Arts & Entertainment
Arts briefs: April 22
Hometown DJ Jerome Farley returns for Town set this weekend
DJ Jerome Farley
Native D.C. DJ returns to Town
DJ Jerome Farley returns to his native D.C. on Saturday when he will appear at Town (2009 8th St., N.W.).
Town is Farley’s favorite place to spin in the U.S. and he’s excited to be back, as the owner, Ed Bailey, tougher him how to DJ when he was a teenager.
“I’d hang out in the DJ booth and look over his shoulder,” Farley says.
Farley, who’s gay, will also be premiering a music video for Vanessa Mitchell’s new song, “Hope,” which he wrote and produced.
Doors open at 10 p.m. There is an $8 cover before 11 p.m. and $12 afterward. All attendees must be 21 or older.
New York DJ Michael Hades will open.
Inaya Day to spin at Cobalt
Recording artist Inaya Day will be at Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) on Saturday from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. with DJ Wayne G.
Not only does Day write for herself, but she has also written for artists such as Bootsie Collins, Randy Crawford and Missy Elliot.
UMD plans queer studies symposium
The fourth annual D.C. Queer Studies Symposium will be held April 29 in Tawes Hall at the University of Maryland in College Park.
Graduate students and faculty from schools throughout the area will be presenting some of their work and Regina Kunzel, author of “Criminal Intimacy: Prison and the Uneven History of Modern American Sexuality,” will serve as the keynote speaker.
To register, attendees should e-mail [email protected] with name, institutional affiliation (if any), e-mail address and if they’ll be attending the buffet lunch and/or closing reception.
For more information, go here.
The Freddie’s Follies drag show was held at Freddie’s Beach Bar in Arlington, Va. on Saturday, Jan. 3. Performers included Monet Dupree, Michelle Livigne, Shirley Naytch, Gigi Paris Couture and Shenandoah.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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Queer highlights of the 2026 Critics Choice Awards: Aunt Gladys, that ‘Heated Rivalry’ shoutout and more
Amy Madigan’s win in the supporting actress category puts her in serious contention to win the Oscar for ‘Weapons’
From Chelsea Handler shouting out Heated Rivalry in her opening monologue to Amy Madigan proving that horror performances can (and should) be taken seriously, the Critics Choice Awards provided plenty of iconic moments for queer movie fans to celebrate on the long road to Oscar night.
Handler kicked off the ceremony by recapping the biggest moments in pop culture last year, from Wicked: For Good to Sinners. She also made room to joke about the surprise hit TV sensation on everyone’s minds: “Shoutout to Heated Rivalry. Everyone loves it! Gay men love it, women love it, straight men who say they aren’t gay but work out at Equinox love it!”
The back-to-back wins for Jacob Elordi in Frankenstein and Amy Madigan in Weapons are notable, given the horror bias that awards voters typically have. Aunt Gladys instantly became a pop culture phenomenon within the LGBTQ+ community when Zach Cregger’s hit horror comedy released in August, but the thought that Madigan could be a serious awards contender for such a fun, out-there performance seemed improbable to most months ago. Now, considering the sheer amount of critics’ attention she’s received over the past month, there’s no denying she’s in the running for the Oscar.
“I really wasn’t expecting all of this because I thought people would like the movie, and I thought people would dig Gladys, but you love Gladys! I mean, it’s crazy,” Madigan said during her acceptance speech. “I get [sent] makeup tutorials and paintings. I even got one weird thing about how she’s a sex icon also, which I didn’t go too deep into that one.”
Over on the TV side, Rhea Seehorn won in the incredibly competitive best actress in a drama series category for her acclaimed performance as Carol in Pluribus, beating out the likes of Emmy winner Britt Lower for Severance, Carrie Coon for The White Lotus, and Bella Ramsey for The Last of Us. Pluribus, which was created by Breaking Bad’s showrunner Vince Gilligan, has been celebrated by audiences for its rich exploration of queer trauma and conversion therapy.
Jean Smart was Hack’s only win of the night, as Hannah Einbinder couldn’t repeat her Emmy victory in the supporting actress in a comedy series category against Janelle James, who nabbed a trophy for Abbott Elementary. Hacks lost the best comedy series award to The Studio, as it did at the Emmys in September. And in the limited series category, Erin Doherty repeated her Emmy success in supporting actress, joining in yet another Adolescence awards sweep.
As Oscar fans speculate on what these Critics Choice wins mean for future ceremonies, we have next week’s Golden Globes ceremony to look forward to on Jan. 11.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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