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Queery: Angel McNatt

The She Scenes Entertainment co-founder answers 20 gay questions

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Angel McNatt (Blade photo by Michael Key)

She Scenes Entertainment is having its three-year anniversary party Saturday from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. and co-founder Angel McNatt is excited about the event/clothing line company branching into new areas.

Saturday’s party, to be held at Argana (2147 P Street, N.W.), will feature performances by Lower Case Letters, DSCA and D-Ron and DDM. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door (visit sweetsceneent.com for details). McNatt expects a diverse crowd as Ashley Head, a local entrepreneur with Natural International talent Agency, is co-hosting. Another arm of McNatt’s company — Loverboi Apparel — is having the launch of a new T-shirt line called Cocky Edition that will be unveiled Saturday. And it’s just the start of what McNatt and co-owners Sharee Brown and Tia Gaymon hope will be a big year of expansion for the company. Though they’re all black lesbians, they hope the company is mor than that.

“We’re trying to diversify all the time,” McNatt says. “D.C. is so segregated. It’s like a subculture within a subculture and we’re trying to break that out so it’s not all black people. Saturday’s concert should be a good mixed crowd. With Ashley along, there’ll be lots of gay boys as well.”

McNatt works in property management by day — which she has been doing for years and still enjoys — but started She Scenes three years ago with Brown, her ex, and Gaymon, who has event planning background. Their first event — a fashion show at the Washington Convention Center — drew about 800 people according to McNatt and they felt they’d hit a nerve. Eventually they’d like to quit their day jobs and do She Scenes full time.

McNatt, 29,  grew up in Washington but now lives in Hyattsville, Md., and works in Bethesda. She graduated from American University and still has family here. She’s single and enjoys working out, reading and attending happy hour and nightlife events in her free time. She and her team are working on more fashion shows and are hoping to launch an LGBT swimwear line this year. (Blade photo by Michael Key)

How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?

I’ve been out for 13 years now and the hardest person to tell was my grandmother at that time. However, now she is totally accepting over it.

Who’s your LGBT hero?

Ellen Degeneres

What’s Washington’s best nightspot, past or present? 

U Street, Dupont and Adam’s Morgan corridor.

Describe your dream wedding.

My dream wedding would be a destination wedding on the sand, on a beach. The attire would be extremely relaxed; white or tan linen, no shoes. Small ceremony of close friends, family and associates. Large reception, with open invitation plus one; live band, open bar and a sushi option is a must.

What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about?

World hunger and homelessness — it really doesn’t have to be this way.

What historical outcome would you change?

George Bush becoming president.

What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime?

The life and legacy of Michael Jackson. The impact that he had globally was and still is phenomenal.

On what do you insist?

I insist that the U.S. government has something to do with the 9-11 events. I’m not a radical, but come on people.

What was your last Facebook post or Tweet?

Picking out an outfit for my 3rd year anniversary on January 21, 2012 at Argana (formerly Pasha) at 2147 P street NW Washington, DC…Purchase online tickets at http://concertedition.eventbrite.com to enjoy the concert by Lowercase Letters, DDM and DSCA.”

If your life were a book, what would the title be?

“Life in the fast lane — What will slow me down?”

If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do?

I would leave the country and find a small island in the middle of nowhere to live on. A person’s sexual orientation is something they naturally have a connection with. Contrary what some may be believe, it’s not a choice; you are who you are and attempting to tamper with that changes who we are as people and what we “allegedly” stand for as a country.

What do you believe in beyond the physical world? 

I believe that an acquired sense and acknowledgement of spirituality is the ultimate key to success and self preservation.

What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders?

The fight is never over as long as you continue to believe in what you’re supporting, your sincerity and efforts will always prevail ultimately paving the way for those who don’t have the courage to stand up for themselves.

What would you walk across hot coals for?

I would walk across hot coals for overall equality across the nation. I believe that the abolition of different classes (economic and social) would serve as a platform to end world hunger, crime, financial deficits and constraints.

What LGBT stereotype annoys you most?

That women or men are gay because the opposite sex didn’t do their job.

What’s your favorite LGBT movie?

Spike Lee’s independent film “She Hate Me”

What’s the most overrated social custom?

I think that having to say excuse me when you burp or pass gas in so overrated, more so in American culture. Flatulence is natural and most people do it in their sleep.

What trophy or prize do you most covet?

All of my competitive trophies, which include basketball, football (yes I said football), soccer, basketball, track and even Bible Study. Among them all my Punt, Pass and Kick trophy is what I covet the most. It was the last year that they had both men and women completing against each other on a regional and national level. The competition is sponsored by the NFL and I was interviewed by the retired Charles Mann.

What do you wish you’d known at 18?

That life is too short and that what most people hold high or place value on really isn’t as important as family and friends. Although truly nice to have and lots of it, money can truly be the root of all evil.

Why Washington?

Why not? I was born and raised here. It’s the capitol of the United States; politically, economically and socially driven. The District has an incredible amount of accessibility to entertainment, museums, restaurants and economical stability (hey I can only speak for myself). Its thriving subculture seems to be ever changing.

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Silky Nutmeg Ganache talks sex and dating, gender, politics, weight loss journey

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars’ semifinalist grew up in Bible Belt

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Silky Nutmeg Ganache (Photo courtesy of Silky Nutmeg Ganache)

Uncloseted Media published this interview on July 7.

