In/Visible: Queer Histories Real and Imagined (Theater 2)

A serious and humorous exploration into LGBTQ+ history.

Steven Reigns is a Los Angeles poet and educator and was appointed the first Poet Laureate of West Hollywood. Alongside over a dozen chapbooks, he has published the collections Inheritance and Your Dead Body is My Welcome Mat. Reigns holds a BA in Creative Writing from the University of South Florida, a Master of Clinical Psychology from Antioch University, and is a fourteen-time recipient of The Los Angeles County’s Department of Cultural Affairs’ Artist in Residency Grant. He edited My Life is Poetry, showcasing his students’ work from the first-ever autobiographical poetry workshop for LGBT seniors. Reigns has lectured and taught writing workshops around the country to LGBT youth and people living with HIV. Currently he is touring The Gay Rub, an exhibition of rubbings from LGBT landmarks, and he facilitates the monthly Lambda Lit Book Club. His newest collection A Quilt for David was published by City Lights in September 2021 and is the product of ten years of research regarding dentist David Acer’s life. 

Elena Gross (she/they) is the Co-Executive Director of the Berkeley Art Center and an independent writer and culture critic living in Oakland, CA. She specializes in representations of identity in fine art, photography, and popular media. Her research has been centered around conceptual and material abstractions of the body in the work of Black modern and contemporary artists and most recently in queer artistic and literary histories of the late 20th century. Elena is the co-editor, along with Julie R. Enszer, of OutWrite: The Speeches that Shaped LGBTQ Culture (Rutgers University Press), winner of the 2023 Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Anthology.   

Lydia Otero, a native of Tucson, is an author and dedicated activist. Otero's involvement in the Lesbians of Color (LOC) group in 1979 and later in Gay and Lesbian Latinos Unidos (GLLU) has provided them with a background in community engagement and advocacy. Their recently released second memoir, L.A. Interchanges: A Brown & Queer Memoir, explores the challenges and experiences faced by LGBTQ+ individuals.
 
Their first memoir, In the Shadows of the Freeway: Growing Up Brown & Queer, offers a poignant exploration of personal experiences intertwined with historical analysis. Through this compelling book, Otero delves into the interconnected theme of intergenerational trauma, examining how historical traumas resonate across generations and affect individuals and communities.

They have obtained a PhD in History and served as a tenured professor in the Department of Mexican American Studies at the University of Arizona until 2020. While residing in Tucson, their enduring connections to Los Angeles through friends and family continue to shape their perspectives and enrich their work. Notably, Otero was featured in the 2023 PBS SoCal documentary, "Unidad: Gay and Lesbian Latinos Unidos," further amplifying their impact and influence.
 

Justin Elizabeth Sayre is a playwright and performer who Michael Musto called, “Oscar Wilde meets Whoopi Goldberg.” Sayre is a fixture of the Downtown Cabaret Scene in New York, first with their long-running variety show, The Meeting (Bistro Award-winning & 2 MAC nominations). They are currently in residency at Joe's Pub at the Public with their new variety show Assorted Fruit.  As a playwright, Sayre’s work has appeared at Dixon Place, The Wild Project, The Celebration Theatre, Dynasty Typewriter, and La MaMa Experimental Theatre. Their 12-part-epic Ravenswood Manor, a Camp-Horror-Soap-Opera, called “a sharply written and well-acted exemplar of the horror-comedy genre,” by the LA Times and is currently being developed with Sony Television and Rupaul. Sayre has written a series of YA Novels, Husky, Pretty, and Mean, released by Penguin Books, and the book, From Gay to Z: A Compendium of Queer Culture just released by Chronicle Books. Sayre has written for Television, working with Michael Patrick King on his hit CBS comedy, 2 Broke Girls and Fox's The Cool Kids. Sayre also appeared on HBO’s The Comeback with Lisa Kudrow. They are NYCLU artist ambassador and a 2023 MacDowell Fellow.

Nic Scheppard and Jenson Titus are two Los Angeles-based writers, performers, comedians, and creators of Very Gay Paint. In their words, they use "ancient gay wizardry to turn walls gay with paint." Nic and Jenson's work can be seen in Architectural Digest, on the Santa Monica Pier, in storefronts, and in restaurants across the United States. They have worked with notable clients including Joe Russo, Jason Mraz, and they recently appeared on Trixie Motel on HBO Max.

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