The Celebration Theater kicked off its 30 Years of Celebration anniversary benefit March 24 with host Michael Burger explaining why LGBT legit — or any legit, for that matter — is so hard to pull off in Los Angeles.
“Getting people in L.A. to go to the theater is like getting Chris Christie into a pair of jeans right after they come out of a hot dryer,” Burger told the crowd at Burbank’s Colony Theater.
The gala honored Sharon Lawrence. “The gay men in my life were the ones who made me believe I could have this career, said the actress. “They made me feel beautiful without the ‘straight’ complications.”
Burger intro’d the night’s entertainment, noting that the performers would be doing things they don’t normally do. “In fact, at 9 o’clock, Lindsay Lohan is going to come out on stage and act,” he quipped.
Jane Lynch, accompanied by Sean Hayes on the piano, did a spoken version of “Bennie and the Jets,” and Robert Forster offered a dramatic reading of Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me, Maybe.”
“When you figure the song out, don’t tell your neighbor,” Forster advised. Most of the audience was giggling before he could even finish the first line, recognizing Jepsen’s overplayed lyrics (and gay-themed video).
