working now when I was 15 years old singing, but it's just I've all I've leaned more into being a vocalist overall, even though my degree is in musical theater and all that.
• 36:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm a dancer, but yeah, I think say singing, I jokingly say I from my soul to survive.
• 37:00
  SPEAKER_01: I I need to be singing all the time.
• 37:02
  Brett: Like all the it's well, it is amazing to watch you do it because it is very, it does feel very natural.
• 37:08
  Brett: It's not like formative, but I mean, I don't know.
• 37:10
  Brett: It just seems to come out of here.
• 37:11
  SPEAKER_01: For me, yeah, it's extremely cathartic, especially when I've got someone on stage like Brooke in honky sunk laundry or trailer park.
• 37:19
  SPEAKER_01: Any any anytime I have another another person that I just adore singing with me, there's nothing.
• 37:24
  SPEAKER_01: There's nothing that could hurt us in that moment.
• 37:27
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's just, and that's kind of how I feel about being on stage on the ships as well.
• 37:31
  SPEAKER_01: It's just me out there in front of 1,200 people and floating around.
• 37:35
  SPEAKER_01: It's like anywhere in Africa.
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_01: I get to do my my medicine basically is to be on stage singing.
• 37:41
  SPEAKER_01: That's it.
• 37:42
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 37:42
  Brett: Well, I'm talking to Holland Vavra, cabaret show running July 9th through the 26th.
• 37:47
  Brett: That's stages.
• 37:48
  Brett: Tell me what makes stages so special as a space for you.
• 37:52
  Brett: I mean, I know we talked about Spitfire Grill being your first show there and that kind of thing, but it what magic is there?
• 37:59
  SPEAKER_01: No, I I had to write something recently for my program.
• 38:03
  SPEAKER_01: They asked me to write a letter.
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_01: So I was actually thinking about this, about what stages has meant to me in the past 23 years.
• 38:10
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it started the moment I walked in there at 3201, Allen Parkway.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_01: The place had character.
• 38:18
  SPEAKER_01: It was the carpet was buckling because it had been flooded several times.
• 38:23
  SPEAKER_01: There was a smell that I associate with that place.
• 38:26
  SPEAKER_01: But it also, I've never I've never been in a situation where theater really did undoubtedly feel like family.
• 38:34
  SPEAKER_01: And Ken, I would call Ken my second dad.
• 38:37
  SPEAKER_01: In fact, I do.
• 38:38
  Brett: And he knows that you're talking about Kenneth McLaughlin.
• 38:40
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes, not my cat, but my but yes, but the artist's former artistic director, but I do call him my dad because he has been is so instrumental in my life, especially after my dad's recent passing.
• 38:52
  SPEAKER_01: He became even more so.
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_01: And I adore the hell out of that man.
• 38:56
  SPEAKER_01: And he was a presence, and I think combined with him, and then just the fact that I didn't realize that I had grown up there until I had already kind of grown up.
• 39:07
  SPEAKER_01: And it became such a constant reminder of this is where I belong.
• 39:11
  SPEAKER_01: I just go here.
• 39:11
  SPEAKER_01: I leave, I leave work, I leave my house, and I go to stages.
• 39:14
  SPEAKER_01: That's that's what I do.
• 39:16
  SPEAKER_01: And I got to the habit of actually going there just to eat lunch because I just wanted to be there.
• 39:20
  SPEAKER_01: The old building meant the absolute world to me.
• 39:23
  SPEAKER_01: And it was, I still haven't walked in.
• 39:25
  SPEAKER_01: So talking about the infrastructure of stages, it just has that feeling.
• 39:29
  SPEAKER_01: But the fact that I feel like personally, my entire heart is in both of those buildings, even 3201.
• 39:37
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's a coffee shop now.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_01: But I have jokingly, and I don't know if this is crass, probably.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_01: I jokingly say, and I've said to Derek, well, I just peed all over that place like a cat.
• 39:48
  SPEAKER_01: Like I peed all over 3201, I peed all over 8800 Rosine.
• 39:52
  SPEAKER_01: I've just been marking my territory for the past 23 years, which is gross to say, but it's a little true because I have just I've I've I've grew up there.
• 40:02
  SPEAKER_01: I grew up there.
• 40:02
  SPEAKER_01: I grew up in the institution, not necessarily this the building, but the institution that's there.
• 40:07
  SPEAKER_01: And it it raised me.
