Two-time Grammy Award-winning pop "Diva" Sheena Easton will kick off the 2007 Utah Pride Festival, United For Equality, June 1-3 with "An Evening with Sheena Easton," at 8 p.m., June 1, on the festival grounds main stage.
Easton whose singing career was inspired by Barbara Streisand's "The Way We Were," released "Morning Train," her first U.S. single, in 1980. The single hit No. 1 in the United States and topped both the Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts in Billboard Magazine. Following her 1980 debut, Sheena made a cameo appearance performing "For Your Eyes Only," her Academy Award-nominated movie theme for the James Bond film with the same title. Notably, she is the only artist seen performing the song in the title sequence in the entire Bond series.
"I'm looking forward to being with everyone to celebrate this great event," Easton said.
"Consistent with the overall agenda of this year's festival, a 'Celebration for Everyone,' having Sheena Easton as the opening headliner for Friday night is a perfect fit. She has an amazing range of musical appeal and wide fan base — making her show a treat for all who attend. Clearly, I'm very excited," said Terry Mitchell Nani, Utah Pride Festival director.
Other celebrities joining Easton and making special appearances over the course of the three-day event include Utah Pride Festival Grand Marshal, former NBA Utah Jazz player John Amaechi who will lead the parade route on June 3, and the '90s R&B quartet "En Vogue," who is also appearing main stage at 8 p.m. June 2.
For tickets or more information, visit the Utah Pride Web site www.utahpride.org.
The Utah Pride Festival is a program of the Utah Pride Center, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to be a catalyst for personal growth, acceptance and equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people in Utah. Led by a volunteer board and professional staff, the Utah Pride Center produces one of the largest festivals in Utah with an expanding national presence reaching thousands of people every year.