Arts & Entertainment

Queery: Shannon Wyss

The AIDS United grant manager and D.C. Trans Coalition volunteer answers 20 gay questions

Published

13 years ago

November 29, 2012

Joey DiGuglielmo

Shannon Wyss (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Editor’s note: Shannon Wyss requested and uses gender-neutral pronouns.

After majoring in international studies for hir undergrad degree and womens’ studies for hir master’s, Shannon Wyss wasn’t particularly seeking out AIDS work, but Wyss is passionate about both hir day job as grants manager for AIDS United and hir volunteer work at the D.C. Trans Coalition.

“My work at AIDS United is not really activist work for me, although we do have a policy department,” Wyss says. “What I love about it is that we look at HIV not as a biomedical issue, which it certainly is, but as an issue of social justice that focuses very much on why certain groups are affected more than others by HIV. This is not a coincidence. We find time and time again that the people most affected by it are also the most marginalized.”

Wyss says moving forward, increased — and at times uncomfortable — prevention efforts will be needed.

“I feel like medically we have the tools to mostly combat HIV at this point,” Wyss says. “The drugs that are out there are pretty effective. We don’t have a way of curing it, but we can treat it. Where we’re playing catch up is in preventing new infections. Maybe gay men need some messages that would make straight people a bit squeamish. Or we need to talk about access to clean syringes, but we’re not a culture that wants to acknowledge that it has a drug problem. There are a whole bunch of things culturally we need to address if we’re going to stop new infections. And we also have to address all the issues that go along with that, poverty, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, race — and I don’t think we’re ready to deal with all that.”

Wyss, a 40-year-old St. Louis native, has been in the Washington area about 17 years after going to college in Vassar (in New York) and spending a year abroad in Senegal on a study program.

Wyss and partner Katie Wanschura have been together nearly 10 years after meeting in a chorus. Two years ago they bought a house in Hyattsville, Md.

In hir free time, Wyss enjoys giving trans and LGBT seminars, working with gender non-conforming kids, photography, “puttering around the house,” reading, gardening, yard work and caring for the couple’s three cats and one dog.” (Blade photo by Michael Key)

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

I’ve been out under varying labels since 1993. If I recall correctly, the hardest person to tell at the time was my favorite teacher from high school, whom I wasn’t sure would still accept me. She did and has remained one of my biggest supporters ever since.

Who’s your LGBT hero?

I deeply admire anyone who is able and willing to be true to hirself under difficult circumstances.

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

I don’t do bars or clubs since I don’t drink or dance. But I love anyplace quiet where I can hang out with friends and loved ones.

Describe your dream wedding.

I don’t believe in assimilating into an institution that the state should not be involved in for any couple or group of people. But I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful commitment ceremony with my life partner in July.

What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about?

Every issue is an LGBTQ issue! But of those who are commonly defined as “not-LGBTQ,” I would put racial and economic justice at the top of my list.

What historical outcome would you change?

Slavery — everywhere, but especially in the “New World.”

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

Answering this would actually require me to be somewhat in touch with what “pop culture” is.

On what do you insist?

Justice and an equitable distribution of resources of all kinds for everyone.

What was your last Facebook post or Tweet?

“Wonderful session at the Harm Reduction Conference today on the anti-trafficking movement and how it is, overall, incredibly conservative, ageist, sexist, transphobic, pro-police and disempowering of youth. The feminist, LGBTQ, and harm reduction movements have to think harder about how we can support sex workers’ rights.”

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

“Privileged: How a White, Middle Class, Well-Educated Genderqueer Tried to Make Social Change”

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

Help all of the straight women who can’t find a decent man!

What do you believe in beyond the physical world?

I’m about as agnostic as I can be. So I’m not sure if there’s anything beyond where/what we are now.

What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders?

It’s about justice, not “just us.” Work with other social justice movements and ours will advance so much more quickly.

What would you walk across hot coals for?

It would have to be something really huge, like a cure for cancer or HIV or world peace. Aside from that, I like my feet just the way they are, thank you.

What LGBT stereotype annoys you most?

What annoys me the most are our community’s attempts to run frantically away from some of the stereotypes about us. There is nothing wrong with being a feminine man, a masculine woman, a radical feminist, sex-positive or a drag queen.

What’s your favorite LGBT movie?

There are so, so many that I haven’t seen! But I do love “Boys Don’t Cry” and “But I’m a Cheerleader.”

What’s the most overrated social custom?

Mornings. And the five-day work week.

What trophy or prize do you most covet?

Being seen as an advocate for social change by my family, friends, and coworkers and, what’s a lot harder, being someone who actually makes change happen.

What do you wish you’d known at 18?

That my life was about to get dramatically better when I went to college and left my small, private, Catholic, cliquey, conservative, all-girls high school.

Why Washington?

I moved here right after college in 1995 and never left: great mass transit, free museums, a really diverse population and progressive overall. What’s not to like?

Up Next

Faith of our fathers

Don't Miss

Deck the halls

FUND LGBTQ JOURNALISM

Photos

PHOTOS: ‘Studio 69’

Glitterati Productions hold party at Bunker

Published

14 hours ago

May 11, 2026

Michael Key

'Studio 69' was held at Bunker on Friday. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

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.