• 40:08
  SPEAKER_01: They raised me.
• 40:09
  Brett: I always feel like, and correct me if I'm wrong, but stages is so much more intimate.
• 40:14
  Brett: It is than like the alley or Tuts or you know, whatever else.
• 40:19
  Brett: I mean, it's just I know that like when I go to the hobby center, I'm gonna see, you know, beautiful with 2,700 of my closest friends, whatever.
• 40:28
  Brett: It's a it's an army.
• 40:30
  Brett: And then when I go to buy tickets at stages, I'm like, wait, there's only this is really close.
• 40:35
  SPEAKER_01: A hundred people here?
• 40:36
  SPEAKER_01: This is wild.
• 40:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, not even though.
• 40:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 40:39
  SPEAKER_01: There that I think that plays a big part in how much I love that place because you get to know, and that also speaks to the the the family outside of the administration part of it.
• 40:49
  SPEAKER_01: The patrons are George Lancaster, is my I call him my uncle.
• 40:54
  SPEAKER_01: He is part of the reason why I think I have been successful there because he believes in in people.
• 40:59
  SPEAKER_01: And but just overall, there's a vibe, and I sound so non-millennial when I say the word vibe.
• 41:05
  SPEAKER_01: I'm 43 years old, but there is a vibe there, and it transferred.
• 41:09
  SPEAKER_01: It definitely transferred from 800 to 30 or from 30 to 01 to 800, and it's still there.
• 41:14
  SPEAKER_01: It's just oh yeah, it it's it definitely is even three different theaters.
• 41:19
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's just I I love stages, and I love the fact that you associate me with stages because that's what I always assumed people would, and that's what I want people to assume.
• 41:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 41:31
  Brett: It's funny when I see you outside of that space.
• 41:33
  Brett: It's kind of like when you see somebody else.
• 41:35
  Brett: Yeah, you're like, what?
• 41:37
  Brett: She's here?
• 41:38
  Brett: She's like Queensbury?
• 41:39
  Brett: What?
• 41:39
  SPEAKER_01: Somebody somebody gave her some some ticket out of the cage.
• 41:43
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my god, yeah.
• 41:44
  SPEAKER_01: But it is it's and it's weird to to go to go back to to Tuts, because I jokingly used to say that stages was ride or die.
• 41:51
  SPEAKER_01: You you you have to you we had to step over like large holes in the in the upstairs area in the old building.
• 41:58
  SPEAKER_01: Like you could die in this building, and going to Tuts, the money is there, and then you you won't die, probably going up the stairs to the dressing room, and it's just two different worlds, but the world that I love the most, and people don't know this about me, and which is why I have a tattoo on my room cage.
• 42:16
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_01: I want to be associated with stages.
• 42:19
  SPEAKER_01: They because they legitimately I I'm I'm sort of an only child, and both of my parents, my mother is is not here anymore.
• 42:28
  SPEAKER_01: And my dad passed away, so I'm doing I'm doing air quotes, not here.
• 42:33
  SPEAKER_01: She's like she's in a home, but I I was absolutely raised by the people at stages.
• 42:40
  SPEAKER_01: They were there for a very long time, and some they some of them are still there.
• 42:44
  SPEAKER_01: I I'm one of the oldest people, I think that is of the original weirdos that are yeah, but yeah, I just it's it's my favorite place.
• 42:54
  SPEAKER_01: I find it safe and I can see that comfortable and yeah.
• 42:58
  SPEAKER_01: I love the old building.
• 42:59
  SPEAKER_01: I love the old building a lot, but I mean, obviously it's a lot easier to do fun things in this new building.
• 43:05
  Brett: Yeah.
• 43:05
  Brett: Well, what are you hoping that people take away from this?
• 43:07
  Brett: Like at the end of the Holland Fabric cabaret, what do you hope that people walk out doing or getting a message?
• 43:14
  SPEAKER_01: I hope that they're happy with with the trip down memory lane if they came to see any of these shows.
• 43:20
  SPEAKER_01: I hope it I hope that they're like, I totally forgot about that one show and that one song that we came to see 20 years ago.
• 43:28
  SPEAKER_01: And I want them to remember that and then be reminded that I've been here for so long and I've been with you this entire time.
• 43:35
  SPEAKER_01: And just rem reminding people that it comes, some people came to see Spitfire Grill, which was back in 2004.
