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A milestone of faith
Boston chaplain to give unprecedented homily Sunday at Cathedral
Transgender visibility may be at an all-time high, but most agree thereās a long way to go.
Another chip of the proverbial glass ceiling is slated to be knocked out this weekend when Rev. Dr. Cameron Partridge becomes the first openly transgender priest to preach from the historic Canterbury Pulpit at Washington National Cathedral.
āCameron Partridge is a priest of great intellect, pastoral presence and possesses a deep passion for the gospel,ā said Rev. Gary Hall, dean of the Cathedral, in a statement.
Partridge, during a phone interview from Boston where he serves as Episcopal chaplain at Boston University, says heās excited about the strides being made for transgender visibility.
Actress and activist Laverne Cox is āphenomenal,ā he says.
āAnd [transgender activist] Janet Mock, the two of them, they are so incisive and insightful and smart and they speak incredibly well. Iām very proud of the things they have to say,ā he says.
But thereās at least one part of being a transgender person that Partridge, a lecturer at Harvard Divinity School, argues has not earned enough media attention: āI donāt think the intersection of trans people and religion has received a whole lot of conversation yet.ā
āIām really honored and grateful for the invitation,ā he says.
Through his sermon at the National Cathedral and other work in the church, he hopes to āopen peopleās eyesā about how āgender is more complicated than male or female.Ā I experience it that way.ā
āI think creation is much richer and more diverse and dynamic than we understand and trans folks are part of that,ā he says. āThere is much more ambiguity in the world than we tend to want to acknowledge.ā
Partridge’s status as both transgender and a religious leader do not conflict, he says.Ā In fact, pushing traditional boundaries within the church is part of what he says is his calling.
āDifference is real. We have human differences, and they are not simply impediments to get over,ā he says. āThey are part of what we need to engage in order to realize our full humanity. That can be something that trans people can be called to.ā
For Partridge, 40, the church has been one of his few constants. He grew up Episcopalian, a denomination he says has āprogressive traditions.ā
āItās a church that has a big tent, with a lot of people from different perspectives in it. Thatās important to me.ā
In 2003, the church elected its first gay bishop, Rev. Gene Robinson. Heāll preside over this weekendās service.
Partridge came out twice: first as a lesbian as an undergraduate at all-women Bryn Mawr College, and again in 2001 as a transgender man a few years after he obtained his master of divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School.
While he doesnāt have any horror stories to tell āĀ he never faced rejection from friends, family or even religious leaders āĀ he did struggle with one thing as a newly ordained priest: the sense that he was alone.
Early on, Partridge didnāt know of any other transgender members of the Episcopal clergy. That quickly changed, however, when he learned about TransEpiscopal, an online group exclusively for transgender Episcopalians and their friends and families to share stories.
āEven though I personally felt supported by the non trans people in my life and the trans people I knew who were not in the church, I did still feel kind of alone,ā he says. āThe wonderful thing was discovering that in fact, I wasnāt.ā
Over time, the ever-growing TransEpiscopal has ābrought trans people into the foreground of the churchās national conversationā and ādriven the passage of pro-transgender legislation,ā according to the groupās website.
Fighting for increasing visibility for transgender clergy has been one of Partridgeās goals. In 2012, the Episcopal Church added gender identity and expression to its non-discrimination laws after advocacy from Partridge, among others.
And while he doesnāt interject his personal life into every single class he teaches at Harvard, he says dialogues about his own identity come up in class just as often as that of any other professor.
āIāve had a sense that being openly trans and being willing to say that at the start of a class gives people permission to bring who they are into the classroom,ā he says. āIt doesnāt necessarily mean that weāre gonna talk about it, but [students] donāt have to bracket themselves off or compartmentalize themselves. Thatās true whether the people in the classroom are trans or not.ā
The inclusive environment heās fostered in his classroom is slowly becoming a norm in the Episcopal church, Partridge says, but he acknowledges there are still more steps to take.
āIād love to see more different traditions of Christianity engage gender identity in ways that they have not yet.ā
Thereās work to be done in the political sphere, too. He points out that without congressional passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), transgender people are denied many legal protections,Ā not to mention the persistently high rates of homelessness and violence within and against transgender communities.
He finds himself heartened, though, by glimmers of hope. Take, for example, when conservative television host Pat Robertson said last summer that going through gender reassignment surgery was not a sin after being prompted by a caller.
Partridge acknowledges that for many religious leaders ā especially evangelical ones ā conversations about transgender people are still new.
