Arts & Entertainment
Margaret Cho is ‘Live and Livid’ on new comedy tour
‘Children are way safer at a drag show than they are in church’
It’s been a few years since queer comedian, actor, and activist Margaret Cho has done a stand-up comedy tour. In the interim, she’s been acting in a variety of well-received movies (including “Fire Island”) and TV shows (such as “Hacks” and “The Flight Attendant”). In other words, she’s never far from our sight. That’s a good thing! For 2023, Cho embarked on a multi-city comedy tour, “Live and Livid,” and it promises to be the live performance event of the year (sorry Madonna). Margaret was kind enough to answer a few questions before heading out on the road.
BLADE: Margaret, I interviewed you last spring just before the movie “Fire Island” premiered. Since that time, the movie won the Gotham Awards’ Ensemble Tribute, and was named on several end-of-the-year “best of” lists. Additionally, “Fire Island” is Certified Fresh on RottenTomatoes.com with a 94% rating. What does it mean to you to have been associated with such a well-received project?
MARGARET CHO: I love it! I loved making it. I love the cast. I love Joel’s (Kim Booster) vision. I love Andrew’s (Ahn) directing. We are a family, and we’ve got to make sequels, prequels, a whole cinematic universe. I think that would be so valuable. Hopefully, we’ll get to see that. I love them, they’re my babies. I knew that everybody would love this movie. I loved this movie so much. I’m very proud of it and proud of everybody that worked on it.
BLADE: The Lifetime sitcom “Drop Dead Diva,” on which you played Terri Lee, has been brought back and is airing on the Hallmark Channel. How do you feel about the possibility of a whole new generation of viewers getting to see the show?
CHO: I’m very proud of the work that I got to do on that show. It’s really exciting that everybody gets to discover it again. I love that we get to show everybody what we did. It’s so fun and it’s a triumph.
BLADE: Do you have any favorite memories to share from “Drop Dead Diva”?
CHO: I loved working with Liza Minnelli. My very favorite episode was all the stuff I got to do with Patty Duke. She was a legend. I kept trying to get her to come to a screening of “Valley of the Dolls” where we would interview her. She was like, “Oh, nobody wants to see that movie!” I’m like, “What? Are you crazy [laughs]? Everybody loves that movie.” She was such a person to get to know and to work with. What an incredible actor and a lovely woman.
BLADE: You play Nurse Nina in the Apple TV+ educational children’s series “Helpsters.” What do you like best about that?
CHO: The creatures. All of the puppets are so cute. I love working with puppeteers because they’re actually very animated people. They’re so charming and beautiful and fun, and fun to be with. I love (out actor) Rebecca Henderson (who plays Farmer Flynn). We played girlfriends, and now we’re married on the show, we’re married on “Helpsters.” When I see her, I’m like, “We’re doing so good in our relationship!” She was my girlfriend in the (2022) movie “Sex Appeal” on Hulu, and she and I are married on “Helpsters.” She’s my most successful relationship.
BLADE: “Helpsters” is from the makers of “Sesame Street,” and being someone who was in her formative years when “Sesame Street” first started airing, would you say that it was a show that had an impact on you?
CHO: Absolutely! In the ‘90s, I got to work with Kermit the Frog. I mean, talk about an NDA! If you work with a Muppet, like Kermit the Frog, in particular, you have to sign so many NDAs. I’m probably breaking an NDA right now. We had gone to this thing, and Kermit was my partner. We were doing shots with Gorbachev, Mikhail and Raisa Gorbachev were in the United States and they were being hosted by Jane Fonda and Ted Turner, to whom she was married at the time. I had not drunk alcohol in a long time, and they forced us to do shots. Kermit was like (in Kermit’s voice), “Drink it! Drink it!” I couldn’t not do a shot if Kermit’s right there telling me to drink it. I’ve worked with a lot of Muppets, and I’ve had a lot of Muppet drama [laughs].
BLADE: Your 2023 North American tour is titled “Live & Livid.” We certainly have a lot to be livid about, especially in the years following the 45th president, as well as the events of Jan. 6, and the deadly rise of white nationalism. Were these sources of inspiration, and what else are you livid about?
CHO: Yes! Also the attacks on drag queens, the attacks on queerness, the attacks on trans folks, the continual attacking of different parts of our community who are so important to us. Whether it’s our athletes, like Brittney Griner. Whether it’s trans kids. Drag queens, to me, who are front and center, the heart and joy of our community. It’s where we celebrate, with drag. That’s the most heartbreaking part of this is. They’re taking down the really important part of community. The cheerful ones, the ones that we need. Well, not Bianca Del Rio [laughs]. Bianca’s my favorite! They should be scared of drag queens! They will get read to filth. They should be afraid! Children are way safer at a drag show than they are in church!
BLADE: As of now, when we’re talking, “Live & Livid” is scheduled to run through September with stops in 20 cities, including San Francisco. What does it mean to you when you get to perform for the hometown crowd?
CHO: Oh, I love it. It’s sort of still my hometown in a lot of ways. I have deep roots there. I spent so much time there, so it’s still home in a lot of ways. It’s meaningful and a cherished thing. But, also, I think I’m a citizen of everywhere. I’ve been everywhere, so it’s all my home.
