A “Season of Love” to remember

from Chris Verdugo (CEO) and Jacob Stensberg (Artistic Director)

As CEO and Artistic Director of the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus, we want to share with you highlights from this extraordinary season. This year, themed the "Season of Love," was a resounding success, carrying our message of love and acceptance throughout the Bay Area, and we couldn't have done it without your unwavering support. As you read this email, click on the hyperlinks to enjoy the photo galleries of each event. 

As winter arrived, we kept spirits high with "Holiday Spectacular." We were so grateful for the standing ovations at the Sydney Goldstein Theater and the sold-out performances on Christmas Eve at the iconic Castro Theatre. Oh, did you catch a cold? Because we went viral! Our Britney holiday medley went viral on TikTok and Instagram, reaching over 17 million people! 

Hollywood Glamour was next, as we welcomed Drag Icon Lady Camden and together we brought the house down with "Drag Me to the Movies." This concert had everyone on their feet and left audiences screaming for more.

Our grand finale, "All We Need is Love," in partnership with the San Francisco Symphony, showcased our musical diversity and choral artistry, embodying the spirit of unity and love that defines SFGMC.

This season also marked our inaugural performances at The Chan National Queer Arts Center, where we hosted two sold-out cabarets. The first was "Love Songs (and Other Myths)" showcasing talented soloists from our singing membership. The second was "Our Favorite Things," featuring our vocal ensembles The Lollipop Guild and HomoPhonics. We also welcomed hundreds of our closest friends and neighbors for two joyous sing-alongs, shared profound moments and memories with our queer elders through four "Memory Keepers Initiatives" (now available to listen to on WALW) , and commemorated the 5th anniversary of our SFGMC award-winning documentary "Gay Chorus Deep South."

By the way, did you know that all of the glorious spaces throughout The Chan are now available for rentals of any kind! To learn more, click here.

One of our proudest achievements this season was our Crescendo gala, which raised over one million dollars—a first in our history. This remarkable milestone underscores the incredible support from our community and solidifies our place in your hearts.

Are you aware of our educational program, RHYTHM (Reaching Youth Through Music)? This season, we served over 3,000 students across 7 Bay Area schools in San Francisco, Pacifica, Hayward, and East Palo Alto. This was our first year performing bi-lingual RHYTHM performances at two schools (English and Spanish).

Our three main concerts are not the only time our singing members bring our message of music and activism to audiences. Throughout the year, we performed 28 other times throughout the Bay Area. For example, we sang the National Anthem at Pride Night for the SF 49ers, Golden State Warriors, SF Giants, San Jose Sharks, and the Bay Area's newest professional team - Bay FC!

Speaking of Pride, we kicked off Pride Month by singing for South San Francisco’s first-ever pride celebration.

Other performance highlights include performing with the San Francisco Pride Band for the annual Castro Tree Lighting, the Mayor's Raising of the Pride Flag at City Hall, and the 45th Annual Harvey Milk/George Moscone Vigil. Being part of the Vigil was an important moment for us, as the original vigil in 1978 was the night we performed publicly for the first time in history.

As we look forward, we are excited to embark on "The Love Tour" to Iowa and Nebraska from July 7-9, where we will carry our mission of music and activism to cities that need our support more than ever. Our work is never done, and we remain committed to spreading love, acceptance, and understanding through our music.

We are already in the planning stages for Season 47 of the Chorus and Season 2 at The Chan. We cannot wait to share all the exciting news with you this fall. Thank you for being an essential part of our journey. Your year-round support makes everything we do possible. Together, we continue to make a difference.

With our sincere gratitude,