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Conversation and Concert: Gay Freedom Band of Los Angeles: Masks and Metamorphosis

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A radiant, androgynous figure with outstretched arms stands on a dark, rocky surface, surrounded by a vivid aura of red, yellow, and blue light.

Sun., June 15, 2025, 6–8:30 p.m.

Steven S. Koblik Education and Visitor Center, The Rose Hills Foundation Garden Court and Rothenberg Hall

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Connect at The Huntington for an evening of creativity, music, and reflection.

Recent scholarly research and creative expression inspired by historical archives invite us to consider The Huntington’s collections through new lenses. An evening with the Gay Freedom Band of Los Angeles will take us on a journey through transformation—a theme that echoes in Shakespeare’s fluid characters, Ovid’s shape-shifting myths, and pulses through William Blake’s multiplicities of form.  

In a pre-concert conversation, trans creators from across scholarly and artistic disciplines will reflect on how the theme of transformation intersects with and shapes their creative practices. The program features evocative musical selections from across time, paired with poetry and visual art by local artists, opening space for fresh perspectives on age-old themes of authenticity and metamorphosis—illuminating new dimensions of The Huntington’s archives.

Key Details

  • Please bring registration confirmation with you.
  • Check in with Education staff at Garden Court beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Program Schedule

6 p.m. | Conversation in Garden Court 

  • Shannon McHugh, assistant director of research at The Huntington
  • Brooke Palmieri, The Huntington’s 2023 writer-in-residence
  • Abdullah “Abby” Hall, Trans Chorus of Los Angeles director and program narrator
  • Rey Reyes, visual and sculptural artist
  • Yared Kuchinsky, writer and timpanist
  • Morgan Bates, trumpeter, musicologist, and educator

6:50 p.m. | Intermission 

7:15 p.m. | Musical Program in Rothenberg Hall 

  • Omar Thomas - A Mother of a Revolution
  • Cait Nishimura - Chasing Sunlight
  • Camille Saint-Saëns, arr. L.P. Laurendeau - Danse Macabre
  • Michael Markowski - City Trees
  • Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Arr. Michael Brown - I’m Still Standing
  • Alex Shapiro - Homecoming
  • Paul Hindemith, Arr. Keith Wilson - Symphonic Metamorphosis, IV. March

Artistic Director: Joseph Vranas

For questions about this program or accessibility needs, please contact Kim Tulipana at ktulipana@huntington.org .

A radiant, androgynous figure with outstretched arms stands on a dark, rocky surface, surrounded by a vivid aura of red, yellow, and blue light.
A sax player stands on stage in the foreground while a conductor leads a band in the background.
A stylized poster features the title “Masks and Metamorphosis” in curved, purple text around a central image of a surreal, teal-tinted face partially obscured by a reflective or distorted mask.

William Blake (British, 1757 - 1827), Albion Rose (or The Dance of Albion), ca. 1793. Etching/engraving color printed with gum or glue based pigments and hand finished with watercolors, pen and ink on wove paper, platemark: 10 11/16 x 7 13/16 in. (27.2 x 19.9 cm), sheet: 14 1/2 x 10 3/8 in. (36.8 x 26.3 cm). The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens.

A saxophonist takes center stage for a solo during a Gay Freedom Band of Los Angeles performance on April 21, 2024.

A stylized poster for “Masks and Metamorphosis,” a narrative concert.

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