A Show Born from Crisis, Speaking to Crisis When North Shore Music Theatre announced RENT as part of its 70th Anniversary Season, running September 16-28, 2025, they weren’t just programming a beloved musical. They were offering Essex County a mirror, a megaphone, and perhaps most importantly, a gathering place for communities under siege. RENT, which follows seven friends navigating life

View the full set Salem’s transformation from persecution to pride reached new heights as over 30,000 people flooded the historic streets on June 28, 2025, for the North Shore Pride Festival. What began as Dr. Hope Watt-Bucci’s response to witnessing discrimination in 2012—expecting maybe 100 supporters—has exploded into one of Massachusetts’ most vibrant celebrations of LGBTQ+ identity, creativity, and community.

The North Shore’s creative economy is thriving, and North Shore LGBTQ business owners are at the forefront, exemplifying authentic leadership that transforms entire communities. When we gathered seven remarkable entrepreneurs from Salem and Beverly for a recent Queer Voices Panel, their stories revealed something powerful: living your truth doesn’t just create successful businesses—it builds the inclusive, vibrant communities we all

by Kati Nalbandian   We’ve always been proud of our LGBTQIA+ team members, community members, friends and family. With so much at stake across the country for queer and trans youth and folx of all ages in our LGBTQIA+ communities, we are also proud to celebrate with all of you here across the North Shore. We have dozens of events

Salem State’s Center for Creative and Performing Arts will open its 2022 fall season with ReWritten, Friday, September 16 at 7:30 pm in the Sophia Gordon Center at 356 Lafayette Street. Get Tickets Here ReWritten is an immersive multi-disciplinary performance that explores the intimate relationship between authors Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville. Moving between their lives, work, and remaining letters,

Salem State’s Center for Creative and Performing Arts opens it fall season with ReWritten, Friday, September 16 at 7:30 pm in the Sophia Gordon Center, 356 Lafayette Street. ReWritten is an immersive multi-disciplinary performance that explores the often-silenced intimate relationship between authors Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville. Moving between their lives, work, and remaining letters, ReWritten reimagines an intergenerational queer

The Inaugural Panorama Film Festival: A Revolutionary Existence presented by Cinema Salem in partnership with Mutant Kid Creative and Queer Videography will take place on June 16th, 2022 in Salem, Massachusetts.  Get tickets Panorama is a new short film festival dedicated to giving a platform to LGBTQIA+ youth filmmakers. After receiving 154 submissions and over 30 hours of footage in

🌈 Happy PRIDE! 🌈 At Creative Collective, we are so excited to celebrate LGBTQIA2+ Pride on the North Shore and beyond. Here are some of the great events, flag raisings, festivals, parties, and arts and culture events that you will absolutely want to check out North of Boston this June. Also, we want this roundup to be as full as

by Joey Phoenix An alluring drama about trust, gender, love, and money, Goodreau’s The Thing They Love takes inspiration from Mae West’s 1927 dramatization, The Drag. Set in prohibition-era New York City, a big, queer family assembles with familiar yet complicated problems. They must navigate the difference between the world they love, and the world outside their doorstep by learning

Salem State Theatre Department presents the world premiere of The Thing They Love written by 2021 graduate Parker Goodreau. Directed by Esme Allen, the production will take place at the Sophia Gordon Center March 3 – 6, followed by virtual streaming March 20 – April 30. Tickets for both performance modalities are available at www.salemstatetickets.com.  Set in prohibition-era New York