{"id":118745,"date":"2023-05-25T15:21:43","date_gmt":"2023-05-25T19:21:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=118745"},"modified":"2023-05-25T15:21:43","modified_gmt":"2023-05-25T19:21:43","slug":"artsquest-and-bradbury-sullivan-lgbt-community-center-lehigh-valley-lgbtq-film-series-kicks-off-with-desert-hearts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=118745","title":{"rendered":"ArtsQuest and Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center Lehigh Valley LGBTQ+ Film Series Kicks off with Desert Hearts"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bethlehem, PA, May 22, 2023 \u2013\u00a0ArtsQuest<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center<\/a>\u00a0are partnering to present the\u00a0Lehigh Valley LGBTQ+ Film Series<\/a>,\u00a0<\/u>a year-round monthly exhibition of queer cinema from the past and now.\u00a0<\/u>The screenings will be free to the public and take place at the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks and the Bradbury Sullivan LGBT Community Center. The partnership\u00a0kicks off on June 1 at 7 p.m. with the groundbreaking film \u201cDesert Hearts\u201d at the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas, a screening that will feature an in-person appearance by the film\u2019s director, Donna Deitch.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are thrilled to be partnering with ArtsQuest to amplify intersectional queer stories in films and create an affirming environment where LGBTQ+ folks can build community,\u201d said Ashley L. Coleman, Executive Director of Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center. \u201cExpanding access to cultural experiences like this film series are vital initiatives that benefit our community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cArtsQuest is ecstatic to be working with Bradbury Sullivan to shine an even brighter light on queer cinema,\u201d Ryan Hill, Senior Director of Programming at ArtsQuest, said. \u201cI\u2019m particularly excited that the hard work of ArtsQuest\u2019s curators and staff, including next month\u2019s appearance by Desert Hearts director Donna Deitch, can be seen by a larger group of potential movie-goers through this partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDesert Hearts\u201d<\/a>\u00a0has, over the years, come to be seen as one of the most important films in queer cinema, with\u00a0The Globe and Mail<\/em>\u00a0referring to it as \u201cone of the first and most highly regarded works in which a lesbian relationship is depicted favorably.\u201d\u00a0The Lesbian Film Guide<\/em>\u00a0said of the film \u201cIt is no exaggeration to say that in 1985 \u2018Desert Hearts\u2019 was the film many lesbians had waited for all their lives. For the first time in cinema history here was a movie which was an unashamedly romantic lesbian love story, aimed primarily at a lesbian audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dietch will lead a Q&A\/talkback after the free screening on June 1.<\/p>\n

The second movie in the series, \u201cFlee\u201d, will take place at the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center on July 8 at 3 p.m..<\/p>\n

“We’re looking forward to attending the launch of this series at ArtsQuest while they show \u201cDesert Hearts\u201d on June 1,” said Community Programs Manager, Deirdre Van Walters. “This series will be a great way for LGBTQ+ community members to build community and we can’t wait to watch \u201cFlee\u201d with them at our Center.”<\/p>\n

\u201cFlee\u201d<\/a>\u00a0is a Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner and is directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen, telling his story of his extraordinary journey as a child refugee from Afghanistan. This film tells the story of Amin Nawabi as he grapples with a secret that he has kept hidden for 20 years and threatens to derail the life he has built for himself and his soon-to-be husband.<\/p>\n

Check back on\u00a0ArtsQuest.org<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0BradburySullivan.org<\/a>\u00a0for more updates to the Lehigh Valley LGBTQ+ Film Series schedule as the year progresses.<\/p>\n

About ArtsQuest\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

ArtsQuest\u2019s mission is to provide access to exceptional artistic, cultural and educational experiences using arts and culture as key elements of economic development for our urban communities. ArtsQuest\u2122 supports this mission via the presentation of performing and visual arts, film, arts education classes and outreach, youth programming and cultural events. Through festivals such as its flagship event, Musikfest; the Banana Factory Arts Center; and the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks arts and cultural campus, ArtsQuest\u2019s programming reaches more than 1.9 million people annually. The organization\u2019s programs and events, of which over 50% of are free to attend, have a combined economic impact of more than $136 million annually in the region.<\/p>\n

About Bradbury-Sullivan\u00a0<\/strong>LGBT Community Center<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center (BSC) provides a vibrant, inclusive space in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley for all the region’s LGBTQ+ residents and allies. BSC facilitates the Pennsylvania LGBTQ Health Needs Assessment, addresses barriers to care through LGBTQ+ health programs, produces affirming community programming, organizes Lehigh Valley Pride and makes\u00a0the Lehigh Valley more equitable through their LGBTQ+ Education Institute.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bethlehem, PA, May 22, 2023 \u2013\u00a0ArtsQuest\u00a0and\u00a0Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center\u00a0are partnering to present the\u00a0Lehigh Valley LGBTQ+ Film Series,\u00a0a year-round monthly exhibition of queer cinema from the past and now.\u00a0The screenings will … Continue reading ArtsQuest and Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center Lehigh Valley LGBTQ+ Film Series Kicks off with Desert Hearts<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":118747,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[69,482],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-118745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-valley","category-press-release-2"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/desert-hearts.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118745"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=118745"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118745\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/118747"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=118745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=118745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=118745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}