A Love Letter to Dina Martina | 'Rise Up: Stonewall and the LGBTQ Rights Movement'
DINA MARTINA materialized at Seattle’s Center on Contemporary Art in January 1989, as part of the critically-acclaimed Pearls Before Swine performance series, conceived and curated by Steve Wells. One year later, Wells opened Re-bar, where Miss Martina continued to develop a loyal following in Seattle’s LGBTQIA+ community with her solo shows beginning in 1993. Since then, she has performed across the U.S., Canada, and U.K. in such esteemed venues as Provincetown’s Town Hall, London’s Soho Theatre, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. She’s a recipient of the Stranger Genius Award, has been nominated for The Alpert Award for Theater, and has also been twice-nominated for the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Off-Off Broadway Show. She did not win those.
Dear Dina (of the Martinas),
Thank you for bringing so much joy AND 1970s joie de vivre to this world (or at least to Act theatres, Re-bars, and the internets).
I have loved watching you ever since I stumbled (literally after only ONE Re-bar vodka tonic — follow up question — what DID they make those out of?*) into your holiday EXTRAVAGANZA with my friends. Your songs, your tales and your fabulous costumes are a pure gyft to this world.
Mundanity has a tendency to creep into our lives. You are a SUPER heroine in the fight against mediocrity.
Over the past years going to your shows has served as a reminder of the best of what humans can be and what we can create.
So thank you for the music, for giving it to me,
Liisa
*nothing so wonderful as your recipe from your interwebs holiday special. I must have written down the recipe wrong as my version turned out more like a crunchy Betty Crocker milkshake with cream of mushroom soup as the star ingredient.
Dina Martina stage performance costume, ca. 2012, on display in MoPOP's 'Rise Up: Stonewall and the LGBTQ Rights Movement' exhibition. Courtesy of Dina Martina (red dress, white pumps, hat)
A Response from Dina Martina
Dear Liisa,
Thnak you, I appreciate that fedback!
Regard,
Dina Martina
Costumes from Seattle LGBTQIA+ icons on display in MoPOP's 'Rise Up: Stonewall and the LGBTQ Rights Movement' exhibition, including Dina Martina (right middle)
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