5 questions with David Perryman
 |
David Perryman is the event coordinator for Voice of Pride, the annual singing competition sponsored by the Dallas Tavern Guild. The preliminaries finished this week and the first round of eliminations begins on July 14 at Pekers. The winner will be chosen at The Rose Room on Aug. 16.
As event coordinator, what do you do for Voice of Pride?
I handle all aspects of the competition including contestant registration, judges, and scoring from preliminary rounds through to the finals. I meet each of the contestants and see all the wonderful talent they bring to each of our competitions.
How has Voice of Pride grown into such a professional event?
During the preliminary rounds, our judges come from various businesses within the Dallas community. For our semifinal and final rounds, Turtle Creek Chorale Artistic Director Jonathan Palant assists us in finding qualified, respected judges. Through the selection of these judges, our corporate sponsors and the level of talent, the competition has grown into professional and visible event.
How has the event grown over the past five years?
The competition has grown in attendance each year, in both audience numbers and the number of contestants at each preliminary round. With that growth, we have been able to offer larger prizes. Last year, we incorporated audience participation into each of the preliminary rounds. Bringing the audience in as a "third" judge has spiked attendance.
What other events does the Tavern Guild sponsor through the year?
The Dallas Tavern Guild produces the Alan Ross Texas Freedom Parade and the Festival in Lee Park every September to celebrate Pride. We also produce an annual toy drive sponsored by the North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce and a member-driven Christmas Project that yields approximately 1,200 gifts that are distributed to people with AIDS.
What is the Tavern Guild’s new theme?
This year we have started a new campaign to help further our mission statement. We are asking the community to "support the businesses that support our community." We believe this will help build our community and further our relationships with those businesses.
Soundout is a weekly column featuring people whose jobs and interests have an impact on the daily lives of members of the LGBT community. It features those who often go unnoticed by the press and community. If you’d like to recommend someone to cover in this column, editor@dallasvoice.comÂ.