Arts & Entertainment
FALL ARTS 2016: Events
D.C. gay scene crammed with fall events
The D.C. gay scene is crammed with fall events. (Washington Blade photos by Michael Key and Pete Exis)
Some events don’t fit in our other fall arts categories. Here are a few to note.
AGLA, a Northern Virginia-based nonprofit LGBT group, has brunch at Freddie’s Beach Bar (555 S. 23rd St., Arlington, Va.) on Saturday, Sept. 17 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The group also has a picnic planned immediately following at Virginia Highlands Park (1600 S. Hayes St., Arlington, Va.). Bring something to grill. Details atagla.org.
The Team D.C. Night of Champions Awards Dinner is Saturday, Nov. 5 at Washington Hilton Hotel (1919 Connecticut Ave., N.W.). It starts with a cocktail reception and silent auction at 6 p.m. and the awards dinner at 7:30 p.m. Dress is business casual. Tickets are $100. Details at teamdc.org.
Team D.C. Night of Champions (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Team D.C. has its fall casino night on Saturday, Sept. 24. Details coming soon at teamdc.org.
Team D.C. Casino Night (Washington Blade file photo by Pete Exis)
Pride Day at King’s Dominion is Saturday, Sept. 24 sponsored by Brother Help Thyself. Doors open at 10:30 a.m. Details at brotherhelpthyself.net.
Pride Day at King’s Dominion (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Up for a weekend getaway? The Miss’d America Pageant, a drag contest, is Sept. 24 at the Borgata Atlantic City hosted by Caron Kressley. Details at missdamerica.org.
Miss’d America pageant (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Bisexual Pride Day is Friday, Sept. 23. No local events have been announced related to this.
National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is Tuesday, Sept. 27. Details at cdc.gov or aids.gov/awareness-days.
“Remington’s Reunion Show” will be held on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. at the Bachelor’s Mill (1104 8th St., S.E.). The event will be hosted by Tony Nelson and Maxine Blue. Details at bachelorsmill.com.
Rayceen’s Reading Room will be held on Monday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library (901 G St., N.W.) as a kickoff event for the library’s Banned Book Week. The event will include poetry, drama, book readings, author interviews and more. “The Ask Rayceen Show” continues its monthly installments on the first Wednesday of each month at the library in auditorium A5. Search for the show on Facebook for details.
“Celebrating the Soul of Justice” will be held on Thursday, Sept. 29 at 7:30 p.m. at Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ (3845 S. Capitol St., S.W.). It’s an annual worship service affirming black LGBT people of faith. Rev. Christine Wiley will preach. Details at manyvoices.org.
Northern Virginia Pride Festival is Saturday, Oct. 1 from noon-8 p.m. at the Bull Run Special Events Center in Centreville, Va. Details at novapride.org.
National Coming Out Day is Tuesday, Oct. 11. No local events have been announced.
CRACK presents “WERRRRRRK!” at Town Danceboutique (2009 8th St., N.W.) on Saturday, Sept. 17 at 10 p.m. Details at towndc.com.
Baltimore Black Pride will have its “Unsung Legends of Baltimore” event on Thursday, Oct. 6 from 8 p.m.-midnight at the Eubie Blake National Jazz Institute and Cultural Center (847 N. Howard St., Baltimore). Call Lonnie Walker at 443-522-8553 to purchase tickets ($50 in advance; $60 at the door). Baltimore Black Pride runsOct. 13-16. Details at centerforblackequity.org/
The fifth annual Human Rights Campaign Chefs for Equality event will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ritz-Carlton, West End (1150 22nd St., N.W.). Tickets are $200. Details at chefsforequality.org.
Chefs for Equality (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
No information yet, but the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club will likely hold its 40th annual Leadership Awards in mid-to-late October. Check soon atsteindemocrats.org for more information.
The Blade will hold its 15th annual Best of Gay D.C. Awards on Thursday, Oct. 20 at Town Danceboutique (2009 8th St., N.W.). Details pending.
(Washington Blade file photo by Damien Salas)
The Walk & 5k to End HIV, the 30th anniversary of AIDS Walk Washington, will be held on Saturday, Nov. 12. Details at aidswalkwashington.org.
The Walk to End HIV (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
The 30th annual High Heel Race will be Tuesday, Oct. 25 on 17th Street. The event has its own Facebook page for details.
