Metro Weekly - November 30, 2017 by RP MEDIA ARCHIVE

NOVEMBER 30, 2017

CONTENTS

UNPRESIDENTIAL

John de Lancie is stealing the election — and the show — in Mosaic Theatre’s wonderful and bracing Vicuña By Randy Shulman

STATE OF THE EPIDEMIC A Special World AIDS Day Forum

Volume 24 Issue 30

FLIGHT OF FANCY

Shakespeare Theatre’s Twelfth Night is a truly original production of a topsy-turvy tale. By Kate Wingfield

SPOTLIGHT: JOHN DE LANCIE p.7 HEATH’S SONG p.12 SCENE: NGLCC p.17 COMMUNITY: CELEBRATING SURVIVAL p.19 SCENE: TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE p.23 STATE OF THE EPIDEMIC p.24 STAGE: TWELFTH NIGHT p.33 STAGE: CRAZY FOR YOU p.35 GAMES: LEGO MARVEL SUPER HEROES 2 p.37 NIGHTLIFE p.39 SCENE: TOWN’S 10TH ANNIVERSARY p.39 LISTINGS p.41 LAST WORD p.46 Real LGBTQ News and Entertainment since 1994 Editorial Editor-in-Chief Randy Shulman Art Director Todd Franson Managing Editor Rhuaridh Marr Senior Editor John Riley Contributing Editor Doug Rule Senior Photographers Ward Morrison, Julian Vankim Contributing Illustrator Scott G. Brooks Contributing Writers André Hereford, Sean Maunier, Troy Petenbrink, Kate Wingfield Webmaster David Uy Production Assistant Julian Vankim Sales & Marketing Publisher Randy Shulman National Advertising Representative Rivendell Media Co. 212-242-6863 Distribution Manager Dennis Havrilla Patron Saint Robert Rayford Cover Photography Elena Schweitzer Metro Weekly 1775 I St. NW, Suite 1150 Washington, DC 20006 202-638-6830 All material appearing in Metro Weekly is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced in whole or part without the permission of the publishers. Metro Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials submitted for publication. All such submissions are subject to editing and will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Metro Weekly is supported by many fine advertisers, but we cannot accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers, nor can we accept responsibility for materials provided by advertisers or their agents. Publication of the name or photograph of any person or organization in articles or advertising in Metro Weekly is not to be construed as any indication of the sexual orientation of such person or organization.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

C STANLEY PHOTOGRAPHY

Spotlight

Unpresidential

John de Lancie is stealing the election — and the show — in Mosaic Theatre’s wonderful and bracing Vicuña.

OHN DE LANCIE WANTS TO BE PERFECTLY clear: “I’m not playing Trump. I’m playing Seaman.” The actor, familiar from his work in film and television, notably as the omnipotent extraterrestrial Q from the Star Trek franchise, is currently giving a show-stopping performance as a brutish, bullying presidential candidate in Jon Robin Baitz’s Vicuña and The American Epilogue at Mosaic Theater. “When I was first sent this, the director Bob Egan said to me, ‘It’s a Trump-like character,’” and I said, ‘I’m not doing an imitation or anything, all right?’ That would have stopped it right there for me.” Still, he concedes the parallels to Trump are in the fabric of Baitz’s potent new work. “This is a very muscular, bullyish, bully type guy who looks at everything in the terms of win or lose.” If anything, Seaman is more unnerving than Trump, seemingly far more insidious, shrewd, dangerous. “Robbie’s point is that this is the next Trump,”

says de Lancie. “This is not today. This is tomorrow. If you don’t watch out, this is where we’re going, guys.” De Lancie is happy with his fan-revered place in the Star Trek canon, even though Q only appeared in 9 episodes over three different series: The Next Generation, Deep Space 9, and Voyager. And while the role didn’t translate into massive riches for the actor (“I did not profit from it in the same way that a regular actor on a seven year television series would profit — nowhere near.”), he is content with his “cultural place in the pantheon of fictional characters.” As for the question of Q’s fey, flamboyant, gay-leaning personality, de Lancie laughs. “I tell my gay friends that Q is bi-spacial.... That’s one of the wonderful things about playing a character that seems to have crossed many, many, many strata. He speaks to a lot of different people.” —Randy Shulman

Vicuña & The American Epilogue runs until December 3 at Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. Tickets are $20 to $65. Call 202-399-7993, ext. 2 or visit MosaicTheater.org. NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

Spotlight THE BOOK OF MERMAN

Now that another Kennedy Center run of the popular Mormon-themed musical has come and gone, the outré Landless Theatre Company presents a similarly themed yet wackier musical comedy that goes beyond mere parody. Written and composed by Leo Schwartz, Book of Merman weaves a story about a chance encounter between two Mormon missionaries and Broadway’s legendary original diva, Ethel Merman, who shares advice and insights for the boys. To Dec. 8. District of Columbia Arts Center, 2438 18th St. NW. Tickets are $25. Call 202462-7833 or visit dcartscenter.org.

ANNIE

The sun’ll come out tomorrow and every day this holiday season at Olney Theatre Center. Forty years after composer Charles Strouse, lyricist Martin Charnin, and book writer Thomas Meehan teamed up for the feel-good musical about a determinedly optimistic little orphan girl, countless other, reallife kids have been inspired by the popular work to become theater performers (or at least theater queens) in their own right. The latest is Noelle Robinson, who heads a cast of 32, including Rachel Zampelli as Miss Hannigan, Kevin McAllister as Daddy Warbucks, and Wilson Jermaine Heredia as Rooster Hannigan. To Dec. 31. Mainstage, Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, Md. Call 301-924-3400 or visit olneytheatre.org.

DARK STAR ORCHESTRA

The annual return of the Chicago-based tribute band to the Grateful Dead. The show obsessively recreates a set list from a specific performance — this year, the July 14, 1991, concert at RFK Stadium — with the goal of “raising the Dead” for Deadheads. Even original members of the Dead themselves have sung the orchestra’s praises. Saturday, Dec. 2. Doors at 6 p.m. The Anthem, 901 Wharf St. SW. Tickets are $40 to $60. Call 202-265-0930 or visit theanthemdc.com.

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Spotlight HELANIUS J. WILKINS

As part of its free nightly Millennium Stage programming, the Kennedy Center presents a selection of works from the award-winning choreographer, including several solo pieces, to be danced by Wilkins. The evening will include Triggered, along with the D.C. premiere of Media’s Got Me All Figured Out: Reloaded, a trio of works inspired by the events that fueled Black Lives Matter. Dancers from the University of Colorado Boulder will join Wilkins. Sunday, Dec. 3, at 6 p.m. Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. Tickets are free, distributed two tickets per person starting at approximately 5 p.m. in the States Gallery. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org.

MAGGIE GOURLAY: ADAPTATION/MIGRATION IN THE ANTHROPOCENE

The National Zoo plays host to CulturalDC’s Space4: Mobile Art Gallery and the latest exhibition presented in a former 40-foot shipping container, running in tandem with ZooLights (see separate entry). In creating the immersive multimedia installation, local artist Maggie Gourlay was inspired by the exotic insect species that have migrated to the U.S. via commercial shipping containers and have become conservation threats. Community Kickoff is Friday, Dec. 1, from 6 to 8 p.m. Exhibit runs through Jan. 1. Outside the Visitor’s Center, 3001 Connecticut Ave. NW. Call 202-633-4800 or visit nationalzoo.si.edu.

GLORIA REUBEN

Gloria Reuben, who currently has a recurring roles on USA’s satisfyingly bizarre Mr. Robot, first came to broad national attention on NBC’s ’90sera hit E.R., on which she played HIV-positive nurse Jeanie Boulet, a role that inspired her to become an HIV/AIDS activist. But the actress has long had a side career in music and comes to Blues Alley to show off her chops with her “Great Ladies of Song” cabaret. She’ll perform from the repertoires of jazz legends Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan, and fellow Canadians k.d. Lang and Alanis Morissette, among others. Tuesday, Dec. 5, at 8 and 10 p.m. Blues Alley, 1073 Wisconsin Ave. NW. Tickets are $31, plus $12 minimum purchase. Call 202-337-4141 or visit bluesalley.com.

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Out On The Town

PRIESTS

Now five years old, the D.C.-based band has generated national buzz for revitalizing, however indirectly, one aspect of D.C. culture — punk rock, specifically the ’90s-originating “Riot Grrrl” variant. Led by the strong, elastically voiced Katie Alice Greer and featuring drummer Daniele Daniele, guitarist G.I. Jaguar, and bassist Taylor Mulitz, Priests is a largely LGBTQidentified, mixed-gender, hard-charging band with a cheekily religious name — owing in part to Greer’s upbringing as the daughter of a Methodist minister. The band tours in support of its debut full-length, Nothing Feels Natural, which Paste magazine called “the first great punk album of the Trump presidency.” It’s hard to disagree with music this sharp, passionate, and powerful. Friday, Dec. 1. Doors at 8 p.m. 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW. Tickets are $17, with a dollar from each ticket donated to Casa Ruby. Call 202-265-0930 or visit 930.com. Compiled by Doug Rule

FILM

1:30, 4:30, and 7:30 p.m. Landmark’s West End Cinema, 2301 M St. NW. Tickets are $12.50. Call 202-5341907 or visit landmarktheatres.com.

