ABOVE: Superknova. Photo courtesy FabAF.
Shannon Fortner has worked to unite the LGBTQ community in and around Sarasota for more than a decade. It’s why she founded the region’s Harvey Milk Festival in 2009, acquired the long-running Fabulous Independent Film Festival in 2016 and rebranded the organization as the Fabulous Arts Foundation last year.
The arts and advocacy nonprofit exists to support and inspire the LGBTQ community and its allies through music, art, film, theatre and dance. While HMF focused primarily on the life of its namesake, activist and political pioneer Harvey Milk, the rebranding allowed FabAF to emphasize “the legacy of all of the amazing queer+ activists that helped our mission have the opportunity to thrive.”
The organization’s signature event, a multi-day music and arts festival that welcomes thousands, was last held in its traditional format in 2019. The pandemic forced organizers to hold the event virtually in 2020 and reimagine it for 2021, presenting a hybrid arts celebration focusing on a COVID-conscious film festival.
“The rebranding last year was kind of a test run,” Fortner says. “The feedback from the community is that they love it. The logo and the branding were familiar because we have the Fabulous Independent Film Festival, so we didn’t wander too far. It was something people related to our organization.”
It also allowed Fortner and the FabAF board to focus on their efforts to build a permanent Sarasota home. An LGBTQ-focused performing arts center has long been in the works.
“We have a big vision,” she explains. “Our five-year plan is to have a home base to provide programming all year round and to strengthen our partnerships with the organizations in the community. We want a space to amplify LGBTQ voices and support artists, which stays true to our original vision.”
Around 2,500 people attended FabAF’s two-week hybrid celebration last year, which Fortner says was about supporting LGBTQ performers when they needed it the most. It helped pave the way for this year’s new signature outing, the organization’s three-day Pride | Be Fabulous Music & Arts Festival coming May 12-14.
“For over a decade we have been known to the community as the Harvey Milk Festival and recently changed our name to keep growing for our community,” FabAF announced the gathering. “Now as the Fabulous Arts Foundation we are still having our Music and Arts Fest in May – the same community focused, community driven festival that we have all known and loved for 12 years!”
Now is the right time for FabAF to hold its first major festival, Fortner notes, building upon the last decade plus. “We wanted to keep some consistency,” she says. “There are a lot of artists who are familiar with our festival and organization, so even though we’re shifting the name it lets us continue our focus on the community.
“Having a platform right now with everything that’s going on in our state is also particularly important,” Fortner adds. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Parental Rights in Education into law March 28, the measure widely known as Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” bill.
“We also have a lot of people come to listen to our speakers,” Fortner says. They include representatives from Equality Florida this year, who will address concerns about the state’s anti-LGBTQ legislation and more.
The festival’s opening night will do the same May 12 from 6-10 p.m. at the DreamLarge Yard in Sarasota’s Rosemary Art & Design District. Festivities begin with the “Just Say Gay & Trans” art exhibition, an outdoor, interactive installation that will allow attendees to speak out against the bill.
“This exhibition serves as a reminder that we are resilient, we are us and that our LGBTQ+ youth see that we never give up,” it’s officially described. “As we stand together, we continue to have a voice and not feel alone in this world.”
The festival’s second day will focus on dance and performance art at The Players Studio at 1400 Blvd. of the Arts on May 13 from 7-10 p.m. Tickets range from $10-40 to see live performances from duo Jess Pope and Amber McNew as well as Gabriele Keusch.
“We are transformative through movement and cascading through our memories are moments of dance,” the event is billed. “Be it your first spin or feeling so passionate about sound it just takes over your body. These artists will remind you why we feel this way through movement. Come celebrate these Queer Artists as they share their works with us.”
Pope and McNew will perform their piece “Pagan Babies,” adapted from LGBTQ culture of 1960s Kentucky. It will “challenge the masculine/feminine relationship within themselves.” Keusch, “a conduit for the ancestors that walk with her,” will offer her unique brand of spoken word.
“It’s going to be beautiful,” Fortner promises. “We’re so excited to bring these three people to perform.”
The festival’s final day will celebrate music May 14 from 2:30-11 p.m. in Rosemary Park, located at 531 Central Ave. Attendees will have access to 30 community vendors and multiple food trucks while listening to speakers and LGBTQ performers from throughout the country. Donations are encouraged but there is no cost to attend.
Headlining bands include alt-pop artist Jax Anderson from Detroit, “who has built an international audience by writing great songs and touring with the tireless work ethic that her city is famous for.” Queer pop music sensation Superknova from New York City will also feature, who “writes about identity, queerness and the struggle of being your authentic self.”
Sarasota synth-rock band MeteorEYES, which includes Fortner, will also return to the festival stage. The group is currently working on the release of a record, a digital version of which is targeted for release in time for the celebration.
Two acts from St. Petersburg will also perform. Heavily influenced by 90s grunge, Hovercar “has a sound that is equal parts aggression and nuance.” DON ROC will take the stage, the first headlining DJ to do so.
Sarasota will also welcome back the Los Angeles-based Lalo, the singer/songwriter with a “buttery-smooth, danceable brand of R&B pop.” The four-piece fusion band Tuesday Again from Orlando will bring their original sound and Sarasota’s Grace Cespedes will also wow the crowd. Fortner promises “there’s a little something for everyone.” View the lineup below:
“This will be the 12th year celebrating our community, and for a lot of folks this is one of their favorite times of the year,” she says. “We’re going to be utilizing a really beautiful area in the Rosemary District and amplifying our artists – the pandemic showed us we need to do that more than ever.”
The Fabulous Arts Foundation will celebrate 12 years in Sarasota with their first Pride | Be Fabulous Festival May 12-14 in Sarasota. For more information about participating artists, venues and more, or to buy tickets or donate, visit FabAF.org.
