Arts & Entertainment
Queery: Alex Mills
The Synetic ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ lead answers 20 gay questions
Alex Mills (Blade photo by Michael Key)
Alex Mills is in the midst of a heinously busy day. It’s after 11 p.m. and he’s been in heavy-duty tech rehearsals since 5:30. After we get off the phone, he’s going back for another 90 minutes or so. It’s all part of the grueling process of getting a show on its feet.
Mills plays the title role in “Jekyll & Hyde,” the latest movement-based extravaganza from Arlington’s Synetic Theater where Mills has been in several shows since 2008. It started when he took a year off from college overwhelmed by the daunting Boston University tuition price. A friend suggested he check out Synetic. He did, got a callback and is now one of the innovative theater’s senior company members.
If the roster there seems rather insular, he says it’s out of necessity. The grueling physical training regimen its visionaries — Paata and Irina Tsikurishvilli — put their players through means other actors in the region not steeped in the Synetic tradition could get up to speed fast enough for a single show. Synetic members commit to one show a year and staying up to date with their training sessions. Mills is just starting to branch out some — look for him at Studio and Signature in the coming year.
But is the all-consuming nature of the work at Synetic too overwhelming after a few years?
“Doing these shows is so fulfilling,” the 23-year-old Fredericksburg, Va., native says. “There’s such a sense of ownership in the worl, it’s sort of my spiritual outlet as well. It’s what fills me up. A lot of the actors say after they haven’t been doing a show for a month or so, that they feel so empty … we’re very close. We talk about everything and no each other so intimately. They’re the closest people in my life.”
“Jekyll & Hyde” is in previews now and opens officially Thursday and runs through Oct. 21. Visit synetictheater.org for details.
Mills, who’s single, says he has few interests outside theater. He was crashing with a friend recently but just moved to Bloomingdale.
How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?
I came out when I was 21 so I guess that makes it about a year and a half for me. The hardest person to tell (and by hard I don’t mean in any way hard due to repercussions or any fear of not being accepted) was my mom. I think for most guys coming out the first significant person in your life you tell, whether it be friends or family, is always the hardest because its like “There’s no going back now!”
Who’s your LGBT hero?
Anderson Cooper. I admire him for his professionalism and the fact that him being gay is not something that he even feels he has to explain to people. He is what he is and lives his life.
What’s Washington’s best nightspot, past or present?
I’m probably the worst person to ask this to because I am so not in the scene. Being in theater, I would say wherever the cast of a large play or musical goes to is going to be the best nightspot you could find. It’s a free show.
Describe your dream wedding.
I actually don’t have a fully fleshed out idea of what I would want but it would be small, probably on the beach with close friends and family. Or on Mars; the landing of this rover has really got me thinking.
What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about?
Women’s rights. Legitimate rape? Come on. It’s amazing how these people come into power.
What historical outcome would you change?
Luke Skywalker going to the Dark Side.
What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime?
The whole era of Britney Spears going crazy.
On what do you insist?
Be able to laugh at yourself.
What was your last Facebook post or Tweet?
Dear God, Ryan and I tackled him moving in like a couple of coke heads with a mission; shazamablama!
If your life were a book, what would the title be?
“Makin’ it Work; somehow”
If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do?
That’s a thought I don’t even want to entertain. I’d be afraid it’d turn into an “X-Men 3”-type situation.
What do you believe in beyond the physical world?
I wouldn’t say I believe in something beyond the physical world, necessarily, but I do like to think and hope that there’s some energy out there that directs us or at least collects us at the end.
What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders?
Be strong and patient.
What would you walk across hot coals for?
My friends and family.
What LGBT stereotype annoys you most?
That we are all super coiffed at all times.
What’s your favorite LGBT movie?
“Were the World Mine.” I saw it during the time when I was in rehearsals for a “Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
What’s the most overrated social custom?
Having to keep conversation with people when you don’t want to.
What trophy or prize do you most covet?
I want an Olympic medal so bad. Ideally, in gymnastics, but that ship has sailed.
What do you wish you’d known at 18?
That coming out doesn’t make the slightest difference in the world, at least in my life with the people I’m surrounded by.
Why Washington?
It was never a choice for me, I started working up here with Synetic Theater when I was 19 and I’ve been trucking along ever since. I love the community, and the fact that D.C. is totally manageable and not overwhelming. And it just fits, at least for right now in my life.
Celebrity News
Fashion icon Bob Mackie dead at 87
Designing legend to all the divas, gone but not forgotten
To those still reeling from the loss of Dolly Parton and Tim Curry, we have another queer icon to add to the In Memoriam of 2026: Bob Mackie. A designer known for being extra, before that was even a thing, has left us with a legacy of looks and an indelible mark on fashion.
The news broke on his Instagram account Monday, Sept. 14, with the message:
“It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that Mr. Bob Mackie passed away today. He lived his 87 years to the fullest, fulfilling his dream of being a fashion and costume designer, which is all he ever wanted to do. His genius and extraordinary designs will live on forever, continuing to bring beauty into this world.” According to People magazine, he passed away in Palm Springs, Calif., due to pneumonia.
At 87, Mackie is the definitive designer for divas. Mackie has literally dressed them all, including Diana Ross, Whitney Houston, Barbara Streisand, Dolly Parton, Tina Turner, Bette Midler, Bernadette Peters, and even RuPaul. He’s dressed film and television icons like Raquel Welch, Lynda Carter, Goldie Hawn, and Jennifer Lopez. It’s not just female divas; he’s also done many of Elton John’s famous costumes as well as David Bowie’s.
