Arts & Entertainment
Snapshots from the stage
Set of eight mini-plays explore black gay experience
Actors Reginald Richard, left, and Tristan Phillip Hewitt in ‘New and/or Slightly Used,’ a reading slated for two performances Sunday. (Photo by Emile Benjamin; courtesy of ACT)
‘New and/or Slightly Used’
Sunday at 5 and 8 p.m.
Warehouse Theater
645 New York Ave., NW
202-745-3662
alansharpe.org
Two lives can be significantly changed — for better or worse — by one fleeting but momentous encounter. That’s the thematic thread running through “New and/or Slightly Used,” a collection of eight short plays about black gay, bi and questioning men here in Washington.
In celebration of D.C. Black Pride Weekend, the African-American Collective Theater (ACT) is presenting the work as a staged reading for one night only with two performances on Sunday.
Written and directed by ACT’s Artistic Director Alan Sharpe, the 10-minute-long mini-plays thoughtfully explore instances of love, lust and longing as experienced by a cross section of men ranging from hustlers to husbands.
“The plays run the gamut in terms of characters and situations,” Sharpe says. “Some characters are self-identified as gay, some are in relationships with both men and women and some are straight. It’s kind of a salad.”
“The cast is a mix too,” Sharpe says. “We have gay actors playing straight characters and vice versa. And because it’s a staged reading, there’s very little in terms of set, so I tried to pick a gorgeous cast so the audience will have a something to look at. We’re competing with a lot on gay pride day.”
In “Kickin’ It,” young out actor Tristan Phillip Hewitt plays Dante, a straight cocky high school jock who’s unaware that his buddy has feelings for him. When hot weather prompts the friends to trade basketball for a racier indoor game, it means something different to each boy.
“For me,” says Hewitt, a 21-year-old native Washingtonian who says he’s too tall to be confined to any closet, “this show gives me the experience to be someone else for 10 minutes. In reality I’m no good at basketball. I may have the body of an athlete, but I’m not one. I get to play a jock whose personality is nothing like mine.”
On the other hand, out actor Reginald Richard who plays 30-something Eric in “All Over Him,” says he is very similar to his gay character. “When I first read the play it was as if I was seeing my life story written on the page. Like Eric, I’ve been hurt by someone who wasn’t as much in love with me as I was with him. You have that awkward moment when you see them and you’re not sure what to do. As Eric, I have a chance to unload and achieve closure.”
“Sharpe’s writing is refreshingly realistic and natural,” Richard says. “It’s not stereotypical gay humor. He writes honestly about a very diverse community.”
Originally from Memphis, Tenn., Richard has been in D.C. for 10 years and has been acting for the last four. His experiences with ACT have led him to consider acting as a career. “If I want to be with the best I have to learn with the best, so I put myself in school [at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts]. It’s very challenging, but I’m always up for a challenge.”
With Sharpe at the helm, ACT has been commemorating Black Pride with LGBT-centric theater for 15 years. “When we first started, there were not a lot of vehicles where black and gay lesbians could see themselves on stage, and they were thirsty for that. The response was so great that it completely altered my artistic focus. I discovered a niche that no else was filling.”
ACT’s mission is to showcase contemporary black gay and lesbian life and culture, promote visibility and raise awareness of issues faced in the African-American community.
“By increasing visibility,” Sharpe says, “We strive to demonstrate to people that regardless of race class and gender we have similar experiences. Everyone has been disappointed. Everyone has fallen in love and had their heart broken. The human experience is very universal.”
Cast member Hewitt concurs: “Be prepared to find a piece of yourself in one of these plays.”
Theater
‘Octet’ explores the depths of digital addiction
Habits not easily shaken in Studio Theatre chamber musical
‘Octet’
Through Feb. 26
Studio Theatre
1501 14th Street, N.W.
Tickets start at $55
Studiotheatre.org
David Malloy’s “Octet” delves deep into the depths of digital addiction.
Featuring a person ensemble, this extraordinary a capella chamber musical explores the lives of recovering internet addicts whose lives have been devastated by digital dependency; sharing what’s happened and how things have changed.
Dressed in casual street clothes, the “Friends of Saul” trickle into a church all-purpose room, check their cell phones in a basket, put away the bingo tables, and arrange folding chairs into a circle. Some may stop by a side table offering cookies, tea, and coffee before taking a seat.
The show opens with “The Forest,” a haunting hymn harking back to the good old days of an analog existence before glowing screens, incessant pings and texts.
“The forest was beautiful/ My head was clean and clear/Alone without fear/ The forest was safe/ I danced like a beautiful fool / One time some time.”
Mimicking an actual step meeting, there’s a preamble. And then the honest sharing begins, complete with accounts of sober time and slips.
Eager to share, Jessica (Chelsea Williams) painfully recalls being cancelled after the video of her public meltdown went viral. Henry (Angelo Harrington II) is a gay gamer with a Candy Crush problem. Toby (Adrian Joyce) a nihilist who needs to stay off the internet sings “So anyway/ I’m doing good/ Mostly/ Limiting my time/ Mostly.”
