Arts & Entertainment

Calendar through September 26

Events through Sept. 26

Published

12 years ago

September 19, 2013

Filmmaker and transgender advocate Buck Angel will be at Secret Pleasures on Wednesday for a workshop on gender and sexuality. (Photo courtesy Secret Pleasures)

Friday, Sept. 20

DJ Joe Gauthreaux spins at Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) tonight. Free rail vodka drinks from 11 p.m.-midnight. Cover is $10. Admission is 21 and up. For more information, visit cobaltdc.com.

Town (2009 8th St., N.W.) hosts Bear Happy Hour tonight from 6-11 p.m. There is no cover charge and admission is limited to guests 21 and over. For more information, visit towndc.com.

Gay District meets at The D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) tonight from 8:30-9:30 p.m. The facilitated group discussion covers building understanding of gay culture and personal identity and awareness of community events for LGBT men between the ages of 18 and 35 in the D.C. area. For more details, visit thedccenter.org or gaydistrict.org.

SMYAL hosts “Vogue Night” (410 7th St., S.E.) tonight from 5-7 p.m. Learn the art of voguing and practice your moves at this event designed especially for youth. For more information, visit smyal.org.

Saturday, Sept. 21

Burgundy Crescent, a gay volunteer organization, volunteers for the Lost Dog and Cat Foundation at PetSmart (6100 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church, Va.,) from 11:45 a.m.-3 p.m. today. For more information visit burgundycrescent.org.

The Library of Congress holds its 2013 National Book Festival on the National Mall (10th St., N.W. and Constitution Ave., N.W.) today from 10 a.m.- 5p.m. and Sunday from noon-5:30 p.m. Have books signed and meet best selling authors including the Food Network’s Giada De Laurentiis, co-host of “Today” Hoda Kotb and author of “The Kite Runner” Khaled Hosseini. For details, visit loc.gov/bookfest.

Wolf Trap Ball and the Embassy of France host “Joie de Vivre” on the Filene Center Stage (1645 Trap Road, Vienna, Va.,) tonight at 7 p.m. Honorary hosts include Speaker of the House John Boehner, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Ambassador of France François Delattre. Proceeds benefit Wolf Trap Foundation’s arts and education programs. RSVP required to [email protected]. For more information, visit wolftrap.org.

Layla Lounge (501 Morse St., N.E.) hosts an “Elite Boyz” dance party tonight from 10 p.m.-3 a.m. Admission is limited to guests 21 and over and is free before midnight and $10 afterward. For more information, visit layladc.com.

Sunday, Sept. 22

Black Fox Lounge (1723 Connecticut Ave. N.W.) hosts “Tula’s Drag Cabaret Show,” a lip-synch performance by local drag performers, tonight from 8-11 p.m. Admission is free. For details, visit blackfoxlounge.com or call 202-482-1723.

Perry’s (1811 Columbia Rd., N.W.) hosts its weekly “Sunday Drag Brunch” today from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The cost is $24.95 for an all-you-can-eat buffet. For more details, visit perrysadamsmorgan.com.

Rainbow Families D.C. hosts a family picnic at Meadowbrook Park (7901 Meadowbrook Lane, Chevy Chase, Md.,) today from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Activities and games for both kids and adults. Bring own picnic lunch and snack or dessert to share. For details, visit thedccenter.org.

Adventuring, an LGBT outdoors group, hosts a Fall Equinox Night Hike through Old Rag today at 1:15 a.m. to watch the sunrise at 7 a.m. Meet at the East Falls Church Kiss and Ride lot at 1:15 a.m. Hike begins at 3:30 a.m. Cost is $25. Bring a head lamp, beverages, bug spray, sturdy boots and gloves. For experienced hikers only. For more information, visit adventuring.org.

Gay author Manil Suri will read selections from his novel “The City of Devi” today at 12:55 p.m. at the National Book Festival on the National Mall. Details at loc.gov/bookfest. Also look for him on Sept. 27 at 4:30 p.m. at George Mason University’s “Fall For the Book Festival” in Fairfax. Details at fallforthebook.org.

Monday, Sept. 23

D.C. celebrates its first “Bi Pride Day” in the first floor conference room at The Residence at Thomas Circle (1330 Massachusetts Ave., N.W.) today from 6:30-8 p.m. The program includes a panel discussion with two elders in the D.C. bisexual community. Refreshments served. Open to the public. For more details, email [email protected].

Dotgay LLC hosts a town hall discussion and reception about using the domain .gay on the fourth floor of the NGLCC Supplier Innovation Center (729 15th St., N.W.) from 6-8:30 p.m. tonight. Topics include new opportunities .gay will create for the community, community funding initiatives and more. Featured speaker is CEO and co-founder of dotgay LLC Scott Seitz. Event is free. Refreshments provided. Dress casual. Please RSVP to [email protected]. For more details, visit facebook.com/dotgaycom.

