Arts & Entertainment
Sounds from the stage
LaBelle, Warwick spice up season along with local queer favorites
For overall star power it would be hard to beat 2011, but there are still many highlights slated for the coming months on the D.C. concert scene. Just don’t forget to save some money for your night out with Madonna — tickets are on sale now for her September shows; Sunday night is sold out — and a rumored Cher tour.
Tonight (Friday), out singer Tom Goss performs with Potomac Fever, an a cappella pop ensemble from the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, at the Atlas Performing Arts Center (1333 H Street N.E.). This performance is part of the Intersections Arts Festival. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at intersectionsdc.org. The Intersections New American Arts Festival runs through March 11 with a wide variety of performances.
Young the Giant, whose powerful song “Cough Syrup” was just featured on “Glee” will be performing at the 9:30 Club on March 11 at 7 p.m. The 9:30 Club (815 V Street N.W.) has tickets available online and at the onsite box office.
The Gay Men’s Chorus presents an all male version of the infamous and untamed musical “Rocky Horror Show” March 16-17 at 8 p.m. and March 18 at 3 p.m. All performances are at the Lisner Auditorium (730 21st Street N.W.). Tickets start at $20 and can be purchased at gmcw.org.
Out singer/actor Will Gartshore brings his show “All The King’s Men: Broken Ballads with a Stiff Upper Lip” to the Round House Theatre Silver Spring (8641 Colesville Road in Silver Spring) March 19 and 26. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at roundhousetheatre.org.
For the club music lovers, legendary DJ Junior Vasquez returns to Washington after a long absence on March 24 to spin at Cobalt at the Official Queer Prom After party. Gay DJ Alyson Calagna, pioneer of the “Omtronica” sound, will also be spinning at Cobalt April 14. Cobalt is at 1639 R Street N.W.
Girlyman, who most recently has been co-writing songs for Margaret Cho’s upcoming CD, will be back in the area again on April 28 at 7:30 p.m. at the Birchmere Music Hall (3701 Mount Vernon Ave, Alexandria Va). Tickets are $33.70 and are available at ticketmaster.com.
Patti LaBelle (Image courtesy Strathmore)
Grammy-winning legend Patti LaBelle once again takes the Strathmore stage (10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda, Md.) March 30-31 at 8. Tickets are available at strathmore.org.
D.C. Different Drummers, an organization for local LGBT musicians, has its spring concert March 31 at the CHEC Auditorium (3101 16th Street N.W.). For tickets and more information, visit dcdd.org.
Special Agent Galactica (aka Jeffrey Johnson) starts a twice-monthly engagement at Black Fox Lounge (1723 Conn. Ave. N.W.) March 23 and will perform from 6 to 9 p.m. on the second and fourth Fridays of each month thereafter. The pink-haired one is mixing live singing with lip syncing these days. Details are at pinkhairedone.com. Admission is free.
Joan Osborne brings her “Bring It On Home Tour” with Lera Lynn at The Birchmere Music Hall (3701 Mount Vernon Avenue, Alexandria, Va.) April 4 at 7:30. Tickets are available for $35 at birchmere.com. Look for Osborne’s new blues album of the same name out March 27.
Out singer Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls will be making two appearances with Kaia Wilson in the area this spring as she promotes her new solo album, “Lung of Love.” On April 11, she plays Ram’s Head on Stage in Annapolis (33 West Street, Annapolis, Md.) and on April 13, she’s at IOTA Club and Café (2032 Wilson Blvd., Arlington).
Out singer Anthony Rapp, best know for playing Mark Cohen in the musical “Rent,” will sing with his “Rent” co-star Adam Pascal at the Birchmere Music Hall (3701 Mount Vernon Ave, Alexandria Va.) on April 15 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $39.50 and available at birchmere.com.
Out comedian Wanda Sykes brings her show back to the U.S. from Australia and will open the newly renovated Howard Theatre as part of the grand reopening weekend for the theatre April 12-15. Tickets are not yet available. For more information, visit wandasykes.com or howardtheatre.org.
