Arts & Entertainment

Calendar for March 19

Published

16 years ago

March 18, 2010

Friday, March 19

Gay District meets at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, 1820 Connecticut Ave., N.W., from 8:30-10:30 p.m. Gay District is a weekly, non-church affiliated discussion and social group for GBTQ men between 18 and 35. For more information, e-mail [email protected].

Friday night Erev Shabbat Services are held 8:30-10 p.m. at the Washington, D.C. Jewish Community Center, 1529 16th St. Services are followed by a social event. Please use the Q Street entrance.

St. Patrick’s Hangover bear party at Motley Bar above EFN Lounge, 1318 9th St., N.W., 6 p.m.-3 a.m. with host Tim Woody and DJ Jim Gade. There will be prizes, green beer and more.

Excursion at Fly Lounge: The Cherry Fund marks National Women’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day with a happy hour to benefit the Women’s Collective and their work. From 6:30-9:30 p.m., 1802 Jefferson Place, N.W. Tickets are $10 with comp admission for Fresh members and Cherry pass holders.

Brodeo: A DC Cowboys event, 10 p.m.-1 a.m. at Remingtons, 639 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E. Proceeds benefit the DC Cowboys on their mission to provide free entertainment for HIV/AIDS charity organizations.

“Grease,” the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington presents a fully staged, all-male production of the Broadway musical at Lisner Auditorium, 730 21st St., N.W. (See full story on page 28)

Saturday, March 20

Volunteer opportunity, 9 a.m.-noon, at the Capital Area Food Bank, 645 Taylor St., N.E. Volunteers will go through orientation, watch a short film then work will most likely involve sorting and packaging donated food.

Team DC Fashion Show at Town Danceboutique, 2009 8th St., N.W., 8 p.m.-3 a.m. $10 cover benefits Team DC college scholoarship. Models will have four clothing changes representing club wear, swimsuit, underwear and leather/sports/fetish. The model with the highest score wins $500, a professional photo shoot with Robert Mercer photography and becomes an automatic finalist to be considered for the 2011 Ripped Genes calendar.

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network holds its annual national dinner featuring Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Pa.) at the National Building Museum, 401 F St., N.W. Tickets start at $250; reception at 6:30 p.m. and dinner at 7:45 p.m. Visit sldn.org for information.

BARE-Military Style, presented by the Ladies of LURe at Cobalt, 1639 R St., N.W. Fundraising event benefiting Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, a non-partisan, non-profit, legal services organization dedicated to ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Come dressed in camo, war paint or just come out to show support. Doors at 10 p.m. (free admission with ticket from the SLDN National Dinner); 21 and up with ID. For more information visit sldn.org.

Misstallica, an all-girl tribute to Metallica, plays the 9:30 club, 815 V St., N.W. Doors at 8 p.m. For tickets, call 877-435-9849 or visit 930.com.

Oscar winning actress Mo’nique performs standup at DAR Constitution Hall, 18th & C streets, N.W., 8 p.m. Tickets start at $39.50; visit ticketmaster.com.

Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley shows off his biceps and his singing voice as O’Malley’s March plays the Recher Theatre, 512 York Rd., Towson, MD. Show is at 8 p.m.; tickets $20. For information, call 410-337-7178 or visit rechertheatre.com.

Sunday, March 21

Gay favorite “Hairspray” is performed at Toby’s Dinner Theatre in Columbia, Route 29 & Little Patuxent Parkway, 10:30 a.m. and again at 5 p.m. Tickets start at $46; call 301-596-6161.

Nurse Jackie season two premiere party at Public Bar, 1214 B 18th St., N.W. Join HRC and Showtime for a screening of the Nurse Jackie season one finale and the season two premiere, followed by an after party. Buy tickets at hrc.org/nursejackiedc. General admission, $10 suggested donation; VIP tickets, $75 (includes two drink tickets and private VIP viewing area)

Monday, March 22

Whitman-Walker Clinic substance abuse support group at the Max Robinson Center, 2301 MLK Ave., SE, 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Marc Maron, well-known comedic performer who has appeared on HBO, David Letterman and Comedy Central, hits the main stage at Black Cat, 1811 14th St., N.W., 8 p.m. Tickets are $20, call 202-667-4490 or visit blackcatdc.com.

Tuesday, March 23

Packing party at EFN Lounge/Motley Bar, 1318 9th St., N.W., from 7-8 p.m. Volunteers will assemble safer sex kits and enjoy drink specials.

Wednesday, March 24

Hollaback Transgender Support Group meets from 6:30-8 p.m. in the DC Center activity room. Hollaback is a program of the DC Community AIDS Network and meets on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month. The DC Center is located at 1810 14th St., N.W., convenient to the U Street/Cardozo Metro stop.

Secrets monthly amateur dancer contest night at the Ziegfeld’s/Secrets entertainment complex, 1824 Half Street, S.W., from 9 p.m.-2 a.m. Participant sign-up starts at 10 p.m., contest begins at 11 p.m. First prize is $300 cash; hosted by Destiny B. Childs with music by DJ tim-e.