The Mankind Project has a “Special GBTQ New Warrior Training Adventure” tonight from 7:30-9:30 p.m. at Cedar Lane Unitarian Church (rooms 30-31) at 9601 Cedar Lane in Bethesda. It’s free.

Tuesday, Sept. 24

SMYAL (410 7th St., S.E.) provides free and confidential HIV testing drop-in hours today from 3-5 p.m. For more information, visit smyal.org.

Bachelor’s Mill (1104 8th St., S.E.) offers all drinks half price tonight until 2 a.m. Enjoy pool, video games and cards. Admission is free. Must be 21 and over. For more details, visit bachelorsmill.com.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation hosts free STD testing at the University Medical Building (2141 K St., N.W.) from 5-7:30 p.m. For details visit freestdcheck.org.

Wednesday, Sept. 25

The Lambda Bridge Club meets tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Dignity Center (721 8th St., S.E.) for duplicate bridge. No reservations required and new comers welcome. If you need a partner, call 703-407-6540.

Secret Pleasures hosts “Sexing the Transman with Buck Angel” tonight at 7 p.m. Includes interviews with trans men and people who love trans men. Cost is $25. For more information or to buy tickets, visit secretpleasuresboutique.com.

The D.C. Ambassadors of the Trevor Project have a “cocktails and conversation” event this evening from 6-8 p.m. at 9½, the upstairs video bar of Number Nine (1435 P Street, N.W.). Drinks are two-for-one. A $10 donation is suggested. Attendees will discuss the Trevor Project’s “Talk to Me” campaign as it relate to LGBT youth in connection with National Suicide Prevention Month.

Thursday, Sept. 26

Gays and Lesbians Opposing Violence (GLOV) hosts its monthly meeting at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) tonight at 7 p.m. The organization works to reduce violence toward LGBT people through community outreach, education and monitoring legal cases to ensure the dignity of LGBT victims. For more information, visit glovdc.org.

The D.C. Center and Pros in the City host speed dating for lesbian and bisexual women at Chi Cha Lounge (1624 U St., N.W.) tonight from 7-9 p.m. Dating is approximately one hour. After enjoy a mixer with fellow speed daters. Cash bar. Check in is at 7 p.m. and dating begins at 7:20 p.m. Complimentary valet parking offered to anyone who purchases two drinks or other items from the bar or restaurant. Cost is $30. For details, visit thedccenter.org.

Whitman-Walker Health provides free HIV testing at Miriam’s Kitchen (2401 Virginia Ave., N.W.) today from 4-6 p.m. For more information, visit whitman-walker.org.

Rude Boi Entertainment hosts “Tempted 2 Touch,” a ladies dance party, tonight at the Fab Lounge (2022 Florida Ave., N.W.). Doors open at 10 p.m. Drink specials $5 and vodka shots $3 all night. No cover charge. Admission limited to guests 21 and over. For more details, visit rudeboientertainment.wordpress.com.

Gay singer/songwriter Tom Goss is performing with full band accompaniment tonight at The Dunes (1402 Meridian Pl., N.W.). Goss will be joined by fellow out performer, Jeremiah Clark. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12 and can be purchased at www.tomgossmusic.com.

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Movies

‘Hedda’ brings queer visibility to Golden Globes

Tessa Thompson up for Best Actress for new take on Ibsen classic

Published

24 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Susan Hornik

Tessa Thompson is nominated for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a motion picture for ‘Hedda’ at Sunday’s Golden Globes. (Image courtesy IMDB)

The 83rd annual Golden Globes awards are set for Sunday (CBS, 8 p.m. EST). One of the many bright spots this awards season is “Hedda,” a unique LGBTQ version of the classic Henrik Ibsen story, “Hedda Gabler,” starring powerhouses Nina Hoss, Tessa Thompson and Imogen Poots. A modern reinterpretation of a timeless story, the film and its cast have already received several nominations this awards season, including a Globes nod for Best Actress for Thompson.

Writer/director Nia DaCosta was fascinated by Ibsen’s play and the enigmatic character of the deeply complex Hedda, who in the original, is stuck in a marriage she doesn’t want, and still is drawn to her former lover, Eilert.

But in DaCosta’s adaptation, there’s a fundamental difference: Eilert is being played by Hoss, and is now named Eileen.

“That name change adds this element of queerness to the story as well,” said DaCosta at a recent Golden Globes press event. “And although some people read the original play as Hedda being queer, which I find interesting, which I didn’t necessarily…it was a side effect in my movie that everyone was queer once I changed Eilert to a woman.”

She added: “But it still, for me, stayed true to the original because I was staying true to all the themes and the feelings and the sort of muckiness that I love so much about the original work.”

