Arts & Entertainment
‘Green Book,’ Rami Malek and more of the 2019 Oscar winners
Lady Gaga, Olivia Colman round out top honors
The 91st annual Academy Awards became a historic night on Sunday at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles as the golden statues were handed out to first-time winners for both Hollywood newcomers and overdue veterans.
Queen, fronted by singer Adam Lambert, kicked off the show with a melody of Queen songs including “We are the Champions.” The hostless show was sped forward simply by presenters and kicked off with the comedian trio of Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph
“We are not your hosts, but we’re going to stand here a little too long so that the people who get USA Today tomorrow will think we hosted,” Fey joked to the audience.
Soon after, the first major award of the night was given to Regina King for her role in the James Baldwin film adaptation, “If Beale Street Could Talk.” This was King’s first Academy Award win.
King thanked her mother and Barry Jenkins, who also directed Oscar winner “Moonlight.”
“To be standing here representing one of the greatest artists of all time – James Baldwin. James Baldwin bursts this baby and Barry nurtured her, surrounding her with so much love and support. So it’s appropriate to be standing here because I am an example of what it looks like when support and love
Lady Gaga won Best Original Song for “Shallow,” which she passionately performed with her “A Star is Born” co-star Bradley Cooper earlier in the show. The song beat out the popular song “All the Stars” by Kendrick Lamar and SZA from “Black Panther” and “The Place Where Lost Things Go” by Emily Blunt from “Mary Poppins Returns,” which was performed by Bette Midler at the ceremony.
A star is born… ? #Oscars pic.twitter.com/lh0HZ53XrD
— Channel 9 (@Channel9) February 25, 2019
“It’s not about winning,” Lady Gaga says in tearful acceptance speech. “What it’s about is not giving up. If you have a dream, fight for it.” https://t.co/qqMWC8hs2g #Oscars pic.twitter.com/aQuaMgE6ZU
— ABC News (@ABC) February 25, 2019
Backstage, Lady Gaga was asked what she would say to her fans headed to the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in Sydney, Australia.
“I’ll tell you something, I hope that everyone there in Sydney feels so much joy and celebrates all sexual identities. And I also have a dream in our future as we evolve as humanity that these award shows not be male and female but include everyone,” Gaga replied.
Rami Malek won Best Actor for his portrayal of bisexual Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. Malek is the first Arab-American to win Best Actor.
“I think about what it would have been like to tell little bubba Rami that one day this might happen to him, and I think his curly-haired little mind would have been blown,” Malek told the crowd in his acceptance speech. “That kid was struggling with his identity, trying to figure himself out, and to anyone struggling and trying to discover their voice — listen, we made a film about a gay man, an immigrant, who lived his life unapologetically himself. And the fact I’m celebrating him and this story with you tonight is proof that we’re longing for stories like this.”
In a heartfelt speech, Oscar winner Rami Malek praises his mom, says he knows his dad is looking down on him, thanks Queen, and says the world “is longing for stories” about people being “unapologetically” themselves.
— ABC News (@ABC) February 25, 2019
Watch the whole thing: https://t.co/zSrvQG8ZE6 #Oscars pic.twitter.com/uXxpfORcPx
“Bohemian Rhapsody” also won awards for Best Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Film Editing.
Olivia Colman won Best Actress for her role as Queen Anne in “The Favourite.” In her light-hearted speech, Colman said: “This is hilarious. I’ve got an Oscar” and ended her acceptance by blowing a kiss to Lady Gaga.
Olivia Colman gives heartfelt acceptance speech after winning award for Best Actress at the #Oscars.
— ABC News (@ABC) February 25, 2019
“Any little girl who’s practicing her speech on the tele—you never know!” https://t.co/cajeASPKfS pic.twitter.com/oDOFzm7LOg
“Roma” also won big for the night with a win for Best Foreign Picture, Cinematography and a Best Director win for Alfonso Cuarón.
Overall, the night was filled with diversity as a record-number of women won awards. These women included Ruth E. Carter (Best Costume for “Black Panther”) and Hannah Beachler (Best Production Design for “Black Panther”) who became the second and third black women to win non-acting Oscars in the span of a few minutes. Beachler was also the first black woman to ever be nominated for Production Design.
Film veteran Spike Lee won his first Oscar in the history of his career for Best Adapted Screenplay for “
Perhaps the most controversial win of the night went to “Green Book,” which won for Best Picture. The film has maintained plenty of controversy since its release. The film is based on the true story of black pianist Dr. Donald Shirley (Mahershala Ali) who hires Tony Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen) to be his driver and bodyguard. The film has been accused of using the “white savior” trope. Shirley’s family have also denounced the film as an inaccurate portrayal of the pair’s friendship.
