Arts & Entertainment
New England Patriots welcomes two out male cheerleaders
Driss Dallahi and Steven Sonntag were the only men to audition
For the first time in decades, two male cheerleaders will be a part of the New England Patriots cheering squad.
Driss Dallahi, 23, and Steven Sonntag, 22, both who are gay, were inspired to audition after seeing the success of out Los Angeles Rams cheerleaders Napoleon Jinnies and Quinton Peron. Jinnies and Peron performed with the Rams cheering squad at the Super Bowl.
“At least in my lifetime, it was the first time I had seen two men do something like that,” Dallahi told WBTS-TV.
Dallahi and Sonntag were the only men who auditioned.
“I attended that workshop and walked in and heard there was another boy, and so I was immediately looking around trying to find him,” Sonntag says. “We didn’t really know the criteria for male cheerleaders auditioning for the New England Patriots, so we kind of created that together in texting back and forth.”
Both men made the cut and they are now the first male cheerleaders to be on the squad since the 1980s.
Dallahi and Sonntag shared the news on their respective Instagram accounts.
“So excited to say that I am now a NFL Cheerleader for the New England Patriots,” Sonntag wrote.
“Never thought something like this would be possible but today’s the day. So excited and grateful to officially be a 2019 New England Patriots Cheerleader,” Dallahi captioned his own post.
Check out Dallahi and Sonntag’s dance skills below.
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.
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