Arts & Entertainment
Being gay might just save Andy Cohen’s career
He could shoot a twink in the middle of Ninth Avenue and not get arrested
The only person getting sued more than Donald Trump these days is Andy Cohen. Yes, the gay executive producer of the Real Housewives franchise and host of Bravo’s late night talk show “Watch What Happens Live” is facing a litany of litigation that could make the orange one come somewhere close to a blush. And, just like with Trump, he might be the only person to face a handful of inappropriate workplace behavior allegations and still hold onto his job. What’s Andy’s secret? It might be that he’s gay.
First, former “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Brandi Glanville accused him of sexual harassment, claiming that Cohen sent her a sexually explicit video in which he said he was about to have sex with another Bravolebrity and wanted Glanville to watch. (Andy said on the artist formerly known as Twitter that it was a joke and Brandi seemed to acknowledge that at the time.)
Next up is Leah McSweeney, a former “Real Housewives of New York” cast member, who accused Cohen of contributing to a “rotted workplace culture.” She also alleges that he routinely does cocaine with some of the Housewives and the ones who enjoy a bit of the booger sugar with him get preferential treatment, including kinder edits on the show. (Andy dismissed this lawsuit as a “shakedown.”)
The day after McSweeney’s suit, Rachel Leviss, the former “Vanderpump Rules” star who was a lynchpin of a huge scandal last winter, sued her former castmates for potentially distributing an adult video of her. Cohen was not named in that suit because he’s not an executive producer of that show — nor in one by former Real Housewife of New Jersey, Caroline Manzo, accusing the aforementioned Brandi of sexual harassment.
These bombshell revelations — especially the sexual harassment and the cocaine use — were met by fans with disinterested shrugs. “This Andy Cohen slander is ridiculous. Why are people up in arms that he allegedly did cocaine and gossiped with the Housewives? Like pretty sure that’s his job,” one Twitter user says.
There are plenty of those sentiments on Twitter and many statements of support from the Housewives who say he never offered them coke. (But since when are we believing anything the Housewives say?) So how is it that, like Trump, Andy Cohen could shoot a twink in the middle of Ninth Avenue and not get arrested?
It’s because he’s always been totally honest about who he is. Andy was an openly gay TV exec way back in the early aughts, when it wasn’t cool and he faced potential repercussions both personally and career-wise by being open. But it wasn’t that he was just telling the truth about being gay, he made it part of his brand that he likes a drink (or seven) and that he likes to unwind by smoking weed, which he was vocal about before it was legal in New York.
Andy made his millions not just getting rich women to yell at each other on television, but also by being America’s slightly naughty but mostly fun gay BFF. The gossip, the drugs, the sexy jokes, they were all a part of the mystique that everyone bought into and it has served as Andy’s impenetrable force field for his entire career. On New Year’s Eve 2022, he was hosting CNN’s broadcast with his gay bestie Anderson Cooper and “overserved” himself, which led him to go on what the press would call a drunken rant making fun of fellow host Ryan Seacrest and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio. Did CNN fire him or fans turn against him? No. CNN did ban alcohol from the next year’s broadcast, but after Andy pleaded with them for his tipples they allowed him and Anderson to do shots at midnight.
A similar thing happened this past June when a video taken secretly in a gay club showed Andy getting handsy with a game stripper and tweaking his nipples. Instead of demanding his resignation, fans demanded the social media account that posted it to give Andy a break. He is a single working father of two who has never been quiet about the fact that he enjoys sleeping around. He was just blowing off some steam at Pride; in the words of Bethenny Frankel, get off his jock.
Speaking of Bethenny, could she be the one behind all of this litigation? Several of the people suing Andy and Bravo are using the same lawyers that Bethenny used to kick off the “reality reckoning” in which she is trying to get better workplace conditions and fair treatment for reality stars. That is surely a noble aim, but the way to do it is not by launching weak-sauce attacks at Andy, especially since Andy seems to have a learned a lesson that most members of the LGBTQ community learn early on: If you’re truthful about who you are, no one can use it as a weapon against you.
No one ever thought less of Andy because he was gay because he was always up front about it — same about the booze, the drug use, and tweaking a stripper’s nipples during Pride. While a court of law will definitely rule on whether or not any of these cases has any weight, the court of public opinion doesn’t seem to care — well, at least about these specifics. Andy has hired a crisis PR team, but it doesn’t seem like he really needs it. Everything he needs to know he learned by being gay, that once you open that closet door and show the public what is really inside, no matter what it is, they can never use that against you.
Theater
Out dancer on Alvin Ailey’s stint at Warner Theatre
10-day production marks kickoff of national tour
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Through Feb. 8
Warner Theatre
513 12th St., N.W.
Tickets start at $75
ailey.org
The legendary Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is coming to Washington’s Warner Theatre, and one of its principal veterans couldn’t be more pleased. Out dancer Renaldo Maurice is eager to be a part of the company’s 10-day stint, the kickoff of a national tour that extends through early May.
“I love the respectful D.C. crowd and they love us,” says Maurice, a member of esteemed modern dance company for 15 years. The traveling tour is made of two programs and different casting with Ailey’s masterwork “Revelations” in both programs.
Recently, we caught up with Maurice via phone. He called from one of the quiet rooms in his New York City gym where he’s getting his body ready for the long Ailey tour.
