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Vanessa Hudgens, Tinashe, Valentina join ‘Rent Live’

Jordan Fisher, Mario and more round out cast

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Valentina (Photo via Instagram)

Fox announced the cast for its next live musical “Rent Live” which includes Vanessa Hudgens, Tinashe and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” season nine winner Valentina.

“Rent” is a modern update ofĀ  Giacomo Puccini’s opera ” La BohĆØme” from the late Jonathan Larson. The rock musical follows a group of struggling arists living and squatting in New York City during the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. The Broadway musical would go on to win four Tony awards including Best Musical.

Valentina will portray AngelĀ Dumott Schunard, a street percussionist and drag queen, who falls in love with philosophy professor Tom Collins. Collins will be played byĀ Brandon Victor Dixon, who was recently nominated for his role as Judas in “Jesus Christ Superstar Live.”

R&B singer Tinashe has been cast as Mimi Rogers, a drug-addicted club dancer whose love interest is angsty musician Roger Davis, played by Brennin Hunt (“Nashville”).

Jordan Fisher, known for “Hamilton” and the 2017 winner of “Dancing with the Stars,” will portray the narrator of the show Mark Cohen, Roger’s roommate and a documentary filmmaker. Maureen Johnson, a bisexual performance artist and Mark’s ex, will be played by Vanessa Hudgens. Maureen is currently dating lesbian lawyer Joanne Jefferson (Kiersey Clemons).

Other cast members include singer Mario asĀ Benjamin Coffin III, the landlord of Mark, Mimi and Roger and Mimi’s ex.

“Rent Live” airs on Jan. 27, 2019 on FOX.

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Arts & Entertainment

Queer actors celebrate Golden Globe nominations

Koch, Gadd, Domingo among yearā€™s standout performances

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Cooper Koch (left) is nominated for best television male actor in a limited series, anthology series or television motion picture for ā€˜Monsters.ā€™ (Photo courtesy of Netflix)

Awards season arrived earlier this week with the announcement of the 2025 Golden Globes, which takes place on Jan. 5, airing on CBS and streaming on Paramount +. Several LGBTQ actors are over the moon to be nominated. 

Trans queer actress Karla SofĆ­a GascĆ³n was nominated for Best Female Actor in a Musical or Comedy, for the musical ā€œEmilia PĆ©rez,ā€ making her the first out trans woman to be nominated for Lead Actress in a film category. 

The riveting film, which tells the tale of a cartel leader who transitions to a trans woman, has received numerous Globes noms, for Best Motion Picture (musical or comedy), acting (for Selena Gomez and Zoe SaldaƱa), Jacques Audiard for Best Director (Motion Picture), Best Screenplay (Motion Picture), Best Original Score, and two nominations for Best Original Song.

ā€œThis has been an overwhelming morning,ā€ acknowledged GascĆ³n in a Netflix statement. ā€œTears filled my eyes when I heard the news. I want to thank all the members of the Golden Globes for this nomination. It’s incredible to be recognized alongside my costars. Iā€™m so grateful to Jacques for the gift of Emilia. We couldnā€™t have created the world of ā€˜EMILIA PƉREZā€™ without the amazing artistic technical team on the film. Thank you to Netflix and to all of you who support me and live with my successes as if they were yours. This nomination gives me hope for humanity.ā€

Bisexual actor Richard Gadd has been nominated for best television male actor in a limited series, anthology series or television motion picture for his hit Netflix series, ā€œBaby Reindeer.ā€  

In a prepared Netflix statement he said: ā€œI am beyond thrilled that ā€˜Baby Reindeerā€™ has been nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Almost every year, I have watched the event, hoping that one day I might be there in the audience, sitting amongst the industry’s finest, getting roasted on an international scale. So it is a dream come true. Thanks to the Hollywood Foreign Press for all they have done in championing the show.ā€

Gadd offered his ā€œsincere gratitudeā€ to Netflix for ā€œtaking a chanceā€ on greenlighting the series, as well as Clerkenwell Films for their ā€œenormous effortsā€ in producing it.

ā€œAnd all the amazing cast and crew who worked tirelessly to bring the best version of the series to screen, a special shout out to my incredible team who I have the joy and privilege of working with every single day too. Whatever happens on the 5th of January, I cannot think of a better way to start the year. Javier Bardem, Iā€™m coming for a photograph!ā€

Gadd is up against gay stars Cooper Koch for ā€œMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyā€ and Andrew Scott for ā€œRipley.ā€ 

Noted Scott: ā€œIt was a true honor to bring Patricia Highsmithā€™s iconic literary character to life in this new way, to spar with the glorious Dakota Fanning and to work with a cast and crew of truly extraordinary talent. Thank you to the Golden Globes; I never dreamed murdering people on the Amalfi coast for a year would be recognized in this way. Grazie Mille.ā€

Also in the category are Colin Farrell (ā€œThe Penguin,ā€) Kevin Kline (ā€œDisclaimerā€), and Ewan McGregor (ā€œA Gentleman in Moscow.ā€)

Gay castmate Jessica Gunning is also nominated for best supporting female actor-television.

ā€œWowza. Words canā€™t really do justice to how thrilled I am to be nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress alongside some of my idols as well no less! I think I might need someone to pinch me to check Iā€™m not dreaming. Thank you so much to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for this incredible honour, to the amazing cast and crew of Baby Reindeer, to Netflix and Clerkenwell Films, to my friends and family for all their support along the way. And a huge thanks of course to Richard, without whom none of this would even be possible. This genuinely is such an incredible honour and I canā€™t wait to be in LA in Januaryā€¦ what a way to kick off 2025! Thank you.ā€

ā€œWickedā€™sā€ Cynthia Erivo was equally elated: ā€œNow that my feet are hovering off the ground, I cannot even come close to properly expressing what this moment means to me. Not just because of this individual nomination but because I get to watch as this project and my ā€˜WICKEDā€™ family is celebrated too. Being a part of this project has been a dream come true, and playing Elphaba, a woman who speaks to everyone who has ever felt like they donā€™t belong and lets them know they have the power to defy gravity, has been the honor of a lifetime.ā€

Erivoā€™s best performance by a female actor in a musical or comedy nomination is the fourth for her ā€” she earned her first nominations for best drama actress and best original song for the 2020 film ā€œHarriet.ā€ The British actress and singer also received a nom in 2022, for best actress in a limited series nomination, portraying Aretha Franklin in Nat Geoā€™s ā€œGenius.ā€

She also sent heartfelt wishes to director Jon Chu and producer Marc Platt. ā€œThank you for entrusting me with her. Donna Langley, Peter Cramer and the entire Universal team, thank you for all of your love, care, collaboration and hard work. Jon, you and your wonderful dedication to this work, your love of cinema and storytelling and care for each one of us on your set is why weā€™re all experiencing this now, thank you.ā€

ā€œWickedā€ has several nominations, including Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy), Cinematic and Box Office Achievement and Ariana Grande-Butera for Best Supporting Female Actor.

Addressing Grande-Butera, Erivo said: ā€œMy little sister, baby girl I love you. Iā€™m so proud of you. Youā€™re so deserving of this moment and Iā€™m glad I get to share the seconds and the moments and the days and the years with you. This journey has been so unbelievably special, and I believe it is the company we have kept together that has made it as special as it has been and will continue to be. May there be many many more journeys to take both on and off screen, it is an honor to be able to hold your hand.ā€

Angelina Jolie is also nominated for best female actor-drama for ā€œMaria,ā€ the Maria Callas biopic. 

ā€œThank you to the Golden Globes for this honor,ā€ she said in a Netflix statement. ā€œI am humbled to be nominated alongside so many artists I deeply admire. I share this with my director, Pablo Larrain and all who were a part of making MARIA such a rewarding experience. It’s a privilege to have played Maria Callas and to be able to share her legacy with the world.ā€

Nonbinary star Emma Dā€™Arcy also received a Globe nomination for Best TV Drama Actress for her work in HBOā€™s ā€œHouse of the Dragon.ā€

ā€œI feel completely delighted. This season felt very personal to me, and at times it was hard to make, so Iā€™m really moved by this recognition. Making a show like this is the most extraordinary team effort ā€” Iā€™ll be honoured to represent my colleagues at the Globes in January.ā€

Dā€™Arcyā€™s co-nominees are Kathy Bates (ā€œMatlockā€), Maya Erskine (ā€œMr. and Mrs. Smithā€), Keira Knightley (ā€œBlack Dovesā€), Keri Russell (ā€œThe Diplomatā€), and Anna Sawai (ā€œShōgunā€).

Hannah Einbinder has now been nominated at the Golden Globes for all three seasons of ā€œHacks.ā€

ā€œGetting to make ā€˜Hacksā€™ with the hardest working, most talented and lovely crew, saying words written by Paul Downs, Jen Statsky, and Lucia Aniello, looking into the eyes of Jean Smart and every actor on this show is a once in a lifetime, lightning in a bottle experience. I cherish this show so deeply and to be recognized for my work on it is a sincere honor.ā€

Luca Guadagnino is nominated for Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for ā€œChallengersā€ as well as for Best Song. 

ā€œI am so proud today to the Globes for the recognition and love for Daniel and Zendaya in both drama and comedy. I am in awe of their talent. To then share best picture and song nods with more people I love ā€” Amy and Rachel, Trent and Atticus, it is a beautiful and wonderful thing and I am grateful.ā€  

Other LGBTQ highlights:

ā€œNickel Boysā€ and ā€œMoana 2ā€ were nominated for Best Motion Picture and feature queer actors Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Auliā€™i Cravalho.

ā€œThe Wild Robot,ā€ which features queer actor Stephanie Hsu, is nominated for Best Motion Picture (Animated), Cinematic and Box Office Achievement, Best Original Score and Best Original Song.  Grammy-winning country-pop star Maren Morris, who identifies as bisexual, co-wrote and performed ā€œKiss the Sky.ā€ 

Singer Miley Cyrus is nominated for Best Original Song for ā€œBeautiful That Wayā€ from ā€œThe Last Showgirl.ā€

Both Jodie Foster and Kali Reis are nominated for ā€œTrue Detective: Night Country.ā€ 

Colman Domingo is nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama, for ā€œSing Sing.ā€ 

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Calendar

Calendar: December 13-19

LGBTQ events in the days to come

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Friday, December 13

ā€œCenter Aging Friday Tea Timeā€ will be at 2 p.m. on Zoom. This is a social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults. Guests are encouraged to bring a beverage of choice. For more details, email [email protected].Ā 

Women in their Twenties and Thirties will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This is a social discussion group for queer women in the Washington, D.C. area. For more details, join their closed Facebook Group.Ā 

Go Gay DC will host ā€œFirst Friday LGBTQ+ Community Happy Hourā€ at 7 p.m. at Puro Gusto. This event is ideal for making new friends, professional networking, idea-sharing, and community building. This event is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

Saturday, December 14

Go Gay DC will host ā€œLGBTQ+ Community Brunchā€ at 11 a.m. at Freddieā€™s Beach Bar & Restaurant. This fun weekly event brings the DMV area LGBTQ+ community, including Allies, together for delicious food and conversation. Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

The DC Center for the LGBT Community will host ā€œVogue Sessionsā€ at 2 p.m. Sessions is open to all ages, genders, and experience levels and will be facilitated each-one-teach-one. No shade, no drama, no categories. DJ Tony Play starts spinning at 3PM. For more details, visit the DC Centerā€™s website.Ā 

LGBTQ People of Color Support Group will be at 1 p.m. on Zoom. This peer support group is an outlet for LGBTQ People of Color to come together and talk about anything affecting them in a space that strives to be safe and judgement free. For more information and events for LGBTQ People of Color, visit thedccenter.org/poc or facebook.com/centerpoc.

Sunday, December 15

Go Gay DC will host ā€œLGBTQ+ Community Dinnerā€ at 6:30 p.m. at Federico Ristorante Italiano. Guests are encouraged to come enjoy an evening of Italian-style dining and conversation with other LGBTQ+ folk. Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

AfroCode DC will be at 4 p.m. at Decades DC. This event will be an experience of non-stop music, dancing, and good vibes and a crossover of genres and a fusion of cultures. Tickets cost $40 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.Ā 

Monday, December 16

Center Aging: Monday Coffee & Conversation will be at 10:00a.m. on Zoom. This is a social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults. Guests are encouraged to bring a beverage of their choice. For more details, email [email protected].Ā 

Queer Book Club will be at 6:30 p.m. on Zoom. This monthā€™s read is ā€œHow to Excavate a Heartā€ by Jake Maia Arlow. For more details, email [email protected].Ā 

