Arts & Entertainment

Calendar: Oct. 4-10

Parties, exhibits, concerts and more for the week ahead

Published

13 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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Books

New book reveals what we can learn from animal sex

‘Poking the Squid’ on homosexuality, gender swapping, and more

Published

40 minutes ago

July 13, 2026

Terri Schlichenmeyer

(Book cover image courtesy W.W. Norton)

‘Poking the Squid: What We Can Learn from Animal Sex’
By Perrin Roosevelt Ireland
c.2026, W.W. Norton
$29.99 241 pages

Birds do it.

According to Cole Porter, bees do, too, but it’s not exactly what he imagined. Wild and tame, avians, insects, and mammals all have sex – although not always as you’ve been told or for reasons you might think. Even educated fleas do it and, as in the new book, “Poking the Squid” by Perrin Roosevelt Ireland, humans can learn from them all.

If you read through scientific papers on animal reproduction, you might notice something unusual: for scientists, the word “sex” means a lot of different things.

Says Ireland, “It’s used to describe behaviors, biology, life histories, and more.”

That might be because animals are not simply binary.

Take, for instance, hyenas. It’s easy for the casual observer to mistake a male hyena for a female and vice versa because of stereotypes of anatomy. Mating, for hyenas, requires subordination for the male and a nifty trick on the part of the female’s body to get things done.

Our feathered friends are no birdbrains, either: black-browed albatrosses were once thought to be monogamous but global warming seems to have changed their nesting habits sometimes. Male flamingos have sex with one another, as a territorial thing; other birds and animals form same-sex pairs for other reasons.

The Chinese mantis eats her mate after fertilization. Female snakes, alpacas, guinea pigs, and monkeys are anatomically able to enjoy sex. Genitalia between species varies quite a bit; in fact, the vaginas of ducks “are highly complex.” Lionesses will mate up to 100 times when in heat. Female damselflies will change into a “third sex” to avoid overly aggressive mating males. Bearded dragons can change their sex, if needed, as can yellow clown goby fish. And seahorse pregnancy and birth sparked a book banning in Tennessee.

So, asks Ireland, if animals, including us, vary so much in biology and life, “… why are we using the word sex like it means something, anything, consistent?!”

Pick up “Poking the Squid,” page through it a few seconds, and you’ll see that the information here is largely told through cartoon-like drawings mixed with captions. It seems to be something on the lighter side, but don’t let that artwork fool you.

Author Perrin Roosevelt Ireland offers readers solid information that cozies up to the scholarly, with hard science, philosophy, feminism, and quotations from researchers to support it, thus furthering the narrative and hitting the points squarely. If you see the art and expect something lighthearted, comic, and small-talk-worthy, you could be disappointed.

On the other hand, if you want solid, wryly serious facts, you’re in for a treat.

There’s lots of learning to be gleaned here, and some slight nudge-wink whimsy to emphasize the absurdity of wrong-headed thinking. This can make readers feel like they’re in-the-know on the jokes, and the playfulness balances the seriousness of the information well.

So, serious, scholarly, or slightly silly, none of these are negative but you’re going to know what you want from a book like this. For the right reader, someone in the mood, “Poking the Squid” is wild.

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