Arts & Entertainment
Gay director Bryan Singer faces new sexual misconduct accusations
Singer calls Atlantic story ‘vendetta journalism’
Move over Kevin Spacey. An explosive new piece in the Atlantic mounts multiple new accusations of sexual misconduct against gay director Bryan Singer, 53, who was fired from “Bohemian Rhapsody” just weeks before the film was completed. The yearlong investigation with more than 50 sources includes interviews with four new victims who allege sexual misconduct by Singer when they were teens in the 1990s. The accusations run from seduction to rape.
In one instance, “Andy” tells of hooking up with Singer with “Apt Pupil“ star Brad Renfro,15, in the bedroom. “I remember wanting Brad to join in,” Andy told Atlantic. “I don’t think Brad was gay, or even bi. I think he was going with the flow. We talked about it. Like me, he looked around at all of the things these guys had, all of the money. Maybe he thought the guys were going to do things for him.” In 2008, Renfro, 25, died of a drug overdose.
According to Yahoo News, the story was initially expected to appear in Esquire magazine as “Bohemian Rhapsody” was released. Singer has consistently denied all allegations of misconduct. Yashar Ali posted Singer’s latest denial on Twitter in which the director says the article was written “by a homophobic journalist who has a bizarre obsession with me dating back to 1997. After careful fact-checking and, in consideration of the lack of credible sources, Esquire chose not to publish this piece of vendetta journalism.” Singer says, “this homophobic hit piece has been conveniently timed” to the success of “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
BBC News notes that while Singer was fired from directing the Queen biopic for “unreliable behaviour on set,” he is nonetheless still listed as the film’s director by the Director’s Guild of America. Entertainment Weekly reports that “’Bohemian Rhapsody,’ which won the Golden Globe for Best Drama at Sunday night’s ceremony, was likely left out of the DGA nominees due to its directorial shakeup, which saw original director Bryan Singer replaced by Dexter Fletcher before production wrapped.”
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.
HIV/AIDS group NMAC is ‘destabilized’ and in financial crisis: sources
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
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
