Why the Gay Men’s Chorus of L.A. is singing for survival

The Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles is facing a financial crisis, and a recent sexual misconduct controversy has only made problems worse. Alone, adrift and shunned by his former friends, Hayashi found his way to the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, the oldest LGBTQ arts organization in the city. — Gary Hayashi Tenor Gary Hayashi rehearses with the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles at the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles. “To be the face for those kids who don’t have anybody else to talk to, so they can see someone like me and know that it gets better.” Or as Holzer, 52, is fond of saying: “I can’t tell you what my life would have been like if 40 gay men had come to my high school in Yuma, Arizona, when I was 16 years old. ‘Your true colors are beautiful, like a rainbow’ During the second-to-last rehearsal before the upcoming spring concert, “Turn Back Time,” 180 chorus members run through a 20-song program loaded with hits including a Madonna mash-up of “Vogue” and “Express Yourself.” “It wouldn’t be the Gay Men’s Chorus without a Madonna medley,” Holzer joked as members passed by, patting him on the back and dipping in for the occasional hug.