Arts & Entertainment
Calendar: Sept. 24
Today (Friday)
Phasefest continues tonight at Phase 1, 525 8th St., S.E., with Hunter Valentine, Jen Urban and the Box, The Pushovers, Athens Boys Choir, Terrance Williams, Lost Boi’s, and Mzery Loves Company. Tickets are $15 for the night. More information and a link to purchase tickets can be found at phasefestdc.com. Doors open at 7 p.m. Must be 21 to enter.
DJ Jim Gade will be at Cobalt, 1639 R St., N.W., tonight with Gruff: Rock and Retro Happy Hour. From 4 to 7 p.m. rail drinks will be $1 and domestics will be $2. From 7 to 10 p.m. beers and rail drinks are $3. From 4 to 10 p.m. martinis will be $5.
Cazwell, a gay rapper and DJ from New York City, will be at Town, 2009 8th St., N.W., tonight to perform live and DJ in the main room, tag teaming with Wess in the booth. Rail drinks are $3 from 10 to 11 p.m. Doors open at 10 p.m. Drag show starts at 10:30. For those 18 to 20, the cover is $10 all night. For those 21 and over, the cover is $5 before 11 p.m. and $10 afterward.
Gigi Paris Couture will perform at Ziegfeld’s, 1824 Half St., S.W., tonight at 11 p.m. Cover is $5 from 9 to 10:30 p.m. and $10 afterward and always includes $1 off your first drink. Must be 21 to enter. Doors open at 9 p.m.
Beat the Clock at Nellie’s Sports Bar, 900 U St., N.W. All bottles of Miller Lite or house Vodka drinks are $1 from 5 to 6 p.m., $2 from 6 to 7 p.m., and $3 from 7 to 8 p.m.
Gay District, a weekly, non-church affiliated discussion and social group for GBTQ men between 18 and 35, meets tonight from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, 1820 Connecticut Ave., N.W. For more information, e-mail [email protected].
Celebrate Shabbat services, 8:30 to 10 p.m. at the Washington, D.C. Jewish Community Center, 1529 16th St. Services are followed by an Oneg social.
Saturday, Sept. 25
Kyocera presents Virgin Mobile FreeFest today at Merriweather Post Pavillion. Some of the acts include M.I.A., LCD Soundsystem, Jimmy Eat World and Joan Jett & the Black Hearts. There are no more free tickets to this event, but pavilion seats are still available for $125 and can be purchased by following the link on virginmobilefestival.com. These tickets include access to the pavilion and the full festival, donation, digital download and all service charges.
The Federal Triangles Soccer Club and D.C. United host the first LGBT fan night in the history of Major League Soccer tonight at RFK Stadium as the United take on the Houston Dynamo.
Phasefest continues tonight at Phase 1, 525 8th St., S.E., with MEN with JD from Le Tigre, Tayish Busay, Shondes, Rad Pony, Clinical Trials, Mittens, Renny Sanz, Tiik With Guts, Erin Brown and Candi Hearts. Tickets are $20 for the night. More information and a link to purchase tickets can be found at phasefestdc.com. Doors open at 6 p.m. Must be 21 to enter.
Washington Shakespeare Company presents By Any Other Name: An Evening of Shakespeare in Klingon at the Rosslyn Spectrum Theater, 1611 North Kent St., in Arlington, at 8 p.m. WSC’s first-ever gala event will feature scenes from Shakespeare in both English and Klingon by WSC’s company and special guest, George Takei with an introduction by Marc Okran, creator of the Klingon language. Tickets are $125 for regular admission and $250 for VIP admission. These prices include admission to four more shows.
The Ladies of Illusion, hosted by Ella Fitzgerald, will perform at Ziegfeld’s, 1824 Half St., S.W., tonight at 11 p.m. Cover is $5 from 9 to 10:30 p.m. and $10 afterward, always includes $1 off your first drink. Must be 21 to enter. Doors open at 9 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 26
Crumland Farms Fall Festival starts today and runs until Halloween. The opening day will feature Frederick Rock School, Denim N Lace, Mason Vixon and Julienna Irwin, a finalist on “America’s Got Talent.” There will be prizes and games including Bovine Bingo to benefit Saint Thomas More Academy. Gates open at 11 a.m. and the event runs until 5 p.m. Admission is $5 per person. For more information, visit crumland.com.
Metropolitan Community Church of Washington, D.C.’s largest mostly gay church located at 474 Ridge St., N.W., presents “An Evening of Live Jazz” tonight, featuring jazz standards interpreted and played by a jazz trio, Swing, and vocals by members of MCC’s choir. There will also be dinner and dancing. Tickets are $12 and can be reserved by calling Shirli Hughes at 202-638-7373 or e-mailing her at [email protected].
Monday, Sept. 27
SAGE Metro D.C.’s monthly meeting at the D.C. Center, 1318 U St., N.W., is today from 6:30 to 8 p.m. SAGE Metro D.C. provides support and advocacy for the aging LGBT population.
The GLB Youth Support Group will meet at the GW Center Clinic, 1922 F St., N.W., Suite 103, at 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 28
Join Burgundy Crescent Volunteers to help pack safer sex kits for FUK!T from 7 to 9 p.m. at Green Lantern, 1335 Green Ct., N.W.
Wednesday, Sept. 29
The cast of the play “Gay: Accept Me If You Love Me” will be holding a happy hour at Nellie’s Sports Bar, 900 U St., N.W., tonight from 6 to 11 p.m. Some of the cast members planning to appear include Timothy Adams, Matt Ward, international top model Edith Tapia and Patrick D. Smith. “Gay” will be in D.C. next summer. All beer sales will support the theater production. No cover charge. Visit facebook.com/spotlightcomunicaciones for more information.
Thursday, Sept. 30
The Spanish Wine Society’s Inaugural Fall Wine Tasting Event is tonight at Mio, 1110 Vermont Ave., N.W., in support of HIV/AIDS Prevention in the Latino/a Community. There will be five Spanish and Latin American white wines available for tasting as well as a tasting of some of Mio’s menu items. There will also be a raffle for tours and tastings at area vineyards. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased online at cherryfund.org.
GLOE at the D.C. Jewish Community, 1529 16th St., N.W., is hosting a Queer Simchat Torah to mark the end and beginning o the annual Torah reading cycle. D.C. Minyan will be having its annual Simchat Torah service tonight at 7. After the service there will be food and dancing. The even costs $10. More information can be found at washingtondcjcc.org/gloe.
College Night at Apex, 1415 22nd St., N.W., is tonight. Free admission with a valid college ID and a $5 cover charge without one. DJ Randy will be in the main hall with VJ Frenchie at the Video Bar. Doors open at 9 p.m. There will be $4.50 rail drinks all night. Must be 18 to enter and 21 to drink.
Books
A boy-meets-boy, family-mess story with heat
New book offers a stunning, satisfying love story