Mortensen also came under fire during promotion for the film when he used the N-word to describe how race relations have changed over the years.
“For instance, no one says ‘N-word’ anymore,” Mortensen said at the time. He later apologized.
Despite the controversy, the film also nabbed a Best Supporting Actor win for Ali, his second following “Moonlight,” and a win for Best Original Screenplay.
Check out the list of winners below.
Best Picture
“Black Panther”
“BlacKkKlansman”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“The Favourite”
“Green Book”
“Roma”
“A Star Is Born”
“Vice”
Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams-“Vice”
Marina de Tavira-“Roma”
Regina King-“If Beale Street Could Talk”
Emma Stone- “The Favourite”
Rachel Weisz- “The Favourite”
Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali- “Green Book”
Adam Driver- “BlackKKlansman”
Sam Elliott- “A Star Is Born”
Richard E. Grant- “Can You Ever Forgive Me”
Sam Rockwell- “Vice”
Foreign Language Film
“Capernaum”
“Cold War”
“Never Look Away”
“Roma”
“Shoplifters”
Documentary (Short)
“Black Sheep”
“End Game”
“Lifeboat”
“A Night at the Garden”
“Period. End of Sentence.”
Documentary Feature
“Free Solo”
“Hale County This Morning, This Evening”
“Minding the Gap”
“Of Fathers and Sons”
“RBG”
Original Song
“All The Stars” – “Black Panther”
“I’ll Fight” – “RBG”
“Shallow” – “A Star Is Born”
“The Place Where Lost Things Go” – “Mary Poppins Returns”
“When A Cowboy Trades His Spurs For Wings” – “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs”
Animated Feature Film
“Incredibles 2”
“Isle of Dogs”
“Mirai”
“Ralph Breaks the Internet”
“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”
Adapted Screenplay
“The Ballad of Buster Scruggs”
“BlacKkKlansman”
“Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
“If Beale Street Could Talk”
“A Star Is Born”
Original Screenplay
“First Reformed”
“Green Book”
“Roma”
“The Favourite”
“Vice”
Actor in a Leading Role
Christian Bale- “Vice”
Bradley Cooper- “A Star Is Born”
Willem Dafoe- “At Eternity’s Gate”
Rami Malek-“Bohemian Rhapsody”
Viggo Mortensen- “Green Book”
Actress in a Leading Role
Yalitza Aparicio- “Roma”
Glenn Close- “The Wife”
Lady Gaga- “A Star Is Born”
Olivia Colman- “The Favourite”
Melissa McCarthy- “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Director
Spike Lee- “BlacKkKlansman”
Pawel Pawlikowski- “Cold War”
Yorgos Lanthimos- “The Favourite”
Alfonso Cuarón- “Roma”
Adam McKay- “Vice”
Production Design
“Black Panther”
“The Favourite”
“First Man”
“Mary Poppins Returns”
“Roma”
Cinematography
“Cold War”
“The Favourite”
“Never Look Away”
“Roma”
“A Star Is Born”
Costume Design
“The Ballad of Buster Scruggs”
“Black Panther”
“The Favourite”
“Mary Poppins Returns”
“Mary Queen of Scots”
Sound Editing
“A Quiet Place”
“Black Panther”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“First Man”
“Roma”
Sound Mixing
“Black Panther”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“First Man”
“Roma”
“A Star Is Born”
Animated Short Film
“Animal Behaviour”
“Bao”
“Late Afternoon”
“One Small Step”
“Weekends”
Live Action Short Film
“Detainment”
“Fauve”
“Marguerite”
“Mother”
“Skin”
Original Score
“Black Panther”
“BlacKkKlansman”
“If Beale Street Could Talk”
“Isle of Dogs”
“Mary Poppins Returns”
Visual Effects
“Avengers: Infinity War”
“Christopher Robin”
“First Man”
“Ready Player One”
“Solo: A Star Wars Story”
Film Editing
“BlacKkKlansman”
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“Green Book”
“The Favourite”
“Vice”
Makeup and Hairstyling
“Border”
“Mary Queen of Scots”
“Vice”
Team DC, the umbrella organization for LGBTQ-friendly sports teams and leagues in the D.C. area, held its annual Night of Champions Awards Gala on Saturday, April 20 at the Hilton National Mall. The organization gave out scholarships to area LGBTQ student athletes as well as awards to the Different Drummers, Kelly Laczko of Duplex Diner, Stacy Smith of the Edmund Burke School, Bryan Frank of Triout, JC Adams of DCG Basketball and the DC Gay Flag Football League.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The 2024 National Cannabis Festival was held at the Fields at RFK Stadium on April 19-20.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Covering the @NatlCannaFest at RFK Stadium for @WashBlade . Stop by the LGBTQ+ booth and pick up a paper if you are here. pic.twitter.com/is7hnsaPns
— Michael Patrick Key (@MichaelKeyWB) April 20, 2024
Theater
‘Amm(i)gone’ explores family, queerness, and faith
A ‘fully autobiographical’ work from out artist Adil Mansoor
‘Amm(i)gone’