BLADE: It’s been six years since you launched your previous tour, “Fresh Off the Bloat.” What are you most looking forward to about returning to performing live again?
CHO: I think we had a really difficult time throughout the pandemic and through this resetting of this idea of what the world is. It’ll be great to greet people again in this new space. The gratitude that I have for live performance, and going to live shows and performances as it is, is a really special thing. I’m very excited.
BLADE: Are there any upcoming projects about which you’re excited that you’d like to mention?
CHO: Nothing that I can mention, as yet. But I’m really looking forward to this year. I have things that I’m working on that I’m really thrilled about. Things that are starting to come up that I’ll be able to talk about soon. I’m working a lot, so I’m really happy about that.
BLADE: This interview is taking place on Friday the 13th. Are you superstitious, and if so, what superstitions do you observe?
CHO: I love Friday the 13th! I love black cats. I love this whole notion of the cursed film or cursed TV show. There’s something about it. Whether it’s “The Exorcist” or “Poltergeist.” Any of these ideas of things being ill-willed or bad omens. “The Omen!” I love horror, so to me it’s a very special day. It’s my happy day, my holiday.
Aging RFK Stadium has come down, but the RFK grounds are still getting lit up. Welcome back to the stage Project GLOW, D.C.’s homegrown electronic festival, on May 30-31. Back for its fifth year on these musically inclined acres, Project GLOW returns with an even more diverse lineup, and one that continues to celebrate LGBTQ antecedents, attendees, and acts.
Project GLOW 2026 headliners include house and techno star Mau P, progressive house legend Eric Prydz, hard-techno favorite Sara Landry, and bass acts Excision b2b Sullivan King, among the lineup of trance, bass, house, techno, dubstep, and others for the fifth anniversary year.
President & CEO Pete Kalamoutsos — born and raised in D.C. — founded Club GLOW in 1999. In 2020, GLOW entered into a partnership with global entertainment company Insomniac Events to produce live events like Project GLOW, which kicked off in 2022.
As in past years, Project GLOW not only makes space, but is intentionally inclusive of the LGBTQ community, one of its most dedicated fan bases. The festival’s LGBTQ-focused Secret Garden stage blooms again — a more intimate dance area that stands on the strength of DJs and musicians who draw from the LGBTQ community. D.C.’s LGBTQ nightlife mastermind Ed Bailey is the creative mind behind Secret Garden again. He joined Project GLOW in 2023.
“Kalamoustos says that “he’s proud of his partnership with Ed Bailey, along with Capital Pride and [nightlife producer] Jake Resnikow. It’s amazing to collaborate with Bailey at the Secret Garden stage, especially after the curated lineup we worked on at Pride last year.”
The Secret Garden will be a bit different from other stages: Eternal (“At the Eternal stage, time stands still. Lose yourself in the dance of past, present, and future, surrendering to the eternal rhythm of the universe”) and Pulse (“Feel the rhythm of the beat pulse through your veins as the heartbeat of the crowd synchronizes into one. Here, every moment vibrates with life as it guides you through a new dimension of euphoria”). The Secret Garden stage is in the round, surrounded by 16 shipping containers. The containers play canvas to muralists from around the world, who are coming in to paint them in a vibrant garden-style vibe. “We gave this stage some extra love with this layout,” K says, “ we finally cracked the code.”
K says that this will be the biggest lineup yet for the Secret Garden, featuring Nicole Moudaber b2b Chasewest, Riordan b2b Bullet Tooth, Ranger Trucco, Cassian, Eli & Fur, Cosmic Gate and Hayla. The stage is also the largest yet, featuring an expanded dance floor and 360-degree viewing.
Across all stages, K says that his goal for the fifth anniversary is “More art and fan interactive experience, more like a festival, strive to be like a Tomorrowland, as budget grows to add more experience.” Last year’s Project GLOW alone drew 40,000 attendees over two days.
K, however, was not satisfied with one festival this spring. GLOW recently announced a “pop-up” one-day event. Teaming up with Black Book Records, GLOW is set to throw a first-of-its-kind dance-music takeover of Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., headlined by electronic music star Chris Lake. Set for April 18, this euphoric block party will feature bass and vibes blocks from the White House. Organizers expect as many as 10,000 fans to attend. Beyond music, there will be food, activations, and plenty of other activities taking place around 6th St and Pennsylvania Ave NW – a location familiar to many in the LGBTQ community, as this sits squarely inside the blocks of the Capital Pride party that takes place in DC every June.
Over the past two decades, Club GLOW has produced thousands of events, from club nights to large-scale festivals including Project GLOW, Moonrise Festival, and more. Club GLOW also operates Echostage.
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)
Project GLOW celebrates LGBTQ acts
Response to a personal attack against me
Science said stop; the Supreme Court said no
Gay D.C. police lieutenant arrested on child porn charges
Demonstrators disrupt OMB director hearing over PEPFAR
Trump budget targets ‘gender extremism’
An effort to increase the number of psychiatrists of color
Comings & Goings
Minimal version of ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ heading to Dupont Underground
