Sins Invalid
Interview by Angie Valetutto
I had the pleasure of interviewing Leroy Franklin Moore, Jr., Co-Founder and Community Relations Director of Sins Invalid, a performance project in the San Francisco Bay Area that “incubates and celebrates artists with disabilities, centralizing artists of color and queer and gender-variant artists as communities who have been historically marginalized.”
Sins Invalid, pronounced in•val•id, as in “not valid” seeks to “develop and present cutting edge work where normative paradigms of ‘normal’ and ‘sexy’ are challenged, offering instead a vision of beauty and sexuality inclusive of all individuals and communities.”
Leroy Franklin Moore, Jr - Photo by Pamela Juhl
I am inspired by the story of the creation of Sins Invalid. It’s my understanding that it began in 2006 out of the friendship and conversations between you and Patty Berne. In your video, you talk about the creation of the first show and how it began as a way to share a few films with friends and colleagues. What are your thoughts now about how far Sins Invalid has come from where it started?
Sins Invalid has came a long way since our first year from an event to the creation of disability justice that I have to say this practice came from the beautiful, sharp and creative mind of my good friend Patty Berne. From a show to going into colleges and social justice organizations locally and nationally with not only our cultural work but also our disability justice curriculum that Patty has cranked out is just incredible. However like any ideal that goes from creativity to institutionalized organization becomes loaded down by paper work and bureaucracy that comes along with being in an institution. Trying to keep our artistic flowers in the downfall of everyday requirements under institutionalization aka non-profit industry. I think Sins Invalid today is looking at our years, what we put out and what impact it has and now looking forward to our upcoming documentary to reach a more larger audience stamping our mark on the cultural/media framework with disability justice that we hope will disrupt the mainstream and even liberal communty, what they live, think, write about art, politics and other topics with a disability justice pen.
In looking over the website, I saw the Kickstarter from 2012 to finish a Sins Invalid film. I also noticed videos from this past summer about a film being streamed all over the world. I was wondering if these were the same film?
For two years in the Summer our interns with Patty Berne successfully implemented what we called web streaming one full show because Sins Invalid annual show happens in San Francisco and our Sins community because of our outreach, internet social networks, college gigs and artists has become international throughout the years. With Web streaming more of our Sins Invalid community including our brother and sister who are in nursing homes, group homes, who have environmental disabilities and others can view our annual show and have a rich conversation with Patty Berne and Sins Invalid’s crew. The clips that we show in our web streaming might or might not be in our upcoming documentary but we can’t let the cat out the bag.
Photos from Sins Invalid website
Could you tell me more about the film that was being put together for distribution?
The documentary, Sins, is almost done. Sins in my view it is much more than our annual show for me it’s about people/artists/activists with intersectional identities revealing our politics, stories, histories through cultural expressions and sharp interviews speaking to the world about reality of many people who don’t get the bling bling of this reality media that has spilled into every section of what we digest everyday from school to 9 to 5 cycle to cultural/art that is handed down by corporations. We will be hitting some film festivals, colleges and universities throughout the country. The artists/activists in Sins comes from the Bay Area, around the US and London, UK. There are so many to name but know one thing these artists are more than beautiful their social justice song, dance and color will make you think, laugh, cry, sing along, dance and paint the community you want to live in. Wait for it, it will be worth it! The music and visuals in Sins flows like rivers quashing your thirst and leaving you wanting more. Many have helped in filming, storyline, sound and editing but Patty Berne’s talents show so brightly like it does on stage as the director of Sins Invalid and producer of this documentary. Patty makes everything gorgeous with deep and critical meaning that leaves the brain thinking constantly. I feel Sins, the documentary, is what many are living with their own inner spotlight that we hope will grow to show all of us.
I am also curious about what is currently in the works with Sins Invalid. Is there a performance project scheduled for 2013? If so, please tell me about it. I watched some videos of performance excerpts, and wanted to know how the shows are put together. After a call is put out for performers, then what happens? How do you get from a call for performers to the finished performance on stage?
For 2013 it’s all about the documentary and community education workshops and collaborations. We are in the middle of planning to release the documentary with an event around the documentary. We right now are looking at the calendar, drum roll please! Check back on our website at www.sinsinvalid.org for dates/venue/times. So far we are making the documentary a main focus of our annual show this year with some spoken word, low key performances like original songs and poetry from some of Sins Invalid artists then showing the documentary for the first time publicly in San Francisco. This year is totally different for us because of the film so this year we have picked some artists that are in the film to perform like Nomy Lamm has teamed up with myself to bring some of my original songs to the stage with her arrangement and slamming accordion playing. Nomy will do some of her original songs (They are smoking). We will also have Maria Palacios from Houston, TX and Bay Area artist/poet, Seeley Quest will perform their poetry/ songs but we can’t let the whole cat out the bag, meow hahaha. Everybody come to San Francisco or invite us to your city. Usually how our annual show happens takes a whole year to plan and implement with the artistic and administrative work of Patty Berne, I help in outreach getting new artists, looking at venues etc. Sins volunteers, interns, public relation person, tech people all have their parts in the beauty of the show before the curtains go up all constructed by Patty Berne. There are many hands in the Sins Invalid’s annual show’s pot also including our talented advisor board but Patty is once again the visionary and main designer and implementer, writer of what you see at show time from what is on stage to what artists are eating, wearing backstage to the lights and sound to the media coverage. Did I mention Patty Berne is unbelievable?
The performances look stunning. I hope to see one some day. I enjoyed watching the videos tremendously. I have one more question. How has being a Co-Founder of Sins Invalid changed you as an artist and activist?
Drastically! It made me really look at my privilege as a straight man and also gave me a huge playground to grow some of my artistic seeds and as the community relation director it expanded my knowledge of art/activism from around the world that are led by people of color and people who are LGBTQ of color. I consistently learn from my friend and co-worker, Patty Berne and through the years she has sprinkled her love, skills and deep knowledge on others and me in Sins Invalid.
Thank you to Leroy and Sins Invalid. For more information and to watch video clips from past performances, go to their website:
