Arts & Entertainment
‘RuPaul’s Drag Race,’ ‘Feud’ earn Emmy nominations
‘Westworld’ and ‘SNL’ receive the most noms
(Screenshot via YouTube.)
The 69th Primetime Emmy Awards nominations were unveiled Thursday morning with both “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “Feud: Bette and Joan” earning nominations.
“Westworld” and “Saturday Night Live” received the most with 22 nominations each. “Feud: Bette and Joan” received a nomination for Best Limited Series and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” is a contender for Best Reality Competition Program. RuPaul is up for Best Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program.
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” is nominated for Best Comedy Series and Titus Burgess is up for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Laverne Cox’s role on “Orange is the New Black” earned her a spot for Best Guest Actress in a Drama Series. Jeffrey Tambor nabbed a nomination for “Transparent.” Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin were also nominated for their roles on “Grace & Frankie.”
Kate McKinnon is also a nominee for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for “Saturday Night Live.”
Read the complete list of nominees is below.
Best Drama Series
“Better Call Saul”
“The Crown”
“The Handmaid’s Tale”
“House of Cards”
“Stranger Things”
“This Is Us”
“Westworld”
Best Comedy Series
“Atlanta”
“Black-ish”
“Master of None”
“Modern Family”
“Silicon Valley”
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”
“Veep”
Best Limited Series
“Big Little Lies”
“Fargo”
“Feud: Bette and Joan”
“Genius”
“The Night Of”
Best Actress in a Drama Series
Viola Davis, “How to Get Away With Murder”
Claire Foy, “The Crown”
Elisabeth Moss, “The Handmaid’s Tale”
Keri Russell, “The Americans”
Evan Rachel Wood, “Westworld”
Robin Wright, “House of Cards”
Best Actor in a Drama Series
Sterling K. Brown, “This Is Us”
Anthony Hopkins, “Westworld”
Bob Odenkirk, “Better Call Saul”
Matthew Rhys, “The Americans”
Liev Schreiber, “Ray Donovan”
Kevin Spacey, “House of Cards”
Milo Ventimiglia, “This Is Us”
Best Actress in a Comedy Series
Pamela Adlon, “Better Things”
Jane Fonda, “Grace and Frankie”
Allison Janney, “Mom”
Ellie Kemper, “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Veep”
Tracee Ellis Ross, “Black-ish”
Lily Tomlin, “Grace and Frankie”
Best Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson, “Black-ish”
Aziz Ansari, “Master of None”
Zach Galifianakis, “Baskets”
Donald Glover, “Atlanta”
William H. Macy, “Shameless”
Jeffrey Tambor, “Transparent”
Best Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie
Carrie Coon, “Fargo”
Felicity Huffman, “American Crime”
Nicole Kidman, “Big Little Lies”
Jessica Lange, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Susan Sarandon, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Reese Witherspoon, “Big Little Lies”
Best Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie
Riz Ahmed, “The Night Of”
Benedict Cumberbatch, “Sherlock: The Lying Detective”
Robert DeNiro, “The Wizard of Lies”
Ewan McGregor, “Fargo”
Geoffrey Rush, “Genius”
John Turturro, “The Night Of”
Best Supporting Actress in a Drama
Uzo Aduba, “Orange Is the New Black”
Millie Bobby Brown, “Stranger Things”
Ann Dowd, “The Handmaid’s Tale”
Chrissy Metz, “This Is Us”
Thandie Newton, “Westworld”
Samira Wiley, “The Handmaid’s Tale”
Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Jonathan Banks, “Better Call Saul”
Ron Cephas Jones, “This Is Us”
David Harbour, “Stranger Things”
Michael Kelly, “House of Cards”
John Lithgow, “The Crown”
Mandy Patinkin, “Homeland”
Jeffrey Wright, “Westworld”
Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Vanessa Bayer, “Saturday Night Live”
Anna Chlumsky, “Veep”
Kathryn Hahn, “Transparent”
Leslie Jones, “Saturday Night Live”
Judith Light, “Transparent”
Kate McKinnon, “Saturday Night Live”
Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Louie Anderson, “Baskets”
Alec Baldwin, “Saturday Night Live”
Tituss Burgess, “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”
Ty Burrell, “Modern Family”
Tony Hale, “Veep”
Matt Walsh, “Veep”
Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie
Judy Davis, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Laura Dern, “Big Little Lies”
Jackie Hoffman, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Regina King, “American Crime”
Michelle Pfeiffer, “The Wizard of Lies”
Shailene Woodley, “Big Little Lies”
Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie
Bill Camp, “The Night Of”
Alfred Molina, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Alexander Skarsgard, “Big Little Lies”
David Thewlis, “Fargo”
Stanley Tucci, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Michael K. Williams, “The Night Of”
Best Guest Actress in a Drama Series
Cicely Tyson, “How to Get Away With Murder”
Laverne Cox, “Orange Is the New Black”
Shannon Purser, “Stranger Things”
Alison Wright, “The Americans”
Alexis Bledel, “The Handmaid’s Tale”
Ann Dowd, “The Leftovers”
Best Guest Actor in a Drama Series
Ben Mendelsohn, “Bloodline”
BD Wong, “Mr. Robot”
Hank Azaria, “Ray Donovan”
Brian Tyree Henry, “This Is Us”
Gerald McRaney, “This Is Us”
Denis O’Hare, “This Is Us”
Best Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
Wanda Sykes, “Black-ish”
Carrie Fisher, “Catastrophe”
Becky Ann Baker, “Girls”
Angela Bassett, “Master of None”
Melissa McCarthy, “Saturday Night Live”
Kristen Wiig, “Saturday Night Live”
Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
Matthew Rhys, “Girls”
Riz Ahmed, “Girls”
Lin-Manuel Miranda, “Saturday Night Live”
Dave Chappelle, “Saturday Night Live”
Tom Hanks, “Saturday Night Live”
Hugh Laurie, “Veep”
Best Reality-Competition Program
“The Amazing Race”
“American Ninja Warrior”
“Project Runway”
“RuPaul’s Drag Race”
“Top Chef”
“The Voice”
Best Variety Talk Series
“Full Frontal With Samantha Bee”
