Boston Pride Kicks Off at Faneuil Hall With a Whimper • Posted 06/09/08

by Jeremy Goodman

Boston's Pride Week kicked off with day of music and dance at Faneuil Hall on Saturday. But let’s face it...it wasn't exactly a rousing success. I'm not quite sure when Pride became a week instead of a parade and a night at the bars; apparently, I'm not the only one. When a friend and I arrived, the only gays in sight were the Moving Violations Motor Cycle club, which is strictly for the ladies and I'm sure you can develop a mental picture for yourself.

A sad, broken arch of balloons over the stage was perhaps briefly a proud rainbow, but intense sun and over-inflated balloons are not a good mix – first the greens, then the blues and purples deflated in a series of pathetic little pops. Perhaps that should have shaped our expectations for the afternoon. Those who came out to see a big gay spectacle of the kind that makes Fox News commentators wet their pants were surely disappointed.

Coretta Sellars was the euphonic highlight of the afternoon. We listened to nearly her entire set, with only a quick stop into the Starbucks for a bit of refreshment. As I listened to her music, I commented to my friend that her tunes had a sound that was familiar. Eventually, I realized that musically Sellars evokes the sound of the Indigo Girls, but with a vocal quality that softened the harder edges. Her performance was nothing short of stellar, despite a blazing sun sure to blister the skin. We were impressed enough to walk away with two of her CDs.

The Dejas, on the other hand, left us cold. A cover of a Sting song (or maybe The Police) roused a bit of interest, but the idea of finding something to eat and drink proved more attractive, as evidenced by the fact that I can't remember which song. We settled on Dick's Last Resort, the only Faneuil Hall vendor that seemed to recognize that the marketplace was hosting a Pride event, marking the restaurant with a rainbow arch faring much better than that on the mainstage. Our server Renee provided us with enough entertainment to make up for the lack of fun on the stage, regaling us with tales of her desire to go to Provincetown with her boyfriend and cluing us into the fact that her daughter has two grandmas (okay, most of us do, but I think you get what she meant). She proudly claimed responsibility for the rainbow arch on the restaurant and sent us on our way with souvenir glasses.

Refreshed, we set out back to the stage. The emcee, whose name I never got, surprised us with her rousing version of a couple pop songs. Though she was clearly vamping until the next act was ready, the stunning quality of her renditions truly surprised us. She belted out Gnarls Barkley’s Crazy and Alicia Keys’s No One and brought a crowd back to the stage area with her infectious energy.

Gays for Patsy may have been high point of the day. A small troupe of men mounted the stage and taught the crowd to line dance and two-step to the strains of country tunes that one just doesn't associate with the gay world. While they did a few exhibition numbers, it was the teaching that really got the crowd involved, using numbers such as Paula Cole's Where Have All the Cowboys Gone? and Garth Brooks's We Shall Be Free. The line dancing was fun and attracted a (mostly straight) crowd willing to jump in and learn where to put their feet. Later, while teaching volunteers to two-step, a couple of straight boys from the suburbs who jumped in to mock the celebration got their comeuppance, to the amusement of many. The boys didn't realize that the dance they were learning would require them to change partners constantly. To give those boys some credit, though, they didn't leave the floor until the dance ended.

In the end, the afternoon's success as a gay pride event remained questionable, even though it did provide a few flashes of good entertainment. The crowd consisted mostly of confused, middle-aged, straight couples and tourists out for a day's shopping with a few gay teens and older couples sprinkled throughout. Perhaps, though, the day's lack of flamboyance served to show a quieter side of gay life than most of those spectators have seen in media representations, reminding them that your average gay person is simply your average person.