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More straight athletes joining gay leagues

Finding fellowship in addition to competition

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straight athletes
straight athletes

Robbie Ladd, on left, whoā€™s straight and married, plays in the DC Gay Flag Football League. He said itā€™s the most organized intramural league heā€™s seen. (Washington Blade photo by Kevin Majoros)

More than 30 years ago, in cities with large gay populations, LGBT sports teams and clubs began popping up. By playing sports with members of their own community, LGBT athletes were able to compete in a safe space with no fear of bullying or homophobia.

Over time, straight athletes began participating in the LGBT sports community.Ā At first, it was relatives of the LGBT athletes showing up to compete at events as a show of support; a mother, a brother, a sister. About 10 years ago, a few bold straight athletes began joining the LGBT sports teams with no fears about any suspicions or backlash from their friends and family. Those people, such as husband and wife John and Ellyn Vail of the District of Columbia Aquatics Club became the first of a wave of straight sports allies.

Just in the past few years alone, the number of straight people joining LGBT teams and leagues is clearly noticeable. Pick any one of the more than 30 LGBT sports offered in the D.C. area and you will find straight players. The reasons for joining are probably different for each of them but it is safe to say that it is a glimpse of things to come.

Robbie Ladd is active duty military and he and his wife Jeanie Baker Ladd work as Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists. He has always played organized sports in civilian leagues and in the military. Earlier this year, he was at a party and heard about the DC Gay Flag Football League.

“I went out for the spring season and was drafted into the league and found it to be the most organized intramural community league I have ever competed in,” says Ladd. Ā “The players are down to earth and show up ready to play flag football.”

Ladd, along with his teammates, won the spring season championships. He was disappointed that he did not travel to Pride Bowl in Chicago where the D.C. players took the tournament title.

“I thought I wasn’t allowed to go because I am straight,” says Ladd.Ā “I found out that I was welcome too late to join the travel team in Chicago.”

He did travel to Beach Bowl in Rehoboth Beach this summer where he and his teammates finished in second place.

“I have been very impressed with the incredible fellowship among the flag football players,” says Ladd. “One of the players lost a lot of his belongings in a house fire this year and all the players showed up with items to help him get back on his feet.”

Ladd and his wife are relocating to Fort Lauderdale soon where he just might look up the local LGBT flag football team.

Katie Lancos began playing water polo in Montreal when she was 12 years old and continued to play on her college team at Notre Dame. Right after college, she moved to D.C. and discovered the Washington Wetskins.

“I did a Google search and found about four teams, but the Wetskins came up first in the search,” says Lancos. “One of the frequently asked questions was: I am straight. Can I still play?”

Lancos joined the team and went on to compete at the International Gay and Lesbian Aquatic Championships when they were held in D.C. and again last year when they were held in Seattle. Last week, she competed at her first Gay Games and was joined in the pool by her brother Matt who is also straight.

“My friends are pretty open and I have never been challenged by anyone as to why I compete on an LGBT-based team,” says Lancos.

According to Lancos, the Wetskins are a very team-oriented group and she thrives in that atmosphere.

“The Wetskins are a wildly different group of people who have formed a family through the commonality of sports,” says Lancos. Ā “We all have a shared goal of wanting to win, train and be better.”

straight athletes

Kevin Donlon has a gay best friend and welcomes the opportunity to compete against him in a gay swimming league. (Washington Blade photo by Kevin Majoros)

Kevin Donlon grew up in California and played lacrosse at St. Mary’s College of California. After college, he switched over to U.S. Masters Swimming and began competing in triathlons. In 2012, he went with a friend to Darwin, Australia for the Asia Pacific Outgames and last week competed at his first Gay Games.

“My best friend is gay and I welcome any opportunity to spend time and compete with my friend,” says Donlon.

Donlon trains in California and was a popular addition to the District of Columbia Aquatics Club contingent at the Games. He says he found the LGBT swimmers to be kind, welcoming, happy and an easy group to integrate into.

“People struck up conversations with me more often than what I have experienced at straight meets,” says Donlon. Ā “And for an unexpected added bonus, the friendliness of the swimmers offered me the opportunity to strike up conversations, which is not something I usually do.”

Donlon won a bronze medal in open water swimming and a gold medal in the 1500 freestyle at the pool.

