Arts & Entertainment

Calendar: June 29

Parties, concerts, meetings and more through July 5

Published

14 years ago

June 28, 2012

The Waverly Street Gallery in Bethesda exhibits abstract paintings, including ‘Illumination’ by local artist Audrey Salkind. (Image courtesy Waverly)

Today (Friday)

Town hosts Bear Happy Hour (2009 8th St., N.W.) tonight from 6-11 p.m. Admission is free and limited to guests 21 and over. For details, visit towndc.com.

Jazz and Soul musician Anita King performs tonight at the Black Fox Lounge (1723 Connecticut Ave. N.W.) from 9 p.m.-12 a.m. Tickets are $10. For more information, visit blackfoxlounge.com.

Whitman-Walker Health provides HIV Testing at Walgreens (4225 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) today from 3-7 p.m. for National HIV Testing Day. For more information, visit whitman-walker.org.

Burgundy Crescent, a gay volunteer organization, helps the NAMES Project Foundation display the AIDS Memorial Quilt at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall. For more information, visit burgundycrescent.org.

The Smithsonian Folklife Festival hosts an evening concert in partnership with the National Museum of African American History and Culture, The Music of Monticello and the Blue Ridge, tonight in the Panorama Room on 12th Street on the National Mall from 6-8 p.m. For details, visit festival.si.edu.

Saturday, June 30

The Black Cat (1811 14th St., N.W.) hosts Hellmouth Happy Hour tonight from 7-8:30 p.m. One episode of the gay cult classic series, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” screens and a drink special is served. Admission is free. Visit blackcatdc.com for details.

DJ Escape spins tonight at Town (2009 8^th St., N.W.). Doors open at 10 p.m. and the drag show starts at 10:30. Tickets are $8 from 10-11 p.m. and $10 after 11, and $3 drinks will be served until 11. For more details, visit towndc.com.

Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) hosts its monthly “Raw” party tonight with DJs Shea Van Horn and Bill Todd. Raw celebrates retro gay bars, bathhouses and discos. Guests are encouraged to sport glam, leather, fetish and retro gay-inspired dress. Free rail vodka drinks are served from 10-11 p.m. For details, visit cobaltdc.com.

Sunday, July 1

Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) hosts Homowood Karaoke with songs from film and show tunes tonight starting at 10 p.m. For more information, visit cobaltdc.com.

Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play, written by Anne Washburn and directed by Steven Cosson, has its last shows of the season today at the Woolly Mammoth Theater (641 D St., N.W.) at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. The play is about a group of Armageddon survivors who theatrically recreate their lost digital culture. Ticket prices start at $30. For more details, visit woollymammoth.net.

Strathmore Music Hall (5301 Tuckerman Lane North Bethesda, MD) presents Serenade! Festival Celebration this afternoon at 4 p.m. The performances feature international choir participants who performed in the 2012 Serenade! Washington, DC Choral Festival. Admission is free. Visit strathmore.org for more information.

Adventuring, a gay and lesbian outdoor group, has its Three Forts Ride today from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The 33.6-mile bike ride begins at Belle Haven Marina’s North Parking area off Mt. Vernon Parkway, and riders will pass by a Civil War fort and 20th century fort. Participants should bring a helmet, water and a $2 donation to Adventuring. To RSVP, contact [email protected] or 571-269-0290. For more information, visit adventuring.org.

The Smithsonian Folklife Festival features Hungarian Roma Music with Kálmán Balogh tonight on the Justin S. Morrill Performing Arts Center stage on the National Mall from 6-7:30 p.m. Admission is free. For details, visit festival.si.edu.

Monday, July 2

La-Ti-Do DC, a weekly cabaret series hosted by spoken word artist Regie Cabico and actor DonMike Mendoza, is at the Black Fox Lounge (1723 Connecticut Ave. N.W.) from 8-10 p.m. tonight. Admission is $10 and includes one house drink. For more information, visit blackfoxlounge.com.

Whitman-Walker Health (1701 14th St., N.W.) hosts an HIV+ Newly Diagnosed Support Group tonight from 7-8:30 p.m. The group is confidential, and open to people of all genders and sexual orientations. Registration is required, so visit whitman-walker.org or contact [email protected] if interested.