Thorough May 12
Woolly Mammoth Theatre
641 D St., N.W.
$60-$70
Woollymammoth.net
“Fully and utterly autobiographical.” That’s how Adil Mansoor describes “Amm(i)gone,” his one-man work currently playing at Woolly Mammoth Theatre.
Both created and performed by out artist Mansoor, it’s his story about inviting his Pakistani mother to translate Sophocles’s Greek tragedy “Antigone” into Urdu. Throughout the journey, there’s an exploration of family, queerness, and faith,as well as references to teachings from the Quran, and audio conversations with his Muslim mother.
Mansoor, 38, grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and is now based in Pittsburgh where he’s a busy theater maker. He’s also the founding member of Pittsburgh’s Hatch Arts Collective and the former artistic director of Dreams of Hope, an LGBTQ youth arts organization.
WASHINGTON BLADE: What spurred you to create “Amm(i)gone”?
ADIL MANSOOR: I was reading a translation of “Antigone” a few years back and found myself emotionally overwhelmed. A Theban princess buries her brother knowing it will cost her, her own life. It’s about a person for whom all aspirations are in the afterlife. And what does that do to the living when all of your hopes and dreams have to be reserved for the afterlife?
I found grant funding to pay my mom to do the translation. I wanted to engage in learning. I wanted to share theater but especially this ancient tragedy. My mother appreciated the characters were struggling between loving one another and their beliefs.
BLADE: Are you more director than actor?
MANSOOR: I’m primarily a director with an MFA in directing from Carnegie Mellon. I wrote, directed, and performed in this show, and had been working on it for four years. I’ve done different versions including Zoom. Woolly’s is a new production with the same team who’ve been involved since the beginning.
I love solo performance. I’ve produced and now teach solo performance and believe in its power. And I definitely lean toward “performance” and I haven’t “acted” since I was in college. I feel good on stage. I was a tour guide and do a lot of public speaking. I enjoy the attention.
BLADE: Describe your mom.
MANSOOR: My mom is a wonderfully devout Muslim, single mother, social worker who discovered my queerness on Google. And she prays for me.
She and I are similar, the way we look at things, the way we laugh. But different too. And those are among the questions I ask in this show. Our relationship is both beautiful and complicated.
BLADE: So, you weren’t exactly hiding your sexuality?
MANSOOR: In my mid-20s, I took time to talk with friends about our being queer with relation to our careers. My sexuality is essential to the work. As the artistic director at Dreams of Hope, part of the work was to model what it means to be public. If I’m in a room with queer and trans teenagers, part of what I’m doing is modeling queer adulthood. The way they see me in the world is part of what I’m putting out there. And I want that to be expansive and full.
So much of my work involves fundraising and being a face in schools. Being out is about making safe space for queer young folks.
BLADE: Have you encountered much Islamophobia?
MANSOOR: When 9/11 happened, I was a sophomore in high school, so yes. I faced a lot then and now. I’ve been egged on the street in the last four months. I see it in the classroom. It shows up in all sorts of ways.
BLADE: What prompted you to lead your creative life in Pittsburgh?
MANSOOR: I’ve been here for 14 years. I breathe with ease in Pittsburgh. The hills and the valleys and the rust of the city do something to me. It’s beautiful, it’ affordable, and there is support for local artists. There’s a lot of opportunity.
Still, the plan was to move to New York in September of 2020 but that was cancelled. Then the pandemic showed me that I could live in Pittsburgh and still have a nationally viable career.
BLADE: What are you trying to achieve with “Amm(i)gone”?
MANSOOR: What I’m sharing in the show is so very specific but I hear people from other backgrounds say I totally see my mom in that. My partner is Catholic and we share so much in relation to this.
I hope the work is embracing the fullness of queerness and how means so many things. And I hope the show makes audiences want to call their parents or squeeze their partners.
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‘Amm(i)gone’ explores family, queerness, and faith
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