An unexpected twist to the intermingling of straight and LGBT athletes is that the flip side of the trend is also happening. Gay athletes are switching to straight leagues.

Kyle Suib started his rowing career at the University of Delaware and still wanting to compete beyond college, he joined the DC Strokes Rowing Club. He loved his time on the team and made several new friends but realized his competitive spark wasn’t satisfied.

“We were one unit in college and I just couldn’t identify as a gay rower,” says Suib. “I live and die by the sport and I just happen to be gay.”

Suib decided to leave the Strokes and had one of his college coaches give him the needed recommendation to join Potomac Boat Club rowing. He says his new teammates don’t focus on gay or straight. Itā€™s all about the team. There are now four gay men on the Potomac Boat Club team and the four have been joined at Nellieā€™s and Town by their straight teammates.

“We are a family and nowĀ we are a more diverse family,” says Suib.

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Theater

Talented pair of local queer actors tackles ā€˜Little Shop of Horrorsā€™

Fordā€™s production features terrific score

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Chani Wereley (Audrey) and Derrick D. Truby Jr. (Seymour) in the 2024 Fordā€™s Theatre production of Little Shop of Horrors. (Photo by Scott Suchman)

ā€˜Little Shop of Horrorsā€™Ā 
Through May 18
Fordā€™s Theatre
511 10th St., N.W.
$33-$95
Fords.orgĀ 

Ever since premiering off-Broadway in 1982, ā€œLittle Shop of Horrorsā€ has drawn a devoted following of avid audiences as well as performers eager to act in the show. Now playing at Fordā€™s Theatre, the doo-wop, dark comedy features a terrific cast including a wildly talented pair of local queer actors whoā€™ve longed to appear in the show since they were kids. 

Set in the urban 1960s, Alan Menken and Howard Ashmanā€™s hit show with a terrific score follows the wacky rise of Seymour, a nebbishy florist in a Skid Row shop who changes his fortunes by unintentionally marketing an exotic, human eating plant.  

Chani Wereley, 28, who plays Seymourā€™s love interest Audrey, a hyper femme downtowner with an edge, has had her on eye the role for years. Wereley says, ā€œAudreyā€™s been around the block more than once, but I approach her as a person who moves through the world with love and hope.ā€

The queer D.C. native adds, ā€œOn long trips to visit family in Canada or Florida, the first thing weā€™d do is pop a ā€˜Little Shop of Horrorsā€™ video [film version] into the carā€™s VHS player. Iā€™ve watched is so many times, I could quote the whole movie to you.ā€

After auditioning to play Audrey in director Kevin S. McAllisterā€™s production at Fordā€™s, Wereley never thought sheā€™d book the part, and when they said she got it, she cried.  

Similarly, Tobias A. Young, 34, the pansexual actor who voices the part of the bloodthirsty plant affectionately dubbed Audrey II, explains his intense interest in the work: ā€œI started watching the film in ā€™86. Growing up as a little gay boy in Calvert County, Md., I wanted to be blonde Audrey [played by Ellen Green in the movie]. I didnā€™t know much about musicals at the time, but I was absorbed.ā€ 

When asked by Fordā€™s to play the voracious plant Audrey II without auditioning, his reply was an unhesitant ā€œyes.ā€ 

Voicing a role requires Young to sing from backstage in a black box rigged with monitors and a mixing board. He says, ā€œpeople ask if Iā€™m singing from inside of the ever-growing, scary plant. No, Iā€™m not, and thatā€™s fine. But letā€™s face it, actors love to be seen on stage, but I donā€™t feel entirely unseen as Audrey II.ā€

Heā€™s worked hard and successfully with formidable puppeteers Ryan Sellers and Jay Frisby to bring parts of himself to the carnivorous plant ā€” his sassiness, own movements, and even a tilt of his head; their efforts have drawn the actual Young into the show. 

Both Wereley and Young possess gorgeous, emotive voices as evidenced by Wereleyā€™s striking rendition of Audreyā€™s ā€œSuddenly Seymour,ā€ and Youngā€™s soulful ā€œFeed Me (Git It).ā€ Additionally, both actors are also big on queer representation in theater. 

