Harvey Milk Festival reveals 10th anniversary headliners and event lineup

Harvey Milk Festival is going all-out with its 10th anniversary celebrations.

The festival honors the legacy of the first openly gay elected official in California, Harvey Milk, by hosting performances and events that use the arts as a medium of social and political change.

HMF 2019 runs May 4-11 and kicks off with the festival’s inaugural 5k John Ringling Causeway race, the Run for Love, May 4. Registration is now open for the event, and participants are encouraged to wear anything that flashes or glows in the dark to brighten the night. Food is provided for runners by The Overton after they cross the finish line.

The run is held in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of The Stonewall Riots.

On May 9, the festival will host "Before Harvey: An Exploration of LGBTQ+ History," a free art exhibit at Art Center Sarasota. LGBTQ+ history is rich with “examples of strength and resiliency in the face of fear, rejection, violence and hate,” says a press release from festival organizers, and this show will use a creative medium to tell the untold stories of people who are usually left out of the equal rights narrative.

The show will be accompanied by a panel discussion on iconic LGBT figures from the 1920s-1970s with in-state college professors of history, sociology and gender studies backgrounds.

On May 10, HMF DANCE will provide an evening of live spoken word, performance art, dance, film and music by artists from the greater Tampa Bay and Orlando regions. This event takes place at 500 Tallevast Road and tickets are $10; VIP $50.

The festival culminates May 11 with what it's known for — a lively, day-long free concert in JD Hamel Park. The lineup has yet to be announced in full (circle back in April), but organizers say it will feature 10 emerging musicians including headliners glam dream pop band GGOOLLDD of Baton Rouge, hardcore acoustic doowop band Pinc Louds of Brooklyn, ambient electronic band LANNDS of Jacksonville and the recently reunited MeteorEYES of Sarasota.

Food, beverage and other artist and nonprofit vendors will be on site throughout the day, and attendees are encouraged to pack a picnic blanket and grab a spot early.