Road, Silver Spring. Tickets are $13 general admission. Call 301-4956720 or visit afi.com/Silver.

DARK PASSAGE

MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS

Unashamedly niche in its subject matter, but definitely broad in appeal, James Franco both directs and stars in this comedy-drama biopic about the making of Tommy Wiseau’s 2003 cult film The Room, widely considered one of the worst films ever made. Franco is Wiseau, with his brother Dave Franco as line producer and co-star Greg Sestero. Seth Rogen, Alison Brie, Melanie Griffith and more are on the cast list, but expect even more cameos. Critics are absolutely loving it. Opens Friday, Dec. 1. Area theaters. Visit fandango.com. (Rhuaridh Marr)

Landmark’s West End Cinema continues its winter season of Capital Classics with 1947’s Dark Passage, the third of four films Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall made together. In the stylish film-noir thriller, Bogart plays a prison escapee framed for murder. He emerges from plastic surgery with a new face, with Bacall his sole ally. Meanwhile, Agnes Moorehead portrays a harpy who takes pleasure in the unhappiness of others, providing great pleasure for the viewer in the process. Happy Hour-priced beer and wine from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Screening Wednesday, Dec. 6, at

Vincente Minnelli cast Judy Garland in his 1944 classic, and all her singing and dancing — “The Trolley Song,” “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” — led to romancing, marriage and baby Liza. The Silver Theatre kicks off the month of December with the 1944 holiday-themed classic, and then mid-month — Wednesday, Dec. 13 — Landmark’s West End Cinema offers it as part of itsCapital Classics series. Friday, Dec. 1, at 4 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 3, at 11 a.m., and Monday, Dec. 4, through Wednesday, Dec. 6, at 2:45 p.m. AFI Silver Theatre, 8633 Colesville

THE DISASTER ARTIST

THE DIVINE ORDER

Touted as hilarious, uplifting and crowd-pleasing, Petra Biondina Volpe’s drama is set in 1971 Switzerland, a time when women were surprisingly still denied the right to vote and wives were legally considered the property and at the mercy of their husbands. An Audience Award winner at the Tribeca Film Festival, Switzerland’s official selection as Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards stars Marie Leuenberger as the reluctant local leader of the women’s suffrage movement after her husband forbids her from getting a part-time job. Opens Friday, Dec. 1. Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. Call 202-452-7672 or visit landmarktheatres.com.

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THELMA

Norway’s official pick for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar pivots on the sparks that fly between its title character and another beautiful young female student. The dynamic provokes Thelma to have mysterious, dangerous supernatural seizures, as she becomes increasingly overwhelmed by her intense, irrepressible feelings for Anja. Joachim Trier’s horror film has been described as a cross between Stephen King and Ingmar Bergman. Subtitled. Opens Friday, Dec. 1. Landmark’s West End Cinema, 2301 M St. NW. Call 202-534-1907 or visit landmarktheatres.com.

STAGE

SCOTT SUCHMAN

A TUNA CHRISTMAS

HEATH’S SONG

Heath Saunders plays on as Twelfth Night’s fabulous Feste.

N SHAKESPEARE’S GENDER-BENDING ROMANTIC COMEDY TWELFTH NIGHT, THE singing jester Feste is described as a fellow wise enough to play the fool. Brandishing wit and song, Feste challenges and delights the story’s star-crossed lovers, and Heath Saunders lights up the stage as the character in Shakespeare Theatre’s droll new production of the play, directed by Ethan McSweeny. Saunders, who recently made his Broadway debut in the Tony-winning Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, agrees that, though a clown Feste may be, he certainly is no fool. “Ethan and I very early on were describing Feste as a bit of a White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland — like a guide through this unusual world,” says Saunders, who notes other mischief makers as inspiration for his take on the character. “I think of him as, and this is a little strange, but like a slightly bro-y Loki, or Anansi the Spider, like a trickster god. [He’s] not all powerful, but likes to mess around with people. He likes to shake things up, because that’s more fun.” While Feste has his fun observing and influencing the drama of mistaken identities and unrequited love, he expresses much through Shakespeare’s cleverly pointed verse, frequently set to music written for this production by award-winning composer Lindsay Jones. Saunders, a talented songwriter and musician in his own right, describes the collaboration with Jones and music director Matthew Deitchman as one of the highlights of playing the fool. “This particular process on Twelfth Night has been beautiful,” he says, adding that rehearsals tapped into his creativity as a writer as well as a singer, guitarist, and actor. “They’d present a song for me, and I would sing it how they want it. And they’d [ask], ‘How can we make it feel more like it’s true to you? How can we make it feel like it’s going to be something that you feel really good about singing for yourself?’ So there’s a lot of collaboration in that experience, which is not wildly standard as an actor.” The mixed-race Seattle native and self-described queer artist felt encouraged to bring his unique combination of attributes fully to the fore. “It’s really lovely for me to be in a show where I just get to be myself, because there aren’t a lot of roles that are like me per se.” —André Hereford Twelfth Night runs to December 20 at Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F Street NW. Tickets are $25 to $102. Call 202-547-1122 or visit shakespearetheatre.org.

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You’ve no doubt heard of Tuna, Texas, “the third smallest town” in the Lone Star State, and the setting of a series of plays originally brought to life by Joe Sears and Jaston Williams. The second in the series, A Tuna Christmas premiered in 1989 and went on to Broadway in 1994, garnering a Tony nomination for Sears in the process. A new, local production of this Texas-sized Yuletide satire comes from siblings Thomas and Dillon DiSalvo, who portray the town’s 22 eccentric denizens. The production is directed by a third DiSalvo brother, Frank Jr., making this the definitive family affair. Friday, Dec. 8, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 9, and Sunday, Dec. 10, at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Callan Theatre in the Hartke Theater complex at Catholic University, 3801 Harewood Rd. NE. Tickets are $16 to $20. Call 202-460-2188 or visit parlorroomtheater.com.

THE REAL AMERICANS

Actor/journalist Dan Hoyle brings to life the characters he met traveling outside “the liberal bubble,” presented as part of Mosaic Theater’s “Transformational Journeys” and staged in repertory in the month of December with Draw The Circle. Charlie Varon directs. To Dec. 22. Atlas Performing Arts Center, Lab Theatre II, 1333 H St. NE. Tickets are $25 to $65. Call 202-399-7993 or visit mosaictheater.org.

MUSIC CHOPTEETH

The Washington Post has referred to this 12-piece band as “a storming powerhouse of big-band African funk...smart, tight and relentlessly driving.” Chopteeth has already won a number of Washington Area Music Association Awards, including Artist of the Year in 2008. The Afrobeat-driven group performs regularly throughout the region, but makes its debut at the new District Wharf’s more intimate concert venue. Saturday, Dec. 9. Doors at 7 p.m. Pearl Street Warehouse, 33

PHOTOS COURTESY OF HILLWOOD MUSEUM AND GARDENS

SPECTACULAR GEMS FROM THE MERRIWEATHER POST COLLECTION

Marjorie Merriweather Post had one of the most remarkable collections of jewelry of the 20th century. For its latest exhibition, her former estate displays and shares stories about more than 50 exquisite accessories from the late cereal heiress and the historic gems that went into making them. Leading designers Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Harry Winston and Verdura are represented in the collection, which includes pieces on loan from other museums and private collections. Through Jan. 7. Hillwood Estate, 4155 Linnean Ave. NW. Suggested donation is $18. Call 202-686-5807 or visit HillwoodMuseum.org.

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Pearl St. SW. Tickets are $20. Call 202-380-9620 or visit pearlstreetwarehouse.com.

DC DIFFERENT DRUMMERS

The Capitol Pride Symphonic Band and other small ensembles from this LGBT music organization will perform concert versions of holiday tunes at the free annual holiday concert that also doubles as a food drive for Food and Friends. Sunday, Dec. 10, at 3 p.m. The Lutheran Church of the Reformation, 212 East Capitol St. NE. Free, with request for food drive donations. Call 202-269-4868 or visit dcdd.org.

GAY MEN’S CHORUS OF WASHINGTON: THE HOLIDAY SHOW

Blending the sexy and playful with the sweet and sentimental, the holiday show is one of the chorus’s most popular. In addition to the standard seasonal and sensational offerings, the concert features performances by the ensembles Potomac Fever and Rock Creek Singers, as well as the LGBT youth choir GenOUT. This year’s offering incorporates stories of holiday memories and growing up gay, as told by several members, part of a season-long push to personalize the 200-strong chorus. “In a time when our social discourse can seem toxic,” artistic director Thea Kano says, “it is vital that we share our stories and

remind everyone that there is far more that unites us than divides us.” Saturday, Dec. 9, at 8 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 16, at 3 and 8 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 17, at 3 p.m. Lincoln Theatre, 1215 U St. NW. Tickets are $25 to $65. Call 202-328-6000 or visit gmcw.org.

JAY BRANNAN

The sweet-sounding gay folk-popper returns for another concert at the H Street Corridor’s rock hub. Local folk/rock singer-songwriter Justin Trawick opens. Wednesday, Dec. 6. Doors at 6 p.m. Rock and Roll Hotel, 1353 H St. NE. Tickets are $15. Call 202-388-ROCK or visit rockandrollhoteldc.com.

MEGAN HILTY WITH THE NSO: A HOLIDAY POPS

The Washington Chorus joins the NSO, led by Steven Reineke, for a concert featuring the Broadway star (9 to 5: The Musical) and Kennedy Center regular, most widely known as the ambitious Ivy Lynn on Smash, the NBC television series about the making of a new musical. Hilty returns to lead performance of favorite yuletide songs on Friday, Dec. 8, at 8p.m., and Saturday, Dec. 9, at 2 and 8 p.m. Kennedy Center Concert Hall. Tickets are $24 to $99. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org.

NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

New Music Director Gianandrea Noseda leads a concert titled “The Artist Abroad,” an examination of three composers working abroad, with a particular focus on Prokofiev’s Paris-penned Piano Concerto No. 5 featuring Yuja Wang. The program also includes Britten’s Matinées musicales and Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances — both pieces composed while taking refuge in America during World War II. Thursday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m., and Saturday, Dec. 2, at 8 p.m., with a special Coffee Concert on Friday, Dec. 1, at 11:30 a.m. Kennedy Center Concert Hall. Tickets are $15 to $94. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org.

DANCE THE SUZANNE FARRELL BALLET: FAREWELL PERFORMANCES The Kennedy Center bids goodbye to its resident ballet company of 16 years with a pageant of favorites, handpicked for their special meaning by the company’s namesake. Given that Farrell was the beloved muse of the late, great choreographer George Balanchine, the program is an all-Balanchine affair. Thursday, Dec. 7, and Friday, Dec. 8, at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, Dec. 9, at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Opera House. Tickets are

$29 to $89. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org.

THE WASHINGTON BALLET: THE NUTCRACKER

The Washington Ballet’s former artistic director Septime Webre first staged his twist on the family favorite 13 years ago, setting it in D.C.’s historic Georgetown neighborhood with George Washington as the titular figure and King George III as the Rat King. As always, the production sets up shop for nearly all of December at downtown’s Warner Theatre. Opens in a preview Thursday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. Runs to Dec. 24. Warner Theatre, 513 13th St. NW. Call 202-889-5901 or visit washingtonballet.org.

COMEDY SAMANTHA BEE

The longest-serving correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart who now hosts the indispensable weekly satirical show Full Frontal with Samantha Bee makes her Kennedy Center debut as part of an “In Conversation” program moderated by New York magazine writer-at-large and best-selling author Rebecca Traister (All The Single Ladies). Friday, Dec. 1, at 8 p.m. Kennedy Center Concert Hall Tickets are $49 to $89. Call 202-4674600 or visit kennedy-center.org.

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Avenue at 17th Street NW. Fr. Call 202-633-1000 or visit renwick. americanart.si.edu.

ENAMELISTS GALLERY: HOLIDAY SHIMMERS

Unique enamel pieces by local artists are justing waiting to be discovered and purchased as glittering gifts inside the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria and the only gallery outside of California devoted solely to enamel works. Options range from beautiful framed pieces to display bowls and plates to jewelry, all in an array of colors. To Dec. 3. Enamelists Gallery, 105 North Union St. Alexandria. Free. Call 703-838-1561 or visit torpedofactory.org.

JUDY CHICAGO: VISUAL ARCHIVE, THE DINNER PARTY EXHIBITION

DAVE KOZ 20TH ANNIVERSARY CHRISTMAS TOUR

So what if he’s Jewish? The gay, smooth saxophonist Dave Koz loves Christmas songs and has had a hit with this annual Christmas show at Strathmore. Performers joining Koz include original Christmas tour bandmates, pianist David Benoit and guitarist Peter White, plus trumpeter Rick Braun and singer Selina Albright. Monday, Dec. 4, at 8 p.m. Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda. Tickets are $48 to $88. Call 301-581-5100 or visit strathmore.org. THE SECOND CITY’S TWIST YOUR DICKENS

The Kennedy Center offers another run of the comedy troupe’s irreverent and interactive parody twist on A Christmas Carol. The largely improvised tale is based on Dickens but adapted by former The Colbert Report writers Peter Gwinn and Bobby Mort. Opens Tuesday, Dec. 5, at 8 p.m. To Dec. 31. Kennedy Center Theater Lab. Tickets are $49 to $75. Call 202-467-4600 or visit kennedy-center.org.

EXHIBITS 10X10 INVITATIONAL

Over 85 regional and national artists are represented in the third annual 10x10 invitational. Every artwork is different, although the same size, and are intended as original holiday gifts, priced at $50 each. The

invitational benefits Hyattsville’s Pyramid Atlantic Art Center, located in the historic Arcade building in the Gateway Arts District and featuring a papermaking studio, print shop, letterpress studio, bindery, a darkroom and a woodshop. To Dec. 17. Pyramid Atlantic Art Center, 4318 Gallatin Street, Hyattsville. Call 301-608-9101 or visit pryamidatlanticartcenter.org.

CONNECTIONS: CONTEMPORARY CRAFT AT THE RENWICK

New acquisitions made during the Renwick Gallery’s renovation are now on display along with iconic favorites in the permanent collection. More than 80 objects are featured as part of a dynamic presentation celebrating craft as a discipline and an approach to living differently in the modern world. Ongoing. Renwick Gallery, Pennsylvania

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As part of its 30th anniversary celebration, the National Museum of Women in the Arts honors the iconic artist through establishment of a new archive and opening of a new exhibition. The archive, in the Boyd Dettre Library and Research Center, documents the artist’s work through photographs, slides, negatives, and printed ephemera spanning the 1960s through the present. As such, it captures fleeting performance pieces such as her pyrotechnics and dry ice works as well as exhibitions of drawings, paintings, sculpture and installations, including The Dinner Party. Meanwhile, the creation of that monumental and radical installation is the focus of a temporary exhibition. Through Jan. 5. 1250 New York Ave NW. Admission is $10. Call 202-7835000 or visit nmwa.org.

TREATIES BETWEEN THE U.S. AND AMERICAN INDIAN NATIONS

With the lead title Nation to Nations, this long-term exhibition at the National Museum of the American Indian tells the story of the treaties signed between U.S. leaders and influential Native diplomats. Most Americans today live on land that was originally promised to Native Nations via (obviously broken) treaties. And while most of the documents date to the early days of the American republic, the exhibit, which has been on display since 2015, has just been updated to end with an 11.5-foot-tall mile-marker post created last year by activists protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota — touted as the largest gathering of Native Americans in protest. In other words, the treaties are hardly something relegated to museums and history books but in fact very much an ongoing, present-day concern. On display through 2021. National Museum of the American Indian, Independence Avenue at 4th Street SW. Call 202-633-1000 or visit nmai.si.edu.

FOOD & DRINK METROCOOKING DC FOOD SHOW

Both a holiday treat and a shopping preserve, “The Ultimate Food Lover’s Weekend” is the area’s biggest specialty food and culinary event. And the lineup of star chefs who will cook and chat at this year’s event is impressive, led by nationally recognized local stars Jose Andres, Victor Albisu, Amy Brandwein, Erik BrunerYang, Michael Friedman, Marjorie Meek-Bradley, George Pagonis, and Vikram Sunderam. Guy Fieri, D.C.-native Carla Hall, Guillermo Pernot, and Michael Schlow also join the festivities, along with hundreds of specialty food vendors exhibiting their wares. The event offers a smorgasbord of activities, including a Grand Tasting Pavilion with samples from local restaurants, a separate area offering beer, wine and spirits samplings, a BBQ Bash, culinary classes by chefs from L’Academie de Cuisine, entertaining workshops and book signings. Saturday, Dec. 9, and Sunday, Dec. 10, starting at 10 a.m. each day. Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt. Vernon Place NW. Call 202-249-3000 or visit metrocookingdc.com.

ABOVE AND BEYOND LIGHTS ON THE BAY

More than 70 animated and stationary displays depicting regional and holiday themes factor into the annual holiday show, featuring a two-mile scenic drive along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. A North Pole Village & Enchanted Fairy Tales is a new edition at this year’s event, a benefit for the SPCA of Anne Arundel County. On display every evening from 5 to 10 p.m. through Jan. 1. Sandy Point State Park, 1100 E. College Parkway, Annapolis. Admission is $15 per car, or $30 to $50 for larger vans and buses. Visit lightsonthebay.org.

