Arts & Entertainment
Rehoboth Beach summer events roundup
Stop by local drag shows, musical performances, Pride celebrations
The summer is almost upon us, and the Blade has compiled a list of Rehoboth Beach-area events you won’t want to miss. Stop by these local bars, restaurants, and community centers to keep the season packed with good memories and fun.
MAY
May 4-31: 30 Years in 30 Photos CAMP Rehoboth Visual Arts Exhibition. Visit the collection of more than 300 photographs of community-defining events curated from the local LGBTQ community center at 37 Baltimore Ave. and participate in an auction for your favorite pieces.
May 20: 15th Annual Blade Foundation Summer Kick Off Party. Join The Blade as it celebrates the start of the summer, featuring a special appearance from Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester. Festivities will begin at 5 p.m. at The Pines, 56 Baltimore Ave.
May 20: Kings & Queens of Comedy Variety Show. Come and watch a variety show hosted by The Pines, filled with skits and stand-up from comedians Kristina Kelly, Gray West, Anthony Brone, Alejandro Morales and Rob Stant. Doors open at 7 p.m.
May 20 to 22: Clear Space Theatre Company presents “The Lightning Thief.” Bring your kids to see this musical production of the beloved Percy Jackson book at 20 Baltimore Avenue.
Fridays beginning May 20: Piano Bar with Doug Repetti. Stop by The Pines each Friday from 6-8 p.m. to sing along to Repetti’s show, which features today’s pop hits, 80’s rock, 90’s pop and more.
Second Friday of each month, beginning May 20: CAMP Rehoboth Community Center Monthly Youth Social. LGBTQ youth are welcome to hang out and play games with other community members through the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center at 6:30 p.m. on the second Friday of each month.
May 21: Cocktails and Candles: Happy Hour. Have a drink at The Pines while enjoying artwork from The Lion’s Den Candle Company, a Rehoboth Beach small business. Held from 6-8 p.m.
Saturdays beginning May 21: A Night of DIVA’s, hosted by Mona Lotts and Kristina Kelly. Share tapas and drinks at The Pines in a night of comedy and fun hosted by local queens. Doors open at 8:45 p.m. each week.
Sundays beginning May 22: Drag Brunch with Mona Lotts and Kristina Kelly. Wake up with a laugh at The Pines at this weekly drag brunch and comedy performance. Doors open at 11:15 a.m., and the show concludes around 2 p.m. each week.
Sundays beginning May 22: Blaqueout Trivia. Bring your friends to compete and win prizes in a night of hilarious trivia hosted by Rebecca Blaqueout and Jerry B at The Pines. Happy Hour begins at 5 p.m., and trivia starts at 5 p.m each week.
Mondays beginning May 23: Flaming Pianos Steak & Show. For just $29, you can pair an 8oz filet with a glass of wine while listening to—and even participating in—the music and storytelling of dynamic duo John Flynn and Matthew Kenworthy at The Pines. Doors open at 6 p.m. each week.
Every other Monday beginning May 23: Flaming Knitters. Open to those of all levels of experience, come practice or learn knitting at the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center at 6:30 p.m.
May 25: The Vocal Diva Marcella Peters: One Night Only! Listen to the musical stylings of singer and Baltimore native Marcella Peters at The Pines. Doors open at 6 p.m.
May 26 to 30: Memorial Day Weekend Salute. Enjoy a weekend of music and performances at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub, located at 37298 Rehoboth Ave. Doors open at 4 p.m., and music begins at 9:30 p.m.
May 27: Memorial Day Kickoff Drag Show. Come enjoy a night of comedy and fashion at The Pines hosted by Kristina Kelly. Doors open at 8 p.m.
May 30: Memorial Day Drag Brunch. Celebrate the long weekend at The Pines enjoying comedy, food and fun with local queens. Doors open at 11:00 a.m., and the show concludes around 2 p.m.
May 31: Can’t Fool The Blues Band. Experience a musical mixture of rock, blues and R&B in this Rehoboth-based band’s performance at The Pines. Doors open at 7 p.m.
