Arts & Entertainment
‘Art must lead’
Olney, Md.-based company plans diverse stage repertoire


Jason Loewith, right, with Bobby Smith in rehearsal for ‘Avenue Q.’ Photo by Sonie Mathew; courtesy Olney Theatre Center)
‘Avenue Q’
Through July 13
2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road
Olney, MD
$32.50-65.00
301-924-3400
A year and a half after taking the helm as artistic director of the Olney Theatre Center, Jason Loewith is still figuring out his audience.
“We rely on a particular audience to keep us going and those are the folks who love Agatha Christie’s ‘Mousetrap,’” he says. “But all of Montgomery County and including the area around Olney have become increasingly vibrant and younger. We want to keep the Christie crowd, but I’ve been finding that there’s a lot more we can do.”
For Olney’s summer musical, Loewith has selected and staged “Avenue Q,” the funny 2004 Tony Award-winning musical send up of “Sesame Street.” But unlike with the kid’s show, these Muppet-like puppets (manned by seen actors) and humans sing side-by-side about more grownup stuff including prolonged adolescence (“I Wish I Could Go Back to College”), porn (“The Internet Is for Porn”), political correctness (“Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist”), being in the closet (“My Girlfriend, Who Lives in Canada”), and their own inadequacies ( “It Sucks to be Me”).
“The show is such a machine,” says Loewith, who is gay. “You just need to find the right funny people. Get out of the way and not fuck it up.”
For his production he’s assembled a cast that includes Sam Ludwig, Rachel Zampelli, and the reliably excellent Stephen Gregory Smith. He’s tapped popular out actor Bobby Smith for associate director/choreography, and the talented Christopher Youstra for musical director and onstage accompanist.
But not everything that does well in New York is an automatic hit on the leafy campus of Olney Theatre. A director’s point of view is important.
“My approach is to not let the heart imbedded in the show get lost in its snarky humor and satire. In the suburbs, a play must have a way into the heart as well as the mind. ‘Avenue Q’ has that,” says Loewith who lives with his partner on Capitol Hill. “It’s about why you need to love people. Ambition and success mean nothing if you can’t share it with those you love. And that’s a path that I follow and believe in.”
When Loewith lived in New York, he worked at the Classic Stage Company just two blocks from the Vineyard Theatre where “Avenue Q” was created.
“It really spoke to me at that moment. I’m the same generation as its creators (author Jeff Whitty and composers-lyricists Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx.).Ten years ago I was 35 and, like the characters in ‘Avenue Q,’ was still trying to figure out my place in the world. I also happen to be very snarky myself, though not as snarky as some in show biz.”
He believes it’s the perfect follow-up to last summer’s “A Chorus Line,” another smart with heart, which won the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Resident Musical, Olney’s first such award since “Lucky Stiff” won in 1990.
In September, Loewith plans to open Olney’s fall season opens with “Colossal,” a new play that he expects to resonate with LGBT theatergoers. Penned by Andrew Hinderaker, “Colossal” is the story of Mike, a disabled man who became paralyzed after taking a bad hit for his co-team captain and first lover Marcus in a college football game. Seated in his wheelchair, Mike (to be played by Patrick Thornton, who is disabled) repeatedly watches the video of the bad hit. On stage, the hit is recreated by actors through movement and dance.
“Colossal” is slated to be staged by Will Davis, a transgender director. “When I hired Will he was a she. Now he’s a he and it’s upsetting my male-female ratio of directors. But that’s OK.”
Loewith brings energy and innovation to the job. He meets his challenges with a sense of humor. And perhaps most importantly, he holds the company to a high standard: “I don’t care if we’re doing ‘The Little Mermaid’ (which Olney is mounting for the holidays), we’ll attack the project with artistic rigor and that means working with the best directors, designers and actors in town.
He cites Broadway director David Esbjornson, best known for directing Edward Albee’s “The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?” on Broadway, as an influence, especially his mantra that “art must lead.”
“That means if it takes another thousand dollars to bring the right person to make the cast work, you have to do it,” Loewith says. “A theater will not stay alive by sending out another appeal letter or making a cut in the marketing budget. A theater survives by putting excellent work on the stage.”
