Non-profit arts organization Milwaukee Film and public television station PBS Wisconsin announced Monday their plans to co-host a Red-carpet gala event at the historic Oriental Theatre for the premiere screening of Wisconsin Pride on Friday, June 9th, 2023.

A collaboration between PBS Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Historical Society, the new two-hour documentary profiles the historical and contemporary perspectives of LGBTQ+ Wisconsinites whose lived experiences reveal a vital, often overlooked part of the state’s history. Through the intimate, personal accounts of trailblazing activists and regular people who challenged LGBTQ+ harassment and injustice in visionary ways, Wisconsin Pride explores the hard-fought battles for human rights that took place across the state long before these efforts received national attention.

Wisconsin Pride will screen at 7 p.m. on June 9 at the Oriental Theatre (2230 N Farwell Ave.) and will include a who's who of local activists, historians, gay rights leaders, and elected officials, as well as experts interviewed for the program in attendance. The filmmaking team will also be in attendance.

Tickets are free for this premiere event through Milwaukee Film's Community Cinema Initiative, a community-centric program providing free screening events at the Oriental Theatre in collaboration with corporate sponsors and local non-profit organizations.

THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT 

With a contract to perform a drag show way out in the Australian desert, Tick, Adam and Bernadette journey across the Australian Outback in their battered, pink tour bus "Priscilla", along the way encountering various groups and individuals.

ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW

Join us for the Pride Month screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Come join the fun as the Sensual Daydreams cast performs live along with the film!

MOMMIE DEAREST

Outrageous and controversial, this is the story of legendary movie star Joan Crawford (Faye Dunaway) as she struggles for her career and battles the inner demons of her private life. This torment was manifested in her relationships with her adopted children, Christina (Diana Scarwid) and Christopher (Xander Berkeley). The public Crawford was a strong-willed, glamorous object of admiration, but Mommie Dearest reveals the private Crawford, the woman desperate to be a mother, adopting her children when she was single and trying to survive in a devastating industry that swallows careers thoughtlessly. The rage, the debilitating strain, and the terrifying descent into alcoholism and child abuse are graphically - and unforgettably – depicted in this film, based upon Christina Crawford's best-selling book.