The Heartland Men’s Chorus begins its 29th season with a new artistic director, one who has local roots.
The chorus’ new leader, Dustin Cates, 34, is a native of South Kansas City, Mo. He graduated from Ruskin High School and earned his bachelor’s degree from the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance. His master’s degree is from Baker University in Baldwin City, Kan.
Cates replaces Joseph P. Nadeau, who held the position for 15 years before leaving to lead the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles.
“The guys are extremely supportive,” Cates said of the chorus members. “They really are just ready to do the next thing, and I think that’s certainly attributed to the leadership of Joe [Nadeau>. I wouldn’t be able to take it where I want to take it if he didn’t do such a great job.”
After Nadeau announced his resignation in July 2013, a committee assembled by the HMC board of directors conducted a national search. Cates was offered the position in April.
Cates has 11 years of experience as a local high school choral director, most recently as director of choral activities at Olathe East High School.
But he wasn’t entirely unfamiliar with the HMC. During the interim period after Nadeau’s departure, Cates was invited to guest-conduct last spring’s concert of I Am Harvey Milk.
“I loved teaching, but once I got the opportunity to guest-conduct -- I got to know the guys and their stories, and it was so much more of a powerful family unit than I thought it was,” Cates said. “So I thought this is something I could really get into.”
Comparing his Olathe East job to his new position, Cates said that both had similar concert schedules, but that the HMC concerts were more thematic.
The Heartland Men’s Chorus job also has a social justice component to it that attracted him.
“One of the reasons I really loved being a teacher is that I have an opportunity to have an impact on kids’ lives,” said Cates. “So the tradeoff was, now I had an opportunity to make an impact on the community, whether that’s the music community or the gay community -- showing people that we’re not much different.”
Cates and his husband, Raymond, a pediatrician, were legally married in New York, and for the last three years, they have been parents to their adoptive son, Emmaus.
For the spring concert, Cates has designed a theme about families.
“Marriage equality and gay adoption -- those sorts of things are something that we’re actually addressing in this season with our concert that happens in March. We’re doing a concert called Modern Family, so we’re … going to be addressing the changing face of the American family.”
The concert loosely borrows its title from the similarly named TV show, and although it won’t follow the show’s plotlines, it will mirror the messages of equality and togetherness.
“Hopefully, we’re going to include some interviews of gay families and tell the story of many of the guys who have gone to the extremes of getting married and having children, or coming out, and in some cases the chorus is the only family of some of those guys, which was one of the stories which powerfully pulled me to them,” Cates said.
For the HMC’s holiday concert, Kansas City Christmas, the chorus will showcase the abundant musical talent in the Kansas City area. The concert’s title is derived from the song “Christmas in Kansas City,” written by the Kansas City native Brad Millison, a song that receives frequent play on local radio stations during the holiday season.
“We’re going to be collaborating with lots of local performers and contributing some music from some Kansas City composers,” Cates said. “We have five or six really important, prolific choral composers that live here in our city.”
“Also, local soprano Sarah Tannehill is going to sing, and then we’re going to feature some of the cast of Late Night [Theatre"> performers and do a spoof of Frozen. We’re going to sing with some drag performers -- Genewa Stanwyck and De De DeVille. We’re definitely collaborative.”
Kansas City Christmas will be performed Dec. 5-7 at the Folly Theater, 1020 Central St., Kansas City, Mo.
The Heartland Men’s Chorus will conclude its season in June with a concert called A Little Bit Wicked, featuring a compilation of songs from composer Stephen Schwartz.
“We’ll sing songs from Wicked and Pippin, Godspell and some of his other things,” Cates said. “The concert closes with a piece called ‘Testimony,’ which is taken from the works of the It Gets Better Project. It has not been sung in the Midwest before, so we’ll perform that.”
Cates is also excited about something new from the chorus that will happen in February. The Big Gay Thing will be an audience-participation, sing-along concert. The location is still being determined, but it will be at a smaller venue than the Folly, he said.
“It will likely be an ensemble of 50 members of the chorus, and the audience sings along, and we do big gay iconic songs, pop songs, and that kind of stuff,” he said. “Certainly a more relaxed format, where people can have drinks and sort of have more fun and sing at the same time.”
In addition to the four shows scheduled for his debut season, Cates has an October deadline to finalize the planning of next year’s concerts. He downplays the amount of work he has in store with a laugh, though, and instead credits the men in his chorus for their dedication and hard work.
“On the singer side of it, it’s not for the faint of heart. It’s a big commitment. While the rehearsal just happens just once a week, it goes from 7 to 10 [p.m.">, with only a 20-minute break in between,” Cates said. Some of the chorus members attend additional sectional rehearsals immediately after completing a day’s work at their full-time jobs, he said.
“We have fun, we laugh, and we enjoy ourselves, and in some, we cry,” Cates said. “This season we’re working really hard to give them an opportunity at the end of the rehearsal to stand up and say why they are in the chorus and what it means to them.
“Some of their stories are so moving. Some of them have said that one of the greatest joys in life [has"> been singing in the chorus. The chorus means a lot to them, and so that commitment doesn’t seem as hefty because they enjoy it so much.”
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WhistlePig and Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake Wind Tunnel-Trialed Whiskey Is a Ryed You Don’t Want to Miss
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About WhistlePig Whiskey
Located off the grid on a 500-acre Vermont farm, WhistlePig Whiskey is crafted by a new generation of whiskey distillers and blenders driven to reinvent and unlock the flavor of Rye whiskey. Through their rebellious pursuit of experimenting and pushing boundaries in the industry, WhistlePig has become the leading independent craft whiskey brand for innovation. WhistlePig is committed to becoming the best whiskey on and for the planet, starting with its locally sourced ingredients and sustainable supply chain and distilling process. For more information, head to whistlepigwhiskey.com.