When her young pals were listening to Britney Spears, Wereley was dancing to retro tunes like ā€œMashed Potato Time,ā€ and her favorite song to this day, the Shirelleā€™s girl group anthem ā€œWill You Still Love Me Tomorrow.ā€ As Audrey, Wereley eschews the characterā€™s usual platinum hair for a bouncy brunette, cherry-streaked wig, tight pencil skirts, swing coats, and her very own half-sleeve tattoo. 

ā€œItā€™s important for people to see themselves on stage,ā€ she says. ā€œSeeing me or someone like me is inherently interesting. Being that person on Instagram or with the institution, cast, or audiences is meaningful. Itā€™s important.ā€

In 2011, a couple years after finishing high school, Young landed a part in ā€œDream Girlsā€ at Tobyā€™s Dinner Theatre, and heā€™s been working professionally ever since. Growing up, he didnā€™t see a lot of himself ā€“ Black and queer ā€“ on social media. He now wants to be open and honest for those out there who might not feel seen, he says

An introvert who lets everything loose on the stage, Young says, ā€œtheater is a safe space for queer people. Thatā€™s the first place we feel safe, particularly in school. And this is why we need theaters in schools, now more than ever.ā€

He adds, ā€œWhatā€™s great about Fordā€™s is its surprises, especially when they switch up casting. Itā€™s meaningful to see the shows you love, but why not see them with a twist? Using unexpected actors and incorporating queer people just makes it that much better.ā€

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Nightlife

D.C.ā€™s gay DJ collective CTRL returns

Electropop group resurfaces at Trade on March 30

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CTRL is back after a six-year absence.

Finger lasers, confetti cannons, drag shows, photo booths, throwback tunes, and a touch nerdy: after a long break, D.C.ā€™s gay DJ collective CTRL is throwing its first party in six years.

Born in an Eritrean restaurant more than a decade ago, this longstanding gay nightlife electropop group is resurfacing with a comeback event at Trade on March 30.

Gay DJs Adam Koussari-Amin, Jeff Prior, Devon Trotter, and Brett Andreisen hosted the first CTRL party at now-closed restaurant Dahlak, on the corner of 18th and U Streets. After a year of hosting pop-ups in that restaurantā€™s dining room, they upgraded down 18th Street to now-closed gay club Cobalt. There, the parties grew: drag shows, a pop-up photo booth from David Claypool, and quirky activations like throwing hot dogs into print-outs of Putinā€™s mouth. Their productions grew as well, like producing the now-defunct Brightest Young Gays (BYG) Pride events at Wonderbread Factory and Union Market and the ā€˜Get Wetā€™ pool party with David Brownā€™s Otter Crossing at the Capitol Skyline Hotel.

CTRL wasnā€™t done. The group received its biggest stage yet after a call from Ed Bailey, the owner of now-closed gay club Town, as well as current gay bars Number 9 and Trade. At Town, the opportunity ā€œallowed our creativity to flourish with even bigger performances, bigger photo experiences, crazier hand-outs, and the same electropop dance vibes our fans had come to know us for,ā€ says Koussari-Amin.

CTRL pressed pause when Town shut down, which ā€œwas a huge loss to the LGBTQIA+ community and D.C. nightlife in general,ā€ says Koussari-Amin. After that, it hosted an occasional spinoff called QWERTY. Post-pandemic, Koussari-Amin has spent a few nights solo as DJ at Trade and other venues.

After connecting with Jesse Jackson, the Trade general manager, as well as with Bailey, who agreed to host the inaugural event, Koussari-Amin was determined to shift CTRL back to life.

However, getting the old band back together proved to be a challenge. While the rest of the group have either left Washington, D.C., or are pursuing other projects, Koussari-Amin received their blessing to stay on and find new members. 

ā€œWhen it came to finding new partners, both DJ Dez [Desmond Jordan] and DJ Lemz [Steve Lemmerman] were obvious choices,ā€ he says, noting that ā€œthey also have distinct styles and interests.ā€ Dez has a residency at Pitchers and Kiki as well as pop-ups, and Lemz throws events like Sleaze and BENT.

 ā€œIt seemed important to come back to the nightlife table with an experience that could complement all the amazing experiences that have even built up since CTRL threw its last event at Town. Bringing back both the DJ collective and the CTRL event with Dez and Lemz means new voices, perspectives, sounds, and excitement.ā€

ā€œCTRL is an opportunity for the community to come together, enjoy music, drinks, and good vibes,ā€ adds Jordan, noting that for him, itā€™s an event that celebrates queer identity.