The D.C. Center (1318 U St., NW) for the LGBT Community has a volunteer night from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Activities may include sorting through book donations, cleaning up around the center and taking inventory of FUK!T packets. Pizza will be provided. Visit thedccenter.org for more information.

Tuesday, July 3

The Julie Mack Trio, a Jazz group, performs tonight at the Black Fox Lounge (1723 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) from 8-11 p.m. Admission is $10. For more details, visit blackfoxlounge.com.

Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) hosts Flashback, a retro dance party with DJ Jason Royce, this evening for guests 21 and over. Admission is free. For more details, visit cobaltdc.com.

Wednesday, July 4

Burgundy Crescent, a gay volunteer organization, seeks volunteer “balloon wranglers” for this year’s Independence Day Parade from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. The parade runs from 7^th St. to 17^th St., NW on Constitution Ave., and each Burgundy Crescent volunteer will receive a free parade T-shirt. To volunteer, contact [email protected] and visit burgundycrescent.org for more information.

Adventuring, a gay and lesbian outdoor group, hikes Great Falls, Md. today. Hikers meet at 9 a.m. at the Tenleytown Metro station and then carpool to the Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center for a five-mile hike. Bring water, bug spray, sunscreen and $5-7 for transportation fees. For more information, visit adventuring.org.

The Waverly Street Gallery (4600 East-West Hwy, Bethesda, Md.) exhibits abstract paintings in “From My Perspective” by local artist Audrey Salkind from 12-6 p.m. today. For more information, visit waverlystreetgallery.com.

Thursday, July 5

Whitman-Walker Health (1701 14^th St., N.W.) hosts a support group for gay men over 50 tonight from 6:30-8 p.m. Registration is required to attend, so visit whitman-walker.org or contact [email protected] if interested.

Phase 1 (525 8^th St., S.E.) hosts karaoke tonight from 7:30 p.m.-2 a.m. For details, visit phase1dc.com.

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (200 N. Boulevard, Richmond, Va.) hosts Visions of France: Three Postwar Photographers, an exhibition that features street photography of Paris, today from 10 a.m.-9 p.m. The exhibit closes after Sunday, July 8. For more information, visit vmfa.museum.

Photos

PHOTOS: Capital Stonewall Democrats 50th anniversary

D.C. LGBTQ political group celebrates milestone at Pepco Edison Place Gallery

Published

1 day ago

March 23, 2026

Michael Key

The Capital Stonewall Democrats 50th Anniversary is held at Pepco Edison Place Gallery on Friday, March 20. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Capital Stonewall Democrats held a 50th anniversary celebration at Pepco Edison Place Gallery on Friday. Rayceen Pendarvis served as the emcee.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

Theater

‘Inherit the Wind’ isn’t about science vs. religion, but the right to think

Holly Twyford on new role and importance of listening to different opinions

Published

2 days ago

March 22, 2026

Patrick Folliard

Holly Twyford

‘Inherit the Wind’
Through April 5
Arena Stage
1101 Sixth St., S.W.
Tickets start at $73
Arenastage.org

When “Inherit the Wind” premiered on Broadway in 1955 with a cast of 50, its fictional setting of Hillsboro, an obscure country town described as the buckle on the Bible Belt, was filled with townspeople. And now at Arena Stage, director Ryan Guzzo Purcell has somehow crowded Arena’s large Fichandler space with just 10 actors, five principals and a delightful ensemble of five playing multiple roles.

Inspired by the real-life Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925, Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee’s fictionalized work pits intellectual freedom against McCarthyism via the imagined trial of Bertram Cates (Noah Plomgren), a Tennessee educator charged with teaching evolution. Drawn into the fracas are big shot lawyers, defense attorney Henry Drummond (Billy Eugene Jones), and conservative prosecutor, Matthew Harrison Brady (Dakin Matthew). On hand to cover the closely watched story is wisecracking city slicker and Baltimore reporter E.K. Horneck (played by nonbinary actor Alyssa Keegan).

