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Show www.dailyutahchronicle.corn 5 ARTS Tuesday June 4, 2013 Pride draws versatile crowds FRANCES MOODY/The Daily Utah Chronicle CHAD ZAVALA/The Daily Utah Chronicle CHAD ZAVALA/The Daily Utah Chronicle Frances Moody ARTS EDITOR This year, Utah Pride staged a plethora of entertainment. From drag queen extravaganzas to puppet shows, it's safe to say that one of Salt Lake City's biggest festivals offered performances for just about everyone. In fact, the variety of amusements set up throughout Washington Square Park mirrored the eclectic mix of attendees who flocked to the festival grounds. Utah Pride's policy of openness and acceptance overwhelmed every aspect of the festival, and each set of entertainment reflected the event's mission statement of "Real Equality" When considering the melting pot of Utah Pride supporters, it is obvious the festival did its best to resemble the dif- ferent likings of all participants — young or old, gay or straight, everyone had a place. The festival accomplished such a feat by building three stages centered around different themes. For young clubbers, Utah Pride's south stage played the techno beats of Salt Lake City's most popular DJ, featuring electronic gurus like DJ Lishus and DJ Harry Cross Jr. While the south stage offered a makeshift dance club, the stage located on the west side of the festival grounds presented more intimate performances. Acting as the smallest stage at the venue, the west stage hosted drag queen talent shows, belly dancing by Habibi Habibi, the winners of the Miss City Weekly Pageant and an assortment of other faculties. Moving from the west side to the north side, the main stage resembled Utah Pride's goal to offer different shows for diverse personalities. For instance, rather than opening Saturday's lineup with a musician or drag queen, Cheer Salt Lake acted as Utah Pride's entertainment catalyst and motivated the crowd to stand up for "Real Equality." Afterwards, the main stage welcomed big names and local talents — including some nonLGBT performers — giving all performers the opportunity to dazzle the Utah Pride audience. Utah band The Femme Medea was a crowd favorite. Composed of three members, the group illustrated the other side of drag queen shows by playing original songs that contain a versatile mix of stories and themes. Liberty Park bustles with summertime activities Savannah Turk STAFF WRITER Summertime is about having the freedom to do what you want. During Salt Lake City summers, liberty is no sweeter than at Liberty Park. This downtown spot is a favorite for the young, the old and everyone in between. With the Tracy Aviary, a swimming pool, a pond, a carousel and swaths of green open space, there are plenty of activities to explore and enjoy. If you haven't been spending time at Liberty, you haven't been enjoying the full breadth of what summers in Salt Lake have to offer — and even if you have, there is always more to discover. With numerous ways to spend time at Liberty Park, here's how to feel the freedom of summer in the area. With all of the new additions to Liberty, it might come as a surprise that it is Salt Lake City's oldest park, providing an escape from the city since 1882. Originally property of Brigham Young, the city bought the land and turned it into a public space for everyone to enjoy. The park has gone through a lot of changes over the years. Liberty was once the site of the Salt Lake City zoo until it was moved and renamed the Hogle Zoo in 1931 after the elephant "Princess Alice" repeatedly escaped from her home and wandered up and down 700 East. Although visitors can no longer find elephants and monkeys at Liberty Park, the Tracy Aviary keeps the park rich with animal life, serving as a home for hundreds of birds including flamingos, eagles, owls and 12 endangered avian species. If Liberty Park's animal life doesn't entice you, the water works will. From a duck pond to a swimming pool to the Seven Canyons Fountain, Liberty is full of water fun. But the outdoor activities don't stop at splashing — the park also has tennis, volleyball and even horseshoe courts to keep patrons playing in the sun. Summer is a special time for the park. With events happening all summer, July is when Liberty really shines as a hub for freedom and fun. Liberty Park is always hopping for the Fourth of July, but if you miss the music and fireworks on Independence Day, don't fret. The Utah Reggae Festival will be taking place July 13 featuring favorites such as Dirty Heads, Tribal Seeds, Daniel Marley, Fortunate Youth and more. And if last weekend's Pride Parade got you thirsting for more, Liberty Park's Pioneer Parade takes over downtown offering freedom, fun and fireworks all day long on July 24. To satisfy any cravings that Liberty Park leaves unfulfilled, head to Elizabeth's English