Arts & Entertainment
Back to the circle
Youth Pride returns to its original locale; suicides, bullying give event renewed urgency
Teens gather at Youth Pride in 2007. (Blade file photo by Henry Linser)
Youth Pride is Saturday in Washington but there’s one big change this year — after several years at P Street Beach, the event is moving back to Dupont Circle where it started 15 years ago.
Nikisha Carpenter, president of the board of Youth Pride Alliance, says the board made the change so the event would have greater visibility.
“It’s just a visibility issue really truly,” the 32-year-old lesbian and D.C. resident says.
The event is open to any local LGBT youth 25 and younger. There is no minimum age to attend. Carpenter, who’s worked with the Alliance five years and has been board president of the all-volunteer agency for the last three, says tweens as young as 12 have come with their parents in past years. In a good year, about 500 youth attend, she says. Last year attendance was down because it rained on the planned day so it was postponed to the next Saturday.
That’s the group’s contingency plan if it rains this weekend but the weather forecast is calling for clear skies.
The non-profit Alliance produces the event with help from the D.C. Office of Human Rights. That government involvement led to a public awareness ad campaign in which Youth Pride promos were seen in Metro buses and stations.
Carpenter says last year’s spate of teen suicides has brought increased awareness to the need for LGBT youth resources, hence the ads.
“It’s really two different things but I do think there’s an increased sense of urgency about getting resources to the kids who need them,” she says. “We’ve even seen a lot more organizations singing up for booths this year who are really eager to service the youth.”
Usually there are about 50 booths, a concert stage, games and snacks. The event runs from noon to 5 p.m. in the circle. An “Infatuation Dance” for ages 21 and younger is from 5 to 9:30 p.m. at the U Street Music Hall (1115-A U Street, N.W.) with DJ Keenan who’ll spin house, electro, hip-hop, R&B and more. Admission is $5.
SMYAL, Whitman-Walker, the Trevor Project and others will be represented. Carpenter says it’s important to have a one-stop spot for resources.
“There are a lot of resources in D.C. but they don’t always know where to find them,” she says. “It’s important for them to have a fun, safe space to come to.”
The event typically draws a racially diverse group. Latino gay activist Jose Guttierez is spreading the word in the Latino community, Carpenter says, so black, white and Latino youth will likely be well represented.
And some teens are involved in the planning — a group of youth involved with the Office of State Superintendents volunteered their time to help with planning and will be on hand Saturday.
The Alliance welcomes donations, upon which it relies for its operating expenses. Visit youthpridealliance.org for more information.
“We hear some dramatic story at least every year,” Carpenter says. “There are kids who come and are really scared but are so excited and have a whole new group of friends by the end of the day. It’s really great to see.”
Theater
Out dancer on Alvin Ailey’s stint at Warner Theatre
10-day production marks kickoff of national tour
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Through Feb. 8
Warner Theatre
513 12th St., N.W.
Tickets start at $75
ailey.org
The legendary Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is coming to Washington’s Warner Theatre, and one of its principal veterans couldn’t be more pleased. Out dancer Renaldo Maurice is eager to be a part of the company’s 10-day stint, the kickoff of a national tour that extends through early May.
“I love the respectful D.C. crowd and they love us,” says Maurice, a member of esteemed modern dance company for 15 years. The traveling tour is made of two programs and different casting with Ailey’s masterwork “Revelations” in both programs.
Recently, we caught up with Maurice via phone. He called from one of the quiet rooms in his New York City gym where he’s getting his body ready for the long Ailey tour.
Based in North Newark, N.J., where he recently bought a house, Maurice looks forward to being on the road: “I enjoy the rigorous performance schedule, classes, shows, gym, and travel. It’s all part of carving out a lane for myself and my future and what that looks like.”
Raised by a single mother of three in Gary, Ind., Maurice, 33, first saw Alvin Ailey as a young kid in the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Chicago, the same venue where he’s performed with the company as a professional dancer.
He credits his mother with his success: “She’s a real dance mom. I would not be the man or artist I am today if it weren’t for the grooming and discipline of my mom. Support and encouragement. It’s impacted my artistry and my adulthood.”
Maurice is also part of the New York Ballroom scene, an African-American and Latin underground LGBTQ+ subculture where ball attendees “walk” in a variety of categories (like “realness,” “fashion,” and “sex siren”) for big prizes. He’s known as the Legendary Overall Father of the Haus of Alpha Omega.
WASHINGTON BLADE: Like many gay men of his era, Ailey lived a largely closeted public life before his death from AIDS-related complications in 1989.
RENALDO MAURICE Not unusual for a Black gay man born during the Depression in Rogers, Texas, who’s striving to break out in the industry to be a creative. You want to be respected and heard. Black man, and Black man who dances, and you may be same-sex gender loving too. It was a lot, especially at that time.
