San Francisco’s popular annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL has announced that it is expanding to a two-week online festival this year … and that all tickets will be completely free!
This June 16–26, catch online performances featuring World Premieres commissioned especially for the festival including Folklórico, hip-hop, modern dance, vogue, contemporary R&B, tap dance, Son Jarocho, comedy, storytelling, disabled dance pioneers, ballroom, and much more.
“We know how challenging this ongoing pandemic has been for our queer, trans, and gender-nonconforming communities,” said founding Artistic Director Sean Dorsey. “So, we thought we’d really treat audiences this year!”
The 2022 FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL is a veritable “who’s who” of top trans and queer talent, featuring over 40 artists and ensembles. June 16–19 offers 5 streaming programs, which are then all available on-demand June 20–26. All programs are closed-captioned for Deaf and Hard-of-hearing audiences.
The 21st annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL features some of the Bay Area and the nation’s most innovative transgender, gender-nonconforming and queer artists, with performances by:
Alex “Glamputee” Locust, amara tabor-smith, Angelica & Jahaira, Angie & Audrey, B Noel Thomas, Ballet 22, Cindy Emch, Cuauhtémoc Peranda, DANDY, dani tirrell + J Mase III + Randy Ford, David Slaney, Dear Queer Dancer, Detour Dance, Felipe & Tiago, Ensamble Folclórico Colibrí, JanpiStar, LAFEMMEBEAR, Landa Lakes, Lottie Riot, Luna Ninja, NAKA Dance Theater, Marcus Zebra Smith, NEVE, Omar and Milton, Pioneer Winter Collective, Sean Dorsey Dance, Shawna Virago, Shrouk El-Attar, Silk Worm, Sir JoQ, Tajah J, Tina Cavvichio, Tosha Jorden, Toby MacNutt, Truc Nguyen, UNA aka EXhotIC OTHER, and Vanessa Sanchez and La Mezcla, and many more.
The festival’s opening 5 programs include several dynamic programs of all-new work, a special all-dance showcase co-presented with Dear Queer Dancer, and the world premiere of The Late Early Crip Show, featuring Alex “Glamputee” Locust in conversation with genderqueer, Cantonese-American drag king LOTUS BOY.
Fresh Meat Productions’ commissioning program FRESH WORKS! awarded a creation grant to Locust to create this special late-night talk-show format event around disability justice, and the arts. Locust’s The Late Early Crip Show streams Saturday June 18 at 2 pm.
FRESH WORKS! Commissions Offer Up New Trans & Queer Work
“We couldn’t be more inspired! This year, we awarded FRESH WORKS! Commissions to an incredible lineup of artists, whose work will premiere at the 2022 FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL and/or later this fall,” enthused Fresh Meat Productions’ Managing Director Eric Garcia. This year’s commissioned artists include:
Alex “Glamputee” Locust is a queer, Black biracial Glamputee celebrated for his leadership in disability justice. Whether as a counselor, harm reductionist, pleasure activist, runway model, or film festival juror, Locust serves up the 3 C’s (Curls, Crutches and Claws). (June 18 at 2 pm)
B Noel Thomas is a multi-talented, award-winning singer, performing artist, and teacher, based in the Bay Area. They have been featured in ABC’s American Idol Season 3, Tinderella: The Modern Musical, and Sister Act. (June 16 at 7 pm)
JanpiStar was born and raised in Puerto Rico, and dances with the acclaimed AXIS Dance Company. One of their most recent solo works was commissioned for the Queering Dance Festival, FROLIC. (June 18 at 7 pm)
Jocquese Whitfield (SirJoQ) is a dancer/choreographer/MC born and raised in San Francisco. They are the first Vogue instructor of San Francisco and have been teaching their Vogue & Tone classes since 2010. (June 16 at 7 pm)
Landa Lakes is a Chickasaw writer, musician, activist, and artist. She founded the Two-Spirit Native American drag troupe, the Brush Arbor Gurlz, and the creative and campy House of Glitter. She is the Westcoast Mother of the Vogue House of Lauren, International, and co-founded the Weaving Spirits Native Art Festival. (June 17 at 7 pm)
Silk Worm’s interdisciplinary performance work commingles the worlds of drag, theater, and dance while focusing on trans history and life. She has shown her work at Berkeley Art Museum, Cantor Center for the Arts, HIT Gallery, Fierce! Festival, Pittsburgh Performance Art Festival, and SAFEhouse for the Arts. (June 17 at 7 pm)
Lifting Up Trans and Gender-Nonconforming Artists
The FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL’s celebration of trans, gender-nonconforming, and queer artistry is especially powerful in the face of anti-transgender bills and anti-trans backlash across the U.S. This year alone, over 200 anti-trans bills have been introduced in the U.S., making this year the worst on record.
The FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL is not just an antidote to this transphobic backlash; it’s also joyful, powerful, and exquisite. As the only event of its kind in North America, the festival is celebrated for its world-class artistry and sold-out crowds. While the 2022 edition is online/virtual, organizers hope to return to an in-person festival in 2023.
Now in its 21st season, Fresh Meat Productions invests in the creative expression and cultural leadership of transgender and gender-nonconforming communities through year-round programs.
Fresh Meat Productions’ programs include the annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL; FRESH WORKS! Commissions for BIPOC trans/gnc/queer artists to create new work; resident dance company Sean Dorsey Dance’s home season and national touring; a national education program TRANSform Dance; and advocacy for intersectional justice in the performing arts.
2022 FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL of Trans & Queer Performance
June 16–26, 2022
Online
Free!Tickets and Information:https://tinyurl.com/2m4c4mja
Published on June 9, 2022
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