Thursday, March 25

Career development at the DC Center, 1810 14th St. N.W., 4:30–6:30 p.m., brings trained volunteer human resource professionals to offer support with job searches, interviews skills, resume writing and individual career goal counseling. For more information, contact the Center at 202-682-2245 or careerdevelopmentthedccenter.org.

Puerto Rico

Bad Bunny shares Super Bowl stage with Ricky Martin, Lady Gaga

Puerto Rican activist celebrates half time show

Published

1 hour ago

February 9, 2026

Staff reports

Bad Bunny performs at the Super Bowl halftime show on Feb. 8, 2026. (Screen capture via NFL/YouTube)

Bad Bunny on Sunday shared the stage with Ricky Martin and Lady Gaga at the Super Bowl halftime show in Santa Clara, Calif.

Martin came out as gay in 2010. Gaga, who headlined the 2017 Super Bowl halftime show, is bisexual. Bad Bunny has championed LGBTQ rights in his native Puerto Rico and elsewhere.

“Not only was a sophisticated political statement, but it was a celebration of who we are as Puerto Ricans,” Pedro Julio Serrano, president of the LGBTQ+ Federation of Puerto Rico, told the Washington Blade on Monday. “That includes us as LGBTQ+ people by including a ground-breaking superstar and legend, Ricky Martin singing an anti-colonial anthem and showcasing Young Miko, an up-and-coming star at La Casita. And, of course, having queer icon Lady Gaga sing salsa was the cherry on the top.”

La Casita is a house that Bad Bunny included in his residency in San Juan, the Puerto Rican capital, last year. He recreated it during the halftime show.

“His performance brought us together as Puerto Ricans, as Latin Americans, as Americans (from the Americas) and as human beings,” said Serrano. “He embraced his own words by showcasing, through his performance, that the ‘only thing more powerful than hate is love.’”

Drag

PHOTOS: Drag in rural Virginia

Performers face homophobia, find community

Published

23 hours ago

February 8, 2026

Landon Shackelford

Four drag performers dance in front of an anti-LGBTQ protester outside the campus of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va. (Blade photo by Landon Shackelford)

Drag artists perform for crowds in towns across Virginia. The photographer follows Gerryatrick, Shenandoah, Climaxx, Emerald Envy among others over eight months as they perform at venues in the Virginia towns of Staunton, Harrisonburg and Fredericksburg.

(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)

Books

New book explores homosexuality in ancient cultures

‘Queer Thing About Sin’ explains impact of religious credo in Greece, Rome

Published

1 day ago

February 8, 2026

Terri Schlichenmeyer

(Book cover image courtesy of Bloomsbury)

‘The Queer Thing About Sin’
By Harry Tanner
c.2025, Bloomsbury
$28/259 pages

Nobody likes you very much.

That’s how it seems sometimes, doesn’t it? Nobody wants to see you around, they don’t want to hear your voice, they can’t stand the thought of your existence and they’d really rather you just go away. It’s infuriating, and in the new book “The Queer Thing About Sin” by Harry Tanner, you’ll see how we got to this point.

When he was a teenager, Harry Tanner says that he thought he “was going to hell.”

For years, he’d been attracted to men and he prayed that it would stop. He asked for help from a lay minister who offered Tanner websites meant to repress his urges, but they weren’t the panacea Tanner hoped for. It wasn’t until he went to college that he found the answers he needed and “stopped fearing God’s retribution.”

Being gay wasn’t a sin. Not ever, but he “still wanted to know why Western culture believed it was for so long.”

Historically, many believe that older men were sexual “mentors” for teenage boys, but Tanner says that in ancient Greece and Rome, same-sex relationships were common between male partners of equal age and between differently-aged pairs, alike. Clarity comes by understanding relationships between husbands and wives then, and careful translation of the word “boy,” to show that age wasn’t a factor, but superiority and inferiority were.

In ancient Athens, queer love was considered to be “noble” but after the Persians sacked Athens, sex between men instead became an acceptable act of aggression aimed at conquered enemies. Raping a male prisoner was encouraged but, “Gay men became symbols of a depraved lack of self-control and abstinence.”

Later Greeks believed that men could turn into women “if they weren’t sufficiently virile.” Biblical interpretations point to more conflict; Leviticus specifically bans queer sex but “the Sumerians actively encouraged it.” The Egyptians hated it, but “there are sporadic clues that same-sex partners lived together in ancient Egypt.”

Says Tanner, “all is not what it seems.”

So you say you’re not really into ancient history. If it’s not your thing, then “The Queer Thing About Sin” won’t be, either.

Just know that if you skip this book, you’re missing out on the kind of excitement you get from reading mythology, but what’s here is true, and a much wider view than mere folklore. Author Harry Tanner invites readers to go deep inside philosophy, religion, and ancient culture, but the information he brings is not dry. No, there are major battles brought to life here, vanquished enemies and death – but also love, acceptance, even encouragement that the citizens of yore in many societies embraced and enjoyed. Tanner explains carefully how religious credo tied in with homosexuality (or didn’t) and he brings readers up to speed through recent times.

While this is not a breezy vacation read or a curl-up-with-a-blanket kind of book, “The Queer Thing About Sin” is absolutely worth spending time with. If you’re a thinking person and can give yourself a chance to ponder, you’ll like it very much.