NATIONAL ZOO’S ZOOLIGHTS

More than 500,000 colorful Christmas lights illuminate lifesized animal silhouettes, dancing trees, buildings, and walkways, plus a light show set to music, during this annual holiday event at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. All that, plus select animal houses will be open and displaying nocturnal creatures, including the Small Mammal House, the Great Ape House and Reptile Discovery Center. Every night except Dec. 24 and 25 until Jan. 1. National Zoo, 3001 Connecticut Ave. NW. Free, courtesy of Pepco. Call 202-6334800 or visit nationalzoo.si.edu. l

Scene

NGLCC’s 25th Anniversary at the National Building Museum Friday, November 17 • Photography by Ward Morrison See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

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Community

THURSDAY, NOV. 30 Weekly Events ANDROMEDA TRANSCULTURAL HEALTH

HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE

CELEBRATING SURVIVAL

Local organizations commemorate those lost to HIV, and those living with the virus, as part of World AIDS Day.

ANY ORGANIZATIONS IN D.C. WILL HONOR WORLD AIDS DAY ON FRIDAY, DEC. 1, to commemorate the devastating impact that HIV has had since its discovery in 1983. Events start the night before, Thursday, Nov. 30, when the Women’s Collective hosts its “SHADES OF BLUE” fashion show at Busboys and Poets, 1025 5th St. NW. Featuring 14 models clad in blue, it’s intended to increase awareness of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) as prevention tools. “It’s important for women to know about PrEP,” says Crissy Taylor, youth program coordinator with the Women’s Collective. “It’s often thought to be prescribed just for gay men. But African-American women are at risk as well.” The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, meanwhile, will hold a screening of the movie HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE at 6:30 p.m., followed by a panel discussion with health experts. The museum is located at 10th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. On Friday, Dec. 1, at 8:45 a.m., Whitman-Walker Health will hold its second annual COMMUNITY BREAKFAST AND GATHERING at the R.I.S.E. Demonstration Center, 2730 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE. Attendees can participate in a community art-making activity honoring those who lost their lives to, or are still living with, HIV. “It’s in the spirit of the AIDS Memorial Quilt,” says Josh Riley, WWH’s director of community commitment. “People will have the opportunity to create their own small tribute, using all kinds of different materials.” Throughout the day, Whitman-Walker will offer HIV TESTING at its 1525 Center (1525 14th St. NW) and its Max Robinson Center (2301 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE), as well as outside the Anacostia Metro Station via its mobile van unit. At 11 a.m., Serve DC, along with the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs and The DC Center, will host the District’s annual RED CARNATION AFFAIR at the Reeves Center, 2000 14th St. NW. Following remarks by Mayor Muriel Bowser, attendees will take part in service projects, such as packing safe-sex kits and creating emergency preparedness care packages. The event will feature remarks by singer Raheem DeVaughn, whose Lovelife Foundation is engaged in HIV prevention efforts, and by Dr. Goulda Downer of Howard University’s College of Medicine. Various organizations, including Casa Ruby, Us Helping Us, Whitman-Walker, and the Women’s Collective, will have volunteers present and give talks about the services they offer. Us Helping Us hosts INFORMATIONAL SESSIONS ON HIV AND PREP at the University of the District of Columbia’s Student Center, on the second floor of 4200 Connecticut Ave. NW. The organization will also offer HIV and STI testing at its offices in D.C. at 3636 Georgia Ave. NW and at 8240 Professional Place, Suite 207B, in Landover, Md. “One of the things we’re trying to accomplish is getting individuals to go through comprehensive health screenings,” says Marteniz Brown, UHU’s manager of prevention programs. “If you do that, you can normalize HIV, so it’s not seen as this taboo subject.” That evening, the Alexandria Health Department and Commission on HIV/AIDS will hold its annual HIV/AIDS SERVICE AWARDS RECEPTION at the Church of St. Clement, 1701 N. Quaker Lane in Alexandria. The event honors Khadijah Abdullah, executive director of Reaching All HIV+ Muslims in America. Finally, the AIDS HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION will host a cocktail reception and artist showcase at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, at 1333 H St. NE. Admission is free with the donation of a new toy to Heart to Hand, Inc., or a canned food item to Damien Ministries. Following the artist showcase, Impulse DC will present a GLOW PAINT PARTY at Studio 52, at 1508 Okie St. NE, from 9 p.m. to midnight, where attendees will be asked to create art or inspiring messages around HIV treatment and prevention. You can even choose to paint on one of several human models, who will offer their bodies as canvasses. —John Riley For a comprehensive listing of all World AIDS Day events, visit the D.C. Department of Health’s website at doh.dc.gov.

offers free HIV testing and HIV services (by appointment). 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Decatur Center, 1400 Decatur St. NW. To arrange an appointment, call 202-291-4707, or visit andromedatransculturalhealth.org.

DC AQUATICS CLUB practice

session at Takoma Aquatic Center. 7:30-9 p.m. 300 Van Buren St. NW. For more information, visit swimdcac.org.

DC FRONT RUNNERS run-

ning/walking/social club welcomes runners of all ability levels for exercise in a fun and supportive environment, with socializing afterward. Route distance is 3-6 miles. Meet at 7 p.m. at 23rd & P Streets NW. For more information, visit dcfrontrunners.org.

DC LAMBDA SQUARES gay and lesbian square-dancing group features mainstream through advanced square dancing at the National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle NW, 7-9:30 p.m. Casual dress. 301-257-0517, dclambdasquares.org. DC SCANDALS RUGBY holds

practice. The team is always looking for new members. All welcome. 7:30-9:30 p.m. King Greenleaf Recreation Center, 201 N St. SW. For more information, visit scandalsrfc.org or dcscandals@gmail.com.

THE DULLES TRIANGLES

Northern Virginia social group meets for happy hour at Sheraton in Reston. All welcome. 7-9 p.m. 11810 Sunrise Valley Drive, second-floor bar. For more information, visit dullestriangles.com.

HIV TESTING at Whitman-

Walker Health. 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and from 2-5 p.m. at 1525 14th St. NW, and 9 a.m-12 p.m. and 2-5 p.m. at the Max Robinson Center, 2301 MLK Jr. Ave. SE. For an appointment call 202-745-7000 or visit whitman-walker.org.

IDENTITY offers free and

confidential HIV testing at two separate locations. Walkins accepted from 2-6 p.m., by appointment for all other hours. 414 East Diamond Ave., Gaithersburg, Md. or 7676 New Hampshire Ave., Suite 411, Takoma Park, Md. To set

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

up an appointment or for more information, call Gaithersburg, 301-300-9978, or Takoma Park, 301-422-2398.

METROHEALTH CENTER

offers free, rapid HIV testing. Appointment needed. 1012 14th St. NW, Suite 700. To arrange an appointment, call 202-638-0750.

SMYAL offers free HIV Testing, 3-5 p.m., by appointment and walk-in, for youth 21 and younger. Youth Center, 410 7th St. SE. 202-5673155 or testing@smyal.org.

STI TESTING at Whitman-Walker

Health. 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 2-3 p.m. at both 1525 14th St. NW and the Max Robinson Center, 2301 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave. SE. Testing is intended for those without symptoms. For an appointment call 202-745-7000 or visit whitman-walker.org.

US HELPING US hosts a Narcotics Anonymous Meeting. The group is independent of UHU. 6:30-7:30 p.m., 3636 Georgia Ave. NW. For more information, call 202-4461100.

WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE for young LBTQ

women, 13-21, interested in leadership development. 5-6:30 p.m. SMYAL Youth Center, 410 7th St. SE. For more information, call 202567-3163, or email catherine.chu@ smyal.org.

FRIDAY, December 1 GAY DISTRICT, a group for

GBTQQI men between the ages of 18-35, meets on the first and third Fridays of each month. 8:30-9:30 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit gaydistrict.org.

Join Serve DC, special guest Raheem DeVaughn, and the LoveLife Foundation for the WORLD AIDS DAY RED CARNATION AFFAIR, which commemorates people living with HIV and those who have died from the disease. The event will also recognize the progress made on the District’s 90/90/90/50 HIV reduction plan. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Reeves Center, 2000 14th St. NW. For more information, visit thedccenter.org. The DC Center hosts a meeting of its TRANS SUPPORT GROUP, focusing on issues important to transgender people and those who identify outside of the gender binary. 7-8:30 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Weekly Events

SUNDAY, December 3

BET MISHPACHAH, founded by

ADVENTURING outdoors group hikes several mostly level miles around Greenbelt Park in suburban Maryland. Bring beverages, lunch, layered clothing, winter-worthy boots and a $2 trip fee. Walk begins at 10 a.m. from the College ParkUniversity of Maryland Metro Station, and ends by 3 p.m. Contact Jackson, 410-422-9257 or visit adventuring.org.

members of the LGBT community, holds Friday evening Shabbat services in the DC Jewish Community Center’s Community Room. 8 p.m. 1529 16th St. NW. For more information, visit betmish.org.

DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a prac-

tice session at Howard University. 6:30-8 p.m. Burr Gymnasium, 2400 6th St. NW. For more information, visit swimdcac.org.

PROJECT STRIPES hosts LGBT-

affirming social group for ages 11-24. 4-6 p.m. 1419 Columbia Road NW. Contact Tamara, 202-3190422, layc-dc.org.

