Arts & Entertainment
It takes balls to protest!
Trump inauguration inspires alternative soirees
There are several protest-type inauguration events planned.
On Friday, Jan. 20, Bar Pilar (1833 14th St., N.W.) will host “Thanks, Obama Send-off Party” at 11 a.m. with Chicago- and Hawaii-inspired cocktails. The kitchen will open at 3:30 p.m. with snacks followed by the regular dinner menu at 5 p.m.
Throughout the weekend, the restaurant will participate in the All in Service project by holding a raffle fundraiser Thursday-Sunday to raise funds for One D.C., N Street Village and Whitman-Walker Health.
On Friday during the party, guests who make a $15 donation will receive 1 raffle ticket and a door gift (Chicago-style popcorn mix from The Mad Popper & other goodies) while supplies last. Additional raffle tickets can be purchased for $10 each. Prizes include show tickets to the Black Cat, two tickets to DC Brau’s 6th anniversary show at 9:30 in April with some swag, a “key” to the Rock & Roll Hotel, plus other prizes from Meats & Foods, Two Birds One Stone, DC9 and more.
Several other local restaurants are also participating including Cafe Saint Ex (1847 14th St., N.W.), McClellan’s Retreat (2031 Florida Ave., N.W.) and El Camino (108 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) with various specials. Details on Facebook.
“Thank You, Mr. President: And Still We Dance, a Dancefloor Journey” will be held on Thursday, Jan. 19 at the 9:30 Club (815 V St., N.W.) from 11:30 p.m.-5 a.m. Music by DJs Ultra Nate and James “DJ Dub” Graham. Proceeds will benefit the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund and the National Center for Transgender Equality. Details at 930.com or on Facebook.
“All Night Latin Ball: Forget Politics Let’s Party” is Jan. 19 at 8 p.m. at Las Chicas Locas D.C. (701 7th St., N.W., second floor). Details on Facebook.
“The Resistance Un-Ball” is Jan. 20 from 5-9 p.m. at Washington Ethical Society (7750 16th St., N.W.) and offers “love, support and resistance” to “launch to the social justice efforts of (the Society) in the coming years.” Details on Facebook.
“Inaugural Pall: It’s Mourning in America Again!” will be held on Jan. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the Velvet Lounge (915 U St., N.W.). Come dressed in your finest mourning attire to “lament the day’s atrocities and enter into a period of national grief with some dreamy, fuzzy, rock nihilism.” Sam Cooper & the Sleepwalkers will perform. Details on Facebook.
“Unity Ball: an Inauguration Weekend Dance Party” will be held on Jan. 21 at 8 p.m. at the District Architecture Center (421 7th Street, N.W.). Details at unityballdc.com.
Celebrity News
Madonna announces release date for new album
‘Confessions II’ marks return to the dance floor
Pop icon Madonna on Wednesday announced that her 15th studio album will be released on July 3.
Titled “Confessions II,” the new album is a sequel to 2005’s “Confessions on a Dance Floor,” an Abba and disco-infused hit.
The new album reunites Madonna with producer Stuart Price, who also helmed the original “Confessions” album. It’s her first album of new material since 2019’s “Madame X.”
“We must dance, celebrate, and pray with our bodies,” Madonna said in a press release. “These are things that we’ve been doing for thousands of years — they really are spiritual practices. After all, the dance floor is a ritualistic space. It’s a place where you connect — with your wounds, with your fragility. To rave is an art. It’s about pushing your limits and connecting to a community of like-minded people,” continued the statement. “Sound, light, and vibration reshape our perceptions. Pulling us into a trance-like state. The repetition of the bass, we don’t just hear it but we feel it. Altering our consciousness and dissolving ego and time.”
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.
Madonna announces release date for new album
Senegalese court issues first conviction under new anti-LGBTQ law
Evan Glass is leaning on his record. Is that enough for Montgomery County’s top job?
D.C. bar, LGBTQ+ Community Center to mark Lesbian Visibility Week
Trailblazing trans Brazilian lawmaker refuses to set foot in Trump’s America
An effort to increase the number of psychiatrists of color
Comings & Goings
Trump budget targets ‘gender extremism’
Minimal version of ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ heading to Dupont Underground