And after months of planning, CTRL will kick off its monthly party series at Trade on March 30 for the first gig after its glow-up.

The trio says that its core inspiration ā€œis driven by the indie and electropop favorites of new and old, like Goldfrapp, Ava Max, Charli XCX, ā€¦ We’re also all huge fans of slut and trash pop music like Kim Petras, Slayyyter, Cupcakke,ā€ as well as pop diva remixes, new bops, and songs that reside inside and far beyond the expanse of Top 40.

CTRL is also bringing back its activations that complement the tunes. Summer Camp is set for drag performances, David Claypool is back with his photo booth, and Koussari-Amin promises ā€œto have all sorts of weird and wacky handouts like we used to.ā€

After the March premiere, Aprilā€™s party is ā€œCTRLellaā€, a Coachella send-up. Future events will feature various different themes, and they plan to throw a party during Capital Pride; theyā€™re also looking to be a central part of Tradeā€™s expansion into the adjacent space.

 Koussari-Amin says that ā€œthe eventā€™s signature experience [is] a lynchpin in connecting D.C.ā€™s expanding generations of queer folks, giving everyone a safe space to let loose and feel a rush no matter who they are.ā€ 

For his part, Bailey continues to support CTRL and its collective intention, expressing its essential nature as a party for partiers by partiers. ā€œCTRL is the kind of party that represents what people want. Itā€™s just a real party by real people that just want to hear good music and dance with their friends.ā€

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Celebrity News

HRC releases ā€˜Queer Renaissance Syllabusā€™

BeyoncĆ©ā€™s hit album inspired curriculum

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BeyoncƩ performs at FedEx Field in Landover, Md., on Aug. 6, 2023. The Human Rights Campaign has released a curriculum that her "Renaissance" album inspired. (Washington Blade photo by Isabelle Kravis)

In a move aimed at celebrating the beauty, brilliance and resilience of the LGBTQ community, the Human Rights Campaign unveiled the “Queer Renaissance Syllabus” that BeyoncĆ©ā€™s ā€œRenaissanceā€ album inspired. 

Curated by Justin Calhoun, Leslie Hall and Chauna Lawson of the HRC’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities Program, the syllabus includes a variety of academic articles, essays, films and other media rooted in Black queer and feminist studies. Each piece is directly inspired by the tracks on BeyoncĆ©’s Billboard 200-topping dance album, “Renaissance.”

BeyoncĆ©’s album “Renaissance” stands as a cultural milestone, celebrating the Black queer roots of dance music while shedding light on overlooked Black queer artists. Inspired by her late-Uncle Johnny, the album not only garnered critical acclaim but also shed light on the often marginalized contributions of Black queer artists. Winning four Grammys and yielding chart-topping hits like ā€œBreak My Soulā€ and ā€œCuff It,ā€ the album sparked discussions about economic impact and cultural representation.

Amid its success, legislative challenges arose, with Florida and Texas enacting bans on DEI initiatives in public colleges. Recognizing the album’s transformative potential, HRC developed the “Queer Renaissance Syllabus” to leverage its impact for education and activism.

Tailored for educators, youth-serving professionals, DEI practitioners, higher education leaders and admirers of BeyoncĆ©’s artistry, the syllabus aims to encourage meaningful discussions, enrich lesson plans, and explore innovative ways to honor the vibrancy and significance of LGBTQ individuals and their culture.

With six themes anchoring the syllabus, ranging from “intersectionality and inclusivity” to “social justice and activism,” it provides a comprehensive exploration of various facets of LGBTQ experiences and expressions. Fan-favorite tracks from the album are paired with scholarly readings, offering insights into empowerment, self-acceptance and the transformative power of artistic expression. The syllabus also reinforces HRCā€™s efforts to highlight, amplify and re-center Black and queer voices.

By providing links to articles, books, podcasts and interviews, each associated with a song from the album, it celebrates the rich cultural heritage and contributions of the Black queer community.

The concluding section of the syllabus includes BeyoncĆ©’s tribute to Oā€™Shea Sibley, a young Black queer person who was murdered in Brooklyn, N.Y., last July while voguing to ā€œRenaissanceā€ songs at a gas station. HRC also includes a statement that condemns hate crimes.

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