‘When the Harvest Comes’
By Denne Michele Norris
c.2025, Random House
$28/304 pages
Happy is the bride the sun shines on.
Of all the clichés that exist about weddings, that’s the one that seems to make you smile the most. Just invoking good weather and bright sunshine feels like a cosmic blessing on the newlyweds and their future. It’s a happy omen for bride and groom or, as in the new book “When the Harvest Comes” by Denne Michele Norris, for groom and groom.

Davis Freeman never thought he could love or be loved like this.
He was wildly, wholeheartedly, mind-and-soul smitten with Everett Caldwell, and life was everything that Davis ever wanted. He was a successful symphony musician in New York. They had an apartment they enjoyed and friends they cherished. Now it was their wedding day, a day Davis had planned with the man he adored, the details almost down to the stitches in their attire. He’d even purchased a gorgeous wedding gown that he’d never risk wearing.
He knew that Everett’s family loved him a lot, but Davis didn’t dare tickle the fates with a white dress on their big day. Everett’s dad, just like Davis’s own father, had considerable reservations about his son marrying another man – although Everett’s father seemed to have come to terms with his son’s bisexuality. Davis’s father, whom Davis called the Reverend, never would. Years ago, father and son had a falling-out that destroyed any chance of peace between Davis and his dad; in fact, the door slammed shut to any reconciliation.
But Davis tried not to think about that. Not on his wedding day. Not, unbeknownst to him, as the Reverend was rushing toward the wedding venue, uninvited but not unrepentant. Not when there was an accident and the Reverend was killed, miles away and during the nuptials.
Davis didn’t know that, of course, as he was marrying the love of his life. Neither did Everett, who had familial problems of his own, including homophobic family members who tried (but failed) to pretend otherwise.
Happy is the groom the sun shines on. But when the storm comes, it can be impossible to remain sunny.
What can be said about “When the Harvest Comes?” It’s a romance with a bit of ghost-pepper-like heat that’s not there for the mere sake of titillation. It’s filled with drama, intrigue, hate, characters you want to just slap, and some in bad need of a hug.
In short, this book is quite stunning.
Author Denne Michele Norris offers a love story that’s everything you want in this genre, including partners you genuinely want to get to know, in situations that are real. This is done by putting readers inside the characters’ minds, letting Davis and Everett themselves explain why they acted as they did, mistakes and all. Don’t be surprised if you have to read the last few pages twice to best enjoy how things end. You won’t be sorry.
If you want a complicated, boy-meets-boy, family-mess kind of book with occasional heat, “When the Harvest Comes” is your book. Truly, this novel shines.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.

The Victory Fund held its National Champagne Brunch at the Ritz-Carlton on Sunday, April 27. Speakers included Tim Gunn, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Gov. Wes Moore (D-Md.), Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.).
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Music & Concerts
Tom Goss returns with ‘Bear Friends Furever Tour’
Out singer/songwriter to perform at Red Bear Brewing Co.

Singer Tom Goss will bring his “Bear Friends Furever Tour” to D.C. on Sunday, June 8 at 8 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co.
Among the songs he will perform will be “Bear Soup,” the fourth installment in his beloved bear song anthology series. Following fan favorites like “Bears,” “Round in All the Right Places,” and “Nerdy Bear,” this high-energy, bass-thumping banger celebrates body positivity, joyful indulgence, and the vibrant spirit of the bear subculture.
For more details, visit Tom Goss’s website.
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