āThat someone doesnāt have a knee-jerk negative reaction, I think thatās important,ā Partridge says, even though Robertsonās comments later on werenāt as inclusive. āWeāre at an important moment and we need to dig deeper.ā
The trajectory of the movement is going in a āgreat direction,ā Partridge says. āBut thereās a lot to do.ā
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āTigerā burning bright: an interview with Mary Timony
Todayās female-driven music scene wouldnāt be the same without her
Itās hard to imagine what the current female-driven music scene would be like without Mary Timony. From Sleater-Kinney to Haim, from Angel Olsen to Mitski, the influence of Mary Timony is in every note being played, every word being sung. On her new solo album, āUntame The Tigerā (Merge), with its sly nod to Joni Mitchell, Timony has brought her many years of musical experience to the fore, resulting in what is easily her most accessible release. Beginning with the incredible six-plus minute opener āNo Thirdsā and continuing through the first single, āDominoes,ā and gorgeous numbers including āThe Guest,ā āThe Dream,ā and āNot The Only One,ā Timony is assured to keep listeners purring along. Timony made time for an interview shortly before the album was released.
BLADE: Mary, Iād like to begin by talking to you about your musical lives in D.C. and Boston. I went to college in Boston in the early 1980s and was constantly amazed by the bands of the era such as Mission of Burma, Human Sexual Response, and āTil Tuesday. I moved to D.C. in the mid-1980s to go to grad school, and at the time, the music scene there was dominated by go-go music, and a smaller indie music featuring BETTY and the late Tommy Keene, among others. What do you remember about the music in D.C. as someone who grew up there?
MARY TIMONY: Thatās interesting. We kind of did a switcheroo. Iām from D.C. and I moved to Boston. (In D.C.) I learned, as a teenager, about rock shows and rock music from being involved in the punk scene, the post-hardcore scene of kids here. Those are the shows I went to in high school. Basically, the Dischord (Records) bands and stuff. I saw every single Fugazi show from when they started in ā87. Before that, whatever was happening in 1985, hardcore shows by Swiz and Soulside and Kingface and I loved Ignition. Other than that, I would go see bluegrass out in Virginia and I loved go-go. I would go to see (go-go bands) Rare Essence and Trouble Funk. I was very into that stuff; that was really exciting. I think I liked go-go the most out of all of it, actually [laughs]. I would go to DC Space and 9:30 (Club), mostly for local (acts). I don’t think I ever saw BETTY, but I was a teenager then.
BLADE: Was the active music scene in Boston in the early 1990s part of the appeal for you when it came to relocating to Boston to attend Boston University?
TIMONY: The reason why I went there was because I wanted to go to a music program that was in a big university, in case I didn’t wanna study music the whole time, which is exactly what happened. I studied classical guitar for a year and then I didn’t really like the program much, so I transferred to study English. I found out about the (Boston) music scene from friends. We went to The Middle East (nightclub) and TTās (T.T. The Bearās nightclub). Then after college, I ended up living right down the street from The Middle East and I was there constantly.
BLADE: Good old Central Square! As a performer playing in bands including Autoclave, Helium, and Ex Hex, and as a solo artist with her own band, itās not unreasonable to say that Mary, you are someone who plays well with others.
TIMONY: [Big laugh.]
BLADE: What makes you such a good team player?
TIMONY: I didn’t know I was [laughs]. I’ve gone back and forth between doing solo stuff and being in bands. Mostly, I’ve done projects where I’ve written a bunch of songs and I’m trying toā¦I haven’t done a ton of collaborative stuff really. Ex Hex was fun because it was more collaborative. Wild Flag, the same thing, totally 100% collaborative in every way. But Helium was really my thing, but I got some great people that totally influenced it. I’ve always been doing my own thing but tried to find really good people. Music really is about connection. Itās never as good if it’s only one person’s vision. Usually, if it’s good it’s good because of the connection between the musicians. Music is a social art form, I think.
BLADE: āUntame The Tigerā is the title of your new album. In 1999, Joni Mitchell titled her album āTaming The Tiger.ā Are you, in any way, making a nod to Joni?
TIMONY: A little bit because I am a huge fan. I have been since I was 18. But, it sort of came to me because I have a song called that on the record and I’m sure that probably came from ripping off Joni Mitchell. Then I just thought thatās a cool name for a record. Then I thought, āOh, shit!ā [Laughs] Itās already been taken! Then I thought about it and then I forgot about it. Then I thought about it again and finally, I was like, āItās OK. It’s a little bit different.ā And I love her!