Bakery just a block away for fresh coconut macaroons, or Beans and Brews for a steamy pick-me-up. In the morning, saunter over to Salt Lake City's favorite hangover spot and grab some eggs at The Park Cafe while gossiping about the previous night's adventures. Salt Lake City's pride shouldn't end just because Pride did. Keep the ideals of fun, sun, love and liberty alive while celebrating one of Salt Lake's unique landmarks this summer. s.turk@chronicle.utah.edu CHAD ZAVALA/The Daily Utah Chronicle CHAD ZAVALA/The Daily Utah Chronicle From drag queen musicians to drag queen performers, the main stage had it all. Drag queens and drag kings from the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire Talent Show expressed their gratitude toward Utah Pride. "I like going out and interacting with people outside of the club environment," drag queen Mae Day said, while standing next to her "drag son" Dee Daye. In addition to Salt Lake City performers, Utah Pride became the temporary home of three well-known headliners. Alex Newell was the first of the famous and beautiful to perform. Hailing originally from the reality TV show, "The Glee Project," he quickly gained fame and joined the cast of "Glee." At Utah Pride, Newell belted out a series of hit melodies. His stage presence was undeniable. With a witty humor and diverse song selection, Newell got the audience excited for Utah Pride. Throughout his performance, the "Glee" star told several jokes and interacted with his audience by holding spectators' hands and serenading individuals in the crowd. "It was one of the top five things in my life," said 4-yearold "Glee" fan Brady Lindsey. Lindsey, who came out to his friends and family this past October, said he is excited to join the Salt Lake City LGBT community and enjoy Utah Pride. Ivy Winters and Pandora Boxx also wowed spectators with comedy. Both were voted Miss Congeniality on "Ru Paul's Drag Race," a TV show featur- ing competing drag queens. Pandora kicked the set off by lip syncing to a mashup of sound clips from Harry Potter and songs about magic like "Oh Oh It's Magic." Following Pandora was Ivy, who busted out juggling acts to her lip syncing productions. In between songs and juggling, both drag queens spouted jokes to the audience. To attract an older crowd, Utah Pride offered the song stylings of Thelma Houston. After earning her first Grammy award in 1977, Houston has built a dedicated following. At the show, she bounced out chart toppers like "Last Dance." "[Thelma Houston] grabbed my hand. It was fantastic," said Utah Pride veteran Justin Carter. fmoody@chronicle.utah.edu STAFF PICKS: Frances Moody Emily Andrews Arts Editor Editor in Chief Utah Pride is by far my favorite. Not only do I get to embrace my inner drag queen, but I also get to pick up style tips from Utah's gay fahsionistas. However, I also believe that Utah Pride's motto of "Real Equality" trumps over all other reasons I may have. Joseph Meyere Staff Writer I love the Utah Arts Festival at Library Square. There is nothing better on a hot summer day than wandering through other people's creativity and imaginations. It's like mind reading but without the headaches or accidental brain hemorrhages. I also love how I don't have to be rich to purchase some of the art I see. I can pick up a small print for sic) and it looks great next to that Hello Kitty calendar I have. It's also one of the few places to get a real funnel cake, but watch your fingers if you order one. Artists don't like it when you get sugar on their masterpieces. I wouldn't, unless mine was made out of ice cream, but then it probably wouldn't last long in the sun. Twilight Concert Series, hands down. Some of my favorite memories include crowd-surfing at Modest Mouse a few summers ago, and watching two new parents with their baby (who was wearing little headphones!) at Raphael Saadiq last summer. That baby was grooving harder to the music than I was. It's also fun to see all of the hipsters come out of the woodwork - where do all those people come from?! Niki Harris Managing Editor The Days of 47 Rodeo (yes, you can make fun of me endlessly for that) because it feels like home for me. I always used to go with my family out to Cheyenne, Wyo. for Frontier Days, so rodeos are tradition for us! On top of that, it has some of the best food, music and company of anywhere I've ever been — and who doesn't like to see some good old-fashioned bareback bronco riding? Brittany Green Online Editor Courtney Tanner Opinion Editor I really love the Farmer's Market Downtown. There's always cool people, good music and funky cheap finds. It hilights a lot of the creativity in Utah. I'm a believer in the lazy summer ... sleeping in, reading, maybe wandering around a park. I might go to a free music or movie event, but I like to keep my plans as limited as possible. It's all on a whim! |