Arts & Entertainment

Calendar: June 15

Parties, events, concerts and more through June 21

Published

14 years ago

June 14, 2012

This weekend is the last to see gay photographer Tommie Adams’ work in a Ward 8 exhibit. Visit serenityplayers.org for details. (Photo courtesy Adams)

TODAY (Friday)

Whitman-Walker Health clinic is having HIV test at Beat the Streets (14^th and Saratoga, N.E.) today from 3:30-7:30 p.m. For more information, visit Whitman-walker.org.

Town (2009 8^th St., N.W.) hosts Bear Happy Hour tonight from 6-11 p.m. This event is 21 and older. There’s no cover charge. For details, visit towndc.com.

Grupo Fantasma is playing on Black Cat’s main stage (1811 14^th St. N.W.) tonight at 9. The group is considered one of the funkiest Latin orchestras in the U.S. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 at the door. For more information, visit blackcatdc.com.

Code is hosting its XXX: Anything Goes party tonight at The Crucible (16 M St., N.E.) at 10 p.m. The event is men only. Admission is $30. For details, visit codedc.com.

Ali Wong, SF Weekly’s “Best Comedian of 2009,” performs tonight at Riot Act Comedy Theater (801 E. St., N.W.) at 10:30 p.m. Admission is $12 -$20. For more information, visit riotcomedy.com.

Phase 1 (525 8^th St., S.E.) is hosting “Dance Party with DJ Staylo” tonight at

7:30. Admission is $10. For details, visit phase1dc.com.

Saturday, June 16

Burgundy Crescent, a gay volunteer organization, works with the Lost Dog & Cat Foundation at the Falls Church Petsmart (6100 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church, Va.) today at 11:45 a.m. For details, visit burgundycrescent.org.

Lambda Sci-Fi (2462 Tunlaw Rd., N.W.) hosts a post-Pride potluck video party featuring science fiction, fantasy and horror today at 3:30 p.m. Attendees are asked to bring favorite DVDs, food and non-alcoholic drinks to share. For more information, visit lambdascifi.org.

Tonight is the last opportunity to see gay photographer Tommie Adams’ work in his current exhibit, “Natural Light and the Male Nude,” this evening at 6 located in the ARCH Development Training Center (1231 Good Hope Rd., S.E.). Adams has been a photographer for10 years, and in the current exhibit, he explores how diversity and emotion that can be expressed by the male nude. This event is free. For more information, visit serenityplayers.org.

The play “9 Parts of Desire” is being performed tonight at the Davis Performing Arts Center (37^th and O St., N.W.) at 8 p.m. The piece delves into the lives of different Iraqi women. The event is free, but attendees must reserve tickets. For details, visit performingarts.georgetown.edu.

Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) hosts “Bare” tonight at 10, a ladies dance party featuring DJ Rosie and other invited guests. Cover is $7 before midnight and $10 after. For details, visit cobaltdc.com.

Green Lantern (1335 Green Court N.W.) is hosting “Ink & Scruff,” an underwear party showcasing sexy scruffy men with tattoos, tonight at 10. There’s a hot body contest, music by DJ Tone and drink specials during the event. For more information, visit greenlanterndc.com.

Club Hippo (1 West Eager St., Baltimore) holds a dance party in honor of Baltimore Pride tonight at 8. The event features DJ Escape and DJ Rosie. Admission is $10. For details, visit clubhippo.com.

Sunday, June 17

A free screening of the movie “Pariah,” by writer and director Dee Rees screens tonight at Busboys and Poets (4251 South Campbell Ave., Arlington) from 7-9 p.m. The film is about an African-American adolescent girl learning to embrace her identity as a lesbian. For details, visit busboysandpoets.com.

Today is the last chance to see “Flora and the Red Menace” at 1^st Stage Theater (1524 Spring Hill Rd., McLean, Va). There’s one showing at 3 p.m. and another at 7 p.m. Tickets are $30. For more information, visit 1ststagespringhill.org.

VF Dance Theater presents “Futurology,” a dance production that journeys into the year 3012, tonight at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) starting at 7:30. Tickets are $25. For details, visit kennedy-center.org.

Ladies Only Intro to Djing is tonight with DJs K La Rock and Junebullet at Black Cat (1811 14^th St. N.W.). Doors open at 8 and admission is $7. For more information, visit blackcatdc.com.