Every Wednesday: Drag Bingo. Play a fun game of bingo hosted by local queen Ophelia Bottoms at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant, located at 3 S 1st St. Event begins at 8 p.m. each Wednesday.
Every Thursday: Karaoke Night. Sing your heart out at karaoke nights at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant. Event begins at 8 p.m. each Thursday.
Every Friday: Follies at the Beach Drag Show. Witness spectacular drag performances with special guests each week at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant. Show begins at 9 p.m. each Friday.
JUNE
June 3: The Return of Varla Jean Merman. Comedy queen Varla Jean Merman makes her return to The Pines in this night of comedy and fun. Two shows will be held, with doors opening at 6 and 9 p.m.
June 3: Royal T Dance featuring Austin Armacost. Come dance on the patio at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub in a fun night out, with music provided by DJ Riddle.
June 3 to 5: Clear Space Theatre Company presents “The Submission.” Come watch this impactful one-weekend performance which looks into race, gender and ignored prejudices.
June 5. The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee featuring Austin Armacost. Enjoy a night out at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub in its Jubilee Party, which begins at 8 p.m.
June 6: Lady Bunny brings her irreverent comedy to the Blue Moon, 35 Baltimore Ave., 9:30-11 p.m.
June 8: Milton PRIDE Pre-Party & Art Show. Take a quick drive away from the coast and enjoy this Pride Month and Celebration and art show in Milton, Del., hosted by Inn the Dog House Tiki Bar at 428 Chestnut St. from 6-9 p.m.
First Friday of each month, beginning June 3: FURst Friday Happy Hour with the Rehoboth Beach Bears. Enjoy beers and dishes at The Pines in this monthly happy hour from 6-8 p.m.
June 10: Magnolia Applebottom Drag Show. Watch a drag show at the Milton Theatre at 110 Union St. in Milton, and enjoy drinks and snacks while you’re at it.
June 10: Whitney! The Music Of Whitney Houston. In this stroll down memory lane, The Pines is bringing Sheree Marcelle to perform musical renditions of Whitney Houston’s classic hits in a show written and produced by Mike Flanagan. Doors open at 8 p.m.
June 11: Queer Queens of Comedy. Witness the outrageous hilarity of three comedic powerhouses at the Milton Theatre. Doors open at 8 p.m.
June 12: Philadelphia Freedom: Tribute to Elton John Matinee. Reminisce with this captivating rendition of Elton John’s works at the Milton Theatre.
June 12: 2022 Tonys Party. Celebrate the Tony Awards this year with Clear Space Theatre Company, enjoying cocktails, dinner and entertainment at The Children’s Beach House, located at 1800 Bay Front Avenue in Lewes, Del. Festivities will be held 5-9 p.m.
June 13: Beloved disco and soul singer Linda Clifford plays the Blue Moon 9:30-11 p.m.
June 17: Betti and Bruce: Lost in Rehoboth. Have a night of songs and fun in this musical show at The Pines featuring Betti Blumenthal and Bruce Delmonico. Doors open at 8 p.m.
June 20-Sept. 1: Acclaimed NYC pianist Nate Buccieri plays the Blue Moon, Mondays-Thursdays, 6-8:30 p.m. Reservations recommended.
June 24: Have A Gay Old Laugh! Pride Stand-Up Comedy Show. Drive over to the Milton Theatre for a night of laughter. Doors open at 8 p.m.
June 24 and 25: Top of the Pines Welcomes Antonio Edwards. Witness the wonderful vocals of this singer and entertainer at The Pines in a show on Friday, June 24 from 8-10 p.m. or Saturday, June 25 from 6-8 p.m.
June 24-Aug. 27: Clear Space Theatre Company presents “9 to 5.” Watch the local theater recreate this hilarious office satire.
June 25: Pride Day at the Brandywine Zoo. Stop by the Brandywine Zoo, located at 1001 N Park Drive in Wilmington, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for a scavenger hunt, crafts, educational opportunities and all-around fun.
June 27: Miss Richfield 1981 performs her new show “Cancel Cultured Pearls” at the Blue Moon, 9:30-11 p.m.
