For Immediate Release
September 1, 2005
Contact: Frank Barnhart, Festival Director
Act Out Productions
614/263-9448
National Theatre Festival Gearing Up for 2006
Theatre and entertainment companies and performers from across the country will converge on
Columbus, Ohio in September 2006 for the 3rd Bi-Annual Columbus National Gay & Lesbian
Theatre Festival. Hosted by Act Out Productions, a gay and lesbian theatrical company in
Columbus, the ten-day event will include participants from the nation’s largest cities, including
New York, Chicago, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Austin, Boston, Columbus, and more.
The Festival will run from Thursday, September 7, 2006 through Saturday, September 16, 2006.
According to performer and writer, Jade Esteban Estrada, who debuted his original one-person
show, ICONS: The Lesbian and Gay History of the World at the 1st Bi-Annual Festival in 2002, “It
is the most organized festival of its kind in the country.” Encouraged by the huge success of
the 2002 and 2004 festivals, plans are already underway for the upcoming 2006 event.
The Columbus National Gay & Lesbian Theatre Festival showcases the newest gay works from
around the country. “Columbus is the perfect city for an event like this,” says Barnhart, festival
director. “We have an established theatre scene here with an appreciative and supportive
audience.” Barnhart, whose New York City production Members of the Tribe recently won an
OOBR Award (Off-Off Broadway Award) for Outstanding Production, is also the founder and
executive director of Act Out Productions.
“In an era when gay history disappears even faster than it happens”, says recognized playwright
Doric Wilson, “an event like this in Columbus, Ohio is essential to the survival of our culture—a
chance for us to meet each other, explore new works, and celebrate Gay and Lesbian theatre in
all its diversity.” Wilson is a pioneer of the Off-Off-Broadway movement, having written, directed,
produced, and designed more than one hundred productions. He is a founding member of Circle
Repertory Theater and the Barr/Wilder/Albee Playwright's Unit; a member of the GAA (Gay
Activist Alliance); and manager of the post-Stonewall gay bar scene, opening such landmark
institutions as the Spike, TY's, and Brothers & Sisters Cabaret. Having served on the Advisory
Board for both the 2002 and 2004 festivals, Wilson will serve on the Advisory Board for the 3rd Bi-
Annual Festival, along with:
Jade Esteban Estrada (New York), comedian Karen Williams (Cleveland, Ohio) , playwright and
performer Jeffrey Solomon, (New York), playwright and performer Marjorie Conn (Provincetown,
MA), Bill Kaiser: Editor and Founder of The Purple Circuit (Los Angeles, CA), Beth Kattelman:
Producer/Performer of The Puppet-Queers (Columbus, OH) and S. Bear Bergman: Solo
Performer (Amherst, ME).
For more information, visit the Festival Web Site at www.columbustheatrefestival.com or contact
Festival Director, Frank Barnhart, at Act Out Productions 2517 North Fourth Street, Columbus,
Ohio 43202, tel. (614) 263-9448.
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Quotes
“Let’s hear it for the Columbus National Gay & Lesbian Theatre Festival! Who doesn't’t love gays
and lesbians and theatre? Buy your tickets now and don’t forget to bring all of your friends!”
-Craig Lucas (playwright & screenwriter, Prelude To A Kiss, Longtime Companion)
“Columbus is the perfect city for an event like this. We have an established theatre scene here
with an appreciative and supportive audience.”
-Frank Barnhart
“In an era when gay history disappears even faster than it happens, an event like this in
Columbus, Ohio is essential to the survival of our culture—a chance for us to meet each other,
explore new works, and celebrate Gay and Lesbian theatre in all its diversity.”
-Doric Wilson
“A gay and lesbian theatre festival in Columbus, Ohio? Fabulous! And with the talent of Frank
Barnhart envisioning it, I’m certain that the festival will not only be a tremendous source of
empowerment, enlightenment, and entertainment for the state’s queer community, but also a
major contribution to the heartland’s culture at large.”
-David Drake (The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me)