When I started medical transition at 20 years old, it was very difficult to get the care I needed for hormone replacement therapy because there are very few providers trained in starting hormones for trans people, even though it’s very similar to the hormones that we prescribe to women in menopause or cisgender men with low testosterone.
I hope more providers get trained in LGBTQ+ healthcare, so they can support patients along their individual gender journey, and provide the info needed to make informed decisions about their body. I’ve personally seen my trans patients find hope and experience a better quality of life through hormone replacement therapy.
If you don’t have a primary care physician who specializes in LGBTQ+ care in your community, you may need to educate yourself (and your provider). But, before you seek such therapy, here are five things you should know!
- Monitor closely. At Spectrum Medical Care Center, we screen patients for certain risks before starting anyone on hormones. We frequently monitor patients in the first year to ensure there are no adverse reactions and lab results are within safe ranges. Follow-up care is also important to assess your comfort with the transition as well as the social impact and social support you’re experiencing.
- Some changes are permanent, some temporary. For transmasculine individuals going on testosterone, they’ll experience these permanent changes: deepened voice, clitoral enlargement (also known as bottom growth), more body, facial hair, and male pattern baldness. Reversible changes include cessation of menses, increased muscle mass and strength, body fat redistribution, and skin oiliness or acne. For those going on estrogen therapy, the most permanent change is breast growth. Feminizing hormone therapy can also cause atrophy (shrinkage) of the genitals and loss of erectile function that may not be reversible. Estrogen will thin body hair, soften the skin, can increase scalp hair, and decrease muscle mass and strength, all of which are reversible.
- You can’t pick and choose results. Unfortunately, you can’t pick and choose the physical changes you want, which may feel challenging. Some of my patients will say, ‘Okay, ‘I’ve seen the permanent changes I want, and I don’t want it to go any further,’ and so at that point, we stop therapy. Low-dose hormone therapy can slow down the rate of changes, allowing for a more gradual physical transition. We counsel patients in advance about the common changes, and it’s up to the individual as to when they’d like to scale back and determine whether some benefits are worth the potential risks.
- Be aware of risks. Like any medical treatment, there are potential risks involved. Some risks with testosterone therapy include increased red blood cell mass, acne, hypertension, sleep apnea, weight gain, and dyslipidemia (increases the chance of clogged arteries). Cardiovascular disease is likely increased with additional risk factors for testosterone and estrogen therapy. Transfeminine patients going on estrogen therapy may experience weight gain, thromboembolic disease (when a blood clot breaks off and blocks another blood vessel), and a high level of triglycerides in the blood.
Descanso Resort, Palm Springs' premier destination for gay men, just received Tripadvisor's highest honor, a Travelers' Choice "Best of the Best" award for 2023. Based on guests' reviews and ratings, fewer than 1% of Tripadvisor's 8 million listings around the world receive the coveted "Best of the Best" designation. Descanso ranked 12th in the top 25 small inns and hotels category in the United States. Quite an accomplishment!
Open less than two years, Descanso Resort offers gay men a relaxing and luxurious boutique hotel experience just minutes away from Palm Springs' buzziest restaurants, nightclubs, and shopping. Descanso has quickly established itself as a top destination for sophisticated gay travelers, earning hundreds of 5-star guest reviews and consistently ranking in Trapadvisor's top positions alongside brother properties Santiago Resort and Twin Palms Resort.
"Our entire team is honored to be named Best of the Best. To be the only gay men's resort recognized in the Top 1% is incredibly humbling," said Kent Taylor, General Manager at Descanso. "We appreciate Tripadvisor and we're grateful to all our guests who gave us such high marks and reviews to help us reach this achievement."
“Ranking among the Best of the Best demonstrates that you have provided exemplary experiences to those who maZer most: your guests,” said John Boris, Chief Growth Officer at Tripadvisor. “With changing expectations, continued labor shortages, and rising costs, this is no easy feat, and I am con6nually impressed with the hospitality industry’s resilience and ability to adapt.”
Santiago Resort was once again honored by Tripadvisor with a 2023 Travelers’ Choice award, placing it among the top 10% of travelers’ top reviewed des6na6ons. Twin Palms will become eligible for ranking in 2024.
Check out all the reviews, and discover more about Descanso Resort on Tripadvisor here. We have an excellent library of resort imagery available to accompany editorial and additional resources on our press page. Please contact Descanso Resort’s General Manager, Kent Taylor, at kent@descansoresort.com for further information.
About Descanso Resort
Inspired by Palm Springs’ history as a des6na6on for Hollywood stars to unwind in privacy, Descanso offers guests a casual yet modern take on the legendary style of that 6me. Created by the same hospitality team that revitalized Palm Springs’ much-loved San6ago Resort and recently launched the all-new Twin Palms Resort, the Descanso property opened in 2022 featuring 15 spacious guest rooms with custom-designed furniture, dreamy King-size beds, and luxe details. Ameni6es include continental breakfast, poolside lunch, welcome snack basket, and lots of special touches. For guests who need to stay connected, the entire property is equipped with blazing-fast Wi-Fi. Mul6-speed bikes are available for exploring the surrounding midcentury neighborhoods and public art installations. Like the Hollywood stars before them, guests at Descanso are encouraged to unwind, relax, and rest in style.
About Tripadvisor
Travelers across the globe use the Tripadvisor site and app to discover where to stay, what to do and where to eat based on guidance from those who have been there before. With more than 1 billion reviews and opinions of nearly 8 million businesses, travelers turn to Tripadvisor to find deals on accommodations, book experiences, reserve tables at delicious restaurants and discover great places nearby.