Arts & Entertainment
2025 Emmy nominations: ‘Hacks’ and ‘The Last of Us’ bring queer excellence to the table
Notable LGBTQ+ shows nominated at this year’s Primetime Emmys

The 2025 Primetime Emmy nominations were announced, and a few of this year’s key frontrunners have particularly resonated with the LGBTQ+ community during a politically turbulent year.
Coming off Season 3’s win for outstanding comedy series, Hacks Season 4 was nominated for 14 awards, with Jean Smart, Hannah Einbinder, Julianne Nicholson, and Robby Hoffman being recognized for their performances. Since the show premiered in 2021, each season has explored the comedy and entertainment industry through the lens of generational differences between queer writer Ava (Einbinder) and the old-school Deborah (Smart).
While Smart has won outstanding lead actress in a comedy series for all three seasons, this year could be the chance for Einbinder, who identifies as bisexual, to finally take home a prize of her own in supporting actress. And if Season 4 nabs the outstanding comedy series crown yet again, it’ll be another huge moment for bisexual representation. But it will have to fend off the industry satire The Studio, which received a staggering 23 nominations for its breakout first season.
Another one of this year’s most high-profile contenders, The Last of Us, received 16 nominations for its second season, including non-binary actor Bella Ramsey, lead actor Pedro Pascal, and supporting/guest actors Kaitlyn Dever, Jeffrey Wright, Joe Pantoliano, and Catherine O’Hara.
Notably, though, Season 2 has been hit by much more backlash, much of which has been fueled by homophobic anger at the love story between Ellie (Ramsey) and Dina (Isabela Merced). Merced, who identifies as queer, was widely praised for her turn as Dina, but was not nominated for supporting actress. And while Season 1 received 24 nominations, Season 2 lost out on a few, bringing The Last of Us down a notch in its overall standing.
There were other snubs as well. Mid-Century Modern, the gay sitcom starring Nathan Lane, Matt Bomer, Nathan Lee Graham, and Linda Lavin, did not see any of its actors nominated. It also missed out on the Best Comedy Series category, for which it was considered a contender, although it did still receive four below-the-line nominations.
However, other openly queer actors were nominated, even for roles or shows not explicitly exploring queer issues or characters. Those include Colman Domingo for The Four Seasons, Cynthia Erivo for Poker Face, Michael Urie for Shrinking, Cooper Koch for Monsters: The Lyle & Erik Menendez Story, and Bowen Yang for Saturday Night Live.
Of course, it wouldn’t be the Emmys without RuPaul, who became the most-nominated reality host in Emmys history after landing his 10th nomination for RuPaul’s Drag Race. He’s also nominated alongside Alan Cumming of The Traitors fame. And in the Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction special category, the critically acclaimed Will & Harper and Pee-wee as Himself were nominated, and are both considered strong contenders to win.
TV fans can find out which of their favorite queer actors or shows take home top prizes on Sunday, Sept. 14, with Nate Bargatze hosting the 77th annual awards at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
Movies
‘Superman’ is here to to save us, despite MAGA backlash
Man of Steel was always a flashpoint for controversy

Anyone who argues that Superman should never be politicized clearly knows nothing about Superman.
The “Man of Steel” has been a flashpoint for controversy almost from the beginning, when he was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster – two Jewish Americans born of immigrant parents, who conceived the character in a world where the economic disparities of the Great Depression, the rise of global fascism, and the threat of impending war were looming large across American life. Theirs was a hero for the time, who used his strength to help the weak instead of to subjugate them, who stood up against the forces of greed, corruption, and insatiable power to prioritize human life above all other considerations. Is it any wonder that his values would become objectionable to conservatives when the moral complacency of postwar prosperity kicked in? In the hawkish American ideology that dominated the Cold War era, such notions became inconvenient.
To be fair, there has been liberal backlash against the character, too; Superman has often been framed as an icon of American “exceptionalism” that served as a jingoistic mask for the deeper ambitions of the capitalist elite. Indeed, the success of the 1978 “Superman: The Movie” (starring Christopher Reeve in arguably the most beloved big screen iteration of the character) largely hinged on its refutation of jaded disillusionment at a time when America had become too “hip” for wish-fulfillment fantasies about an invincible hero who could save the world.