Monday, June 18

Comedian Neil Hamburger performs tonight at Black Cat (1811 14^th St. N.W.). Doors open at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12. For more information, visit blackcatdc.com.

D.C. Lambda Squares, the only square dancing club in D.C., hosts an open house tonight at National City Christian Church (5 Thomas Circle, N.W.) starting at 7 p.m. For details, visit dclambdasquares.org.

The School of Hawaiian Dance celebrates the Hawaii’s PA’I Foundation’s 35^th anniversary tonight at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) at 6 p.m. This event is free. For more information, visit kennedy-center.org.

Tuesday, June 19

The FUK!T packing party is tonight at Green Lantern (1335 Green Court N.W.) at 7 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to bring friends and see how many FUK!T or TOOLK!TS (safer sex kits) they can pack in two hours. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Arieb Azhar, a Pakistani singer/songwriter, performs at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) tonight at 6 p.m. This event is free. For details, visit kennedy-center.org.

Club Hippo (1 West Eager St., Baltimore) hosts Showtune Video Madness tonight at 8. For more information, visit clubhippo.com.

Wednesday, June 20

The Jewish Community Center (1529 16^th St., N.W.) hosts an ANC meeting on the safety of the Dupont Circle neighborhood this evening from 6:30-8:30 p.m. The event is free. For details, visit the dccenter.org.

The Tom Davoren Social Bridge Club meets tonight for social bridge at the Dignity Center (721 8^th St., S.E.) A partner is not needed. For more information, visit lambdabridge.com.

The Outlaw Roadshow featuring Counting Crows plays tonight at the Filene Center in Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Road, Vienna) at 7 p.m. Tickets range from $30-$48. For details, visit wolftrap.org.

Thursday, June 21

Whitman-Walker Health Clinic hosts HIV testing at Bachelor’s Mill (91104 8^th St., S.E.) tonight at 10:30 p.m. For more information, visit whitman-walker.org.

Two-time Grammy winner Diana Krall plays tonight at Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Road, Vienna) starting at 8 p.m. Krall, who became a professional jazz musician at age 15, is known for her slow smooth jazz. Tickets are $35. For details, visit wolftrap.org.

Chesapeake Squares, a gay square dancing group, holds an open house dance for members and non-members tonight at the Waxter Center (1000 Cathedral St., Baltimore) from 8-10 p.m. Cost is $8 for members and $10 for non-members. For more information, visit chesapeakesquares.org.

Hippo Club (1 West Eager St., Baltimore) is having its Hip-Hop Night featuring DJ Rosie tonight at 10. Admission is $6 before 11 p.m. and $8 after. For details, visit culbhippo.com.

Photos

PHOTOS: ‘ICE Out For Good’ Sunday protests

Northern Virginia demonstrations among nationwide protest

Published

3 hours ago

January 12, 2026

Michael Key

A demonstrator holds a sign with the photo of Renee Nicole Good. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

“ICE Out For Good” demonstrations were held in the Northern Virginia municipalities of Haymarket, Annandale and Arlington, among others, on Sunday, Jan. 12.

Nearly 1,200 similar actions were scheduled nationwide over the weekend, according to a statement from organizers.

Demonstrations in D.C. against ICE included a protest march on Friday and a march around the White House on Saturday.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

*Picketers stand along James Madison Highway near Heathcode Blvd. just outside of Haymarket, Va. on Sunday, Jan. 11.*

View on Threads

*Demonstrators in the ‘ICE Out For Good’ protests hold signs on an overpass over the Capital Beltway in Annandale, Va. on Jan. 11.*

View on Threads

*Demonstrators participating in the ICE Out For Good protests stand along Mount Vernon Ave. in Alexandria, Va.* on Jan. 11.

Theater

Ford’s ‘First Look’ festival showcases three new productions

A chance to enjoy historical dramas for free before they’re completed

Published

13 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Patrick Folliard

José Carrasquillo, director of Artistic Programming at Ford's Theatre (Photo by Paolo Andres Montenegro)

The Ford’s Theatre Legacy Commissions: A First Look – 2026
Jan. 16 & 17
Ford’s Theatre
511 Tenth St., N.W.
FREE
Fords.org

When Ford’s Theatre debuted its new plays festival, “A First Look,” in 2023, it was unclear whether people would come for the staged readings.

“Before the pandemic if you announced the reading of a play, 12 people might show up,” says José Carrasquillo, director of artistic programming at Ford’s Theatre. “Since then, we’ve experienced comparatively massive turnout. Maybe because it’s cheap, or because of the very newness of the works.”