BLADE: Iām currently reading Ann Powersā book āTraveling: On the Path of Joni Mitchell,ā which comes out in June.
TIMONY: Oh, I’m definitely going to have to read.
BLADE: Yes, please add that to your reading list. āUntame The Tigerā is your first new solo studio album in 15 years. Are there things you write and sing about on your solo records that might be out of place on an album you would record with another one of your musical outfits?
TIMONY: Yes. That’s why this ended up being a solo record. I guess it was because of the tuning of my guitar. They were more or less finished songs. I wanted the songs to sound kind of acoustic. I also wanted to play with a bunch of musicians who I really love. All those things just made it seem like a solo record. If I’m writing for a band, like Ex Hex, which is basically the other band that I do right now, they’re not finished. I bring them in (to the band members) with that band in mind.
BLADE: I love the lush instrumental section on āThirdsā and the psychedelic sounds of āLooking For The Sunā and āThe Guest.ā Were there things you were listening to while writing the songs for āUntame The Tigerā that were inspiring to you?
TIMONY: I was listening to a lot of music, a ton of stuff. I don’t ever try to purposely emulate anything very often, but I can’t help it. I’d rather be influenced by stuff without really thinking about it too consciously. I always have loved listening to The Left Bankeās instrumentation and The Moody Bluesā string parts. Most of the string parts come from trying to emulate The Moody Blues [laughs] or The Left Banke. I’m obsessed with The Left Banke.
BLADE: āWalk Away RenĆ©e,ā right?
TIMONY: Yes. This guy, Michael Brown, was such a genius. He wrote so much stuff as a teenager. His dad was a string arranger. Anyway, I love those string parts. I was listening to this prog-rock band The Strawbs and this early (Ronnie) Dio band Elf. (The Flying) Burrito Brothers and The Byrds, too. I love Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span. Richard Thompson and I was really obsessed with Gerry Raffertyās early solo record called āCan I Have My Money Back?ā I love that record. I was listening to it a ton when I was arranging the songs.
BLADE: Why was the song āDominoesā selected as the first single from āUntame The Tiger?ā
TIMONY: I don’t know. I let other people tell me [laughs]. I really hate sequencing records and I hate choosing singles. Iām just too close to it. I can’t tell what people are going to like or not. A lot of times, the ones that I like are not the ones that other people like. I asked (the people at) the label and they suggested that. I think it’s more poppy sounding. Dave Fridmann mixed that one and āDonāt Disappearā and heās a genius mixer. and these mixers are always very pleasing and accessible sounding. I think that has something to do with it, too.
BLADE: Earlier, we talked about your long history of playing music with others, which reminded me of your guest spot singing āAll Dressed Up In Dreams,ā written by gay singer/songwriter Stephin Merritt for his band The 6thsā āWaspsā Nestā album.
TIMONY: Heās such a genius!
BLADE: How did that come about?
TIMONY: When I moved to Boston, for a year I lived with Claudia (Gonson of Merrittās band The Magnetic Fields), who is his drummer. I lived in a group house in Cambridge. I was friends with Claudia, and Stephin lived a few blocks away. She told me he was making this record with guest singers they wanted to go over and sing on it. I went over there one day and he taught me the song and I sang on it. I think he’s one of the best songwriters of the last 50 years or whatever.
BLADE: I completely agree. As someone who has collaborated with Stephin, are you aware of an LGBTQ+ following for your own music?
TIMONY: I don’t know. I think maybe a little bit. Iād love that. I love everybody who can connect with it, because all I’m trying to do is connect with people.
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Sherry Vine is turning 60 ā and sheās not quitting anytime soon
Legendary drag queen coming to D.C. for new show, āSmoke and Mirrorsā
There are many things Sherry Vine is proud of. Throughout her 33-year-long career, the drag queen has accomplished so much ā sheās released music, launched her own variety show and toured across the United States and Europe.
But what she loves the most about her career is making people laugh.
This calling to be a comedy queen started before her formal drag career. In high school, she remembers taking part in the musicals, and Vine would find joy in making people laugh by wittily changing song lyrics.
āThen it just evolved into doing that as the act,ā Vine said in an interview with the Blade.
From the beginning of her career, sheās made singing live parodies a central part of her performance as a drag queen. And for her 60th birthday, she knew she wanted to put on an extravaganza.
