When Laurence Dale Diao was a kid on the Philippine Island of Leyte, his TV diet consisted of just a couple local channels. But when he was seven, a cousin from Japan came to visit and brought a magical haul: a set of Disney video tapes — and with it, a whole new world. Diao was drawn into the animation and music, despite not knowing any English. "My core memory is watching Hercules and hearing ' Go the Distance,'" he recalled. Diao came from a musical family, "so I just immediately gravitated to the melody of it. I did not understand any of the words at all, but I was so stubborn to memorize it and learn it because I loved the melody."
Diao, now a member of the Boston Gay Men's Chorus and living with his boyfriend in Watertown, has found that enthusiasm for Disney musicals is serving him well: the chorus is presenting an all-Disney show called Disney PRIDE In Concert. It’s a two-act celebration of musical numbers — from Disney classics such as Cinderella to contemporary hits such as Coco.
Boston Gay Men's Chorus music director Reuben Reynolds III, who has served in that role since 1997, remembers when he first tried to collaborate with Disney. "I started working, or trying to work, with the Disney Corporation almost 30 years ago, and they wouldn't even talk to us," he recalled. "To have come this far where they're wanting to come to us and say 'Write a program about gay and lesbian Pride that we can perform all over the country' is really earth shattering to me."
As Reynolds explains, their relationship with Disney dates back to 2019. That's when a Cambridge-based PR firm representing Disney approached Boston Gay Men's Chorus after they came across their recording of the Disney hit, "The Circle of Life." They wanted to use the recording to promote Disney's live-action release of "The Lion King."
The partnership went so well, Reynolds said, that the chorus's executive director Craig Coogan approached Disney with a new idea: an entire show of Disney songs. Disney representatives watched tape of past Boston Gay Men's Chorus productions, and, according to Reynolds, "They became even more enamored of the idea of us creating something together to tell our stories, to tell about our lives — not to preach to people about what they should be, but to rather say who and what we are and invite people in to our lives."
Chad Weirick, accompanist and assistant musical director, took a first pass at the project. Reynolds says Weirick "knows every [Disney] song written for every musical" — and that initial version showed it: it contained about 170 songs. The final setlist was cut down to a more manageable 43 songs, spread across two acts.
WATCH: Chad Weirick on why "It's A Small World" is included in Disney PRIDE in Concert
To say that the concert is a big deal is underselling the significance of the event. Disney is a world leader in entertainment. Maintaining its dominance does not come by wishing upon stars or relying on faith, trust and pixie dust. In actuality, Disney plays the corporate game well, acquiring properties like ABC and expanding its footprint with theme parks and cruise lines. If there's one thing to know about The Walt Disney Company, it's this: The Brand Is Strong. The defense of its intellectual property may be even stronger. A musical group reaching into Disney's massive musical vault and assembling a two-hour long concert of fan-favorite film songs — without fear of copyright infringement or corporate reprisal — is simply unheard of.
Earlier this month, Boston Gay Men's Chorus performed a community outreach "preview" concert, donating ticket sales to community organizations. Now they're bringing the show to Symphony Hall for two performances, one on June 25 and one on June 26. It will be their biggest concert to date, featuring 250 singers and a 25-piece orchestra.
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This concert is also significant for reasons beyond the intricacies of copyright and corporate law: Disney's ties in Florida, and Florida's high-profile legislation that is antagonistic toward the LGBTQ community.
"At first, when I heard about Disney and its involvement with Florida and [the] 'Don't Say Gay' bill, I was very much disappointed and frustrated," Diao said.
Diao is referring to the Parental Rights in Education bill. Dubbed by opponents as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, it prohibits public schools from teaching students about sexual orientation and gender identity through the third grade. It also limits what teachers can say in front of older students. As NPR reported in the wake of the bill's signing, "studies have shown that LGBTQ youth already face higher health and suicide risks than their cisgender or straight peers. When those kids are given access to spaces that affirm their gender identity, they report lower rates of suicide attempts."
Disney's initial response to this bill was to do nothing. It wasn't until the bill was on its way to Gov. Ron DeSantis' desk that the corporation spoke out against it in March, compelled by outside pressure from advocacy groups and protests from Disney's own employees.
Diao is encouraged by the corporation's shift. Disney "has been really important to me and that's kind of what I want to bring to the concert. We are excited to come to this concert to share what Disney [means to us] and how it has formed our voices," he said. "And if there are people like me in the audience, I want to show them that, they can be where I am now, that it can be empowering and just sing your heart out and believe in their music."
To hear Reynolds tell it, the chorus couldn't be more excited that this concert is happening. Not only is it an unprecedented move by Disney that allows them to sing crowd pleaser after crowd pleaser, it also marks one of their first concert experiences after being apart for so long becuase of the pandemic. Their first rehearsal was an emotional one: gift bags included boxes of Kleenex because the tears were inevitable.
"Our very first rehearsal after two and a half years of not rehearsing — oh, there was some guys who just sounded horrible, including me," Reynolds said. "We were all hoarse. We couldn't sing. We couldn't do anything. In fact, we only made it through a half of rehearsal before we just gave up and went home."
Reflecting on that day — hoarse voices, pitch imperfection and all — Reynolds said that "being back together was the most joyous part of this whole thing ... singing through this music that has been living in our heads for two years and hearing it come to life in people's voices. That was earth shattering to me."
The Boston Gay Men’s Chorus presents Disney PRIDE in Concert, June 25 at 8 p.m., June 26 at 3 p.m., Symphony Hall, 301 Massachusetts Ave., Boston. Tickets $29-149. bgmc.org
