Arts & Entertainment
Dance: Lords of the dance
Gay creative energy abounds in season’s visiting performance troupes

A promo still from ‘The Rambler,’ a performance by the Joe Goode Performance Group. Goode, a gay San Francisco-based artist, will be in Rockville this weekend for two performances — Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. at American Dance Institute (1570 E. Jefferson Street in Rockville). Visit americandance.org for details. (Photo courtesy Joe Goode Performance Group)
Last year at this time we were saying farewell to the famous D.C. Cowboys, but just because the Cowboys have performed their last dance doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of other important dance offerings in the region this spring. Many feature gay performers, gay themes or gay directors, so make sure to mark your calendar for your favorites.
Bowen McCauley Dance, led by dancer and choreographer Lucy Bowen McCauley performs at the Atlas Intersections Festival tonight at 10 p.m. at the Atlas Performing Arts Center (1333 H Street N.E.). This performance will combine dance and rock music and a live performance by Half Brother. On April 5-6, Bowen McCauley Dance performs at the Kennedy Center (2700 F Street N.W.) at 7:30 p.m. They will be celebrating the centennial anniversary of “Rite of Spring” and other pieces. Tickets range from $36-40.
On March 7-8, gay dancer and choreographer Helanius J. Wilkins performs his powerful piece “Closer” two final times at the Atlas Performing Arts Center (1333 H Street N.E.) as part of the Atlas Intersections Festival. In this piece, Wilkins navigates his way from questions to statements while exploring newfound realizations of dance. For more information visit hjwedgeworks.com.
David Burkholder is the artistic director of The Playground, which performs “The Chemistry of Lime Trees” at The Mead Theatre Lab @ Flashpoint (916 G Street N.W.) March 14-24. This piece explores the impact of real and perceived boundaries in our lives.
Gay helmed VT Dance/Vincent Thomas celebrates 10 years of dancing with VT Dance Looking Back, Moving Forward on March 16-17 at the Theatre Project Baltimore (45 W Preston Street, Baltimore). For more information visit www.theatreproject.org.
From March 20-24, The Washington Ballet performs “Cinderella.” which combines magnificent beauty with ravishing costumes in the retelling of this classic romance. This piece is choreographed by gay director and choreographer Septime Webre and will take place at the Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theatre (2700 F Street N.W.). Tickets are available starting at $25.
The New York City Ballet performs at The Kennedy Center Opera House March 26-31. The company will dance two signature mixed reparatory programs accompanied by the New York City Ballet Orchestra. For more information or tickets go to kennedy-center.org.
At Dance Place (3225 8th Street N.E.) on April 6-7, Abraham.In.Motion performs Pavements, which is “Boyz in the Hood” re-imagined as a dance work investigating the state of black America.
On April 13, gay choreographer Dana Tai Soon Burgess and his company dance at Episcopal High School (1200 North Quaker Lane, Alexandria Va).
The 2013/2014 season marks the 10th anniversary season for the gay lead dance outfit Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Dance Company. On April 13 and 14 they perform a mixed show of Sokolow work, classical Indian dance and fusion at Dance Place (3225 8th Street N.E.).
On May 3-5 at the Davis Performing Arts Center at Georgetown University (3700 O Street N.W.) Derek Goldman presents “Once Wild: Isadora in Russia” written by gay award-winning playwright Norman Allen and choreographed by Cynthia Word. This progressive multidisciplinary production offers a bold new vision of Isadora Duncan. For tickets or more information go to performingarts.georgetown.edu.
From May 8-12 the Washington Ballet performs Septime Webre’s newest exploration into American literature with Heminway’s “The Sun Also Rises.” Tickets start at $25 for this Kennedy Center performance. For more information on to purchase tickets visit kennedy-center.org.
The Washington Ballet also performs “Peter and the Wolf” at the THEARC Theater May 18-19. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit thearcdc.org.
Gay choreographer and artistic director Josh Beamish of Move presents “Pierced” at the American Dance Institute (1570 East Jefferson St, Rockville) May 18-19.
Edgeworks Dance Theater, lead by openly gay choreographer Helanius J. Wilkins, returns to the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center (2700 F Street NW) on June 3. This predominately African-American Dance Company will dance a mixed repertory program featuring signature and new works.
Dance Place (3225 8th Street N.E.) has many additional offerings throughout the spring including Revision Dance Company, Karen Sherman and Idan Cohen among others. For more information and a full listing of performances visit danceplace.org
The D.C. Lambda Squares, an LGBT square dance/social club, has numerous square dance events and class sessions coming up this spring including a community dance on March 9 with a Mardi Gras theme. Monday night beginner classes continue until May 20 from 7:30-9 p.m.
Sports
Jason Collins dies at 47
First openly gay man to actively play for major sports team battled brain cancer
Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to actively play for a major professional sports team, died on Tuesday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 47.
The California native had briefly played for the Washington Wizards in 2013 before coming out in a Sports Illustrated op-ed.
Collins in 2014 became the first openly gay man to play in a game for a major American professional sports league when he played 11 minutes during a Brooklyn Nets game. He wore jersey number 98 in honor of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered outside of Laramie, Wyo., in 1998.
Collins told the Washington Blade in 2014 that his life was “exponentially better” since he came out. Collins the same year retired from the National Basketball Association after 13 seasons.
Collins married his husband, Brunson Green, in May 2025.
The NBA last September announced Collins had begun treatment for a brain tumor. Collins on Dec. 11, 2025, announced he had Stage 4 glioblastoma.
“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” said Collins’s family in a statement the NBA released. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Collins’s “impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA, and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations.”
“He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador,” said Silver. “Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers, but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”
“To call Jason Collins a groundbreaking figure for our community is simply inadequate. We truly lost a giant today,” added Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “He came out as gay — while still playing — at a time when men’s athletes simply did not do that. But as he powerfully demonstrated in his final years in the league and his post-NBA career, stepping forward as he did boldly changed the conversation.”
“He was and will always be a legend for the LGBTQ+ community, and we are heartbroken to hear of his passing at the young age of 47,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We will keep fighting on in his honor until the day everyone can be who they are on their terms.”
The Washington Blade will update this article with additional reaction when it becomes available.
Glitterati Productions held the “Studio 69” party at Bunker on Friday, May 8.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Arts & Entertainment
Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier returns June 13 to kick off D.C. Pride week
Pride on the Pier officially launches Pride Week in D.C.
The Washington Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier celebration returns to The Wharf on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 4-9 p.m., bringing thousands of LGBTQ community members and allies together for an unforgettable waterfront celebration to kick off Pride week in Washington, D.C.
Now in its eighth year, Washington Blade Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Wharf waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older.
“Pride on the Pier has become one of the signature moments of Pride in D.C.,” said Lynne Brown, publisher of the Washington Blade. “There’s nothing like watching our community come together on the waterfront with live music and incredible energy as we kick off Pride week.”
Pride on the Pier is free and open to the public, with VIP tickets available for exclusive pier access to the Dockmaster Building. To purchase VIP tickets visit www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip.
Additional entertainment announcements, sponsor activations, and event details will be released in the coming weeks.
Event Details:
📍 Location: District Pier at The Wharf (101 District Sq SW, Washington, DC)
📅 Dates: Friday, 13, 2026
⏱️ 4-9PM
🎟️ VIP Tickets: www.PrideOnThePierDC.com/VIP