Published

20 hours ago

May 11, 2026

Staff reports

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

Theater

National tour of ‘Gatsby’ comes to National Theatre

Out actor Edward Staudenmayer talks playing the show’s gangster

Published

2 days ago

May 10, 2026

Patrick Folliard

Edward Staudenmayer plays Meyer Wolfsheim in ‘The Great Gatsby.’ (Photo courtesy National Theatre)

‘The Great Gatsby’
May 12-24
The National Theatre
1321 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
$59-$196
Thenationaldc.com

Often dubbed “The Great American Novel” for its depiction of ambition and self-invention alongside the reversals of success, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” says it all in a fast read.

Set against the excesses and energy of the Roaring Twenties, “The Great Gatsby,” novel and now the same-titled hit Broadway musical with a jazz/pop original score by Jason Howland and Nathan Tysen, tells the story of Nick Carraway and his friendship with Jay Gatsby, an enigmatic millionaire intent on reuniting with ex-lover, Daisy Buchanan.

It was during a four-month 2025 run in Seoul, South Korea, that out actor Edward Staudenmayer first played the show’s heavy, Meyer Wolfsheim, a gangster who helped Gatsby make his murkily acquired fortune. As Meyer, Staudenmayer opens the second act with, appropriately enough, “Shady.”

Now three months into a year-long North American tour, the show is poised to enjoy a brief run at Washington’s National Theatre (5/12-5/24).

While putting on his eyeliner prior to a recent Wednesday matinee at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre, the upstate New York-based actor shared about Gatsby and a life in theater.

WASHINGTON BLADE: Despite your good looks and terrific voice, you’re rarely the leading the man. How is that?

EDWARD STAUDENMAYER: I’m definitely a character man. I’ve been painting lines on my face to play old men since I was in high school. I was the youngest freshman in college playing old Uncle Sorin [in Chekhov’s “The Seagull”].

There have been many villains. Some darker than others. Meyer Wolfsheim is a very bad guy, but he doesn’t haunt me once I’m offstage. I play a lot of pickleball.

BLADE: Is it true that like so many of Fitzgerald’s characters, Wolfsheim is famously based on someone the writer encountered in life.

STAUDENMEYER: That’s true, Wolfsheim is pretty much a direct portrayal of real-life mobster and 1919 World Series fixer [Arnold Rothstein].

BLADE: When did the 1925 novel first surface on your radar?

STAUDENMAYER: Like many of us, I was assigned “The Great Gatsby” in high school. It was short, and filled with sex and illicit activities. I thought it was great. Definitely wasn’t a Judy Blume novel.

Interestingly, the book wasn’t originally a huge a success for Fitzgerald, but because it was about war and having the girl at home, they gave it to GIs leaving for WWII. After returning, a lot of those guys went on the GI Bill and became English teachers. They assigned the book to their students.

BLADE The idea that the book’s first-person narrator, Nick Carraway, is gay and enamored with Jay Gatsby is long discussed among readers and scholars. Does the musical touch on that?

STAUDENMAYER: Yes, there’s conjecture about Jay and Nick, and it’s implied in our show. It’s also implied about Jordan Baker, Jay’s fleeting romantic interest. Ultimately, she’s a confirmed bachelor, and a professional golfer who only wears pants.

Our performers are really good. Josh Grasso who plays Nick is fantastic. I’ve had to stop watching him in his last scene; it’s not good for Meyer Wolfsheim to take his curtain call crying. Our Gatsby, Jake David Smith, is good too. He’s gorgeous like Superman and sings like an angel.

BLADE: Do you ever imagine backstory for your characters whose sexuality is undefined?

STAUDENMAYER: I do, but not with Wolfsheim. I don’t see it. I’m trying to be as butch as possible with this ruthless killer.

BLADE: Have you had to do that in your career?

STAUDENMAYER: For a long time, I wore a mask to hide my gayness. I worked hard on being believable, that I was into the girl or that I was a tough guy.

It’s a different world now, and it’s so refreshing to be around the younger actors today; they’re remarkably open and comfortable.

BLADE: What was your coming of age like?

STAUDENMAYER: I played high school football in Palm Springs [he chuckles, alluding to the arid gay mecca], and I was pretty good too. But much to the chagrin of my parents and coaches, I quit the team to act in our senior year play. My super butch dad played semi-pro football and he was an ex-cop. I’m named after him. While I didn’t become my dad, I’ve played him often on stage. He was a true Gaston [the bumptious rival in “Beauty and the Beast”]. And like Gaston, he used antlers in all his interior decorating.

BLADE: Did he live to see your success in theater?

STAUDENMAYER: He did. Life was challenging growing up but the last 10 years of his life we couldn’t get off the phone with each other [his voice catches with emotion]. He accepted me entirely, and we became very close.

BLADE: Looking ahead, is there a part you’d especially like to play?

STAUDENMAYER: Like all baritones I’d love to play Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd.” I’ve come close but it hasn’t happened yet. There’s still time.