June 28 to Aug. 23: Clear Space Theatre Company presents “Grease.” Enjoy this beloved musical as recreated by local performers.
JULY
July 1: Del Shores: The Tea is Spilled. Texas storyteller Del Shores is stopping by The Pines to bring you a night of entertainment and drama. Two shows will be held, with doors opening at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.
July 1 to Aug. 25: Clear Space Theatre Company presents “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” Watch as the local theater takes on a new rendition of this beloved musical comedy.
July 2 to Aug. 20: Saturday Morning Children’s Theatre 2022. Bring your children to another Clear Space Theatre Company show including classics like Sleeping Beauty and Peter Pan. All shows held at 11 a.m.
July 4: Lady Bunny returns to the Blue Moon, 9:30-11 p.m.
July 8: Friday Fever Show: The Boys of Summer. Watch special performances and enjoy drinks at The Pines. Doors open at 8 p.m.
July 15: The Dozen Divas Show. Appreciate the amazing costumes and exciting performances of America’s Got Talent Finalist Dorothy Bishop. Show runs from 8 to 11 p.m.
July 16: Hair and Heels Dance Party. Come to The Pines in your favorite wig and pair of heels and dance to the stylings of DJ Chord. Doors open at 9 p.m.
July 17: Hair and Heels Drag Brunch. Wake up with a laugh by heading to brunch at The Pines. Doors open at 11 a.m.
July 17: Hair and Heels Closing Party. Bring your wig and best heels to the dance floor at The Pines. Doors open at 8 p.m.
July 18: Sherry Vine brings her latest show “Potty Mouth” to the Blue Moon, 9:30-11 p.m.
July 22: Big Red Miss Meghan Murphy. Listen to this musical performance covering styles from pop parodies to jazz at The Pines. Seating begins at 7 p.m.
July 27: The Boy Band Project. Allow this musical performance hosted by The Pines to transport you to the era of boy band craze. Seating begins at 7 p.m.
July 29: A Golden Girls Musical Adventure. Come watch this hilarious revamp of The Golden Girls hosted by The Pines. Doors open at 7 p.m. and show begins at 8 p.m.
AUGUST
Aug. 25: Coco Peru: Bitter, Bothered, and Beyond. Listen to Miss Coco Peru’s take on the world in an evening performance at The Pines. Doors open at 8 p.m.
Aug. 27: The White Party with Chord Bezerra. Dress up in white and stay out late having fun at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub. Music begins at 9:30 p.m.
SEPTEMBER
September 2: Hunks: The All Male Review. Stop by The Pines for a personal and intimate male dance show incorporating lights, choreography, costumes and music. Doors open at 7 p.m.
Photos
PHOTOS: DCGFFL 25th Anniversary Party
Gay flag football league marks milestone at Penn Social
The D.C. Gay Flag Football League (DCGFFL) held a 25th season anniversary party at Penn Social on Saturday, Sept. 23. Proceeds from the event benefited the LGBTQ youth services organization SMYAL as well as the D.C. Center for the LGBTQ Community.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Books
New book goes behind the scenes of ‘A League of Their Own’
‘No Crying in Baseball’ offers tears, laughs, and more
‘No Crying in Baseball: The Inside Story of ‘A League of Their Own’
By Erin Carlson
c.2023, Hachette Books
$29/320 pages
You don’t usually think of Madonna as complaining of being “dirty all day” from playing baseball. But that’s what the legendary diva did during the shooting of “A League of Their Own,” the 1992 movie, beloved by queers.
“No Crying in Baseball,” the fascinating story behind “A League of Their Own,” has arrived in time for the World Series. Nothing could be more welcome after Amazon has cancelled season 2 of its reboot (with the same name) of this classic film.
In this era, people don’t agree on much. Yet, “A League of Their Own” is loved by everyone from eight-year-old kids to 80-year-old grandparents.
The movie has strikes, home runs and outs for sports fans; period ambience for history buffs; and tears, laughs and a washed-up, drunk, but lovable coach for dramady fans.