The legendary Dionne Warwick will be the headliner for the 2012 Spring Gala at the Strathmore (1701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda Md.) on April 21 at 9 p.m. A 2012 Spring Gala Package begins at $500 per person and includes a tax-deductible contribution to the organization, the gala dinner, concert and after party. Contact the Sorelle Group at 202-248-1930 for information on how to reserve gala ticket packages.
Merriweather Post Pavilion (10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia Md.) has its first show of the season on May 11, at 4:30 p.m. with the fourth annual M3 Rock Festival Official Kix off party featuring local favorite band Kix. The festival then continues the next day with Enuff Z’nuff, In the Pink and Let There Be Rock! If you’re ready to party like its 1989, then get your ticket (starting at $45) at ticketfly.com.
Gay favorite Robyn opens for Coldplay at the Verizon Center (601 F Street NW) July 8-9. Tickets are at ticketmaster.com.
Friday, June 19
Trans and Genderqueer Game Night will be at 7 p.m. at the DC LGBTQ+ Community Center. This is a relaxing, laid-back evening of games and fun. For more details, visit the DC Center’s website.
Saturday, June 20
Go Gay DC will host “LGBTQ+ Community Pride Brunch” at 11 a.m. at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant. This fun weekly event brings the DMV area LGBTQ+ community, including allies, together for delicious food and conversation. Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.
LGBTQ People of Color will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This peer support group is an outlet for LGBTQ people of color to come together and talk about anything affecting them in a space that strives to be safe and judgement free. There will be all sorts of activities like watching movies, poetry events, storytelling, and just hanging out with others. For more details, visit thedccenter.org/poc or facebook.com/centerpoc.
The DC LGBTQ+ Community Center will host “Sunday Supper on Saturday” at 2 p.m. It’s more than just an event; it’s an opportunity to step away from the busyness of life and invest in something meaningful, and enjoy delicious food, genuine laughter, and conversations that spark connection and inspiration. For more details, visit the Center’s website.
Sunday, June 21
Kinetic Presents will host “DiscoVERS: Pride with Alexis Tucci & Clinton Foster” at 10 p.m. at Sax Restaurant and Lounge. Alexis Tucci and Clinton Foster trade off behind the decks all night, weaving uplifting disco and driving house into one continuous set. Throughout the evening, surprise performances unfold across the room, woven into the music rather than stacked on top of it. Tickets cost $41.76 and are available on Eventbrite.
Monday, June 22
“Center Aging: Monday Coffee Klatch” will be at 10 a.m. on Zoom. This is a social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults. Guests are encouraged to bring a beverage of choice. For more information, contact Adam ([email protected]).
Center Faith will host “Pride Interfaith Service” at 7 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. This is the 43rd annual LGBTQ+ community celebration of religious pluralism and interfaith collaboration. Founded during the era of the Names Project AIDS memorial quilts, we continue to connect and weave many LGBTQ+ faith communities. For more details, email [email protected].
Queer Book Club will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. The Queer Book Club meets on the fourth Monday of the month to discuss queer books by queer authors. This month’s reading is “The Skin and it’s Girl” by Sarah Cypher. For more details, visit the DC Center’s website.
Tuesday, June 23
Genderqueer DC will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This is a support group for people who identify outside of the gender binary, whether you’re bigender, agender, genderfluid, or just know that you’re not 100% cis. For more details, visit genderqueerdc.org or Facebook.
“Self-Defense Class with Avi Rome” will be at 12:30 p.m. Rome is a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community and a full time Martial Arts instructor with 25 years of teaching experience. He holds a 5th Degree Black Belt in Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do and is the director of the studio’s Adaptive Tae Kwon Do program for students with special needs. He has also run numerous self-defense workshops for various groups and situations. For more details, visit the center’s website.
Wednesday, June 24
Job Club will be at 6 p.m. on Zoom upon request. This is a weekly job support program to help job entrants and seekers, including the long-term unemployed, improve self-confidence, motivation, resilience and productivity for effective job searches and networking — allowing participants to move away from being merely “applicants” toward being “candidates.” For more information, email [email protected] or visit thedccenter.org/careers.
Thursday, June 25
The DC LGBTQ+ Community Center’s Fresh Produce Program will be held all day at the center. People will be informed on Wednesday at 5:00 pm if they are picked to receive a produce box. No proof of residency or income is required. For more information, email [email protected] or call 202-682-2245.
