Arts & Entertainment
Calendar: March 2
Parties, exhibits, meetings and more through March 8

‘Memorial to a Marriage,’ a bronze sculpture featuring artist Patricia Cronin and her partner in a tender embrace, is one of the works in the ‘Bodies and Soul’ exhibit at Connor Contemporary Art. (Image courtesy Connor)
TODAY (Friday)
Busboys & Poets presents “Live! from Busboys: Open Mic and Talent Showcase” tonight at 11 p.m. in the Langston Room at its 14th and V streets location (2021 14th St., N.W.) hosted by Ne’a Posey. This showcase opens the floor for all performers, not just poets. There is a $5 cover. For more information, visit busboysandpoets.com.
“Saturday Night Live” alum Tim Meadows plays Baltimore Comedy Club tonight at 8 and 10:15 p.m. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at baltimorecomedy.com. Meadows will also perform Saturday at 7 and 9:15 p.m.
The Creative Alliance is hosting the Baltimore premiere of the African film “Paparazzi: Eye in the Dark” at the Patterson (3134 Eastern Ave., Baltimore) tonight at 7:30 p.m. “Paparazzi” tells the story of a music producer, a mysterious murder and the ripples of its repercussions. Tickets are $12 for general admission and $7 for CA members. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit creativealliance.org.
Atlas (1333 H St., N.E.) presents “Intersections: A New American Arts Festival” with performances by Tom Goss and Potomac Fever at 9:30 p.m. in the Lang Theatre. Tickets are $20. All-girl band The Pushovers will be giving a free performance from 8 to 10 p.m. in the Kogod lobby. The night ends with an after party hosted by DCypher Dance at 11 p.m. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit atlasarts.org.
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (641 D St., N.W.) presents “Civilization (all you can eat)” tonight at 8 p.m. The show brings a corporate lecturer, a career waitress and an anthropomorphic pig all together to look at corruption, consumption and enterprise in the Obama age. Tickets range from $55 to $67.50 and can be purchased online at woollymammoth.net.
Saturday, March 3
Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) presents Hellmouth Happy Hour where every week an episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” will be screened and drink specials will be offered. This week the episode is “Doppelgängland.”
The Imperial Court of Washington will be at the Czar’s Ball and Royal Convention for the “Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Russian Tea Party” tonight at Remington’s (639 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E.) from 4 to 8 p.m. The candidates for Emperor and Empress will be announced. Tickets are $20. For more information, visit imperialcourtdc.org.
DJ Drew G sings at Town (2009 8th St., N.W.) tonight at 10 p.m. Cover is $8 before 11 p.m. and $12 after. Attendees must be 21 or older.
Code has its monthly installment tonight at Green Lantern (1335 Green Court, N.W.). Gear, rubber, skin, uniform or leather dress code will be strictly enforced. Music provided by DJ Frank Wild. Admission is $10. All attendees must be 18 or older. There will be an open bar from 9 to 10 p.m.
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network is having its 20th annual national dinner tonight at the National Building Museum (401 F St., N.W.) starting with a reception at 6:30 p.m. Individual tickets range from $225 to $2,500 and 10 tickets ranging from $2,500 to $250,000. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit sldn.org.
Sunday, March 4
Singer/songwrighter Glen Phillips of rock group Toad the Wet Sprocket plays Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Rd., Vienna) tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at wolftrap.org.
Nellie’s (900 U St., N.W.) presents Drag Brunch hosted by Shi-Queeta Lee today at 11 a.m. with a $20 brunch buffet.
SMYAL’s Youth Arts Ensemble and Dance Exchange’s Teen Exchange will be performing at Atlas Performing Arts Center (1333 H St., N.E.) today at 3 p.m. as part of the Intersections festival. For more information, visit intersectionsdc.org. This is a free event.
Monday, March 5
Boyz II Men plays the Birchmere (3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria) tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $59.50 and can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com.
The D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) is having its monthly volunteer night tonight from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tonight’s activities could range from sorting through book donations, cleaning up around the Center and taking inventory for Fuk!ts, as well as socializing. Pizza will be provided. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.
Tuesday, March 6
Irish band Altan plays Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Rd., Vienna) tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online at wolftrap.org.