His first major mark was drawing the first design of Marilyn Monroe’s famous “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” dress. Next, he was an assistant to costume designer Ray Aghayan on “The Judy Garland Show.” The two would carry on a professional and romantic partnership for 50 years until Aghayan’s passing in 2011.
Mackie then went on to do all of the costumes for “The Carol Burnett Show,” creating an estimated 17,000 costumes for her show’s 11-year run. This gave him much critical acclaim and notoriety, making him a permanent fixture in the variety show market.
He became a frequent collaborator of Cher, having made her famous midriff-revealing Oscar gown, her “If I Could Turn Back Time” costume, and being her designer for her various television shows, including “The Sonny and Cher Show.” He even designed costumes for her Farewell Tour. The two are synonymous with him having lent his artistic sensibilities to give her a distinct look. Cher even said in 2024, “He helped me create a different me.”
Mackie has left his mark on fashion with a distinct style of glamorous, over-the-top looks. He received the monikers the “Sultan of Sequins,” the “Rajah of Rhinestones,” and the “Guru of Glitter” for challenging the line between costume and fashion with lots of fringe, flash, and over-the-top eye-catching elements. He’s managed to retain a presence not just in entertainment but in the fashion industry for decades. Most recently, one of his outfits was a major plot point for the final season of “Hacks.”
Mackie has received his share of awards and acknowledgments. In addition to dressing many people for the Oscars, he received three nominations, including dressing Diana Ross for “Lady Sings the Blues.” He won a Tony Award for “The Cher Show.” He won nine Emmy Awards and received 30 nominations for his prolific television work.
Luckily, Mackie’s life was celebrated before his passing, receiving various Lifetime achievement awards including the Geoffrey Beene CFDA Lifetime Achievement Award, being honored by the Television Hall of Fame, and receiving “RuPaul’s Drag Race”‘s Giving Us Life-time Achievement Award. He was the first guest judge on the popular series.
It’s clear that not only was Mackie talented, he was magical. He gave a bit of stardust to countless celebrities, luminaries, and public figures with looks that not only defied expectations but managed to be truly spectacular. He’s part of the glitz we think of when we think of Hollywood, and while often elaborate costumes, the shrewd fashion sense and elegance cannot be denied. Mackie will be missed, but his work lives on in the countless pieces still in circulation and forever captured on film and in media.
The 29th annual SMYAL Fall Brunch was held at the Marriott Marquis on Sunday, Sept. 13.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Books
Dolly Parton biography puts her hardships into context
‘Ain’t Nobody’s Fool’ a highly researched tome not to be missed
‘Ain’t Nobody’s Fool: The Life and Times of Dolly Parton’
By Martha Ackmann
c.2026, St. Martin’s Press
$30/304 pages
Not too bright.
That’s what people once thought about you. Your language didn’t conform, you had your own sense of style, and you were ignorant about modern things and places and foods. But you were no dummy. You were different, and you had a secret: as in the new biography, “Ain’t Nobody’s Fool: The Life and Times of Dolly Parton” by Martha Ackmann, you knew exactly where you were going.
When Avie Lee Owens and Lee Parton first married, they had the very basics: “two knives, two forks, two spoons, a skillet, a butcher knife, and an old iron kettle.” He was 17; she was 15. Babies came quick. The fourth one was named Dolly, after two great-aunts.
Almost from the time she could walk, Dolly sang. Before she was old enough to attend school, she wrote poetry, and she’d begun to notice rhythms and beats she could make with her fingers. As a schoolchild, she created her own musical instruments out of scraps, and she was eager to perform whenever anyone asked her – and they asked often, because Dolly Parton was a nice girl, and her sense of humor conveyed a warmth that drew people in.
Growing up in the Tennessee mountains, Parton was independent, shunning marriage and child-raising, instead focusing on a dream of being a star. By the time she was in high school, she’d had a regular gig on local television but she recognized that there were few opportunities for fame in the mountains, so she left for Nashville the day after high school graduation, with the snickers of naysayers ringing in her ears.
She stayed with an aunt and uncle there, and she beat the streets, dined on grocery store samples to get by, and missed her family and friends. And they worried about her, but they knew nothing would derail her plans. They knew Dolly would be fine.
As a friend said, “’She had her head on pretty good.’”
Chances are that if you’ve listened to music any time in the last 60 years, you’ve heard Dolly Parton through her words or her music or both. Now you need to learn more about her, and “Ain’t Nobody’s Fool” is where to do it.
Here’s a biography that grabs you on the first page with the tiniest bit of family tree, but not so much that you get bored with it. Author Martha Ackmann writes about Dolly Parton’s early life, putting hardships and experiences in context, both personally and historically. There are name-drops, but not overly so, as Ackmann takes you through Parton’s career, her heartbreaks, her marriage, and her years with Porter Wagoner, in detail but not dramatically embellished or outrageously told. It’s a biography that’s just right, sourced well and written with a fresh take that, like its subject, tells a good story.
Fans, of course, will want this highly researched book but music lovers of any age or type will eat it up. That means you, so use up that Christmas gift certificate. “Ain’t Nobody’s Fool” just shines.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.
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Historiography with heart