• 43:41
  SPEAKER_01: I want to have that time with them where I'm like, yeah, if you were there to see this, so was I.
• 43:45
  SPEAKER_01: Let me sing it, let me remind you of this kind of thing.
• 43:47
  SPEAKER_01: But also just how much I love I love the place.
• 43:50
  Brett: And I suddenly feel so old when I realized that Spitfire Grill was in.
• 43:55
  Brett: 2004.
• 43:56
  SPEAKER_01: I was 21.
• 43:57
  SPEAKER_01: I was, yeah.
• 43:58
  Brett: My gosh.
• 43:59
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_01: 21 years old.
• 44:01
  Brett: That is crazy.
• 44:02
  SPEAKER_01: I mean 44 this year.
• 44:04
  Brett: Well, and I remember you mentioned next to normal, and I remember Mark in that.
• 44:08
  Brett: You know, and then now I see Mark Lane like, you know, the father figure and beautiful, well, the older manager, you know.
• 44:14
  Brett: And I'm like, what did this happen?
• 44:16
  SPEAKER_01: Jeannie and Donnie were having a fling during that show, definitely.
• 44:19
  SPEAKER_01: Even though I think he was younger.
• 44:21
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah.
• 44:21
  SPEAKER_01: Are you asking about Next to Normal, about the the wildness of that?
• 44:25
  SPEAKER_01: Or because I that's a story.
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_01: That is a story.
• 44:28
  SPEAKER_01: I can breathe.
• 44:29
  Brett: Well, you never you never went on stage.
• 44:30
  SPEAKER_01: I never went on stage.
• 44:31
  SPEAKER_01: So, right.
• 44:32
  SPEAKER_01: So I they'd hired someone for Diana.
• 44:35
  SPEAKER_01: She had notes.
• 44:36
  SPEAKER_01: And I won't say who it is, doesn't matter, but she had notes.
• 44:39
  SPEAKER_01: And they called me and said I was 27 at the time and said, Can you s we know you know the show?
• 44:44
  SPEAKER_01: Can you come into rehearsal every day?
• 44:47
  SPEAKER_01: And Diana's a part so that the cast can learn the show in a timely manner because she's not singing.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I thought, well, okay, yeah, sure, I'll do that.
• 44:56
  SPEAKER_01: And she, I was there for rehearsal one day, and it was getting close to opening, and she hemorrhaged singing You Don't Know and went out into the hallway and she ended up being perfectly fine, but I had to recast her.
• 45:09
  SPEAKER_01: But they were, I I went on in that rehearsal for the remainder of the rehearsal, and I didn't even know what I was doing.
• 45:15
  SPEAKER_01: And the director, Melissa Rain Anderson, who was a dear friend of mine, she directed all the wonder adds at stages as well.
• 45:21
  SPEAKER_01: Apparently, all I did was look at her and I held up the fake cake and I just said from the cake.
• 45:25
  SPEAKER_01: So that became a colloquialism between the two of us.
• 45:28
  SPEAKER_01: Anything like this crazy that's happening, we just repeat from the cake to each other.
• 45:31
  SPEAKER_01: So I never went on, but I I knew everything that I needed to know for that show if I had.
• 45:36
  SPEAKER_01: And then the next day, they were allegedly trying to have a meeting with someone in LA about how to make me look older if I was going to take over the role.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_01: But they thankfully found the most wonderful person in the world who had just done the show.
• 45:49
  SPEAKER_01: 27 years old, I would have gone on.
• 45:52
  SPEAKER_01: But it was a really it was a fun thing and they kept me on the whole time.
• 45:56
  SPEAKER_01: So I was very much associated with the show the whole time.
• 45:59
  SPEAKER_01: But I even I thought that was funny.
• 46:01
  SPEAKER_01: Like, yo, I'm 20, I'm 27.
• 46:03
  SPEAKER_01: I'll do that.
• 46:04
  Brett: And I'm the burnt out mom.
• 46:05
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, I will do this, but but I don't know if they were gonna cut my hair, they were gonna dye it.
• 46:11
  SPEAKER_01: And that's you mentioned, you know, the intimacy at stages, I don't think that would have gone over well with anybody, but no one would have to be able to do it.
• 46:18
  Brett: We probably we probably would have bought it.
• 46:19
  Brett: It's fine.
• 46:20
  Brett: It's theater.
• 46:21
  SPEAKER_01: We wouldn't be we would be buying you more now, I think.
