May 16, 2008  |  By: ZACK ROSEN  | COMMENTS     

Paying for the company of men is generally frowned upon, but there are certain circumstances when it’s an act of charity.

On Sunday, May 18, gay arts company Ganymede Arts will hold a bachelor auction at Nellie’s Sports Bar to raise money for its 2nd Annual GLBT Fall Arts Festival. By pairing hot boys with various dinner and theater packages, this may be a rare opportunity for money to buy love (or at least a good night out).

“We wanted to do something that would be different and catch the eye of not necessarily our normal audience,” says Ganymede’s artistic director Jeffery Johnson. “Normally we’ll get the theater crowd, the arts crowd, and we want to introduce ourselves to other folks as well. It’s a shame to be pigeonholed into just the theater crowd, we figured an auction appeals to everybody. It’s fun, it’s sexy, it lends itself to a good time.”

There will be 10 bachelors available at the auction and each will be paired with a dinner-and-theater package so that the winning bidder can take his date out to the restaurants or shows purchased. The evening will be hosted by famed local drag queen Lena Lett and will feature a performance by local gay comedian Matt Henry, who is just as attractive as the bachelors.

There’s no cover for the evening and drink specials will be available, so even men that aren’t planning to bid will have a reason to stop by. Raffle tickets will also be sold. Prizes include a one-month free membership to Results Fitness and tickets to the Shakespeare Theatre Company.

Through all these means, the event’s organizers hope to raise $3,000-$4,000 for the company, an amount that would not be possible without the generosity of the local businesses that donated goods and services to the auction.

“All of these business have been courted by us, they know who we are,” says Johnson. “They’ve been very generous.”

Ganymede Arts is patronized largely by gay men and organizers are confident that they will reach their target audience through the auction.

“I don’t think that doing a bachelor auction says one thing or another about the kind of programming that a theater does, I just think it raises money for us,” says director of fundraising John Moletress. “At this particular time, with this audience, it was the best choice we could go with. It just worked out.”

Of course, a bachelor auction would be nothing without its bachelors. When assembling the men, Moletress approached people he knew, and the pictures posted to Ganymede’s web site indicate that bidders will not be disappointed. Even the bachelors themselves are excited about the opportunity.

“I am definitely looking forward to this,” says Bartek Schalwek, who has no qualms with the possibility of being bought by a stranger. “It’s for charity, so I don’t mind. Plus it’s a free dinner.”

With the auction, comes an overview of the merchandise, so expect to see some exposed skin. The evening’s drag queen host will be the one to decide when articles of clothing are doffed, an exposure that is sure to up the value of a given bachelor.

“Lena Lett has her hand in what the bachelors will not be wearing,” says Moletress. “I asked them to dress in whatever made them feel comfortable and would be easiest to take off. We’ll feel it out as we go.”