SMYAL’S REC NIGHT provides a social atmosphere for LGBT and questioning youth, featuring dance parties, vogue nights, movies and games. For more info, email catherine.chu@smyal.org.

SATURDAY, December 2 CENTER GLOBAL, a group that fights against anti-LGBTI laws and cultures in 80 countries, holds its monthly meeting on the first Saturday of every month. 12-1:30 p.m. The DC Center, 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit thedccenter.org. CHRYSALIS arts & culture group

visit Winterthur, a lavish Dupont family estate near Wilmington, Del., to see the mansion and an exhibition on the history of Fake Art. Carpool at 9:30 a.m. from Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro Station. Contact Jeff, 301-775-9660, or jeffreyhughes@me.com.

Weekly Events DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a prac-

tice session at Montgomery College Aquatics Club. 8:30-10 a.m. 7600 Takoma Ave., Takoma, Md. For more information, visit swimdcac. org.

DC FRONT RUNNERS running/

walking/social club welcomes runners of all ability levels for exercise in a fun and supportive environment, with socializing afterward. Route distance will be 3-6 miles. Walker meet at 9:30 a.m. and runners at 10 a.m. at 23rd & P Streets NW. For more information, visit dcfrontrunners.org.

DIGNITYUSA sponsors Mass for

LGBT community, family and friends. 6:30 p.m., Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill, 3606 Seminary Road, Alexandria. All welcome. For more info, visit dignitynova.org.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

Weekly Events BETHEL CHURCH-DC progressive and radically inclusive church holds services at 11:30 a.m. 2217 Minnesota Ave. SE. 202-248-1895, betheldc.org. DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a

practice session at Wilson Aquatic Center. 9:30-11 a.m. 4551 Fort Dr. NW. For more information, visit swimdcac.org.

DC FRONT RUNNERS running/

walking/social club welcomes runners of all ability levels for exercise in a fun and supportive environment, with socializing afterward. Route will be a distance run of 8, 10 or 12 miles. Meet at 9 a.m. at 23rd & P Streets NW. For more information, visit dcfrontrunners.org.

DIGNITYUSA offers Roman

Catholic Mass for the LGBT community. All welcome. Sign interpreted. 6 p.m. St. Margaret’s Church, 1820 Connecticut Ave. NW. For more info, visit dignitywashington.org.

FIRST CONGREGATIONAL UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST

welcomes all to 10:30 a.m. service, 945 G St. NW. firstuccdc.org or 202-628-4317.

FRIENDS MEETING OF WASHINGTON meets for worship,

10:30 a.m., 2111 Florida Ave. NW, Quaker House Living Room (next to Meeting House on Decatur Place), 2nd floor. Special welcome to lesbians and gays. Handicapped accessible from Phelps Place gate. Hearing assistance. quakersdc.org.

HOPE UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST welcomes GLBT commu-

nity for worship. 10:30 a.m., 6130 Old Telegraph Road, Alexandria. hopeucc.org.

HSV-2 SOCIAL AND SUPPORT GROUP for gay men living in the

DC metro area. This group will be meeting once a month. For information on location and time, visit H2gether.com.

INSTITUTE FOR SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT, God-centered

new age church & learning center. Sunday Services and Workshops event. 5419 Sherier Place NW. isddc.org. Join LINCOLN

CONGREGATIONAL TEMPLE – UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST for

an inclusive, loving and progressive faith community every Sunday. 11 a.m. 1701 11th Street NW, near R in Shaw/Logan neighborhood. lincolntemple.org.

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF REFORMATION invites all to

Sunday worship at 8:30 or 11 a.m. Childcare is available at both services. Welcoming LGBT people for 25 years. 212 East Capitol St. NE. reformationdc.org.

METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY CHURCH OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA services at 11 a.m., led

by Rev. Emma Chattin. Children’s Sunday School, 11 a.m. 10383 Democracy Lane, Fairfax. 703-6910930, mccnova.com.

METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY CHURCH OF WASHINGTON, D.C.

services at 9 a.m. (ASL interpreted) and 11 a.m. Children’s Sunday School at 11 a.m. 474 Ridge St. NW. 202-638-7373, mccdc.com.

NATIONAL CITY CHRISTIAN CHURCH, inclusive church with

GLBT fellowship, offers gospel worship, 8:30 a.m., and traditional worship, 11 a.m. 5 Thomas Circle NW. 202-232-0323, nationalcitycc. org.

RIVERSIDE BAPTIST CHURCH,

a Christ-centered, interracial, welcoming-and-affirming church, offers service at 10 a.m. 680 I St. SW. 202-554-4330, riversidedc.org.

ST. STEPHEN AND THE INCARNATION, an “interra-

cial, multi-ethnic Christian Community” offers services in English, 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., and in Spanish at 5:15 p.m. 1525 Newton St. NW. 202-232-0900, saintstephensdc.org.

UNITARIAN CHURCH OF ARLINGTON, an LGBTQ welcom-

ing-and-affirming congregation, offers services at 10 a.m. Virginia Rainbow UU Ministry. 4444 Arlington Blvd. uucava.org.

UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH OF SILVER SPRING

invites LGBTQ families and individuals of all creeds and cultures to join the church. Services 9:15 and 11:15 a.m. 10309 New Hampshire Ave. uucss.org.

UNIVERSALIST NATIONAL MEMORIAL CHURCH, a welcom-

ing and inclusive church. GLBT Interweave social/service group meets monthly. Services at 11 a.m., Romanesque sanctuary. 1810 16th St. NW. 202-387-3411, universalist. org.

MONDAY, December 4 CENTER AGING holds a kick-off

monthly advocacy meeting to provide guidance and feedback on programs and services for LGBTQ older adults. 12:30-2 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit facebook.com/ centeraging. The DC Center hosts a VOLUNTEER NIGHT for community members to lend a hand with various duties, including cleaning, keeping safe-sex kit inventory, and sorting through book donations. Pizza provided. 6:30-8:30 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Weekly Events DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a

practice session at Dunbar Aquatic Center. 7:30-9 p.m. 101 N St. NW. For more information, visit swimdcac.org.

GETEQUAL meets 6:30-8 p.m. at Quaker House, 2111 Florida Ave. NW. For more information, email getequal.wdc@gmail.com. The DC Center hosts COFFEE

DROP-IN FOR THE SENIOR LGBT COMMUNITY. 10 a.m.-noon. 2000

14th St. NW. For more information, call 202-682-2245 or visit thedccenter.org.

TUESDAY, December 5 Queer-identifying women who have survived violent or traumatic experiences and are looking for support are invited to take part in a bi-weekly QUEER WOMEN

WORKING THROUGH TRAUMA GROUP at The DC Center.

men’s evening affinity group for GBT black men. Light refreshments provided. 7-9 p.m. 3636 Georgia Ave. NW. 202-446-1100.

Participants are encouraged to do an intake assessment with moderator and social workers Sam Goodwin or Dr. Zelaika Clark. 6-7 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, email Sam at samantha@thedccenter.org or zelaika@thedccenter.org.

WASHINGTON WETSKINS WATER POLO TEAM practices 7-9

THE HIV WORKING GROUP of THE DC CENTER hosts a “Packing

US HELPING US hosts a black gay

p.m. Newcomers with at least basic swimming ability always welcome. Takoma Aquatic Center, 300 Van Buren St. NW. For more information, contact Tom, 703-299-0504 or secretary@wetskins.org, or visit wetskins.org.

WHITMAN-WALKER HEALTH HIV/AIDS SUPPORT GROUP

for newly diagnosed individuals, meets 7 p.m. Registration required. 202-939-7671, hivsupport@whitman-walker.org.

DC FRONT RUNNERS running/

walking/social club welcomes runners of all ability levels for exercise in a fun and supportive environment, with socializing afterward. Route distance is 3-6 miles. Meet at 7 p.m. at Union Station. For more information, visit dcfrontrunners.org.

DC SCANDALS RUGBY holds prac-

tice. The team is always looking for new members. All welcome. 7:309:30 p.m. King Greenleaf Recreation Center, 201 N St. SW. For more information, visit scandalsrfc.org or dcscandals@gmail.com.

THE GAY MEN’S HEALTH COLLABORATIVE offers free

Weekly Events

HIV testing and STI screening and treatment every Tuesday. 5-6:30 p.m. Rainbow Tuesday LGBT Clinic, Alexandria Health Department, 4480 King St. 703746-4986 or text 571-214-9617. james.leslie@inova.org.

DC AQUATICS CLUB practice

IDENTITY offers free and confi-

Party,” where volunteers assemble safe-sex kits of condoms and lube. 7-9 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. Visit thedccenter.org.

session at Takoma Aquatic Center. 7:30-9 p.m. 300 Van Buren St. NW. For more information, visit swimdcac.org.

dential HIV testing at two separate locations. Walk-ins accepted from 2-6 p.m., by appointment for all other hours. 414 East Diamond Ave., Gaithersburg, Md. or 7676 New Hampshire Ave., Suite 411, Takoma Park, Md. To set up an appointment or for more information, call Gaithersburg, 301-300-9978, or Takoma Park, 301-422-2398.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS

— LGBT focused meeting every Tuesday, 7 p.m. St. George’s Episcopal Church, 915 Oakland Ave., Arlington, just steps from Virginia Square Metro. For more info. call Dick, 703-5211999. Handicapped accessible. Newcomers welcome. liveandletliveoa@gmail.com.

SMYAL offers free HIV Testing, 3-5 p.m., by appointment and walk-in, for youth 21 and younger. Youth Center, 410 7th St. SE. 202-5673155 or testing@smyal.org. STI TESTING at Whitman-Walker

Health. 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at both 1525 14th St. NW and the Max Robinson Center, 2301 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave. SE. Testing is intended for those without symptoms. For an appointment call 202-745-7000 or visit whitman-walker.org.

Support group for LGBTQ youth ages 13-21 meets at SMYAL. 5-6:30 p.m. 410 7th St. SE. For more information, contact Cathy Chu, 202-567-3163, or catherine.chu@ smyal.org.

US HELPING US hosts a support

group for black gay men 40 and older. 7-9 p.m., 3636 Georgia Ave. NW. 202-446-1100.

Whitman-Walker Health holds its weekly GAY MEN’S HEALTH AND WELLNESS/STD CLINIC. Patients are seen on walk-in basis. No-cost screening for HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia. Hepatitis and herpes testing available for fee. Testing starts at 6 p.m, but should arrive early to ensure a spot. 1525 14th St. NW. For more information, visit whitman-walker.org.

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 6 BOOKMEN DC, an informal men’s gay literature group, discusses Edouard Louis’ memoir, “The End of Eddy” at the Tenleytown Library. All are welcome. 7:30 p.m. 4450 Wisconsin Ave. NW. Visit bookmendc.blogspot.com. The TOM DAVOREN SOCIAL BRIDGE CLUB meets for Social Bridge at the Dignity Center, across from the Marine Barracks. No partner needed. 7:30 p.m. 721 8th St. SE. Call 301-345-1571 for more information.

Weekly Events AD LIB, a group for freestyle con-

versation, meets about 6-6:30 p.m., Steam, 17th and R NW. All welcome. For more information, call Fausto Fernandez, 703-732-5174.

ANDROMEDA TRANSCULTURAL HEALTH offers free HIV testing

and HIV services (by appointment).

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

9 a.m.-5 p.m. Decatur Center, 1400 Decatur St. NW. To arrange an appointment, call 202-291-4707, or visit andromedatransculturalhealth.org.

DC AQUATICS CLUB (DCAC)

holds a practice session at Dunbar Aquatic Center. 7:30-9 p.m. 101 N St. NW. For more information, visit swimdcac.org.

FREEDOM FROM SMOKING, a group for LGBT people looking to quit cigarettes and tobacco use, holds a weekly support meeting at The DC Center. 7-8 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit thedccenter.org. HISTORIC CHRIST CHURCH

offers Wednesday worship 7:15 a.m. and 12:05 p.m. All welcome. 118 N. Washington St., Alexandria. 703549-1450, historicchristchurch.org.

HIV TESTING at Whitman-Walker Health. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. at 1525 14th St. NW, and 9 a.m-12 p.m. and 1-5 p.m. at the Max Robinson Center, 2301 MLK Jr. Ave. SE. For an appointment call 202-745-7000 or visit whitman-walker.org.

IDENTITY offers free and confidential HIV testing at its Gaithersburg location. Walk-ins accepted from 2-7 p.m., by appointment for all other hours. 414 East Diamond Ave., Gaithersburg, Md. To set up an appointment or for more information, call 301-300-9978.

JOB CLUB, a weekly support program for job entrants and seekers, meets at The DC Center. 6-7:30 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more info, centercareers.org.

METROHEALTH CENTER offers

free, rapid HIV testing. No appointment needed. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. 1012 14th St. NW, Suite 700. For more information, call 202-638-0750.

NOVASALUD offers free HIV testing. 11 a.m.-2 p.m. 2049 N. 15th St., Suite 200, Arlington. Appointments: 703-789-4467. STI TESTING at Whitman-Walker

WASHINGTON WETSKINS WATER POLO TEAM practices 7-9

Scene

Transgender Day of Remembrance at MCC - Monday, Nov. 20 Photography by Ward Morrison See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 â&#x20AC;¢ METROWEEKLY

State of the Epidemic A Special World AIDS Day Forum

Commentary by Gregory T. Angelo, Cornelius Baker, Nicholas Benton, Don Blanchon, Ba’Naka Devereaux, Peter Cruz, Deborah Dimon, Earl Fowlkes, Cedric Gum, David Harvey, John Hassell, Christopher Hucks-Ortiz, Loren Jones, Paul Kawata, Terrance Laney, Rev. Dyan Akousa McCray-Peters, Tiffany Marrero, Dr. Linda Nabha, Rayceen Pendarvis, Murray Penner, Ace Robinson, Alexa Rodriguez, Scott Schoettes, Craig Shniderman, Ron Simmons, Jim Slattery, Jennie Smith-Camejo, Brian Solem, Kari Steffen, Rich Tafel, Adam Tenner, LaWanda Wilkerson, Douglas Yeuell, and Robert York

T WAS A SUNNY AFTERNOON IN 1981,” WRITES Nicholas Benton, the storied 73-year-old publisher of the Falls Church News Press. “I was in my office in Houston at the time. A young woman came in waving a newspaper exclaiming that a ‘gay cancer’ had been identified, according to a report in the New York Times.” And so it began. The onset of an epidemic that would strive to crush the spirit of the gay community as it ravaged and decimated its populace, before giving way to mobilization, rebellion, and a strength that would super-power a social revolution — one that, in the decades to come, would see tremendous, social-changing impact for LGBTQ people, in terms of same-sex marriage, military service, and discrimination in the workplace. Much of that blazing fire for social justice was set by our community’s fast, forceful, determined reaction to the HIV/ AIDS crisis in the 1980s. But HIV/AIDS was never just about gays. It is — always has been — about everyone. If you are human, it impacts your life in some capacity or another. It may no longer be the death sentence it was when it first emerged, but HIV/AIDS is not going away anytime soon. It still carries an enormous stigma. Certain communities — and parts of the world — are underserved by education and access to its lifesaving drugs. The virus isn’t as omnipresent as it was in the 1980s and 1990s, but it still requires our attention, our vigilance, our voices. For this year’s World AIDS Day issue, we opened the conversational floodgates to present a community forum. A broad range of people — positive and negative, young and not-so-young, CEOs of AIDS organization and everyday people — responded to our questions and their edited responses are presented on the pages that follow. An expanded version can be found on our website, metroweekly.com. It’s true that things have changed for the better, and will hopefully get better still. The advent of preventative measures like PrEP, the eye-opening revelations about what “undetectable” status means for people who are positive and their negative partners, the organizations working on the front lines to ensure 24

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

the public is educated and informed, and the legions of scientists dedicated to eradicating the virus all point toward a future where we finally end the AIDS epidemic. —Randy Shulman When did you first become aware of HIV/AIDS? CHRISTOPHER HUCKS-ORTIZ, Chair of the HPTN Black Caucus, 52: I first learned about HIV/AIDS as an adolescent at the beginning of the epidemic. Back then, we didn’t know a lot about HIV or how to prevent or treat it. I recall hearing the stories almost daily about people losing their homes, jobs, families, and even their lives, without having a community of people to support them. It was during and because of this that I have made it my life’s work to try to address ending the epidemic. We’ve come a long way, but we still have a way to go to end AIDS. GREGORY T. ANGELO, President of Log Cabin Republicans:

Growing up in the 1980s as the AIDS crisis was emerging, my first awareness of the AIDS epidemic — and how far it reached — was via the made-for-TV movie Go Toward the Light. It wasn’t until I moved to New York City years later that I met gay men from an older generation — survivors, who lost dozens of friends in that decade of death and who lived to impart their lessons to people like me.

ROBERT YORK, Director of Development, National Minority AIDS

Council, 49: I first learned of AIDS in the late 1980s when films Longtime Companion and An Early Frost were brought to the mainstream and made available in Oklahoma. Then you started seeing numerous obituaries in the LGBTQ press with very little coverage in the mainstream press about members of their community passing away.

