Arts & Entertainment

Calendar: Oct. 4-10

Parties, exhibits, concerts and more for the week ahead

Published

12 years ago

October 3, 2013

‘The Privilege Series: Pests’ by Anthony Dortch demonstrates what it means to be socially and financially advantaged. The work is on display now at Touchstone Gallery (Image courtesy Touchstone)

Friday, Oct. 4

Local gay singer/songwriter Stewart Lewis performs this evening at 6 p.m. at Sky Bar at Beacon Hotel (1615 Rhode Island Ave. N.W.). Visit stewartlewis.com for details.

Touchstone Gallery (901 New York Ave., N.W.) opens three new exhibitions tonight from 6-8:30 p.m. “Falling for Art,” “The Privileged Series: Pests” and “Blessings of This Life,” feature different artists in a variety of mediums from mixed media to oil painting on canvas. For more information, visit touchstonegallery.com.

Temple Emmanuel (10101 Connecticut Ave., Kensington, Md.,) hosts “Jewish Values and Transgender Equality” tonight at 7:30 p.m. Guest speaker Dana Beyer discusses transgender equality in Maryland. Admission is free. For more details, email [email protected].

Washington National Cathedral (3101 Wisconsin Ave., N.W.) hosts the East Coast premiere of “Matthew Shepard Is A Friend of Mine” tonight at 7:30 p.m. The documentary explores Shepard’s life through interviews with family and friends. Tickets are $16. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit nationalcathedral.org.

Gay District, a community-based organization focused on building understanding of gay culture and personal identity for gay, bi, trans, queer, questioning and intersexed men, hosts a facilitated group discussion tonight at the D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) from 8:30-9:30 p.m. The group will go for dinner in the neighborhood after the meeting. For more details, visit gaydistrict.org.

Green Lantern (1335 Green Ct., N.W.) hosts “SIREN: The BRITNEY BASH 2.0” tonight from 10 p.m.-3 a.m. Celebrate Britney’s new single “Work Bitch.” DJs MAJR and DELLA VOLLA spin a playlist featuring Britney’s greatest hits along with other artists. There is also a performances by Pu$$y Noir. $5 Smirnoff specials until 3 a.m. For more details, visit greenlanterndc.com.

Saturday, Oct. 5

Men Against Breast Cancer (MABC) host its “5K & Fun Run/Walk” near the Bethesda Row complex (4950 Elm St., Bethesda, Md.,) today from 8:30 a.m.-noon. Wear pink and blue to support women in their fight against breast cancer. There will be music by DJ Whitham. Tickets for the 5K are $30 and $25 for the Fun Run. For more information and to register visit menagainstbreastcancer.org.

Natalia Kills performs at Town (2009 8th St., N.W.) tonight. Doors open at 10 p.m. Cover is $8 from 10-11 p.m. and $12 after 11 p.m. Drinks are $3 before 11 p.m. Drag show begins at 10:30 p.m. Admission is 21 and over. For more details, visit towndc.com.

Sunday, Oct. 6

Black Fox Lounge (1723 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) hosts “Tula’s Drag Cabaret show,” a lip-synching drag performance, from 8-11 p.m. tonight. No cover charge. For more information, visit blackfoxlounge.com or call 202-482-1723.

Creative Cauldron (410 S Maple Ave., Falls Church, Va.,) hosts “LGBT Night” with “Marry Me a Little: Songs by Stephen Sondheim” at 7 p.m. tonight. A special reception for the LGBT community follows. Nicholas Benton will also be signing copies of his book “Extraordinary Hearts: Reclaiming Gay Sensibility’s Central Role in the Progress of Civilization.” Tickets are $25 general admission and $22 for students and seniors. For more information, visit creativecauldron.org.

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.

Monday, Oct. 7

The D.C. Center (1318 U St., N.W.) hosts coffee drop-in hours this morning from 10 a.m.-noon for the senior LGBT community. Older LGBT adults can come and enjoy complimentary coffee and conversation with other community members. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

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

Nellie’s Sports Bar (900 U St., N.W.) hosts “Poker Night” at 8 p.m. tonight. Free to play and winners receive prizes. For details, visit nellissportsbar.com.

Hope Operas begins its month-long serialized run tonight at 8 p.m. at Comedy Spot on the third floor of Ballston Mall (4238 Wilson Blvd.) in Arlington. This year’s theme is “Cartoons for Adults.” Shows run each week through Oct. 28 at the same time and place. Each of the five new shows are presented in 10-15-minute segments each week and promise to take viewers from “one hilarious cliffhanger to the next.” Founder Chris Griffin is gay, two of the shows have gay themes and several of the actors are gay as well. Tickets are $15 per show or $40 for all four weeks. For details, visit hopeoperas.com.

Tuesday, Oct. 8

The Arlington Employment Center of Arlington County Government hosts its “Arlington Employment Center Fall Career Fair” at the Founders Hall-Arlington Campus of George Mason University (3351 Fairfax Dr., Arlington, Va.,) today from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. There will be 50 employers and hundreds of jobs for jobseekers throughout the DMV area. Free admission but must register at aecjobfair2013.eventbrite.com. For more details, email [email protected].

D.C. Bi Women hosts its monthly meeting in the upstairs room of Dupont Italian Kitchen (1637 17th St., N.W.) from 7-9 p.m. tonight. For more details, visit thedccenter.org.

The Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance (GLAA) hosts its meeting at the John A. Wilson Building (1350 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) in the Hearing Room tonight at 7 p.m. GLAA’s October schedule is “Implementing Our Successful Accomplishments.” There is no charge and the meeting is open to everyone. For more details, email [email protected].

Wednesday, Oct. 9

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

Rainbow Response holds its monthly meeting from 6-7 p.m. today in the third floor conference room at 5 Thomas Circle N.W. The meeting is for individuals and agencies to collaborate and address intimate partner violence in the LGBT community in the D.C. area. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Thursday, Oct. 10

Anne Arundel Community College (101 College Pkwy., Arnold, Md.,) screens “Small Town Gay Bar” as part of its Fall Film Series “LGBT-Themes and Issues” today at 12:30 p.m. in the Florestano Building Room 122. The documentary tells the story of two gay bars in the rural south and the oppression they face. Admission is free. For more details, visit aacc.edu/events.

Women’s Leadership Institute hosts its weekly meeting for LGBT women and their allies tonight at SMYAL (410 7th St., S.E.) from 5-7 p.m. The meeting is for those ages 13-21 to discuss female sexuality, relationships and women’s rights. For more information, visit smyal.org.

Brightest Young Things hosts “The Bentzen Ball Comedy Festival” opening at the 9:30 Club (815 V St., N.W.) tonight at 7 p.m. Comedians performing include Doug Benson, Tig Notaro, Wyatt Cenac and more. The festival continues through Oct. 13. Tickets are $25. For more details and to purchase tickets visit 930.com.

Rude Boi Entertainment hosts “Tempted 2 Touch,” a ladies dance party, 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 information, visit rudeboientertainment.wordpress.com.

Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) hosts its weekly “Ripped-Hot Body Contest” tonight from 9 p.m.-2 a.m. Win up to $200 in prizes. $2 rail drinks from 9-11 p.m. Admission is 18 and up and is free.

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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

21 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

2 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)