• 46:24
  SPEAKER_01: If I reprise the role again, yeah.
• 46:27
  Brett: No, but so you're doing celebrity cruises.
• 46:29
  Brett: Like, is that gonna suck up a lot of your time?
• 46:31
  Brett: Are you gonna be like gone a lot?
• 46:33
  Brett: Are you still gonna be able to do stuff here?
• 46:34
  SPEAKER_01: So this past year I've been kind of I've been only with celebrity, and I have been able to it's a it's a really great gig.
• 46:42
  SPEAKER_01: I pick the schedule I want.
• 46:44
  SPEAKER_01: I go when I can go.
• 46:45
  SPEAKER_01: I canceled a few things to make things happen.
• 46:48
  SPEAKER_01: I canceled one to do beautiful because that was important to me.
• 46:51
  SPEAKER_01: But it's really, it's a really good gig.
• 46:53
  SPEAKER_01: You can you can decide to go when you want to.
• 46:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I am officially, and I put it on my social media, I am officially booked next year with Holland America.
• 47:03
  SPEAKER_01: And oh my god.
• 47:05
  SPEAKER_01: I know, I know jokingly say that the jokes write themselves.
• 47:08
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna have to come up with a whole different opener for this.
• 47:11
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you all for paying money to support me and coming on my ship.
• 47:14
  Brett: And my cruise line, yes.
• 47:15
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_01: The Holland's on Holland, yeah.
• 47:18
  SPEAKER_01: And they were my agent was curious why I hadn't gone on Holland America yet, just simply because it's what a novelty to have their one of their guest entertainers as the name of that.
• 47:27
  SPEAKER_01: My name's gonna be everywhere, it's gonna be crazy.
• 47:30
  SPEAKER_01: But that's so I did accept a lot of contracts next year, but I do have the ability to cancel if something does come up, which is really convenient.
• 47:39
  SPEAKER_01: It's a really good gig.
• 47:40
  Brett: It sounds like it.
• 47:41
  Brett: And I would I would kill to see your cruise ship show.
• 47:43
  Brett: So I'm gonna have to like get your your schedule or your itinerary or whatever.
• 47:48
  SPEAKER_01: I do a lot of Alaska if that if you fancy Alaska.
• 47:52
  Brett: Oh my spouse is gonna kill you.
• 47:54
  Brett: He does not want to go on an Alaskan cruise.
• 47:57
  Brett: But for some reason I do.
• 47:58
  Brett: No, I would I love Alaska.
• 48:00
  Brett: I would totally I'm on board completely.
• 48:03
  SPEAKER_01: I've gone, I've gone.
• 48:04
  SPEAKER_01: It is wonderful.
• 48:05
  SPEAKER_01: My spouse actually doesn't like the Caribbean and likes Alaska.
• 48:08
  SPEAKER_01: So, or he says, but he's from New Zealand, so it's hard to tell what they like.
• 48:12
  Brett: But what is that?
• 48:13
  Brett: Because New Zealand isn't really cold, isn't it like warm there?
• 48:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's exactly the opposite of whatever we're having.
• 48:19
  unknown: Yeah.
• 48:20
  Brett: So something like that.
• 48:20
  SPEAKER_01: So does it get cold?
• 48:22
  SPEAKER_01: It does, yeah.
• 48:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, especially in the South Island.
• 48:24
  SPEAKER_01: It's they're sticking, I think.
• 48:26
  SPEAKER_01: I think they're definitely skiing almost all year long down the South Island.
• 48:29
  SPEAKER_01: It's fun.
• 48:30
  SPEAKER_01: I've gone a lot of times.
• 48:31
  SPEAKER_01: It does get chilly, but it's chilly in the wrong time of year.
• 48:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's cold there right now.
• 48:36
  SPEAKER_01: That makes me need a pill of some kind.
• 48:38
  SPEAKER_01: I can't wrap my head in it on that.
• 48:40
  SPEAKER_01: So what does he do?
• 48:43
  SPEAKER_01: He actually works for our bracewell law firm downtown, but he is more I'd say, yeah, he has that job, but right now he is he's golfing.
• 48:52
  SPEAKER_01: He's golfing constantly.
• 48:55
  SPEAKER_01: And he looks just like Derek Jeter.
• 48:57
  SPEAKER_01: So that's a weird thing, but yeah.
• 48:59
  Brett: Okay, so that that that makes sense now.