Out actor Holly Twyford, a four-time Helen Hayes Award winner who has appeared in more than 80 Washington area plays, is part of the ensemble. In jeans and boots, she memorably plays Meeker, the bailiff at the Hillsboro courthouse and the jailer responsible for holding Cates in the days leading to his trial.

Twyford also plays Sillers, a slack jawed earnest employee at the local feed store who’s called to serve on the jury. And more importantly she plays Brady’s quietly strong wife Sarah whom he affectionately calls “Mother.”

When Twyford makes her memorable first entrance as Meeker, she’s wiping shaving cream from her face with a hand towel. With shades of Mayberry R.F.D., the jail is run casually. Meeker says Cates isn’t the criminal type, and he’s not.

“There’s a joke among actors,” says Twyford. “When an actor gets his shoes, they know who their character is. And it’s sort of true. When you put on boots, heels, or flip flops, there’s a different feeling, and you walk differently.”

Similarly, shares Twyford, it goes for clothes too: “When Mother slips a pink coat dress over her cowboy boots, dons a little hat and ties her scarf, or Meeker puts on his work shirt, I know where I am. And all of that is thanks to a remarkable wardrobe crew.

“Additionally, some of the ensemble characters are played broadly which is helpful to the actors and super identifying for the audience too.”

During intermission, an audience member loudly described the production as “a proper play” filled with beautifully written passages. And it’s true. Twyford agrees, adding “That’s all true, and it’s also been was fun for us to be a part of the Arena legacy as well. Arena took ‘Inherit the Wind’ to the Soviet Union in the early ‘70s when the respective governments did a cultural exchange. At the time, the iron curtain was very much in place, and they traveled with a play about a man with his own thoughts.”

When the ensemble was cast, actors didn’t know which tracts exactly they were going to play. “What came together was a cast, diverse in different ways. Some directors, including myself when I direct, are interested in assembling a cast that’s a good group. No time for egos. It’s more about who will make the best group to help me tell this story.”

At one point during rehearsal, ensemble members began to help one another with minor onstage costume changes, like jackets and hats: “We just started doing it and Ryan [Guzzo Purcell] picked up on it, saying things really began to come alive when we helped each other, so we went with that.”

“For me, it was reminiscent of ‘The Laramie Project’ [Ford’s Theatre in 2013] when we played five different parts and we’d help each other with a vest or jacket in a similar way. It worked so well then too,” says Twyford.

“Inherit the Wind” isn’t about science versus religion. It’s about the right to think, playwright Jerome Lawrrence has been quoted as saying. And it’s a quote that makes the play that much more relevant today.

Twford remembers a chat in a hair salon: “I was getting my hair cut and the woman next to me shared that she was tired of message plays. Understandably there are theater makers who believe that message plays are the point, while others think it’s all about entertainment. I feel like ‘Inherit the Wind’ sits in a nice place in the middle.”

She adds “the work is a creative way of showing different opinions and that, I think, is what we should be paying attention to right now. Clearly, it’s not right or wrong to express what you think.”

Out & About

‘How We Survived’ panel set for March 25

‘Living History’ discussion to be held at Spark Social

Published

3 days ago

March 21, 2026

Tinashe Chingarande

Local activist Earline Budd will serve on a panel discussion titled, ‘Part One, Living History: How We Survived.’ (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Friends of Dorothy Cafe will host “Part One, Living History: How We Survived,” will take place on Wednesday, March 25 at 7:30 p.m. at Spark Social House.

This event will be moderated by Abby Stuckrath, host of the “Queering the District” podcast. Panelists include: Earline Budd, activist, trans rights advocate; TJ Flavell of Go Gay DC; DC LGBTQ+ Center Board Member David Bissette; and Alexa Rodriguez, founder and executive director, Trans-Latinx DMV.

This event is part of a four-part storytelling series called “Living History,” which centers LGBTQ elders, activists, artists, and icons sharing their lived experiences and reflections with younger generations. The conversations explore themes like resilience, community organizing, chosen family, and the lessons earlier generations hope today’s LGBTQ+ and ally communities will carry forward.