This year’s fourth edition showcases readings of three pieces currently in varied stages of development. The free, two-day festival offers audiences a chance to encounter historical dramas long before they’re completed and fully produced. None are finished, nor have they been read publicly. And befitting the venue’s provenance, the works are steeped in history.

The festival kicks off with “Springs” by playwright Jeanne Sakata and directed by Jessica Kubzansky. Commissioned by The Ford’s Theatre Legacy Commissions, it’s the both epic and personal story of Sakata’s Japanese American family including her grandfather’s experience in an internment camp.

“Sakata’s immigrant grandfather was an exceptionally skilled farmer who helped to stave off starvation in the camp. Still, he never gave up on the idea that he belonged in America. It’s very much a story of today,” says Carrasquillo.

Unlike “Springs,” the festival’s two other works weren’t commissioned by Ford’s. But they both fit the history brief and likely will benefit from the exposure and workshopping.

“Providence Spring,” by California based playwright Richard Helesen and directed by Holly Twyford, portrays Clara Barton (played by local favorite Erin Weaver) as a hero beyond the Red Cross whose then-radical initiatives included cataloguing the Civil War dead, many pulled from mass graves.

Directed by Reginald L. Douglas, “Young John Lewis: Prodigy of Protest” explores a slice from the life of the legendary civil rights activist and longtime congressman. With book and lyrics by Psalmayene 24 and music by Kokayi this collaboratively staged reading between Ford’s and Mosaic Theater is slated to premiere fully produced at Mosaic as a 90-minute musical in the spring of 2026.

“When I was hired at Ford’s in 2018, we began discussing hiring writers who do historical drama,” says Carrasquillo. “Our intention was resolute, but we didn’t do it right away. It took getting through the pandemic to revisit the idea.”

At the same time, the racial reckoning spurred Ford’s to hire playwrights of color to tell stories that had previously been forgotten or ignored.

For Carrasquillo, who is gay, the impulse to commission was crystalized when he saw the film “Hidden Figures,” a true story about “three brilliant African-American women — at NASA during the Space Race, overcoming racial and gender discrimination to make crucial contributions to America’s spaceflight success.” He says, “the film floored me. How many stories like this are there that we don’t know about?”

One of the festival’s happiest experiences, he adds, was the commission of playwright Chess Jakobs’s “The American Five” and its subsequent success. It’s the story of Martin Luther King Jr. and his inner circle, including Bayard Rustin (MLK’s brilliant, unsung gay adviser) leading up to the 1963 March on Washington. The play later premiered fully produced in Ford’s 2025 season.

Increasingly, the readings at Ford’s have become popular with both artists and audiences.

At Ford’s, Carrasquillo wears many hats. In addition to selecting plays and organizing workshops, he serves as an in-house dramaturg for some of the nascent works. But he’s not alone. Also helming the festival are senior artistic advisor Sheldon Epps, and The Ford’s Theatre Legacy Commissions advisor Sydné Mahone.

Because the plays are in development, comments from directors, dramaturgs, and the audience are considered and may become part of the playwrights’ rewrites and changes. If and when the play resurfaces fully produced, audience members might find their suggestion in the completed work.

Is this year’s festival queer influenced? Yes, both by those involved and the topics explored.

Carrasquillo explains, “While Sakata’s “Springs” is primarily about immigration, its message is relevant to the queer community. Civil rights are being taken away from us. We need this playwright’s story to know what has happened and what can happen to any of us.

“Many of Ford’s legacy commissions underscore the importance of civil rights in our country and that’s important to all of us. Queer and not queer.”

Bars & Parties

Mid-Atlantic Leather kicks off this week

Parties, contests, vendor expo and more planned for annual gathering

Published

13 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Tinashe Chingarande

A scene from the 2025 Mr. Mid-Atlantic Leather competition. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The Mid-Atlantic Leather Weekend will begin on Thursday, Jan 15.

This is an annual three-day event in Washington, D.C., for the leather, kink, and LGBTQ+ communities, featuring parties, vendors, and contests.

There will be an opening night event hosted the evening of Thursday, Jan. 15. Full package and three-day pass pickup will take place at 5:30 p.m. at Hyatt Capitol B. There will also be “Kinetic Dance Party” at 10 p.m. at District Eagle.

For more details, visit MAL’s website.