Vine is coming to the Woolly Mammoth on March 9 while on tour for her new show āSmoke and Mirrors,ā performed and written by her. Itāll include new parodies, from Bruce Springsteen to ABBA. The D.C.-based drag queen Tara Hoot will be a special guest at the show.Ā
Thereās a lot that led up to this milestone year for Vine. It all started with developing her character more than 30 years ago.
Developing Sherry Vine
Vine describes her persona as a down-on-her-luck showgirl from Las Vegas with a heart of gold.
She was always obsessed with stars like Joey Heatherton and Stella Stevens. Not to suggest those stars are down-on-their-luck showgirls, Vine said, but she wanted to evoke a sex kitten mentality. Her character eventually morphed into what it is today from these inspirations.
But at first, Vine said she thought she had to look funny to be funny.
āI didn’t care about the makeup. I didn’t wear big breasts. I just thought I had to look like a clown,ā Vine said.
When she moved to New York City in 1992, she was surrounded by queens who balanced being funny and gorgeous simultaneously. That was eye-opening for her, she said.
Now, she relishes surprising people, she said. Sheās been told she looks ātoo prettyā to be taken for a comedy queen, but thatās OK with her.
āI want to walk out on stage, and anyone who’s never seen me, maybe they’re like, āOh, she looks good,āā Vine said. āAnd then I started singing about poop and penis and they’re like, āOh my gosh, she’s so stupid.āā
When she was starting out as a drag queen, Vine reflected that she didnāt envision doing drag as a career. She remembers not wanting to commit to it. She wanted to be a movie star, she said.
āI kind of fought it. I loved it,ā Vine said. āBut I was like, I’m not doing this as a career.āā
But once she let go of fighting it, her career exploded. She got connected with RuPaul and was on two television specials in the 1990s. That support was crucial, Vine said, and helped her believe in herself more.
āI was like, āOh, OK. If this person thinks that I have something, then maybe I do,āā Vine said.
Drag has changed ā a lot
The drag scene has changed drastically. Vine credits a lot of this transformation to āRuPaulās Drag Race.ā
āWhen we started doing drag 30 years ago, no one in their right mind would have been like, āI’m going to do drag so I can make a lot of money and be famous,āā Vine said.
Before RuPaulās iconic single “Supermodel (You Better Work),ā one of the only examples of drag the average consumer saw was āMrs. Doubtfire,ā Vine said.
āYou had to have a passion for it,ā Vine said. āYou had to have a calling.ā
When Vine started, drag was a fringe art form that had an audience of mostly gay men.
Nowadays, itās mainstream. Drag is enjoyed by a much wider audience, and is more of a way to become famous. When Vine was coming up in the industry, there were few ways to get on TV and in films as a drag queen, short of playing a character that was murdered on āLaw & Order,ā she said.
But even though drag has evolved and grown in popularity, Vineās advice to drag queens has stayed the same over the years.
āDon’t try to do something because you think someone else is doing it successfully,ā Vine said. āFind what you do, and then exploit and explore that.ā
Looking back, looking ahead
Out of her multi-decade run as a drag queen, Vine said sheās most proud of the longevity of her career. There are a few people who have been in it as long as she has ā Lady Bunny and Miss Coco Peru, for example. Few others have made it as long as Vine, she said.
She stresses that she canāt take credit for creating things, but she takes pride in being one of the first drag queens to go viral on YouTube in the 2000s. Her āBad Romanceā parody, released in 2009, racked up more than 6 million views over the years.
In the next few years, sheās looking into doing more television and film projects. Her latest show, āThe Sherry Vine Variety Show,ā just wrapped filming its third season. Creating this show is fulfilling a childhood dream of hers, she said. Itās an homage to āThe Carol Burnett Show,ā which Vine grew up watching.
Whether itās performing on camera or onstage, Vine doesnāt see herself quitting anytime soon.
āI love performing and drag as much now as I did 33 years ago,ā Vine said. āSo I don’t see ever stopping.ā
To get details on how to buy tickets to āSmoke and Mirrors,ā visit woollymammoth.net/productions/sherry-vine.
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Girls Rock! DC empowers young people through music, social justice education
Organization founded in October 2007
Girls Rock! DC, an organization operating at the intersection of art and activism, is dedicated to empowering young people through music and social justice education.