Thompson, who is bisexual, enjoyed playing this new version of Hedda, noting that the queer love storyline gave the film “a whole lot of knockoff effects.”

“But I think more than that, I think fundamentally something that it does is give Hedda a real foil. Another woman who’s in the world who’s making very different choices. And I think this is a film that wants to explore that piece more than Ibsen’s.”

DaCosta making it a queer story “made that kind of jump off the page and get under my skin in a way that felt really immediate,” Thompson acknowledged.

“It wants to explore sort of pathways to personhood and gaining sort of agency over one’s life. In the original piece, you have Hedda saying, ‘for once, I want to be in control of a man’s destiny,’” said Thompson.

“And I think in our piece, you see a woman struggling with trying to be in control of her own. And I thought that sort of mind, what is in the original material, but made it just, for me, make sense as a modern woman now.”

It is because of Hedda’s jealousy and envy of Eileen and her new girlfriend (Poots) that we see the character make impulsive moves.

“I think to a modern sensibility, the idea of a woman being quite jealous of another woman and acting out on that is really something that there’s not a lot of patience or grace for that in the world that we live in now,” said Thompson.

“Which I appreciate. But I do think there is something really generative. What I discovered with playing Hedda is, if it’s not left unchecked, there’s something very generative about feelings like envy and jealousy, because they point us in the direction of self. They help us understand the kind of lives that we want to live.”

Hoss actually played Hedda on stage in Berlin for several years previously.

“When I read the script, I was so surprised and mesmerized by what this decision did that there’s an Eileen instead of an Ejlert Lovborg,” said Hoss. “I was so drawn to this woman immediately.”

The deep love that is still there between Hedda and Eileen was immediately evident, as soon as the characters meet onscreen.

“If she is able to have this emotion with Eileen’s eyes, I think she isn’t yet because she doesn’t want to be vulnerable,” said Hoss. “So she doesn’t allow herself to feel that because then she could get hurt. And that’s something Eileen never got through to. So that’s the deep sadness within Eileen that she couldn’t make her feel the love, but at least these two when they meet, you feel like, ‘Oh my God, it’s not yet done with those two.’’’

Onscreen and offscreen, Thompson and Hoss loved working with each other.

“She did such great, strong choices…I looked at her transforming, which was somewhat mesmerizing, and she was really dangerous,” Hoss enthused. “It’s like when she was Hedda, I was a little bit like, but on the other hand, of course, fascinated. And that’s the thing that these humans have that are slightly dangerous. They’re also very fascinating.”

Hoss said that’s what drew Eileen to Hedda.

“I think both women want to change each other, but actually how they are is what attracts them to each other. And they’re very complimentary in that sense. So they would make up a great couple, I would believe. But the way they are right now, they’re just not good for each other. So in a way, that’s what we were talking about. I think we thought, ‘well, the background story must have been something like a chaotic, wonderful, just exploring for the first time, being in love, being out of society, doing something slightly dangerous, hidden, and then not so hidden because they would enter the Bohemian world where it was kind of okay to be queer and to celebrate yourself and to explore it.’”

But up to a certain point, because Eileen started working and was really after, ‘This is what I want to do. I want to publish, I want to become someone in the academic world,’” noted Hoss.

Poots has had her hands full playing Eileen’s love interest as she also starred in the complicated drama, “The Chronology of Water” (based on the memoir by Lydia Yuknavitch and directed by queer actress Kristen Stewart).

“Because the character in ‘Hedda’ is the only person in that triptych of women who’s acting on her impulses, despite the fact she’s incredibly, seemingly fragile, she’s the only one who has the ability to move through cowardice,” Poots acknowledged. “And that’s an interesting thing.”

Arts & Entertainment

2026 Most Eligible LGBTQ Singles nominations

We are looking for the most eligible LGBTQ singles in the Washington, D.C. region.

Published

2 days ago

January 7, 2026

Staff reports

We are looking for the most eligible LGBTQ singles in the Washington, D.C. region.

Are you or a friend looking to find a little love in 2026? We are looking for the most eligible LGBTQ singles in the Washington, D.C. region. Nominate you or your friends until January 23rd using the form below or by clicking HERE.

Our most eligible singles will be announced online in February. View our 2025 singles HERE.

Photos

PHOTOS: Freddie’s Follies

Queens perform at weekly Arlington show

Published

3 days ago

January 6, 2026

Michael Key

The Freddie's Follies drag show was held at Freddie's Beach Bar in Arlington, Va. on Saturday. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Freddie’s Follies drag show was held at Freddie’s Beach Bar in Arlington, Va. on Saturday, Jan. 3. Performers included Monet Dupree, Michelle Livigne, Shirley Naytch, Gigi Paris Couture and Shenandoah.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)