RON SIMMONS, Former Executive Director of Us Helping Us, 67: My gay friends in New York City started dying from pneumonia. I was living in D.C. and read in the gay press about this deadly illness affecting gay men. At the time, I thought of something Dick Gregory had said in a speech the summer of 1980. He advised all

of his gay friends “to go deep, deep back into the closet because they have something in store for you that you will not believe.” NICK BENTON, Owner/Editor, Falls Church News Press, 73: It was a sunny afternoon in 1981. I was in my office in Houston at the time. A young woman came in waving a newspaper exclaiming that a “gay cancer” had been identified, according to a report in the New York Times. I was mortified. It was like an electric shock went through my entire body. It was not because it was a surprise. I knew instantaneously what this meant because I had seen it coming. Almost immediately the worst consequences of this crossed my mind, and my perception turned out to be not that far off. Who knew that right then, the next 15 years of our community’s life was foreordained and there would be no relief from the horrible death sentence the emergence of any symptoms meant. ACE ROBINSON, Commissioner, L.A. County HIV Commission, 39: When I was 6 or 7 years old, I had an older gay cousin who was out of the closet. At a family gathering, one of my relatives would not shake his hand. When I asked why, I was told: “You don’t know if you can catch AIDS from touching someone like him.” I did not know what AIDS was, but I assumed this relative was wrong and was just being mean. The gay cousin quickly became one of my favorite family members. JIM SLATTERY, President, Brother, Help

grown up with surrounding HIV and AIDS. Still, that experience lit a fire within me to be of service to individuals affected by HIV and AIDS. CRAIG SHNIDERMAN, Executive Director, Food & Friends: I first

became aware of AIDS in 1987. At that time, I was the Executive Director of an organization that provided home health services and hospice care. Several of our patients were young men with late stage AIDS. Experiencing their terrible illnesses and deaths was a profound experience for me.

ALEXA RODRIGUEZ, DMV Chapter Director, TransLatin@

Coalition, 41: When I took the HIV test in 1998 and it came back positive.

“In the fall of 1982 I witnessed many of my male friends suffering from what appeared to be the flu. WITHIN 18 MONTHS I HAD LOST OVER EIGHT MEN WHO WERE LIKE BROTHERS TO ME.”

TERRANCE LANEY, 33: I remember the

hysteria of the late 1980s and early 1990s, like the community in West Virginia that shut down its public pool because an HIV positive man swam in it. But HIV/AIDS didn’t become real to me until two of my close relatives, both black gay men, died in the early 2000s.

BRIAN SOLEM, Senior Director of Communications, AIDS Foundation of Chicago, 33: My earliest memories about HIV/AIDS are from watching Pedro [Zamora] on The Real World and learning that not only was he gay, but he was HIV-positive, too. As an adolescent in the ’90s, my fear of being gay and my fear of getting HIV were intertwined: If one, then the other. By the time I came out to my parents, my fear of both had lessened, and I owned my vulnerability to HIV in the same way I owned my gay identity.

Thyself, 48: I knew of HIV/AIDS as a closeted high school teenager in the ’80s. While not sexually active, accurate information on the epidemic and how it was spread was not something RICH TAFEL, 55: In the early ’80s I kept easily accessible in those days, and the reading about this mysterious disease. hysteria surrounding the many deaths Then, in 1984 I volunteered to be an terrified me. In addition, I recall pretty —Rev. Dyan Akousa AIDS Buddy in Boston. In this program vividly seeking out everything I could we visited a person with AIDS each in writing about the death of Rock McCray-Peters week. This was a huge education for me. Hudson, worrying if I had any chance My buddy had faced many types of disof a healthy adulthood. Knowing my crimination. He was given three months attraction to men, reading what limited information was available, and knowing how homophobia (and to live, but lived a full year longer than expected. The average the possibility of being shunned by family) was almost as fright- time we had buddies was only two months before they died. ening as HIV/AIDS. REV. DYAN AKOUSA MCCRAY-PETERS, Founding Pastor of Unity TIFFANY MARRERO, 26: I was born positive, so for me the sig- Fellowship Church, 67: In the fall of 1982 I witnessed many of nificance of HIV was not important until puberty and I started my male friends suffering from what appeared to be the flu. wanting sex. Congested, coughing, no appetite and extreme weight loss. I heard that the Center for Disease Control was working overtime PETER CRUZ, Associate Director of the HIV and Health Equity to identify the cause of the symptoms which later was identified Program, Human Rights Campaign: I took my first HIV test in and called “GRID” — Gay Related Immune Deficiency. Within 1998 — before rapid HIV tests, PrEP or viral suppression. I was 18 months I had lost over eight men who were like brothers to frozen with fear and anxiety during the one-week window I had me. Their families, friends, partners and I were all devastated. to wait to receive my result. I worried that I would bring shame to my family if the test came back positive, and wondered how I CEDRIC GUM, Peer Navigator, The POWER Project of Chase could continue living if I had to live with such grief. I now know Brexton Health Care, 28: I’ve always heard of “the bug” growing that shame I felt was unnecessary, and built on the stigmas I had up, but figured that was beyond me. Once being diagnosed with NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

HIV in 2012, I started to learn about the intricacies of HIV/ AIDS. The direct, firsthand stigma was painful yet eye-opening, which prompted action on my behalf. By educating myself, I could educate others with the same perceptions I had. I realized that it should not take being personally impacted to learn or care about an issue.

Born in 1967, I was probably part of the first group for whom HIV/AIDS was a fixture in the world before we were even sexually active. In other words, I never had a sex life without concerns about HIV.

ADAM TENNER, 50: I was in high school when HIV/AIDS came on the scene. I was not out then but subconsciously it delayed my coming out by many years. In college, one of our professors died of AIDS and it helped to mobilize students to ensure that we had access to condoms and information on campus.

HUCKS-ORTIZ: Americans still care about HIV/AIDS, but too

JOHN HASSELL, National Director of Advocacy, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, 59: I learned about AIDS in 1981 when I was on a beach vacation at Sandbridge, Va. reading about a new “cancer” that reportedly was affecting gay men. EARL FOWLKES, Center for Black Equity, Inc. President/CEO: I became aware of HIV/AIDS in the early 1980s while living in Atlanta then moving NYC, when some of my friends and co-workers became ill and quickly died. The symptoms were rapid weight loss, blotchy skin, and an ungodly high fever. At first, only my white friends were becoming ill, but shortly thereafter my black and latino gay male friends started to become ill. It was though some strange gay cancer had swept the land. LAWANDA WILKERSON, 38: I have always

been aware of HIV/AIDS, but really was more aware and educated on it when I was diagnosed with it in April of 2015.

RAYCEEN PENDARVIS, Host, The Ask

Rayceen Show: The first time is when I heard about the “Gay Disease” or “Gay Plague.” It hit home when I lost my best friend, Darryl Lewis, in 1986.

many of our citizenry may think that HIV is no longer something that needs so much intervention. I beg to differ. The face of the current HIV epidemic has become more likely to be African American or Latino, younger, a man who has sex with other men, and/or be someone who lives in places with disparate access to medical care. These are all things that we as Americans are still concerned with, but it is up to us as advocates to ensure that these conversations are tied back to addressing HIV/AIDS.

“[Americans] don’t care, because now HIV can be treated with a pill a day. Unless HIV personally affects them, they are too busy struggling to survive in today’s economy. HIV/AIDS IS ON THE COUNTER BECAUSE THERE’S TOO MUCH ON THE STOVE.” —Ron Simmons

MURRAY PENNER, Executive Director, NASTAD, 56: In the early

1980s my friends began dying. It was a frightening time. There were no treatments and the only advice doctors could give to people who were testing HIV-positive was to prepare to die. CORNELIUS BAKER, 56: At the beginning of summer break from college in 1981, my boyfriend and I were talking to the owner of the Le Paris Bookstore in Syracuse, which sold a certain type of merchandise. He told us to be careful because there was a new cancer killing gay men. We were 19 and didn’t quite understand but it was an important moment. He was one of the early heroes who spread the word to the community. SCOTT SCHOETTES, HIV Project Director, Lambda Legal, 50:

Hard to remember exactly. I am sure I heard reports on the news when it was still being described as a “gay cancer.” It was definitely part of my awareness long before I was sexually active. 26

Do you think Americans still care about HIV/AIDS as an issue?

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

ANGELO: Several years ago an episode

of South Park jibed that AIDS, as a cause célèbre, had been eclipsed in popular culture by the movement to eradicate cancer. There is some truth to that, largely rooted in a public awareness that HIV has largely become a chronic — rather than a lethal — disease. But it does persist, which is why a lack of urgency around the issue threatens to freeze the progress we have made on eradicating AIDS in our lifetimes.

SIMMONS: They don’t care, and it’s understandable, because now HIV can be treated with a pill a day. Unless HIV personally affects them or someone they know, they are too busy struggling to survive in today’s economy. Rent, mortgages, food, clothing, employment — that’s what the Americans I know are dealing with. HIV/AIDS is on the counter because there’s too much on the stove.

BENTON: Not nearly as much as they should. As part of what could be called a “post-traumatic stress syndrome” reaction to the epidemic, there has developed an almost nostalgic kind of unreality about the terrible consequences of the epidemic, and there has been no serious appetite in our popular gay culture to address it. Safe sex has been replaced with the false panacea of PrEP, the dangerous illusion that as long as the HIV virus is stemmed, there need be no concern for the explosion in the spread of other dangerous STDs, without realizing that it was just the environment of easy STD transmissions that the HIV virus was able to mutate into its deadly form, and it, or something like it, could again. ROBINSON: In some places. We have to do a better job at supporting people impacted by HIV. We are finally seeing less infections nationwide, even though it is still increasing for some populations — gay Black men and transgender people of color. However, you can hide your infection now with the excellent

treatment that is available. Since HIV stigma that was born in the ’80s is still rampant, many people are still encouraged to hide their infection. HIV stigma is the main reason why so many people still die from the disease. No one wants to be one of those people. SLATTERY: The question seems a bit harsh, but I’ll answer it by

saying I don’t believe the majority of Americans still think that HIV/AIDS is an issue worthy of their concern. This is because they no longer see it as the epidemic it was in the 1980s and 1990s. While great advances in medicine and treatment have been made, it is my observation that prevention efforts continue, but are declining, as folks believe PrEP to be a silver bullet of sorts. This viewpoint is held by those who weren’t coming up in the early days of the disease and thus do not have the advantage of the history and utter devastation HIV/AIDS — and the inhumane inaction our national political leaders, especially Ronald Reagan — wreaked on our community.