Tuesday, December 17

Genderqueer DC will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This is a support group for people who identify outside of the gender binary. Whether youā€™re bigender, agender, genderfluid, or just know that youā€™re not 100% cis. For more details, visit genderqueerdc.org or Facebook.Ā 

BiRoundtable Discussion will be at 7 p.m. This is an opportunity for people to gather in order to discuss issues related to bisexuality or as Bi individuals in a private setting. For more details, visit Facebook or Meetup.Ā 

Wednesday, December 18

Job Club will be at 6 p.m. on Zoom. This is a weekly job support program to help job entrants and seekers, including the long-term unemployed, improve self-confidence, motivation, resilience and productivity for effective job searches and networking ā€” allowing participants to move away from being merely ā€œapplicantsā€ toward being ā€œcandidates.ā€ For more information, email [email protected] or visit thedccenter.org/careers.

Asexual and Aromantic Group will meet at 7 p.m. on Zoom and in person at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. This is a space where people who are questioning this aspect of their identity or those who identify as asexual and/or aromantic can come together, share stories and experiences, and discuss various topics. For more details, email [email protected].Ā 

Thursday, December 19

The DC Centerā€™s Fresh Produce Program will be held all day at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. To be more fair with who is receiving boxes, the program is moving to a lottery system. People will be informed on Wednesday at 5:00 pm if they are picked to receive a produce box. No proof of residency or income is required. For more information, email [email protected] or call 202-682-2245.Ā 

Virtual Yoga with Charles M. will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This is a free weekly class focusing on yoga, breathwork, and meditation. For more details, visit the DC Center for the LGBT Communityā€™s website.

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Movies

Daniel Craig shines in raw and romantic ā€˜Queerā€™

Drug abuse, alcohol, sex, and squalor figure in new Guadagnino film

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Daniel Craig and Drew Starkey in ā€˜Queer.ā€™ (Photo courtesy of A24)

In an awards season largely devoid of LGBTQ content, one movie asserts itself as the exception by its very title.

Much-anticipated after its Venice Film Festival premiere, and buoyed by the buzz around star Daniel Craigā€™s performance and its well-publicized sex scenes, Luca Guadagninoā€™s ā€œQueerā€ has begun rolling into theaters. Naturally, queer cinema buffs are eager to see a move from the same filmmaker who delivered ā€œCall Me By Your Nameā€ and its leading man is arguably the sexiest of all the James Bonds ā€“ but if youā€™re expecting a feel-good story about LGBTQ Pride, this adaptation of a novella by famously countercultural ā€œBeat eraā€ writer William S. Burroughs is definitely not it. 

Its setting in 1950s Mexico City is enough to let you know that any queerness it presents for us is likely to be furtive, conducted in secrecy and shrouded in a sense of forbidden desire. Against this backdrop, brilliant-but-dissolute American William Lee (Craig) trolls the streets and clubs looking for sex, love, and connection among the other expatriates who gather nightly in the bars that cater to them. When a much-younger ex-Navy man named Eugene (Drew Starkey) catches his eye and seems responsive to his bold-but-clumsy flirtations, he becomes enamored ā€“ despite his own insecurities and his uncertainty over whether his new crush is even queer to begin with ā€“ and persists in his effort to get close to this much-younger fellow American.

Thereā€™s definitely a spark; the two move quickly from being mere drinking companions when an after-bar nightcap at his place turns into a naked overnight stay, and they become de facto lovers, though Eugene continues to maintain an emotional distance. Eventually, Lee proposes a trip together to find a rogue botanist (Leslie Manville) in South America and experiment with ayahuasca; the young man agrees, and the two set off to share an experience that may push the boundaries of their relationship ā€“ and their consciousness ā€“ further than either of them are prepared to go.

Itā€™s not a particularly ā€œstory-orientedā€ film; the plot flows, almost like a stream of consciousness, through the repetitive patterns of daily existence, moving between concrete reality, jarring memory, and hallucinatory exaltation to approximate an inner narrative rather than propel an outer one. This reflects the similar fluctuation in Burroughsā€™s writing, but also takes the audience into the subjective experience of Lee ā€“ a fictionalized version of the author himself ā€“ and allows us to see the threads of consistent meaning that turn the hedonistic blur into a visceral reminder of the intensity with which life often takes place, especially when longing, desire, and loneliness are involved. Ultimately, the adaptation by screenwriter Justin Kuritzkes treats the material almost as a ā€œmeta-biopicā€ of Burroughs himself, a bittersweet and characteristically raw collection of impressionistic memories given narrative structure by the conceit of fiction.

