Arts & Entertainment
Gaga cancels Vegas show due to poor health

Fans of Lady Gaga were devastated last night when the pop icon was forced to cancel a concert due to poor health.
20 minutes before she was to appear on stage at the Park Theater at the Park MGM Casino, the venue announced to waiting fans the show was canceled.
Gaga, 33, posted a photo to her social media showing herself hooked up to an IV drip, accompanied by a message which said, “I’m so devastated I can’t perform tonight for so many people who traveled to come see me.
“I have a sinus infection and bronchitis and feel very sick and sad I never want to let you down.
“I’m just to [sic] weak and ill too [sic] perform tonight. I love you little monsters I’ll make it up to you. I promise.”

The tweet has had received over 90k likes and thousands of comments. Most of the latter have been supportive, with fans telling Gaga to take care of her health and wishing her well. Others, however, have been less positive, with one poster responding, “[T]his comes after she cancelled 3 more of my shows last year – so far none of those have been “made up to me” as promised either. Yes I want her to get better. No she shouldn’t have performed. I’m still allowed to be angry.”
Gaga’s performance schedule has been impacted by health problems before. In 2017, she postponed some dates on her European tour and revealed that she lived with the chronic pain condition, Fibromyalgia.
Last night’s scheduled show was part of the singer’s current Enigma residency at the MGM Grand. She has two more performances left on the third leg of her residency (November 8-9), and then a fourth leg at the end of December. The fifth and final leg runs from April 30 to May 16, 2020.
The concerts are divided into separate Enigma shows and Jazz & Piano shows, showcasing different sides to her artistic output. The Jazz shows featured stripped-down versions of her hits and American songbook classics.
The MGM Grand tweeted news of the cancellation, saying, “With her deepest regrets, @ladygaga announces the cancelation of tonight’s performance at Park MGM because she is suffering from a sinus infection and bronchitis. She plans to return to the stage for her scheduled show on Friday, Nov. 8.”
Some fans expressed concern that the singer has been pushing herself too hard – in addition to her concerts, she’s recently been signed for her first major film role following the success of “A Star Is Born” and has been busy in the studio working on her sixth album.
Gaga has joked that the album will be titled, “Adele.”
Sports
Jason Collins dies at 47
First openly gay man to actively play for major sports team battled brain cancer
Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to actively play for a major professional sports team, died on Tuesday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 47.
The California native had briefly played for the Washington Wizards in 2013 before coming out in a Sports Illustrated op-ed.
Collins in 2014 became the first openly gay man to play in a game for a major American professional sports league when he played 11 minutes during a Brooklyn Nets game. He wore jersey number 98 in honor of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered outside of Laramie, Wyo., in 1998.
Collins told the Washington Blade in 2014 that his life was “exponentially better” since he came out. Collins the same year retired from the National Basketball Association after 13 seasons.
Collins married his husband, Brunson Green, in May 2025.
The NBA last September announced Collins had begun treatment for a brain tumor. Collins on Dec. 11, 2025, announced he had Stage 4 glioblastoma.
“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” said Collins’s family in a statement the NBA released. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Collins’s “impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA, and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations.”
“He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador,” said Silver. “Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers, but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”
“To call Jason Collins a groundbreaking figure for our community is simply inadequate. We truly lost a giant today,” added Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “He came out as gay — while still playing — at a time when men’s athletes simply did not do that. But as he powerfully demonstrated in his final years in the league and his post-NBA career, stepping forward as he did boldly changed the conversation.”
“He was and will always be a legend for the LGBTQ+ community, and we are heartbroken to hear of his passing at the young age of 47,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We will keep fighting on in his honor until the day everyone can be who they are on their terms.”
The Washington Blade will update this article with additional reaction when it becomes available.
Glitterati Productions held the “Studio 69” party at Bunker on Friday, May 8.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Arts & Entertainment
Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier returns June 13 to kick off D.C. Pride week
Pride on the Pier officially launches Pride Week in D.C.
The Washington Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier celebration returns to The Wharf on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 4-9 p.m., bringing thousands of LGBTQ community members and allies together for an unforgettable waterfront celebration to kick off Pride week in Washington, D.C.
Now in its eighth year, Washington Blade Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Wharf waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older.
“Pride on the Pier has become one of the signature moments of Pride in D.C.,” said Lynne Brown, publisher of the Washington Blade. “There’s nothing like watching our community come together on the waterfront with live music and incredible energy as we kick off Pride week.”
Pride on the Pier is free and open to the public, with VIP tickets available for exclusive pier access to the Dockmaster Building. To purchase VIP tickets visit www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip.
Additional entertainment announcements, sponsor activations, and event details will be released in the coming weeks.
Event Details:
📍 Location: District Pier at The Wharf (101 District Sq SW, Washington, DC)
📅 Dates: Friday, 13, 2026
⏱️ 4-9PM
🎟️ VIP Tickets: www.PrideOnThePierDC.com/VIP

