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Out gay Cirque vet headlining new ‘Quidam’ show
Mark Ward as the ringmaster in ‘Quidam.’ It plays Washington for eight performances next week. (Photo courtesy of Cirque Du Soleil)
Mark Ward always knew he wanted to be out professionally.
The Cirque Du Soleil vet plays the ringmaster in the company’s latest show “Quidam,” which comes to the Verizon Center next week. Ward says coming out is an individual choice that each person should make for himself.
He joined Cirque du Soleil as a performer in 1993. Not wanting to keep aspects of his life hidden, Ward let the company know that he wanted to be out. He says that there was never an issue with the hiring managers and that the company was supportive from the start.
He says he always wanted “to lead an authentic life.”
“I think that it’s an individual journey, so I couldn’t say that it’s good or bad [to come out],” he says. “I just know that as far as people — gay and lesbian people — accepting themselves, that’s a personal journey. My time may not be your time. If I saw someone and I felt like, ‘Oh you shouldn’t be in the closet, you shouldn’t be hiding yourself,’ I think that’s wrong of me because I got in that person’s shoes. I like to support that person, try to give them the tools they would need to come out and not be hidden or behind the veil, of course, but I think that’s an individual journey, I really do.”
Since joining Cirque, Ward has performed in about 6,500 Cirque shows, without missing a single performance.
“For me, the challenging thing is also the thing that has kept me around for this amount of time,” he says. “I have to be in constant communication with the audience and I have to be adaptable … what works in Milwaukee, when I come to D.C., may not get the same responses. I have to be open to the public and the information they are feeding me. So I have to have a keen sense of awareness. That keeps me focused.”
In “Quidam,” Ward plays ringleader John, guiding the audience through the performances that tell the story of Zoé, a young girl searching for something more to her life. Her parents, distant and apathetic, ignore her. To her, life has lost meaning. Seeking to fill the void of her existence, she slides into an imaginary world — the world of Quidam — where she meets characters who encourage her to free her soul. The international cast of “Quidam” features 52 acrobats, musicians, singers and characters.
This being his first time to Washington, Ward is looking forward to catching up with local friends and exploring Washington.
“I’m first hoping to go out and eat at some really cool places … and I’ll probably just run myself ragged trying to see everything.”
“Quidam” is at the Verizon Center from Nov. 16-20 for eight performances. Tickets start at $35. Visit cirquedusoleil.com for information.
The 13th annual Frederick Pride Festival was held at Carroll Creek Park in Frederick, Md. on Saturday, June 27.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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PHOTOS: Fredericksburg Pride March and Festival
LGBTQ celebration held in historic Virginia town
The sixth annual Fredericksburg Pride March was held in downtown Fredericksburg, Va. on Saturday, June 27. Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chair Deuntay Diggs led the march alongside Fredericksburg City Council Member Jannan W. Holmes. The Fredericksburg Pride Festival took place at Riverfront Park after the march. Bree Fram was the featured speaker.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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Iran and Egypt on Friday faced off during the World Cup’s “Pride Match” in Seattle.
Iran is among the handful of countries in which consensual same-sex sexual relations remain punishable by death. Discrimination and persecution based on sexual orientation and gender identity is commonplace in Egypt.
Friday’s match coincided with Pride weekend in Seattle. The Egyptian Football Association and the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran both objected to playing in the “Pride Match.”
Egypt and Iran tied 1-1.
FIFA, for its part, allowed Pride flags inside the stadium during the match.
“The FIFA World Cup 2026 is an inclusive event that welcomes people from all backgrounds,” a FIFA spokesperson told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Fans of all sexual orientations and gender identities are welcome at matches and events. General statements of human rights, including rainbow flags and other flags representing sexual orientation and gender identity, are permitted under the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Stadium Code of Conduct and may be displayed inside stadiums provided they are used in a manner consistent with the code.”
Human Rights Watch welcomed FIFA’s decision to allow Pride flags inside the stadium. Outright International, a global LGBTQ and intersex rights group, distributed Pride flags in Seattle on Friday, which was Pride Match Day.
“Visibility matters,” said Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjödin. “Pride is now being celebrated in more than 100 countries, including this weekend in Seattle. For many LGBTIQ people, seeing a Pride flag in public is a reminder that they are not alone, and that their rights and dignity are recognized.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino earlier this year told Die Weltwoche, a Swiss magazine, that “there will be no ‘Pride Match’ at the (FIFA) World Cup.”
“There will be a FIFA World Cup match in Seattle, and on the same day, events organized by external organizations will be taking place in the city,” said Infantino. “But that has nothing to do with the match itself.”
Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, was among those who traveled to Seattle for Friday’s match. Tatchell accused FIFA of not vetting World Cup teams — specifically Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Senegal, Qatar, Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Uzbekistan, and Algeria — over whether they would allow gay players.
“FIFA is protecting LGBT+ visibility in the stands while failing to protect LGBT+ players on the pitch,” said Tatchell.
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