Based in North Newark, N.J., where he recently bought a house, Maurice looks forward to being on the road: “I enjoy the rigorous performance schedule, classes, shows, gym, and travel. It’s all part of carving out a lane for myself and my future and what that looks like.”
Raised by a single mother of three in Gary, Ind., Maurice, 33, first saw Alvin Ailey as a young kid in the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Chicago, the same venue where he’s performed with the company as a professional dancer.
He credits his mother with his success: “She’s a real dance mom. I would not be the man or artist I am today if it weren’t for the grooming and discipline of my mom. Support and encouragement. It’s impacted my artistry and my adulthood.”
Maurice is also part of the New York Ballroom scene, an African-American and Latin underground LGBTQ+ subculture where ball attendees “walk” in a variety of categories (like “realness,” “fashion,” and “sex siren”) for big prizes. He’s known as the Legendary Overall Father of the Haus of Alpha Omega.
WASHINGTON BLADE: Like many gay men of his era, Ailey lived a largely closeted public life before his death from AIDS-related complications in 1989.
RENALDO MAURICE Not unusual for a Black gay man born during the Depression in Rogers, Texas, who’s striving to break out in the industry to be a creative. You want to be respected and heard. Black man, and Black man who dances, and you may be same-sex gender loving too. It was a lot, especially at that time.
BLADE: Ailey has been described as intellectual, humble, and graceful. He possessed strength. He knew who he was and what stories he wanted to tell.
MAURICE: Definitely, he wanted to concentrate on sharing and telling stories. What kept him going was his art. Ailey wanted dancers to live their lives and express that experience on stage. That way people in the audience could connect with them. It’s incredibly powerful that you can touch people by moving your body.
That’s partly what’s so special about “Revelations,” his longest running ballet and a fan favorite that’s part of the upcoming tour. Choreographed by Alvin Ailey in 1960, it’s a modern dance work that honors African-American cultural heritage through themes of grief, joy, and faith.
BLADE: Is “Revelation” a meaningful piece for you?
MAURICE: It’s my favorite piece. I saw it as a kid and now perform it as a professional dance artist. I’ve grown into the role since I was 20 years old.
BLADE: How can a dancer in a prestigious company also be a ballroom house father?
MAURICE: I’ve made it work. I learned how to navigate and separate. I’m a principal dancer with Ailey. And I take that seriously. But I’m also a house father and I take that seriously as well.
I’m about positivity, unity, and hard work. In ballroom you compete and if you’re not good, you can get chopped. You got to work on your craft and come back harder. It’s the same with dance.
BLADE: Any message for queer audiences?
MAURICE: I know my queer brothers and sisters love to leave with something good. If you come to any Ailey performance you’ll be touched, your spirit will be uplifted. There’s laughter, thoughtful and tender moments. And it’s all delivered by artists who are passionate about what they do.
BLADE: Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of your life. Thoughts on that?
MAURICE: I’m a believer in it takes a village. Hard work and discipline. I take it seriously and I love what I do. Ailey has provided me with a lot: world travel, a livelihood, and working with talented people here and internationally. Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of my life from boyhood to now. It’s been great.
Catfish Comedy will host “2026 Queer Kickoff Show” on Thursday, Feb. 5 at A League of Her Own (2319 18th Street, N.W.). This show features D.C.’s funniest LGBTQ and femme comedians. The lineup features performers who regularly take the stage at top clubs like DC Improv and Comedy Loft, with comics who tour nationally.
Tickets are $17.85 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
Arts & Entertainment
Catherine O’Hara, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ star and celebrated queer ally, dies at 71
Actress remembered for memorable comedic roles in ‘Beetlejuice’ and ‘Home Alone’
Catherine O’Hara, the varied comedic actor known for memorable roles in “Beetlejuice,” “Schitt’s Creek,” and “Home Alone,” has died at 71 on Friday, according to multiple reports. No further details about her death were revealed.
O’Hara’s death comes as a shock to Hollywood, as the Emmy award-winning actor has been recently active, with roles in both “The Studio” and “The Last of Us.” For her work in those two shows, she received Emmy nominations for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series and outstanding guest actress in a drama series.
In 2020, O’Hara won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series award for her work in the celebrated sixth and final season of “Schitt’s Creek.” She was also known as a queer ally and icon for her theatrical and often campy performances over multiple decades. In “Schitt’s Creek,” she played Moira Rose, the wig-loving mother of David Rose (played by series creator Dan Levy). David is pansexual, but the characters around him simply accept him for who he is; the show was embraced by the LGBTQ community with how naturally David’s sexuality was written and portrayed. That show ran from 2015 to 2020 and helped bring O’Hara and her co-stars into a new phase of their careers.
In a 2019 interview with the Gay Times, O’Hara explained why the show got LGBTQ representation right: “Daniel has created a world that he wants to live in, that I want to live in. It’s ridiculous that we live in a world where we don’t know how to respect each other and let each other be. It’s crazy. Other shows should follow suit and present the world and present humans as the best that we can be. It doesn’t mean you can’t laugh, that you can’t be funny in light ways and dark ways. It’s all still possible when you respect and love each other.”
Additional credits include “SCTV Network” (for which O’Hara won a writing Emmy), “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Six Feet Under,” “Best in Show,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” and “Dick Tracy.” O’Hara also lent her voice to “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Chicken Little,” “Monster House,” and “Elemental.” O’Hara was expected to return for Season 2 of “The Studio,” which started filming earlier this month.
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