Arts & Entertainment
Arts briefs: April 13
Events of note for the region — Washington and Baltimore
Victory Fund to host annual brunch
The Victory Fund is having its National Champagne Brunch on Sunday at the Washington Hilton (1919 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) at 11 a.m. featuring Tammy Baldwin.
This year’s theme is “Strength in Numbers” and Victory Fund will be honoring the eight openly gay and lesbian members of the Maryland legislature: Luke Clippinger, Bonnie Cullison, Anne Kaiser, Richard Madaleno, Maggie McIntosh, Heather Mizeur, Peter Murphy and Mary Washington.
Individual tickets are $150 and a table with ten seats is $1,500.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit victoryfund.org.
Illumination time for Ward 8
Saturday marks the opening of a series of spaces opening in the commercial corridor of Historic Anacostia with Lumen8Anacostia, a 12-hour festival of light, art, music and more starting at noon.
Events begin at noon at Lightbox (2235 Shannon Place, S.E.) with opening remarks on the cargo bay stage and SHAM pop up shop and DJs on the main stage. Both stages will have various performers, the cargo bay stage closing at 6 p.m. and the main stage remaining busy until midnight.
There’s also the “Party Behind the Big Chair” (2020 Shannon Place, S.E.) with performers such as Yung Yeaga and Cee Love, starting at 4:15 p.m.
Part of a project by D.C.’s Office of Planning, vacant and underutilized storefronts and empty lots have been transformed into an artist showcase/village for three to six months.
This event is free and open to the public. For more information, visit lumen8anacostia.com.
Scott Nevins (Photo courtesy MCC-DC)
Scott Nevins plays two shows at MCC-DC
Openly gay comedian, celebrity and television personality Scott Nevins will be appearing at Metropolitan Community Church (474 Ridge St., N.W.) tonight and Saturday at 8 p.m.
Nevins, who appears on truTV’s show, “The Smoking Gun Presents,” has worked with some of Hollywood’s biggest starts including Barry Manilow, Susan Lucci, Idina Menzel, Hal Sparks and more.
Nevins has been awarded an Out There award, was nominated for a HX Award and Glammy Award in 2004 and a MAC Award in 2007 and was chosen by “New York Magazine” in their “Best of New York” issue.
Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online at mccdc.com. Proceeds will benefit the outreach and service programs at MCC.
Gay Broadway star at the Birchmere Sunday
Original Broadway cast members of “Rent” Adam Pascal and openly gay Anthony Rapp play the Birchmere Music Hall (3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria) Sunday at 7:30 p.m.
Rapp, who came out when he was 18, originated the role of Mark Cohen, best friend and roommate of Pascal’s Roger Davis. He has also released a solo album, “Look Around,” and appeared in many theatre productions, TV shows and films including the film version of “Rent.”
Rapp has also written a memoir “Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and the Musical Rent,” which was released in 2006 and premiered as a show at the Pittsburgh City Theatre in 2008.
Tickets are $39.50 and available online at ticketmaster.com.
BALTIMORE BRIEFS:
Ball, screening among Alliance offerings
The Creative Alliance at the Patterson (3134 Eastern Ave.) has two events coming up this week.
On Saturday, the Patterson will be transformed into Wonderland for its “Alice in Wonderland”-themed 2012 Marquee Ball.
The ball begins with a preview dinner at 6 p.m. to honor arts lawyer, Scott Johnson with the Golden Formstone Award and Terry Rubenstein for her family’s lifetime achievements in the arts. The dance party begins at 9 p.m.
Tickets are $40 in advance for the party, $35 for CA members and $185 for the dinner.
On Thursday, the Alliance is screening the film “From the Back of the Room,” by D.C.-based director, Amy Oden, about women’s involvement in DIY punk featuring interviews by women like Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre, Allison Wolfe of Bratmobile and many more.
Tickets for the screening are $10, $5 for Alliance members. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. For more information on either events and to purchase tickets, visit creativealliance.org.
Fashion show tries alternate approach
The Maryland Institute College of Arts presents the 19th annual benefit fashion show Transcend on Saturday in the Brown Center in Falvey Hall (1301 W. Mount Royal Ave.) at 8 p.m.
The designers featured in the show were asked to go beyond the expected and their norm and audience members will be able to see the workings of their brains and the manifestations of their inner thoughts and aspirations.
After the show, everyone is invited to mix and mingle with the designers and view an exhibition of fashion-inspired photography, illustration and fiber arts, including fashion pictorials of the students’ designs captured by celebrity photographer Derek Blanks.
Tickets are $20 for general admission and $15 for students.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit mica.edu.
Gay group to hold tax program
The Maryland Corporate Council, a networking group for LGBT professionals, is hosting “Tax Wise,” an LGBT tax program for anyone who is or hopes to be partnered at the Inn at Henderson’s Wharf (1000 Fell St.) on Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m.
The program will feature a short presentation covering tax implications of LGBT relationships including joint property ownership and obtaining and protecting deductions, from Denise Dodson, the executive director at Ernst & Young Tax Practice.
Registration is free for members and $15 for guests.
For more information and to register, visit marylandcoporate.org.
Estate planning for LGBT residents planned
FreeState Legal Project is hosting “Will-Power Party: Estate Planning for the Rest of Us,” a workshop and pro bono assistance event at the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Community Center of Baltimore (241 W. Chase St.) on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m.
During the event, people in need of simple wills, powers of attorney and advance directives will be matched with attorneys and receive assistance in drafting their estate documents.