The group’s unseen founder Saul is absent, per usual.
In his stead Paula, a welcoming woman played with quiet compassion by Tracy Lynn Olivera, leads. She and her husband no longer connect. They bring screens to bed. In a love-lost ballad, she explains: “We don’t sleep well/ My husband I/ Our circadian rhythms corrupted/ By the sallow blue glow of a screen/ Sucking souls and melatonin/ All of my dreams have been stolen.”
After too much time spent arguing with strangers on the internet, Marvin, a brainy young father played by David Toshiro Crane, encounters the voice of a God.
Ed (Jimmy Kieffer) deals with a porn addiction. Karly (Ana Marcu) avoids dating apps, a compulsion compared to her mother’s addiction to slot machines.
Malloy, who not only wrote the music but also the smart lyrics, book, and inventive vocal arrangements, brilliantly joins isolation with live harmony. It’s really something.
And helmed by David Muse, “Octet” is a precisely, quietly, yet powerfully staged production, featuring a topnotch cast who (when not taking their moment in the spotlight) use their voices to make sounds and act as a sort of Greek chorus. Mostly on stage throughout all of the 100-minute one act, they demonstrate impressive stamina and concentration.
An immersive production, “Octet” invites audience members to feel a part of the meeting. Studio’s Shargai Theatre is configured, for the first, in the round. And like the characters, patrons must also unplug. Everyone is required to have their phones locked in a small pouch (that only ushers are able to open and close), so be prepared for a wee bit of separation anxiety.
At the end of the meeting, the group surrenders somnambulantly. They know they are powerless against internet addiction. But group newbie Velma (Amelia Aguilar) isn’t entirely convinced. She remembers the good tech times.
In a bittersweet moment, she shares of an online friendship with “a girl in Sainte Marie / Just like me.”
Habits aren’t easily shaken.
Sports
Blade, Pride House LA announce 2028 Olympics partnership
Media sponsorship to amplify stories of LGBTQ athletes
The Los Angeles Blade and Washington Blade on Friday announced a media partnership with the Out Athlete Fund, which will produce Pride House LA for the 2028 Summer Olympics.
Pride House is the home for LGBTQ fans and athletes that will become a destination during the L.A. Summer Games in West Hollywood in partnership with the City of WeHo. This 17-day celebration for LGBTQ athletes and fans will include medal ceremonies for out athletes, interactive installations, speakers, concerts, and more.
The Los Angeles Blade will serve as the exclusive L.A.-area queer media sponsor for Pride House LA and the Washington Blade will support the efforts and amplify coverage of the 2028 Games.
The Blade will provide exclusive coverage of Pride House plans, including interviews with queer athletes and more. The parties will share content and social media posts raising awareness of the Blade and Out Athlete Fund. The Blade will have media credentials and VIP access for related events.
“We are excited to partner with the Washington Blade, the oldest LGBTQ newspaper in the United States and the Los Angeles Blade, already a strong supporter of Out Athlete Fund and Pride House LA/West Hollywood,” said Michael Ferrera, CEO of Pride House LA. “Our mission is about increasing the visibility of LGBTQ+ athletes and fans to challenge the historical hostility toward our community in the sports world. Visibility is what publications like the Washington and Los Angeles publications are all about. We know they will play a key part in our success.”
“LGBTQ visibility has never been more important and we are thrilled to work with Out Athlete Fund and Pride House LA to tell the stories of queer athletes and ensure the 2028 Summer Games are inclusive and affirming for everyone,” said Blade Editor Kevin Naff.
Out Athlete Fund is a 501(c)3 designed to raise money to offset the training cost of out LGBTQ athletes in need of funding for training. The Washington Blade is the nation’s oldest LGBTQ news outlet; the Los Angeles Blade is its sister publication founded nine years ago.
In honor of Black History Month, the DC LGBTQ+ Community Center will host a series of events uplifting the histories, artistry, and resilience of Black LGBTQ+ communities through dialogue, film, and intentional gathering.
The series begins with “Ballroom Culture: Rhythms of Resilience,” a panel discussion on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026 at 7 p.m. Artists, activists, and leaders from the ballroom community will explore ballroom’s historical, cultural, and political significance as a site of resistance, kinship, creative expression, and social justice within Black, Latinx, and LGBTQ+ communities.
On Friday, Feb. 13 at 12:30 p.m., the Center will host a screening of the groundbreaking documentary “Paris is Burning,” which chronicles New York City’s ballroom scene and house culture while examining themes of race, class, identity, and survival through the voices of legendary performers including Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, and Dorian Corey.
The month will conclude with “Soul Centered: A Black LGBTQ+ Gathering” on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026 at 3:30 p.m. This free, RSVP-required event invites Black LGBTQ+ community members into a space of rest, connection, and reflection centered on love in all its forms. The gathering will feature a panel conversation with Black LGBTQ+ creatives, healers, and community members, followed by intentional speed connections and a closing social mixer.
For more details and to RSVP, visit the Center’s website.
‘Octet’ explores the depths of digital addiction
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