Since then, of course, Superman has undergone further evolution, mirroring a cultural return to cynicism with a parallel transformation of Krypton’s last son – in the movies, at least – into a morally conflicted figure with deep doubts about his mission and crippling regrets over the collateral damage he’s caused in the pursuit of “truth, justice, and the American Way.” Fans were divided, and this new-and-darker version of “Supe” – despite the fan appeal of Henry Cavill, who donned the red cape for three films under director Zack Snyder – failed to generate the kind of enthusiasm that would elevate DC (and parent company Warner Brothers) to the popularity level of Marvel’s rival cinematic universe.
Now, with James Gunn’s “Superman” – the latest reboot of the comic book hero’s big screen franchise, which serves as the starting point for a new “DC Cinematic Universe” (DCU) after the last one was tanked by mediocre reviews and disappointing box office receipts – the tables have been turned once again. In Gunn’s “reset,” the character (played with infectious and unassuming charm by David Corenswet) is a true idealist, embracing a presumed role as protector of Earth without a sense of being burdened, and motivated to make a difference even through the journalistic efforts of alter-ego Clark Kent. For him, it’s simple: If innocent people are in danger, he is there to be their champion.
That said, he’s still something of a mess. In his imperative to protect mankind, he is at odds with the protocols of the human world order, which don’t always line up with his goals. In fact, when the story begins, Superman is already under fire from the media for his disregard of political procedure and international law, having unilaterally prevented a Central European dictator from invading a neighboring country only weeks before. This diplomatic faux pas has led billionaire tech genius and corporate giant Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) to focus his vast resources on a public smear campaign against him.
Needless to say, Luthor has his own secret agenda, a push for global power that depends on ensuring that Superman is eliminated from the equation. Fortunately for the caped Kryptonian, he has the help of Clark Kent’s Daily Planetassociates – girlfriend Lois Lane (a perfectly cast Rachel Brosnahan, best known as “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) and Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo, “The Righteous Gemstones”) – and an assortment of fellow “meta humans” (i.e. superheroes) to keep him on track.
We won’t spoil the outcome, though it’s a safe bet that the good guys will triumph in the end. More important is that Gunn’s ambitious reconfiguration of the classic mythos makes the choice to go all-in on the qualities that once made Superman the epitome of an archetype.
Corenswet brings an everyman likability to his larger-than-life character, within which all his nods to ethical purity feel like a triumph instead of a capitulation to comfortable sentiment. He inhabits the role, even in the guise of Clark Kent (who, as we are reminded by recall to a long-forgotten canonical flourish, gets away with his disguise via “hypno-glasses” which mask his obvious resemblance to Superman in the eyes of all who see him), and taps into something that transcends the formulaic conventions of the superhero genre. While he may not bring the effortless charm that Reeve carried into the role, he delivers something equally engaging – a real sense of trying to do better – which makes it possible for us, as viewers, to identify with him. Brosnahan’s Lane is revelatory, a modern incarnation that emphasizes her integrity as a journalist to make her an equal to her superhuman paramour; their chemistry, highlighted through a classic “screwball comedy” dynamic in their banter and informed by the active role she plays in the heroics that drive the film, is not only refreshingly equitable but honest.
As for Hoult’s palpably Musk-ish Luthor, he delivers all the smug arrogance we need from a supervillain while also leaving room for a sliver of compassion. In smaller roles, Gisondo’s Olsen is a presence to be taken much more seriously than many of its earlier iterations, while an over-the-top turn from Nathan Fillion as a bro-ishly tacky Green Lantern and the underplayed solidity of Edi Gathegi’s no-nonsense Mr. Fantastic effectively contrast Corenswet’s optimistic Kal-El.
From a more heartfelt perspective, however it’s a paradigm-shifting masterpiece.
Yes, it’s a little too “busy,” and suffers from the contemporary genre’s rapid-fire flow of information, action, and peripheral characters. There’s also the presence of Krypto, a “superdog” under the temporary care of our hero. Even so, these elements somehow give Gunn’s movie a heartwarmingly goofy quality. It’s just that kind of film.
Which brings us to the question of why anyone could see it as anything but a validation of what makes this character so uniquely American. Taken without contemporary real-world context, it’s hard to object to Gunn’s new vision of Superman unless one has a fundamental problem with the idea that compassion, kindness, and equity are goals worth fighting for.