High Heel Race (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Us Helping Us will hold “A Passion for Living: a Night of Celebratory Giving” on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 6-11 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom at the University of the District of Columbia (4200 Connecticut Ave., N.W.). Tickets are $125. Details at uhupil.org.
The Dulles Triangles, a social group in Virginia, have its 25th anniversary gala on Saturday, Nov. 19 from 7 p.m.-midnight at the Spectacular Ballroom at Sheraton Tysons Hotel (8661 Leesburg Pike, Tysons, Va.). Tickets are $50 for members; $60 for guests. Details at dullestriangles.com.
Trans Day of Remembrance is Sunday, Nov. 20. A service is usually held that evening at Metropolitan Community Church of Washington but details for this year’s service have not been announced yet. Check soon at thedccenter.org or on Facebook.
Transgender Day of Remembrance (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Denali (@denalifoxx) of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” performed at Pitchers DC on April 9 for the Thirst Trap Thursday drag show. Other performers included Cake Pop!, Brooke N Hymen, Stacy Monique-Max and Silver Ware Sidora.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Arts & Entertainment
In an act of artistic defiance, Baltimore Center Stage stays focused on DEI
‘Maybe it’s a triple-down’
By LESLIE GRAY STREETER | I’m always tickled when people complain about artists “going political.” The inherent nature of art, of creation and free expression, is political. This becomes obvious when entire governments try to threaten it out of existence, like in 2025, when the brand-new presidential administration demanded organizations halt so-called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programming or risk federal funding.
Baltimore Center Stage’s response? A resounding and hearty “Nah.” A year later, they’re still doubling down on diversity.
“Maybe it’s a triple-down,” said Ken-Matt Martin, the theater’s producing director, chuckling.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
‘La Lucci’
By Susan Lucci with Laura Morton
c.2026, Blackstone Publishing
$29.99/196 pages
They’re among the world’s greatest love stories.
You know them well: Marc Antony and Cleopatra. Abelard and Heloise. Phoebe and Langley. Cliff and Nina. Jesse and Angie, Opal and Palmer, Palmer and Daisy, Tad and Dixie. Now read “La Lucci” by Susan Lucci, with Laura Morton, and you might also think of Susan and Helmut.
When she was a very small girl, Susan Lucci loved to perform. Also when she was young, she learned that words have power. She vowed to use them for good for the rest of her life.
Her parents, she says, were supportive and her family, loving. Because of her Italian heritage, she was “ethnic looking” but Lucci’s mother was careful to point out dark-haired beauties on TV and elsewhere, giving Lucci a foundation of confidence.
That’s just one of the things for which Lucci says she’s grateful. In fact, she says, “Prayers of gratitude are how I begin and end each day.”
She is particularly grateful for becoming a mother to her two adult children, and to the doctors who saved her son’s life when he was a newborn.
Lucci writes about gratitude for her long career. She was a keystone character on TV’s “All My Children,” and she learned a lot from older actors on the show, and from Agnes Nixon, the creator of it. She says she still keeps in touch with many of her former costars.
She is thankful for her mother’s caretakers, who stepped in when dementia struck. Grateful for more doctors, who did heart-saving work when Lucci had a clogged artery. Grateful for friends, opportunities, life, grandchildren, and a career that continues.
And she’s grateful for the love she shared with her husband, Helmut Huber, who died nearly four years ago. Grateful for the chance to grieve, to heal, and to continue.
And yet, she says of her husband: “He was never timid, but I know he was afraid at the end, and that kills me down to my soul.”
“It’s been 15 years since Erica Kane and I parted ways,” says author Susan Lucci (with Laura Morton), and she says that people still approach her to confirm or deny rumors of the show’s resurrection. There’s still no answer to that here (sorry, fans), but what you’ll find inside “La Lucci” is still exceptionally generous.
If this book were just filled with stories, you’d like it just fine. If it was only about Lucci’s faith and her gratitude – words that happen to appear very frequently here – you’d still like reading it. But Lucci tells her stories of family, children and “All My Children,” while also offering help to couples who’ve endured miscarriage, women who’ve had heart problems, and widow(ers) who are spinning and need the kindness of someone who’s lived loss, too.
These are the other things you’ll find in “La Lucci,” in a voice you’ll hear in your head, if you spent your lunch hours glued to the TV back in the day. It’s a comfortable, fun read for fans. It’s a story you’ll love.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.
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