Since its founding in October 2007; Girls Rock! DC has been creating a supportive, inclusive and equitable space that centers around girls and nonbinary youth, with a special emphasis on uplifting Black and Brown youth. At the core of Girls Rock! DC’s mission is a unique approach to music education, viewing it through a social justice and equity lens.
“It’s a place where people can come explore their interest in music in a safe environment, figure out their own voice, and have a platform to say it,” Board Vice Chair Nicole Savage said.
This approach allows D.C.’s young people to build a sense of community and explore their passion for social change through after-school programs, workshops and camps.
The organization’s roots trace back to the first rock camp for girls in August 2001 in Portland, Ore. Similar camps have emerged worldwide since then, forming the International Girls Rock Camp Alliance. Girls Rock! DC is a member of this alliance, contributing to the larger community’s growth and advocacy for inclusivity in the music industry.
Girls Rock! DC’s annual programs now serve more than 100 young people and 20 adults, offering after-school programs and camps. Participants receive instruction on the electric guitar, the electric bass, keyboards, drum kits and other instruments or on a microphone and form bands to write and perform their own original songs. Beyond music, the program includes workshops on underrepresented histories in the music industry, community injustice issues and empowerment topics that include running for office and body positivity.
“I’ve been playing shows in the D.C. music scene for about six years, and I feel like Girls Rock! DC is the perfect amalgamation of everything that I stand for,ā said Outreach Associate Lily MĆ³nico. āSo many music spaces are male dominated and I think there is a need for queer femme youth in music.ā
The organization’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is evident not only in its leadership but also in the way it creates a safe space for queer and nonbinary individuals. Language is a crucial component, and Girls Rock! DC ensures that both campers and volunteers embrace inclusivity.
“It is a very open and creative space, where there’s no judgment,” Zadyn Higgins, one of the youth leaders, emphasized. “It is the first time for a lot of us, to be in a space where we’re truly able to be ourselves.”
In creating a safe environment, Girls Rock! DC implements practices that include name tags with preferred names and pronouns, along with pronoun banners that help kids understand and respect diverse identities.
“It’s really cool to watch these kids understand and just immediately get it,” said Higgins.Ā
Girls Rock! DC is also more than a music education organization; it’s a community where individuals can embark on a transformative journey that extends beyond their initial participation as campers. Many start their Girls Rock! DC experience as enthusiastic campers, learning to play instruments, forming bands and expressing their creativity in a supportive environment. The organization’s impact, however, doesn’t stop there. This inspiration leads them to volunteer and intern within the organization.
The unique progression from camper to volunteer or intern, and eventually to a full-fledged role within the organization, exemplifies Girls Rock! DC as a place where growth is not confined to a single week of camp but extends into an ongoing, impactful journey. It’s a testament to the organization’s commitment to nurturing talent, empowering individuals and fostering a lifelong connection with the values for which Girls Rock! DC stands.
One of the highlights of Girls Rock! DC is its summer camp, where kids between 8-18 learn to play instruments, form bands, write songs and perform in just one week. Higgins shared a poignant moment from a showcase,
“To see them go from, like, crying a little bit about how scared they were to going out on the stage and performing their little hearts out was so sweet,” said Higgins.
Nzali Mwanza-Shannon, another youth leader, agreed that the camp is the highlight of the program.
“The summer camp, I’ve met so many friends, and it’s always kind of scary coming up to the end, but after we get to perform and everything, I’m so grateful that I’ve gotten the opportunity to perform and meet new people and be so creative and do it all in a week,” said Mwanza-Shannon.
Forty-three young people who showcased their original songs and DJ sets at D.C.ās legendary 9:30 Club attended the first Girls Rock! DC camp in 2007. They performed to a crowd of 700 enthusiastic fans. The organization since then has grown exponentially, with each passing year bringing more energy, vibrancy and fun to the camp experience.
Since the pandemic, however, the organization has struggled financially, experiencing a funding shortage as well as reduced growth in attracting new members.
Augusta Smith, who is a youth leader and a member of the band Petrichor, expressed concern about the potential impact on the unique and friendly environment that Girls Rock! DC provides.
“We’ve kind of been really slow and barely making enough money. And this year, we’re having a funding shortage,ā said Smith.
The impact of Girls Rock! DC extends beyond musical skills, fostering leadership, self-expression and a passion for social change through creative collaboration and community power-building. Mwanza-Shannon hopes to be a part of Girls Rock! DC for a long time,
“I want to keep on meeting new people,ā said Mwanza-Shannon. āI want to keep on being able to perform at these different places and have different experiences.”
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