SHOWBOYS!

Last week the Gay Men's Chorus of DC paid tribute to the celebrated successes of gay Broadway (and redundancies). "SHOWBOYS" was broken into 4 mini-shows of Anything Goes, Dear World, Company, and Hairspray (you'll get 10 bonus points for using them all in one sentence).

Tap dancing, flag twirling, men in drag and more: the curtain flies as the lights blind you senseless, the sound of applause the only clue that something lies beyond the invisible 4th wall of the stage.

The curtain drops to conceal the chorus during a spotlighted solo; your only chance to rest, regroup, and be a spectator of what truly is an impressive attempt to show the normalcy of a gay man's life. Songs written for male-female couples are performed by boys and only boys.

As we sit back there in the darkness, listening intently to "Being Alive" and "I Never Said I Love You", an unusual hush falls over what is normally a chatty bunch of chorus boys.

Some of us inspired; others lonely.

The members of the chorus are as varied as they can be: old and young, thick and thin, different races, different religions, and many stories of exclusion and hurt.

The curtain flies for the final time, we shake and shimmy it with all of our might, cheer when it's over, and go our separate ways; some hidden, some open.

I won't remember what I sang, and I won't remember how I danced. But I will always remember how I felt when I performed with such an amazing group of people – of men, who understand me.