Community Drag Theater: Tom Rubnitz

Come out under the stars for our first outdoor Summer Screening and behold a lively night of Community Drag Theater celebrating the dynamic and moving work of the legendary Tom Rubnitz and in partnership with the wonderful folks at Visual AIDS. We're so lucky to also have fixtures of the scene, David Yarritu & Billy Beyond in attendance to share some memories and be in conversation too. If you don't know the work of Tom Rubnitz, it can be described by an array of adjectives including sexy, glamorous, campy, hallucinogenic, hedonistic, joyful, and romantic, but the heart of the work is the New York City queer community who came together and collaborated on this bouquet of images from the 1980s-90s. Originally from Chicagoland, Tom Rubnitz, a New York transplant, injected both humor and clarity into the deadliest decade of the AIDS crisis. From playful takes on advertising and drag performances at the renowned Pyramid Club to more serious commentary, such as his collaboration with artist and writer David Wojnarowicz, this program describes a decade of queer culture, performance, and friendship. We’re delighted to partner with our friends at Video Data Bank for this night that was programmed with the brilliant Emily Eddy who will be in attendance to introduce the program alongside scholar and writer Come through!