• 49:01
  Brett: I can see you with it.
• 49:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 49:03
  Brett: No, but no, so lovely.
• 49:04
  Brett: Thank you so much for talking about this.
• 49:06
  Brett: I could talk to you like forever, but we'll remind you.
• 49:09
  Brett: We'll remind everybody one more time.
• 49:11
  Brett: July 9th through the 26th with bottle service, from what I'm hearing.
• 49:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 49:15
  SPEAKER_01: Have they done that before?
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_01: They have.
• 49:17
  Brett: If I did it with that Berth Brown show, maybe?
• 49:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, they did with Miss Miss Rhythm.
• 49:22
  SPEAKER_01: I think they did with Miss Rhythm.
• 49:24
  SPEAKER_01: And he, I just it was a really funny day when Derek said, Do you want bottle service?
• 49:28
  SPEAKER_01: And I did not even take a breath.
• 49:30
  SPEAKER_01: I looked at him like, Are you crazy?
• 49:32
  SPEAKER_01: That's not a question.
• 49:33
  Brett: We're well to get bottle service.
• 49:38
  SPEAKER_01: Why would we why wouldn't we?
• 49:40
  SPEAKER_01: Also, if I can shout out to the production team, the designers on this, they ordered some gorgeous chairs, gorgeous new chairs and gorgeous new seats for everyone else.
• 49:50
  SPEAKER_01: The VIP seats are absolutely smashing.
• 49:53
  SPEAKER_01: The tables are gorgeous.
• 49:54
  SPEAKER_01: They're they're making me like a sexy stool of some kind.
• 49:58
  SPEAKER_01: There's there's curtains that are lighting up.
• 50:00
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's it's gonna be it's gonna be gay, and I'm happy about that.
• 50:04
  SPEAKER_01: That's all I asked.
• 50:05
  Brett: All right, I'm ready.
• 50:06
  SPEAKER_01: That's all I asked for.
• 50:07
  SPEAKER_01: I just said, can we just make this as as that's one of the notes I have in the show is just make it gay.
• 50:13
  Brett: Well, I'm there, I think I'm at least there July 10th.
• 50:17
  Brett: But I think some other stuff too.
• 50:20
  Brett: So I'll have to come back.
• 50:21
  SPEAKER_01: You'll have to come back because I am I I have no script.
• 50:25
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 50:26
  SPEAKER_01: Again, if you're there, again, I will call you out and say hello to you.
• 50:31
  SPEAKER_04: And that's don't threaten me with a good time.
• 50:35
  SPEAKER_01: What's different this time?
• 50:44
  SPEAKER_01: So those VIP seats are they're going quick too.
• 50:47
  SPEAKER_01: Most nights of VIP seats are and I'm shocked because I have a$20 limit on life.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_01: I would never spend that much money on anything, especially myself.
• 50:56
  Brett: No, it's so worth it.
• 50:58
  Brett: Better than the World Cup.
• 50:59
  SPEAKER_01: The World Cup, that old chestnut.
• 51:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 51:02
  Brett: Yes.
• 51:03
  Brett: We'll definitely.
• 51:03
  Brett: We will see you at your show.
• 51:05
  Brett: I want to ask you one other question though.
• 51:07
  Brett: What who did the photograph shoot of you?
• 51:09
  SPEAKER_01: That was me.
• 51:10
  Brett: You did that?
• 51:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 51:12
  Brett: Like it was a selfie?
• 51:13
  Brett: It's so Brittany Spears.
• 51:14
  Brett: It's so awesome.
• 51:15
  SPEAKER_01: I did a show, so that came actually from my my One Woman show at 54 Below in New York.
• 51:20
  SPEAKER_01: And I was singing Sinatra.
• 51:22
  Brett: Now it just makes all the sense in the world.
• 51:23
  Brett: That image.
• 51:24
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I just don't I I haven't had a new one and I kind of still look like it.
• 51:29
  SPEAKER_01: So I figured y'all just use this.
• 51:32
  SPEAKER_01: Everyone knows me already that's probably coming to this.
• 51:34
  SPEAKER_01: They don't need to see a photo.
• 51:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was a photo shoot with my phone.
• 51:40
  Brett: Yeah.
• 51:40
  Brett: Oh, that's amazing.
• 51:41
  Brett: Oh my gosh.
• 51:42
  Brett: Right.
• 51:45
  SPEAKER_01: Mass Founders Club poster from the hobby center when I did that.
