NYC Gay Men's Chorus Holiday Spectacular

There's nothing quite like a holiday concert to really put you in the Christmas spirit. I had the pleasure of attending the NYC Gay Men's Chorus' holiday concert at Carnegie Hall on Tuesday night and now I am full of yuletide joy! Perhaps it was the peppy rendition of "All I Want For Christmas Is You" with the sychronized choreography of the 200 member chorus or the Twelve Days of Christmas singalong (although alas, for those of us up in the upper balcony, we only got one solo as the twelfth day). I also really enjoyed the soulful "Joy to the World" which closed the show and the bouncy Latino version of Jingle Bells.

Another fun part of the evening was an appearance by the cast of [title of show], which as readers of this blog know, is a musical I enjoyed earlier this year. Cast member Heidi Blickenstaff sang a beautiful version of "Chestnuts Roasting" which was interrupted by an adorable story from fellow cast member Susan Blackwell recounting the tale of an oddball classmate who took a stand one Christmastime. The punchline "this too shall pass" was a bit of a groaner but still a very entertaining cherry on the story.

However, there was a serious side to the evening as the focus of the performance was on those who have lost or had to create a new home because of who they are. The group performed a number of songs about home, including a stellar version of Kenny Loggins' "Celebrate Me Home" featuring the amazing chorus member Benjamin Smith, and told short tales of Christmas experiences. A particularly moving moment was the plea for help from a director of the Ali Forney Center which takes in teens who have been thrown out of their homes because of their sexual identity. I would encourage all of you to read about the center at http://www.aliforneycenter.org/ and give what you can - they are certainly doing good work and deserve the support.