FreeState Legal Project is a group that advocates for the rights of low income LGBT individuals through direct legal services, education and community outreach in the Greater Baltimore region.
For more information, visit freestatelegal.org.
Italy
Olympics Pride House ‘really important for the community’
Italy lags behind other European countries in terms of LGBTQ rights
The four Italian advocacy groups behind the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics’ Pride House hope to use the games to highlight the lack of LGBTQ rights in their country.
Arcigay, CIG Arcigay Milano, Milano Pride, and Pride Sport Milano organized the Pride House that is located in Milan’s MEET Digital Culture Center. The Washington Blade on Feb. 5 interviewed Pride House Project Manager Joseph Naklé.
Naklé in 2020 founded Peacox Basket Milano, Italy’s only LGBTQ basketball team. He also carried the Olympic torch through Milan shortly before he spoke with the Blade. (“Heated Rivalry” stars Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie last month participated in the torch relay in Feltre, a town in Italy’s Veneto region.)
Naklé said the promotion of LGBTQ rights in Italy is “actually our main objective.”
ILGA-Europe in its Rainbow Map 2025 notes same-sex couples lack full marriage rights in Italy, and the country’s hate crimes law does not include sexual orientation or gender identity. Italy does ban discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, but the country’s nondiscrimination laws do not include gender identity.
ILGA-Europe has made the following recommendations “in order to improve the legal and policy situation of LGBTI people in Italy.”
• Marriage equality for same-sex couples
• Depathologization of trans identities
• Automatic co-parent recognition available for all couples
“We are not really known to be the most openly LGBT-friendly country,” Naklé told the Blade. “That’s why it (Pride House) was really important for the community.”
“We want to use the Olympic games — because there is a big media attention — and we want to use this media attention to raise the voice,” he added.
Naklé noted Pride House will host “talks and roundtables every night” during the games that will focus on a variety of topics that include transgender and nonbinary people in sports and AI. Another will focus on what Naklé described to the Blade as “the importance of political movements now to fight for our rights, especially in places such as Italy or the U.S. where we are going backwards, and not forwards.”
Seven LGBTQ Olympians — Italian swimmer Alex Di Giorgio, Canadian ice dancers Paul Poirier and Kaitlyn Weaver, Canadian figure skater Eric Radford, Spanish figure skater Javier Raya, Scottish ice dancer Lewis Gibson, and Irish field hockey and cricket player Nikki Symmons — are scheduled to participate in Pride House’s Out and Proud event on Feb. 14.
Pride House Los Angeles – West Hollywood representatives are expected to speak at Pride House on Feb. 21.
The event will include a screening of Mariano Furlani’s documentary about Pride House and LGBTQ inclusion in sports. The MiX International LGBTQ+ Film and Queer Culture Festival will screen later this year in Milan. Pride House Los Angeles – West Hollywood is also planning to show the film during the 2028 Summer Olympics.
Naklé also noted Pride House has launched an initiative that allows LGBTQ sports teams to partner with teams whose members are either migrants from African and Islamic countries or people with disabilities.
“The objective is to show that sports is the bridge between these communities,” he said.
Bisexual US skier wins gold
Naklé spoke with the Blade a day before the games opened. The Milan Cortina Winter Olympics will close on Feb. 22.
More than 40 openly LGBTQ athletes are competing in the games.
Breezy Johnson, an American alpine skier who identifies as bisexual, on Sunday won a gold medal in the women’s downhill. Amber Glenn, who identifies as bisexual and pansexual, on the same day helped the U.S. win a gold medal in team figure skating.
Glenn said she received threats on social media after she told reporters during a pre-Olympics press conference that LGBTQ Americans are having a “hard time” with the Trump-Vance administration in the White House. The Associated Press notes Glenn wore a Pride pin on her jacket during Sunday’s medal ceremony.
“I was disappointed because I’ve never had so many people wish me harm before, just for being me and speaking about being decent — human rights and decency,” said Glenn, according to the AP. “So that was really disappointing, and I do think it kind of lowered that excitement for this.”
Puerto Rico
Bad Bunny shares Super Bowl stage with Ricky Martin, Lady Gaga
Puerto Rican activist celebrates half time show
Bad Bunny on Sunday shared the stage with Ricky Martin and Lady Gaga at the Super Bowl halftime show in Santa Clara, Calif.
Martin came out as gay in 2010. Gaga, who headlined the 2017 Super Bowl halftime show, is bisexual. Bad Bunny has championed LGBTQ rights in his native Puerto Rico and elsewhere.
“Not only was a sophisticated political statement, but it was a celebration of who we are as Puerto Ricans,” Pedro Julio Serrano, president of the LGBTQ+ Federation of Puerto Rico, told the Washington Blade on Monday. “That includes us as LGBTQ+ people by including a ground-breaking superstar and legend, Ricky Martin singing an anti-colonial anthem and showcasing Young Miko, an up-and-coming star at La Casita. And, of course, having queer icon Lady Gaga sing salsa was the cherry on the top.”
La Casita is a house that Bad Bunny included in his residency in San Juan, the Puerto Rican capital, last year. He recreated it during the halftime show.
“His performance brought us together as Puerto Ricans, as Latin Americans, as Americans (from the Americas) and as human beings,” said Serrano. “He embraced his own words by showcasing, through his performance, that the ‘only thing more powerful than hate is love.’”
Drag artists perform for crowds in towns across Virginia. The photographer follows Gerryatrick, Shenandoah, Climaxx, Emerald Envy among others over eight months as they perform at venues in the Virginia towns of Staunton, Harrisonburg and Fredericksburg.
(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)
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