• 51:49
  SPEAKER_01: I was the first one to do that as well.
• 51:51
  SPEAKER_01: And it's in our like the little thing, the little room you go into before you go into the garage, and it's huge.
• 51:57
  SPEAKER_01: It takes up the whole wall.
• 51:58
  SPEAKER_01: Just my face.
• 52:00
  Brett: That is amazing.
• 52:00
  Brett: Well, I'm it's if you ever want to get rid of it, I'm down for it.
• 52:03
  Brett: Okay.
• 52:04
  Brett: So Holland Valvra, thank you so much.
• 52:06
  Brett: I could talk to you all day.
• 52:08
  Brett: So and I won't bore the rest of us with our geeking out over things like Xanadu and Sideshow.
• 52:13
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much.
• 52:16
  Brett: Thank you for listening to Queer Voices on KPFT Houston or in its podcast form.
• 52:21
  Brett: And welcome to July.
• 52:23
  Brett: Even though we are officially out of pride season and headed into the infernal heat of Houston summer, there's plenty to do out there.
• 52:29
  Brett: This show is executive produced by Brian Plavinka.
• 52:33
  Brett: Deborah Moncreefell is a co-producer, and I am Brett Cullum, the guy who has been producing and engineering a lot of these shows lately.
• 52:39
  Brett: And with me is my husband, frequent contributor, and author, R.
• 52:43
  Brett: Lee Ingalls.
• 52:44
  Brett: Thank you for your interview with Gary Wood this week.
• 52:46
  Brett: Yeah, yeah.
• 52:47
  Brett: It was he's a great friend.
• 52:49
  Brett: Now, how long have you both known each other?
• 52:51
  Lee: We've known each other almost 40 years.
• 52:54
  Lee: 40?
• 52:55
  Lee: 40.
• 52:55
  Lee: Foro.
• 52:56
  Brett: Foro.
• 52:58
  Brett: Just making sure.
• 52:59
  Brett: Yeah.
• 53:00
  Brett: You know, I've known Gary now for at least 20 years, and it's tough for me to believe.
• 53:04
  Brett: And we both marched with him in the Pride Parade back when he was Grand Marshal, and the event was in Montrose.
• 53:08
  Brett: Do you remember that?
• 53:09
  Lee: I do.
• 53:10
  Lee: Yes, I do.
• 53:12
  Lee: That was the last time that we've marched in the uh parade when it was in the Montrose.
• 53:17
  Lee: Right.
• 53:17
  Lee: After that, it moved downtown.
• 53:18
  Brett: Yep.
• 53:18
  Brett: And we ended up downtown once more.
• 53:20
  Brett: But anyway.
• 53:21
  Brett: So this is not really a traditional LGBTQIA plus community news item, but Little House on the Prairie is getting a reboot on Netflix starting July 9th.
• 53:31
  Brett: And of course, you're a part of the Ingalls family.
• 53:35
  Brett: So what are you doing for that?
• 53:37
  Lee: Yeah, so we have a lot going on around that.
• 53:39
  Lee: And you know, I'm thrilled to see it.
• 53:40
  Lee: They're introducing the series to a new generation.
• 53:43
  Lee: I'm glad to see that.
• 53:44
  Lee: So we are hosting a couple of watch parties.
• 53:47
  Lee: Uh, there was one already scheduled for the 9th, and I didn't want to interrupt that or compete with it.
• 53:52
  Lee: So we moved ours to July 10th, which also then freed up some of the celebrities that were part of the original series.
• 53:58
  Lee: Um, we're hoping to get some of those that are part of the new series to join as well.
• 54:02
  Lee: So, watch party on July 10th.
• 54:04
  Lee: Um, you'd be able to find the information on that all over my social media.
• 54:07
  Brett: And your social media, Arley Ingalls.
• 54:10
  Lee: Arlie Ingalls, right.
• 54:11
  Lee: Uh, on Facebook.
• 54:13
  Lee: You can also uh find me on Instagram on Ingalls on the Prairie.
• 54:17
  Lee: Okay.
• 54:18
  Lee: All jammed together.
• 54:19
  Brett: Yep.
• 54:19
  Brett: And and that's open to anybody.
• 54:20
  Brett: You can just sign up for the Zoom, right?
• 54:22
  Brett: Yes.
• 54:22
  Lee: Anyone can can sign up and join.
• 54:24
  Lee: You do not have to be a member.
