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Youth/Elders Programming

community + education partner 

education programming supporters
NIGE GOUGH SHINE ON FOUNDATION AT THE TORONTO COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

TORONTO ARTS COUNCIL’S ARTISTS IN THE LIBRARY PROGRAM (for The Youth / Elders Podcast)

 

logo: heart graphic with black text reading, "pride & remembrance run"
(for The Rainbow Seniors Project)

Our focus on intergenerational connections continues with revamped Youth/Elders Programming, curated by leZlie lee kam and Usman Khan. The programming will incorporate both digital and in-person components. Moving to an online format at the start of the pandemic allowed us to reach an audience well beyond our home in Toronto, and we continue to strengthen these long-distance connections as other in-person activities resume. Look out for speed history online, Sunday salons in-person in the cabaret, and more.

“One day, if you’re lucky, you too will be a queer senior.”

leZlie lee kam

Buddies’ Youth / Elders Projects are an ongoing response to the need for building intergenerational spaces, conversations, and relationships in our queer community. The program launched in 2016 with a year-long project that culminated in the acclaimed theatrical production The Youth / Elders Project on Buddies mainstage, and continues with a regular program of community conversations, knowledge sharing, the Youth/Elders Podcast, and more.

Illustration by mitch duncan, Graphic Design by Awake Studio

The Rainbow Seniors Project

facilitated by PHILIP GELLER, LEZLIE LEE KAM + USMAN KHAN

The Rainbow Seniors Project is an intergenerational creative and community-building process that will culminate in a cabaret presentation of new work centring the experiences of queer seniors. Providing opportunities for queer elders to develop performance and storytelling skills alongside artist mentors, network with queer youth, and share their stories at our Queer Pride Festival. The new, season-long program will have a broad impact through the creation of a handbook as a resource for organizations engaging in similar work with intergenerational queer communities.

We are excited to invite six (6) Rainbow Seniors (aged 50+) to create and perform a 7-10 minute original piece in our Rainbow Seniors Showcase this May. Deadline to apply: February 2

Youth/Elders Program series

hosted by LEZLIE LEE KAM + USMAN KHAN

As a global pandemic disproportionately affects our queer communities, the need to create space for queer intergenerational dialogue is more important now than ever. Our Youth/Elders Programming offers both virtual and in-person spaces for formal and informal discussions about salient issues within our communities. 

Speed History is open to queer youth, elders, and folks of any age interested in conversation across queer generations, while Sunday Salons is a dedicated space for queer/rainbow seniors. No artistic experience is necessary for either one.

To sign up for a reminder for these sessions, please fill out our registration form. We will also post Zoom information on the website the week of the event.

Upcoming sessions

Speed History:
Monday, February 12, 2024, 6-8PM in-person at Buddies!

Take part in a round of Speed History where elders and youth will be grouped together to discuss identity, sexuality, community, and all things queer. 

Our next session is held in person at Buddies, and will be ASL-interpreted by Savannah Tomev and Marcia Adolphe Martins.

Click here to join the zoom call.

Upcoming dates:

  • Monday, April 15, 2024 – 6:00 to 8:30pm (online)

To sign up for a reminder for Speed History and/or Sunday Salons, fill out the YEP Series information form. ASL-interpretation is available upon request – please let us know in the form, or by emailing aidan@buddiesinbadtimes.com , and we will do our best to book.


The Youth / Elders Podcast

Recorded live at the Oakwood branch of the Toronto Public Library, this monthly podcast features the personal stories, lived histories, and candid conversations from queer elders and youth. Over the course of six months, over 50 people participated as either audience or storytellers exploring ideas of queer history, ageing, identities, and the evolving and intersectional way different generations relate to their queerness.

Get more info and subscribe with your favourite podcast app.


Stay connected

If you would like updates on intergenerational programming, calls for submissions, educational offerings, and other opportunities to get involved, we’ve got a newsletter for you! Sign up below.