“Jimmy Kimmel Live”
“Last Week Tonight With John Oliver”
“The Late Late Show With James Corden”
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert”
“Real Time With Bill Maher”
Best Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program
Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg, “Martha & Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party”
Gordon Ramsay, “MasterChef Junior”
Alec Baldwin, “Match Game”
Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn, “Project Runway”
RuPaul Charles, “RuPaul’s Drag Race”
W. Kamau Bell, “United Shades of America With W. Kamau Bell”
WorldPride 2025 concluded with the WorldPride Street Festival and Closing Concert held along Pennsylvania Ave., N.W. on Sunday, June 8. Performers on the main stage included Doechii, Khalid, Courtney Act, Parker Matthews, 2AM Ricky, Suzie Toot, MkX and Brooke Eden.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The 2025 WorldPride Parade was held in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, June 7. Laverne Cox and Renée Rapp were the grand marshals.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key and Robert Rapanut)
Theater
A hilarious ‘Twelfth Night’ at Folger full of ‘elegant kink’
Nonbinary actor Alyssa Keegan stars as Duke Orsino
‘Twelfth Night’
Through June 22
Folger Theatre
201 East Capitol St., S.E.
$20-$84
Folger.edu
Nonbinary actor Alyssa Keegan (they/them)loves tapping into the multitudes within.
Currently Keegan plays the melancholic Duke Orsino in Folger Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s romantic comedy “Twelfth Night.” Director Mei Ann Teo describes the production as “sexy, hilarious, and devastating” and full of “elegant kink.”
Washington-based, Keegan enjoys a busy and celebrated career. Her vast biography includes Come From Away at Ford’s Theatre; Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Helen Hayes Award, Best Actress) and Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive, both at Round House Theatre; Diana Son’s Stop Kiss directedby Holly Twyford for No Rules Theatre Company; and Contractions at Studio Theatre, to name just a few.
In addition to acting, Keegan works as a polyamory and ethical non-monogamy life and relationship coach, an area of interest that grew out of personal exploration. For them, coaching seems to work hand in hand with acting.
WASHINGTON BLADE: You’re playing the lovesick Orsino in Twelfth Night. How did that come about?
ALYSSA KEEGAN: The director was looking to cast a group of actors with diverse identities; throughout auditions, there were no constraints regarding anyone’s assigned sex at birth. It was really a free for all.
BLADE: What’s your approach to the fetching, cod-piece clad nobleman?
KEEGAN: Offstage I identify as completely nonbinary; I love riding in this neutral middle space. But I also love cosplay. The ability to do that in the play gives me permission to dive completely into maleness.
So, when I made that decision to play Orsino as a bio male, suddenly the part really cracked open for me. I began looking for clues about his thoughts and opinions about things like his past relationships and his decision not to date older women.
Underneath his mask of bravura and sexuality, and his firmness of feelings, he’s quite lonely and has never really felt loved. It makes sense to me why his love for Olivia is so misguided and why he might fall in love with the Cesario/Viola character.
BLADE: As an actor, do you ever risk taking on the feelings of your characters?
KEEGAN: Prior to my mental health education, yes, and that could be toxic for me. I’ve since learned that the nervous system can’t tell the difference between real emotional distress and a that of a fully embodied character.
So, I created and share the Empowered Performer Project. [a holistic approach to performance that emphasizes the mental and emotional well-being of performing artists]. It utilizes somatic tools that help enormously when stepping into a character.
BLADE: Has changing the way you work affected your performances?
KEEGAN: I think I’m much better now. I used to have nearly debilitating stage fright. I’d spend all day dreading going onstage. I thought that was just part of the job. Now, I’ve learned to talk to my body. Prior to a performance, I can now spend my offstage time calmly gardening, working with my mental health clients, or playing with my kid. I’m just present in my life in a different way.
BLADE: Is Orsino your first time playing a male role?
KEEGAN: No. In fact, the very first time I played a male role was at the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Va. I played Hipolito in Thomas Middleton’s The Revenger’s Tragedy.
As Hipolito, I felt utterly male in the moment, so much so that I had audience members see me later after the show and they were surprised that I was female. They thought I was a young guy in the role. There’s something very powerful in that.
BLADE: Do you have a favorite part? Male or female?
KEEGAN: That’s tough but I think it’s Maggie the Cat. I played the hyper-female Maggie in Tennessee Williams’ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at Round House. In the first act she didn’t stop talking for 51 minutes opposite Gregory Wooddell as Brick who barely had to speak. That lift was probably the heaviest I’ve ever been asked to do in acting.
BLADE: What about Folger’s Twelfth Night might be especially appealing to queer audiences?
KEEGAN: First and foremost is presentation. 99% of the cast identify as queer in some way.
The approach to Shakespeare’s text is one of the most bold and playful that I have ever seen. It’s unabashedly queer. The actors are here to celebrate and be loud and colorful and to advocate. It’s a powerful production, especially to do so close to the Capitol building, and that’s not lost on any of us.
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