The same is true for “No Crying in Baseball.” This “making of” story will appeal to history, sports and Hollywood aficionados. Like “All About Eve” and “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” “A League of Their Own” is Holy queer Writ.
Carlson, a culture and entertainment journalist who lives in San Francisco, is skilled at distilling Hollywood history into an informative, compelling narrative. As with her previous books, “I’ll Have What She’s Having: How Nora Ephron’s three Iconic Films Saved the Romantic Comedy” and “Queen Meryl: The Iconic Roles, Heroic Deeds, and Legendary Life of Meryl Streep,” “No Crying in Baseball,” isn’t too “educational.” It’s filled with gossip to enliven coffee dates and cocktail parties.
“A League of Their Own” is based on the true story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). From 1943 to 1954, more than 600 women played in the league in the Midwest. The league’s players were all white because the racism of the time prohibited Black women from playing. In the film, the characters are fictional. But the team the main characters play for – the Rockford Peaches – was real.
While many male Major and Minor League Baseball players were fighting in World War II, chewing gum magnate Philip K. Wrigley, who owned the Chicago Cubs, founded the league. He started the AAGPBL, “To keep spectators in the bleachers,” Carlson reports, “and a storied American sport–more important: his business afloat.”
In 1943, the Office of War Information warned that the baseball season could be “scrapped” “due to a lack of men,” Carlson adds.
“A League of Their Own” was an ensemble of women’s performances (including Rosie O’Donnell as Doris, Megan Cavanagh as Marla, Madonna as Mae, Lori Petty as Kit and Geena Davis as Dottie) that would become legendary.
Girls and women still dress up as Rockford Peaches on Halloween.
Tom Hanks’s indelible portrayal of coach Jimmy Dugan, Gary Marshall’s depiction of (fictional) league owner Walter Harvey and Jon Lovitz’s portrayal of Ernie have also become part of film history.
Filming “A League of Their Own,” Carlson vividly makes clear, was a gargantuan effort. There were “actresses who can’t play baseball” and “baseball players who can’t act,” Penny Marshall said.
The stadium in Evansville, Ind., was rebuilt to look like it was in the 1940s “when the players and extras were in costume,” Carlson writes, “it was easy to lose track of what year it was.”
“No Crying in Baseball” isn’t written for a queer audience. But, Carlson doesn’t pull any punches.
Many of the real-life AAGPBL players who O’Donnell met had same-sex partners, O’Donnell told Carlson.
“When Penny, angling for a broad box-office hit chose to ignore the AAGPGL’s queer history,” Carlson writes, “she perpetuated a cycle of silence that muzzled athletes and actresses alike from coming out on the wider stage.”
“It was, as they say, a different time,” she adds.
Fortunately, Carlson’s book isn’t preachy. Marshall nicknames O’Donnell and Madonna (who become buddies) “Ro” and “Mo.” Kodak is so grateful for the one million feet of film that Marshall shot that it brings in a high school marching band. Along with a lobster lunch. One day, an assistant director “streaked the set to lighten the mood,” Carlson writes.
“No Crying in Baseball,” is slow-going at first. Marshall, who died in 2018, became famous as Laverne in “Laverne & Shirley.” It’s interesting to read about her. But Carlson devotes so much time to Marshall’s bio that you wonder when she’ll get to “A League of Their Own.”
Thankfully, after a couple of innings, the intriguing story of one of the best movies ever is told.
You’ll turn the pages of “No Crying in Baseball” even if you don’t know a center fielder from a short stop.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.
Theater
Rupert Murdoch’s powers on full display in ‘Ink’
Media baron helped pave the way for Brexit, Prime Minister Thatcher
‘Ink’
Through Sept. 24
Round House Theatre
4545 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814
$46-$94
Roundhousetheatre.org
Yes, Rupert Murdoch’s loathsome traits are many, but his skills to succeed are undeniably numerous.
In the first scenes of John Graham’s West End and Broadway hit drama “Ink,” an exciting year-long detail from the life of a burgeoning media baron, Murdoch’s powers of persuasion are on full display.