In keeping with that choice, Craig delivers a masterful performance that succeeds in channeling the late authorā€™s uniquely unfiltered personality while never feeling like an attempt at mimicry. The former 007 reminds us of the insightful talent that made him a star even before his run as the iconic super agent, discarding the familiar suave charisma for a nervous awkwardness that underscores Leeā€™s eternal sense of being an outsider, but conveying with equal clarity the euphoric heights and humiliating lows of his emotional and intellectual landscape. Already the winner of the National Board of Reviewā€™s Best Actor prize, itā€™s a star turn that anchors the film and helps it achieve the homage to Burroughs ā€“ an under appreciated pioneer and alternative icon for the queer community, though he reportedly once disowned what was then called the ā€œGay Rights Movementā€ by saying “I have never been gay a day in my life and Iā€™m sure as hell not a part of any movement” ā€“ that it rightly intends to pay.

As the object of his affections, costar Starkey brings more than just his compelling yet somehow unconventional good looks to the mix. He makes Eugene at once an enigma and a familiar archetype of sensitive-yet-callow youth, a pleasure-seeker able to embrace and delight in the joys of the moment with full authenticity. He has a palpable chemistry with Craig, only enhanced by those much-touted sex scenes (which manage to leave little to the imagination without showing anything explicit) and makes us feel both the deep bond that forms between them and the pang of inevitable loss that comes along with it.

Other strong performances come from Jason Schwartzman (almost unrecognizable in body padding and makeup) as a queer compatriot and confidant of Leeā€™s, and Manville (also almost unrecognizable under her characterā€™s visual design) as the doctor-turned-shaman who serves as gatekeeper on his quest for psychedelic enlightenment; the always-winning Drew Droege also scores in a memorable supporting turn. 

As for the direction, Guadagnino is at his best, guiding the actors through the story with insight and specificity while making sure his film gives them the best visual showcase to deliver it. Beautifully shot in a lush color palette on sumptuously designed sets, and composed with the visual eloquence of a painterly sensibility from start to finish, ā€œQueerā€ very much evokes the big screen Technicolor aesthetic of the 1950s era in which it takes place, an effect thatā€™s both reinforced by its romanticized international settings and jarringly contrasted by an anachronistic soundtrack that includes not only a distinctly contemporary-sounding score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross but numerous songs by artists like Nirvana, Prince, and New Order.

Yet excellent as it is, itā€™s a film that might disappoint some viewers. Though its name and its primary characters are queer, the ā€œqueernessā€ of the story has ultimately nothing to do with sexuality; for Burroughs, it was perhaps the way he saw through the madness of the world that set him apart from others, that kept him feeling alone in a crowd unless it was made up of the fellow ā€œfreaksā€ who were among his close circle. While ā€œQueerā€ certainly offers plenty of celebratory, sex-positive scenes of intimacy, conveying a truth that the author knew first-hand, it also goes to the dark side, portraying Burroughsā€™s Gonzo lifestyle ā€“ including explicit scenes of drug use and seemingly endless appetite for alcohol ā€“ in all its matter-of-fact squalor. Some commentators have already pointed out the storyā€™s echo of an old narrative trope, a ā€œDeath in Veniceā€ style story of an aging gay man lured to despair by an obsession with a beautiful youth. If youā€™re after positive queer representation ā€“ or at least the generally expected kind ā€“ youā€™re not going to find that here, either.

Still, while such things may disturb our assumptions about what queer life – or any type of life, for that matter ā€“ is ā€œsupposedā€ to look like, they nevertheless represent a true lived experience, and truth is sometimes just as important as presentation. And ā€œQueerā€ gives us plenty of beautiful moments, too, offsetting the ugly ones and often even turning them into something beautiful, too. Thatā€™s why, while it may not be the kind of inspirational call to arms many of us feel we need right now, it still earns our recommendation as one of the standout films of the year.

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