BLADE: Ailey has been described as intellectual, humble, and graceful. He possessed strength. He knew who he was and what stories he wanted to tell.
MAURICE: Definitely, he wanted to concentrate on sharing and telling stories. What kept him going was his art. Ailey wanted dancers to live their lives and express that experience on stage. That way people in the audience could connect with them. It’s incredibly powerful that you can touch people by moving your body.
That’s partly what’s so special about “Revelations,” his longest running ballet and a fan favorite that’s part of the upcoming tour. Choreographed by Alvin Ailey in 1960, it’s a modern dance work that honors African-American cultural heritage through themes of grief, joy, and faith.
BLADE: Is “Revelation” a meaningful piece for you?
MAURICE: It’s my favorite piece. I saw it as a kid and now perform it as a professional dance artist. I’ve grown into the role since I was 20 years old.
BLADE: How can a dancer in a prestigious company also be a ballroom house father?
MAURICE: I’ve made it work. I learned how to navigate and separate. I’m a principal dancer with Ailey. And I take that seriously. But I’m also a house father and I take that seriously as well.
I’m about positivity, unity, and hard work. In ballroom you compete and if you’re not good, you can get chopped. You got to work on your craft and come back harder. It’s the same with dance.
BLADE: Any message for queer audiences?
MAURICE: I know my queer brothers and sisters love to leave with something good. If you come to any Ailey performance you’ll be touched, your spirit will be uplifted. There’s laughter, thoughtful and tender moments. And it’s all delivered by artists who are passionate about what they do.
BLADE: Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of your life. Thoughts on that?
MAURICE: I’m a believer in it takes a village. Hard work and discipline. I take it seriously and I love what I do. Ailey has provided me with a lot: world travel, a livelihood, and working with talented people here and internationally. Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of my life from boyhood to now. It’s been great.
Catfish Comedy will host “2026 Queer Kickoff Show” on Thursday, Feb. 5 at A League of Her Own (2319 18th Street, N.W.). This show features D.C.’s funniest LGBTQ and femme comedians. The lineup features performers who regularly take the stage at top clubs like DC Improv and Comedy Loft, with comics who tour nationally.
Tickets are $17.85 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
Arts & Entertainment
Catherine O’Hara, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ star and celebrated queer ally, dies at 71
Actress remembered for memorable comedic roles in ‘Beetlejuice’ and ‘Home Alone’
Catherine O’Hara, the varied comedic actor known for memorable roles in “Beetlejuice,” “Schitt’s Creek,” and “Home Alone,” has died at 71 on Friday, according to multiple reports. No further details about her death were revealed.
O’Hara’s death comes as a shock to Hollywood, as the Emmy award-winning actor has been recently active, with roles in both “The Studio” and “The Last of Us.” For her work in those two shows, she received Emmy nominations for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series and outstanding guest actress in a drama series.
In 2020, O’Hara won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series award for her work in the celebrated sixth and final season of “Schitt’s Creek.” She was also known as a queer ally and icon for her theatrical and often campy performances over multiple decades. In “Schitt’s Creek,” she played Moira Rose, the wig-loving mother of David Rose (played by series creator Dan Levy). David is pansexual, but the characters around him simply accept him for who he is; the show was embraced by the LGBTQ community with how naturally David’s sexuality was written and portrayed. That show ran from 2015 to 2020 and helped bring O’Hara and her co-stars into a new phase of their careers.
In a 2019 interview with the Gay Times, O’Hara explained why the show got LGBTQ representation right: “Daniel has created a world that he wants to live in, that I want to live in. It’s ridiculous that we live in a world where we don’t know how to respect each other and let each other be. It’s crazy. Other shows should follow suit and present the world and present humans as the best that we can be. It doesn’t mean you can’t laugh, that you can’t be funny in light ways and dark ways. It’s all still possible when you respect and love each other.”
Additional credits include “SCTV Network” (for which O’Hara won a writing Emmy), “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Six Feet Under,” “Best in Show,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” and “Dick Tracy.” O’Hara also lent her voice to “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Chicken Little,” “Monster House,” and “Elemental.” O’Hara was expected to return for Season 2 of “The Studio,” which started filming earlier this month.
LGBTQ Minnesotans speak out amid ICE crackdowns
D.C. Council urged to improve ‘weakened’ PrEP insurance bill
Dan Cox files for governor, seeking rematch with Moore
Unconventional homes becoming more popular
Out dancer on Alvin Ailey’s stint at Warner Theatre
Two gay men face deportation to Iran
Van Sant returns with gripping ‘Dead Man’s Wire’
‘Pillion’ director on bikers, BDSM, and importance of being seen
PHOTOS: SMYAL for the New Year