Virtual Yoga Class will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This free weekly class is a combination of yoga, breathwork and meditation that allows LGBTQ+ community members to continue their healing journey with somatic and mindfulness practices. For more details, visit the DC LGBTQ+ Community Center’s website.
Sports
Minor league team in York, Pa., forfeits Pride Night game after some players refuse to wear special jersey
City is roughly 20 miles north of Md. border
An independent minor league baseball team says it is forfeiting a game because some of its players refused to wear a special Pride Night jersey.
The Atlantic League Pro Baseball’s York Revolution were planning to hold their 11th annual Pride Night event Thursday for a game against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs.
But the Revolution announced the day of the game that it wouldn’t be played. York is about 20 miles north of the Maryland line. The Blue Crabs play in Waldorf.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Blog #1: I was excited about my trip even though Gate 1 Travel notified me there was a change in the itinerary. France decided to close the Burgundy canal for long overdue repairs, so we would be traveling on the C. du Rhone au Rhin. I boarded my Air France flight arriving in Paris on time. Contrary to what I was told to expect, customs went really smoothly.
Day 1: Because customs went quickly, I waited 45 minutes for my pre-arranged driver, to take me to the Gare de Lyon, where I boarded my fast-train to Lyon. A two-hour trip. In Lyon it was a long walk to the hotel, The Radisson Blu, but only because I exited the station on the wrong side. Finally got there, checked into a room on the 36th floor with a spectacular view of Lyon. Then took a stroll around the area, a short nap, and finally it was time for dinner and to meet the rest of the traveling party. There would only be 13 of us in the group. Five of us from D.C./Rehoboth, and eight others. I met our guide Patricia, who is from Portugal, and spoke fluent French and English. She is charming, and clearly very knowledgeable. She worked with Gate 1 for many years. We stayed at the hotel for our welcome dinner. It was a great meal, and over drinks, each of us was asked to introduce ourselves to the group. Aside from the five of us, there were three women traveling alone, one gentleman alone, and two couples. They were from New Jersey, New York, Florida, Houston, and Nebraska. I was sitting across from the woman from Nebraska. Conversation at dinner was pleasant but I quickly realized one person was apparently a MAGA. Wonder if you can guess where she was from, lol. But we also found if we didn’t talk politics, which we agreed not to do, things were fine. After dinner we all headed to our rooms for a good night’s sleep.
DAY 2: We woke to beautiful weather. I headed to the included breakfast at the hotel, which was really very good. After breakfast we boarded a bus for a tour of Lyon. We had a full-size bus for just the 13 of us. Our guide for the half day tour, was Vincent, and he is charming and young, and told us his fiancé lives in Lyon. He was incredibly knowledgeable. We began at the Basilica, which is being repaired on the outside, but the inside is, wow! Incredible stained glass, and there was a service going on in one of the smaller side chapels which I l listened to for a bit. The Basilica is high on the hill and the views of Lyon are spectacular from there. Then we headed to the old city and walked around for an hour, ending up at the smaller cathedral. Directly in front of it they had set up a great market, mostly food, which would be there for a week. Lyon is a foodie paradise, with, we were told, a restaurant, or at least coffee shop, for every 250 people. We then had a choice of staying in town, or going back to the hotel on the bus, which I did. The afternoon and evening were free time to do as we pleased. I headed to the Les Halles du Lyon Paul Bocuse, named after the famous chef, to take a look around. It is a large market with small restaurants connected to most of the stalls. It was charming. I then headed to the huge three-story mall across from our hotel and walked around for an hour. Then caught up on some emails, and writing, and met my friends, Paul and Martin, John and Dan, for dinner at 6. We went to a really nice Bistro, which John had found, two tram stops away from the hotel, and enjoyed some drinks and a relaxed dinner. The owner of the place found us a waitress who spoke great English, which made ordering really easy. After a two-hour great meal, we headed back to the hotel. Riding a tram in Lyon is easy, you just need to use your credit card. It is an honor system. Back at the hotel I headed to my room and packed, our luggage had to be outside the door by 8:00 am the next morning. I set my alarm for 6:30 so I had time to eat at the buffet breakfast. Then it was on the bus to head to our barge.
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