The Chesapeake Squares, a gay square dancing group, are having a mainstream-through-advanced club night tonight at the Waxter Center (1000 Cathedral St.) in Baltimore from 8 to 10 p.m. For more information, visit chesapeakesquares.org.
Wednesday, March 7
Band White Rabbits play the Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) with Tennis and Daughter. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased online at blackcatdc.com. Doors open at 8 p.m.
Conner Contemporary Art (1358 Florida Ave., N.E.) presents Patricia Cronin’s first solo exhibition in D.C. with “Bodies and Soul.” The exhibit features “Memorial to a Marriage,” a bronze sculpture depicting the sleeping figures of Cronin and her partner, artist Deborah Kass. The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and by appointment. For more information, visitconnercontemporary.com.
Thursday, March 8
Irish tenor Karl Scully plays Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Rd., Vienna) tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online at wolftrap.org.
Comedian Kathleen Madigan plays the Birchmere (3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria) tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $49.50 and can be purchased online atticketmaster.com.
D.C. Strokes Rowing Club is having its Spring Rush tonight at Nellie’s (900 U St., N.W.) from 6 to 9 p.m. For more information, visit dcstrokes.org.
Online Culture
Clavicular charged in alleged rape of teenage influencer
Online personality’s real name is Braden Peters
Online personality Clavicular, whose real name is Braden Peters, has been accused of rape.
According to NBC, Aleksandra Vasilevna Mendoza, an 18-year-old influencer known online as Alorah or Alorah Ziva, accused Peters of sexual assault, and the case is making its way through the court system.
The alleged incident occurred on May 23, 2025, when Mendoza was 17.
According to a criminal complaint from the Chatham (Mass.) Police Department, Peters called her an Uber to his family’s home. Once there, he allegedly got her drunk on vodka while they livestreamed on Twitch and then raped her. His mother and grandmother were allegedly in the house.
The documents allege Clavicular committed rape, drugging a person for sexual intercourse, and procuring and providing liquor to a person under 21.
According to court documents acquired by NPR, Mendoza began communicating with Peters on Instagram, where he paid her to appear on his livestreams to help her “make her name known on social media.”
According to those documents, Peters arranged for the minor to come to Cape Cod home to participate in a videostream for his 437,000 followers on Kick, 1.2 million followers on TikTok, and more than 1 million followers on Instagram.
At his home, Peters allegedly instructed Mendoza to say she was 18 on his videostream and to claim the alcohol on camera was water instead of vodka. Mendoza said she felt peer-pressured to drink the spirit and that she became noticeably intoxicated after a couple of drinks.
The allegations go on to state that after stopping the stream, Peters and Mendoza kissed on a couch and then had sex in his bed without her consent. Mendoza said she did not receive a sexual assault forensic exam after the incident. NPR does not name alleged victims of sexual assault.
The charges come months after Mendoza sued Peters in Miami, accusing him of sexual battery in connection with the events of May 2025. The civil lawsuit also separately alleges that he injected her face with a non-FDA-approved fat-dissolving substance during a November livestream in Florida.
Peters is known for his “looksmaxxing” concept of vanity, which is at the core of his online presence. The “looksmaxxing” culture he has helped cultivate combines elements of incel culture and heterosexuality, with the stated goal of attracting the opposite sex. He has gone as far as to say he has undergone “bonesmashing,” or hitting his own face with a hammer; taken anabolic steroids to more rapidly grow muscle; and used crystal meth as an appetite suppressant.
At the same time, looksmaxxing has been described as having elements of homoeroticism, with “looksmaxxers” appearing more concerned with impressing other men than women. Peters has multiple times pointed to openly gay actor Matt Bomer as the gold standard for male facial aesthetics.
Peters’s arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 14.
Photos
PHOTOS: Shenandoah Valley Pride
LGBTQ celebration held at Turner Pavilion in Harrisonburg, Va.
The 2026 Shenandoah Valley Pride Festival was held at Turner Pavilion in Harrisonburg, Va. on Sunday, Sept. 20.
(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)
















Whitman-Walker Health held the 40th annual Walk and 5K to End HIV at Anacostia Park on Saturday, Sept. 19.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)



