• 54:26
  Brett: Yep.
• 54:26
  Brett: And it's it's sponsored by the Society of the Ingalls family, or yeah, yeah.
• 54:30
  Lee: So it is uh both the events are held or sponsored by the Society of the Ingalls Family.
• 54:35
  Lee: Uh we do have an email, uh, Society of the Ingalls Family at gmail.com.
• 54:39
  Lee: You can reach out there.
• 54:41
  Lee: Uh, we'll get you on the list.
• 54:42
  Lee: There are also some test uh events that we're having so that people can learn how to get on the sites or how to get on the watch party.
• 54:48
  Lee: Yeah.
• 54:49
  Brett: Well, it's it's basically a mixture of Zoom and an application called Teleparty.
• 54:54
  Brett: Teleparty, yes.
• 54:56
  Brett: Which was devised during 2020 by Netflix so that people could watch TV together and be social.
• 55:01
  Lee: I know it's kind of crazy.
• 55:02
  Lee: But yeah, no, those are the two platforms you're using.
• 55:05
  Brett: Well, we're gonna talk about that a lot in next week's episode.
• 55:08
  Brett: And I also wrapped up an interview with the cast and director of A Nice Indian Boy, which is having a revival.
• 55:14
  Brett: It's coming to the Asia Society, Texas, at the end of July.
• 55:18
  Brett: That will also be in a future episode.
• 55:20
  Brett: And you went and saw that with me when it was at the match, right?
• 55:22
  Brett: I did, yes.
• 55:23
  Brett: What did you think of uh a nice Indian Boy?
• 55:25
  Lee: I thought it was good.
• 55:26
  Lee: I thought it was a good production.
• 55:27
  Lee: Uh I would love to see the one that they uh the movie that they did.
• 55:30
  Lee: We haven't seen that yet.
• 55:31
  Lee: Uh but yeah, no, I think it's a good story, and uh, they did a good job of it.
• 55:35
  Brett: Well, we'll definitely watch the movie with Jonathan Groff.
• 55:37
  Brett: It is streamy now.
• 55:38
  Brett: It's called A Nice Indian Boy, but there is a play version, and it's a little bit different than the movie.
• 55:43
  Brett: There's a little bit of a different kind of feel.
• 55:45
  Brett: Um, and this was a really good production that we saw back in the match about a year ago.
• 55:48
  Brett: Coming back to Houston, and it's in the Asia Society, and we've been there to their theater.
• 55:52
  Brett: It is amazing.
• 55:53
  Lee: It is totally amazing, yes.
• 55:55
  Lee: And their productions are so well done.
• 55:57
  Brett: Yes, absolutely.
• 55:59
  Brett: Now, this month, I'm gonna ask you to put this on the calendar because I know you usually go to this.
• 56:03
  Brett: Houston LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce holds its breakfast on July 16th.
• 56:07
  Brett: So, what is that like when you go?
• 56:08
  Lee: Um, it's great.
• 56:09
  Lee: You know, it's a really is a good um uh place to trade business ideas and talk to people that you otherwise would not have talked to.
• 56:17
  Lee: Uh, so I've always met new people.
• 56:18
  Lee: I've always had great conversations.
• 56:20
  Lee: We've traded business cards, we've reached out to each other after the fact.
• 56:23
  Lee: So it's it really is a good uh meeting to attend if you're looking to meet other gay-friendly or LGBTQ plus friendly businesses.
• 56:31
  Brett: Yeah.
• 56:32
  Brett: Well, and on July 5th at the River Oaks Cinema, Peaches Christ, the big drag queen from San Francisco, is coming to screen Sleepaway Camp, which is an 80s slasher with a surprising LGBTQI plus theme.
• 56:44
  Brett: Uh, he's bringing the original star to Lissa Rose and uh Michael Verati, who helps host this podcast.
• 56:50
  Brett: So that should be interesting.
• 56:51
  Brett: Probably not your favorite film, but Yeah, probably not.
• 56:55
  Brett: I love it.
• 56:55
  Brett: So there you are.
• 56:57
  Brett: All right, so we will see you next week uh here at Queer Voices.
• 57:01
  Brett: Thank you.
• 57:09
  SPEAKER_09: This has been Queer Voices, heard on KPFT Houston and as a podcast available from several podcasting sources.
• 57:18
  SPEAKER_09: Check our webpage queervoices.org for more information.