By SPENCER MACNAUGHTON, ISABEL STOKES, and BELLA SAYEGH | After appearing on the 11th season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” the first season of “Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs. the World,” the sixth season of “RuPaul’s All Stars” and now the 11th season of “All Stars,” Silky Nutmeg Ganache, known by many as the Reverend, is undoubtedly a legend.

Born and raised in Moss Point, Miss., Ganache bears all in this episode of “UNCLOSETED with Spencer Macnaughton.” She speaks about her relationship with gender, her 100-pound weight loss, what it’s like living as a queer person of color in a red state and why she’s calling on allies to stand up for the trans community.

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Photos

PHOTOS: Crush Dance Bar

Patrons enjoy a night out at popular LGBTQ venue

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(Washington Blade photo by Landon Shackelford)

Patrons enjoyed a night out at the popular LGBTQ venue Crush Dance Bar on Friday, July 3.

(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)

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Theater

‘My Favorite Sociopath’ debuts at Shepherdstown’s CATF

Gay playwright Aurin Squire’s take on D.C. journalism in the ‘90s

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Playwright Aurin Squire. (Photo by Yilong Liu)

‘My Favorite Sociopath’
Contemporary American Theater Festival
July 10-Aug. 2
Shepherdstown, W.Va.
Catf.org

Discernment. It’s a thing some people have, explains playwright Aurin Squire, especially when you’re gay or Black in America (Squire is both).

“You instinctively know when the mob is teaming up for the best interests of the powers that be. You can feel it in the air.”

In his sharp new satire “My Favorite Sociopath,” Squire writes about life experiences but set in a different time and place: It’s the 1990s, early days of the 24-hour news cycle, and three ambitious journalism students are pursuing success in D.C.

And now, Squire’s play, along with other new works, are making their world premieres at the annual Contemporary American Theater Festival (CATF) at Shepherd University in historic, queer-friendly Shepherdstown, W.Va. (just a 90-minute drive from D.C.).

“All of my plays are queer in some way,” says Squire, 46. “This one touches on harmless and dangerous lies. The characters are on the spectrum sexually, and it’s interesting how all that falls out.”

And he’s given it a lot of thought. 

“Already as a kid, it seemed to me that the rage against rap music and sex was coming from closeted people resisting their own urges and temptations. For me, it was interesting to see a witch hunt led by witches. Queer people can always call out a lie.”

Since September, Squire has also been working with a TV show about the tech industry set in Silicon Valley. He says, “It seems the general flow of the tech industry is that humanity and civilization is finished and it’s just about accumulating as many goods as possible before everything collapses. In fact, those who are profiting actually agree. But for those who disagree, they believe the solution is to build bigger gates, but activists believe we can stop this” 

Yet, he’s learned from folks associated with the show. “Many say the quickest way to divorce yourself from any responsibility or regulations — smash and grab. Otherwise, you have to stop and think and regulate your desires for greed and power”

Squire possesses a penchant for pithy titles. He laughs, explaining the first thing he wrote as a student at Juilliard was “Obama-ology,” the comedy with contemporary message. While a lot of people liked the name, it didn’t necessarily vibe with the author. He concedes that he chooses names based on “easy to remember” and titles that won’t be easy to lose as a file. 

Another is “Defacing Michael Jackson,” a coming-of-age dramedy set in rural Florida in 1984, specifically Squire’s native town Opa-locka, Miami, a fantastical place famed for its fanciful Moorish revival architecture.

Living in the shadow of exotic structures, he wasn’t particularly fazed. Squire says “It wasn’t until returning to visit after my freshman year at Northwestern University in Chicago that I realized how weird it was: When you grow up in a place, you take surroundings for granted no matter how over the top.”  

Now based in New York (where for two happy years, 2017-2019, he shared digs with drag king Murry Hill), Squire returns frequently to Miami to be with family, but this summer has been filled with both work and travel.

Currently, he’s in Shepherdstown with CATF shaping up “My Favorite Sociopath.” Later this summer he will travel to South Africa for research, followed by a silent writing retreat in Santa Fe, N.M. 

Much of Squire’s work reflects the Latino, African, Caribbean, African-American, and Jewish cultures he grew up around in South Florida.

When asked if today’s winds of anti-multiculturalism worry him, he replies, “No, because that’s going to pass. Most people don’t like, people are seeing the negative results of it, and the young people coming up despise it. White male gamers were tricked momentarily through the algorithms into voting against their own interests and they’re now seeing how it’s not working out for them. 

“Conservatives always try to stop progress and eventually they always lose. It’s just a question of where we’ll be in the middle of the end of civilization before that happens. I’d like to hope we can turn the ship around before then.” 

In addition to “My Favorite Sociopath,” CATF summer season features three other world premieres (Lisa D’Amour’s comedy “The Smoker,” “Refugee Rhapsody” by Yussef El Guindi, “Best Line Wins: A Play Inspired by the Improvised Lives of Elaine May & Mike Nichols” by Beth Kander) and “¡VOS!” by Christina Pumariega.

CATF runs from July 10-Aug. 2 in three venues on the Shepherd University campus: Frank Center, Marinoff Theater, and Studio 112.

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