In the context of Trump’s America, however, the movie’s insistence on highlighting these values, along with its emphasis on Superman’s status as an “alien” immigrant and a general sense of inclusiveness among its ensemble cast, feels like a radical notion.
That says more about “them” than it does about “us,” frankly, and for our part we’re grateful for a movie that not only breaks the “superhero fatigue” that has developed for moviegoers over the last few oversaturated years, but dares to refute MAGA-driven talking points about “toxic empathy” and the equality of immigrants (after all, Superman has always been an alien) to reinforce a vision of America that feels worth fighting for.
Television
How this Texas drag king reclaimed their identity
Chicano performance art serves as inspiration

Three out of ten drag kings who were cast for this first season of King of Drag self-identified as Latinx and after episode two, only one Latinx king remains in the running for the competition.
Buck Wylde, a king from Dallas, Texas delivered a performance that took inspiration from their Catholic upbringing and Catholic school days to put together this persona. During the episode, they shared that they like to “play with religion.”
Murray Hill responded by adding, “sometimes we can’t afford to go to therapy for the Catholic guilt, so we do drag.” Buck Wylde says their therapy and their church is drag.
Buck Wylde, cancer sign, goes by Trigger Mortis when they are outside of drag and present more on the femme side. Along with Big D—another drag king on the series—they are the only two who are more femme outside of their drag persona.
During this episode, Buck Wylde also spoke about the difficulty of performing drag in a red state. They live in conservative Dallas, so they still struggle to find large-scale acceptance and support in the midst of statewide legislation targeting the LGBTQ community in Texas.
“Sometimes it doesn’t feel [as] safe as [I] would like it to be. There’s protesters all the time and we don’t have as many spaces to perform as kings there,” they said in the interview.
Buck Wylde says that for them, the most important thing about drag, is that it is and always has been a protest.
Living in a conservative state is a challenge to them as a drag king, but they say that it’s important for them to stand their ground and not only bring that representation to these areas, but also intentionally keep it there.
“So many people leave Texas for their safety and mental health to go to Portland, LA, or Colorado Springs or you know, anywhere but here.”
During the episode, Buck Wylde also opened up about how their religious background and cultural heritage added an extra layer to their identity issues growing up where they did. Their family wanted them to assimilate and even prevented them from speaking Spanish and they say that through Buck, they are able to re-examine what it means to be a part of that culture.
Buck Wylde is a third generation Mexican-American and they say that though their Spanish is not fluent, they say they do prefer their horchata without (ICE).
“I kind of straddled different worlds there, because I was sort of assimilated but I still had my Mexican culture. I always felt like I wasn’t connected enough because of the assimilation and it was through drag that I was able to reclaim my culture.”
In the first round of competitions for the second episode, the kings broke up into three teams of three for an improv skit where they would have to mansplain a topic and whichever team did it the best—won the group Weenie Challenge.
The winning team included Buck Wylde, Alexander the Great and Henlo Bullfrog. Together they improvised a skit where they mansplained the Amelia Earhart story.
For the solo show, they dressed up as ‘The Devil’ for the improv solo challenge, cracking a joke about how they are dressed like the person currently living in The White House.
Dressed as the Devil, sporting a Zoot Suit for the final competition, Buck Wylde improvised a skit with food.
Buck Wylde says they felt the pressure to perform because along with the other nine kings who were cast, they are the first ten kings to make it to the mainstream and represent king culture.
“We call ourselves the first ten because whatever happens, we’re responsible for how the kings are viewed and how we move forward together, being the blueprint for what’s to come,” said Buck Wylde in an exclusive interview with Los Angeles Blade.
Back stage before the solo improv competition, Buck Wylde says they felt their drag persona “crumbling” away.
They felt like Buck had abandoned them prior to their big moments to prove to the judges that they should stay in the running for the competition. They went up against Perka $exxx, who gave a king-based Dave Chappell performance.
In the end, it was Perka $exxx who received a 4-1 vote from the judges.
Buck Wylde left the show with some advice for the kings and the audience: “No matter what life throws at you, always remember who the Buck you are.”
King of Drag is now available to stream on RevryTV, an LGBTQ streaming platform for queer movies, TV shows, music and more — all for free. New King of Drag episodes will premiere weekly on Sundays.
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