It’s 1969 London. Over dinner with editor Larry Lamb, a young Murdoch shares his plan to buy the Sun and rebrand the dying broadsheet, replacing the Daily Mirror as Britain’s best-selling tabloid. What’s more, he wants to do it in just one year with Lamb at the helm.
Initially reluctant, Lamb becomes seduced by the idea of running a paper, something that’s always eluded him throughout his career, and something Murdoch, the outsider Australian, understands. Murdoch taunts him, “Not you. Not Larry Lamb, the Yorkshire-born son of a blacksmith, not the guy who didn’t get a degree from Oxford or Cambridge, who didn’t get a degree from anywhere. Not you.”
Still, Lamb, played convincingly by Cody Nickell in Round House Theatre’s stellar season-opener, a co-production with Olney Theatre Center, remains unsure. But Murdoch (a delightfully brash Andrew Rein) is undeterred, and seals the deal with a generous salary.
Superbly staged by director Jason Loweth, “Ink” is riveting. Its exchanges between Lamb and Murdoch are a strikingly intimate glimpse into ambition involving an ostensibly average editor and a striving money man who doesn’t like people.
Once on board, Lamb is trolling Fleet Street in search of his launch team, played marvelously by some mostly familiar actors. He makes his most important hire — news editor Brian McConnell (Maboud Ebrahimzadeh) — in a steam bath. The remainder of the Sun’s new masthead falls handily into place: Joyce Hopkirk (Kate Eastwood Norris) the women’s page editor whose forward thinking is marred by her casual racism; Zion Jang plays Beverley Goodway, an awkwardly amusing young photographer; persnickety deputy editor Bernard Shrimsley (Michael Glenn) who learns to love ugly things; and an old school sports editor who proves surprisingly versatile, played by Ryan Rillette, Round House’s artistic director.
At Lamb’s suggestion, the team brainstorms about what interests Sun readers. They decide on celebrities, pets, sports, free stuff, and —rather revolutionarily for the time —TV. Murdoch is happy to let readers’ taste dictate content and the “Why” of the sacred “five Ws” of journalism is out the window.
Murdoch is portrayed as a not wholly unlikable misanthrope. He dislikes his editors and pressman alike. He particularly hates unions. His advice to Lamb is not to get too chummy with his subordinates. Regarding the competition, Murdoch doesn’t just want to outperform them, he wants to grind them to dust.
Loewith leads an inspired design team. Scenic designer Tony Cisek’s imposing, inky grey edifice made from modular walls is ideally suited for Mike Tutaj’s projections of headlines, printed pages, and Rein’s outsized face as Murdoch. Sound designer and composer Matthew M. Nielson ably supplies bar noises and the nonstop, pre-digital newspaper clatter of presses, linotypes, and typewriters.
From a convenient second tiered balcony, the Daily Mirror’s establishment power trio Hugh Cudlipp (Craig Wallace), Chris Lee Howard (Chris Geneback) and Sir Percy (Walter Riddle) overlook all that lies below, discussing new tactics and (mostly failed) strategies to remain on top.
Increasingly comfortable in the role of ruthless, sleazy editor, Lamb is unstoppable.
Obsessed with overtaking the Daily Mirror’s circulation, he opts for some sketchy reportage surrounding the kidnapping and presumed murder of Muriel McKay, the wife of Murdoch’s deputy Sir Alick (Todd Scofield). The kidnappers mistook Muriel for Murdoch’s then-wife Anna (Sophia Early). Next, in a move beyond the pale, Lamb introduces “Page 3,” a feature spotlighting a topless female model. Awesta Zarif plays Stephanie, a smart young model. She asks Lamb if he would run a semi-nude pic of his similarly aged daughter? His reaction is uncomfortable but undaunted.
For Murdoch’s purposes, history proves he chose well in Lamb. By year’s end, the Sun is Britain’s most widely read tabloid. Together they give the people what they didn’t know they wanted, proving the pro-Labour Daily Mirror’s hold on the working class is baseless and paving the way for things like Brexit and a Prime Minister Thatcher.
“Ink” at Round House closes soon. See it if you can.
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