DEBORAH DIMON, Alexandria Health

Department, 62: I think there are people who still care, know others living with HIV, have a memory of what it was in the early days of the epidemic. I think there are some enlightened young people but for the most part, I drive home most days and look at all the houses and apartments in Alexandria and say to myself, “I really wonder how many people out there actually have thought about HIV today?” I do know people have more information and take action to prevent themselves from becoming infected, while there are others who just don’t have it on their radar for many reasons.

doing all we can to bring the latest advances in health care and prevention to these communities. SOLEM: I’m regularly asked variations on this question in casual

conversations. “Is HIV still a ‘thing’?” “But people don’t die from AIDS anymore, do they?” This tells me that we have replaced stigma with silence. The antiretroviral revolution, which has saved countless people’s lives and helped them reach their full potential, allowed us to neatly tuck the HIV epidemic away, give ourselves a pat on the back, and consider the mission accomplished through pharmaceutical intervention. You only care about HIV if you have to. HASSELL: Most Americans think AIDS

“The fight against HIV in 2017 is all about our community’s willingness to ADDRESS STIGMA, DISCRIMINATION, AND BIAS WITHIN OUR SOCIETY.”

is over. Too many organizations have made false claims of victory, pumping out happy talk that it’s not life-threatening. Over one million people die each year from HIV-related diseases because they can’t get access to obscenely priced medications. Over 20 million people living with HIV have no access to treatment. With over 1.8 million newly infected each year, the epidemic is out of control.

DAVID HARVEY, National Coalition of

STD Directors, 55: Yes and no. For younger Americans who haven’t seen the direct impact of HIV/AIDS or experienced loved ones dying, HIV/ AIDS does not have the same impact — perhaps leading to lower sense of the need for activism. Conversely, some Americans are celebrating the advances in HIV treatment, PrEP and PEP and know that course must be maintained in order to end HIV.

BA’NAKA DEVEREAUX (32): It seems to

me that there is a frivolous attitude —Don Blanchon CEO, Whitmantoward HIV/AIDS, and it’s that attitude that seems foolish and dangerous to me. Walker Health, 53: Yes, but with much less urgency than we did in the early years of the AIDS epidemic. The 1980s FOWLKES: I think Americans are indifand 1990s were marked by much sufferferent to HIV/AIDS these days. The ing, many deaths, and rampant stigma, discrimination and bias. news that appears about HIV/AIDS seem to be about new People’s lives were at stake every day. There was an overwhelm- prevention medicines, or how people who are infected are ing emotional intensity to do anything, something to comfort living normal lives. HIV/AIDS has fallen into the category of a your partner, your family member, your friend, or your colleague chronic controllable disease such as diabetes or hypertension in the face of death. Now we have significantly advanced test- in the minds of most people. You hardly hear about the deaths ing, treatment, policy, and funding. HIV is not viewed as the #1 anymore, although people are still dying from AIDS-related Public Health Issue in our society. That distinction now belongs illness. You don’t hear about how the pandemic has not slowed to opioid addiction. down in certain parts of the South or among Black Gay men and Transgender women. You hardly hear actors and entertainers PAUL KAWATA, NMAC: I think Americans do still care about talking about HIV/AIDS when they are accepting their awards HIV/AIDS but it’s no longer one of their top concerns. For them, or wearing red ribbons. “No news” translates into “good news” the “crisis” around HIV appears to be over. But, when you give in the minds of the public. them the full story of what’s happening, particularly in communities of color, their concern rises. We still deal with issues JENNIE SMITH-CAMEJO, Communications Director, Positive of stigma and discrimination that continue to fuel the epidemic Women’s Network, 38: I think most Americans have a very among men who have sex with men, communities of color, and outdated understanding of what HIV is, how you get it (and the transgender community. We need to ensure that we are don’t get it), and who it affects. Even though the scientific and DON BLANCHON,

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

medical community understand HIV very well now, and have found groundbreaking antiretroviral treatments that keep it at bay and prevent transmission (we know now that undetectable = untransmittable!), most of my friends and acquaintances outside the HIV community don’t seem to realize that you can have a normal life span with HIV, that you can have condomless sex without risk of transmission if you’re on successful long-term treatment, that you can live a normal life. There seems to be this idea that it’s still, if not a death sentence, at least a lifelong curse that’s almost as easy to get as a cold or the flu. Stigma is still alive and well. I think people still also commonly believe that it’s a “gay man’s disease.” While the rates are still highest in the LGBTQ community, anyone can acquire HIV, and areas facing poverty, inadequate access to healthcare, mass incarceration and other huge challenges are most at risk. BAKER: Traveling around the coun-

try, I am always amazed how much Americans do care about HIV. It is not something that most think of on a day-to-day basis, but they have a deep commitment to seeing it come to end and serving those in need.

SCHOETTES: In a generic sense, I think

BLANCHON: The fight against HIV in 2017 is all about our com-

munity’s willingness to address stigma, discrimination, and bias within our society. Why? Because these societal ills are the root causes of barriers to HIV prevention services, testing, and treatment. Too many persons in our community — especially those for whom society is less affirming because of one’s race, identity, orientation, immigration status, and/ or economic standing — do not seek or stay engaged in care. On a macro level, we may very well have the science and treatment modalities to find a functional cure for HIV in our lifetimes. Personally, I do not believe we can achieve such a cure without greater awareness, understanding and empathy towards all in our community. That is why attacking stigma, discrimination, and bias among us is so important in the fight against HIV.

“WE HAVE REPLACED STIGMA WITH SILENCE. The antiretroviral revolution allowed us to neatly tuck the HIV epidemic away, give ourselves a pat on the back, and consider the mission accomplished.”

Americans still “care” about HIV, but they view it as something that doesn’t really affect them much — and believe that it only affects people in other communities and other countries. Americans don’t realize the impact that HIV and AIDS continue to have in this country in various marginalized populations — including Black and Latino communities, the LGBT community, people living in poverty, those living in the rural South, sex workers, and injection drug users. There are some people that would not care even if they knew —Brian about the devastating impacts on people in these communities, but for the most part, I think Americans would care — if they were aware. What does HIV/AIDS mean to you in 2017?

LOREN JONES, Board Member, Positive Women’s Network, 65: It

means that we are on our way to either preventing transmissions completely, sustaining the life and lifestyles of those aware of their HIV status, or curing the newly infected.

BENTON: It means that the popular urban LGBTQ community

culture still lacks the maturity to take this and other looming dangers facing it seriously, and the emphasis on new forms of encountering people for casual impersonal sex are only inviting a very unhappy future.

SLATTERY: In 2017, AIDS to me means continued compassion to

not just those who have lived with the disease for decades, but to those who have been newly diagnosed. I have also been alarmed by recent reports of folks living with HIV dying from full blown 28

AIDS-related illnesses in greater numbers than we’ve seen in a very long time. Making sure folks remain on their regimen is key to ensuring we don’t see these numbers continue to rise.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

CRUZ: HIV/AIDS in 2017 disproportionately affects communities that are most marginalized and with the least resources. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black and Latinx men who have sex with men, and transgender women have the highest HIV incidence rates in the United States. HIV providers, policy makers and community members must work collectively to address the problems that are preventing individuals from accessing and adhering to HIV programs and services. HIV services must continue to take a holistic and client-centered approach to break the historical trauma and distrust within these Solem communities. Every person living with or affected by HIV must have access to the support, resources and services they need to achieve optimal health and wellness. DR. LINDA NABHA, HIV Primary Care Physician with Price Medical, 37: In the early years of the AIDS epidemic, those who were diagnosed with HIV had possibly a few months to live. We are now living in a time period where more people living with HIV than ever before have access to life-saving medications, and live long, healthy lives. We are seeing a decline in the number of infections overall, but there is a ton of work to still do: the rates of HIV continue to rise amongst gay and bisexual men. We must continue to focus on access to medications, health care and preventative medications, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). To me, HIV in 2017 is a manageable, chronic illness which has excellent and effective therapy (similar to diabetes or hypertension). KAWATA: AIDS in 2017 is largely a success story, with some cave-

ats. We now have at our disposal tools that could set us on a path

to finally end the HIV pandemic. And, where those tools have been implemented, we are seeing dramatic reductions in new diagnoses. However, many communities, particularly those of color, are not seeing widespread use of methods like PrEP. AIDS in 2017 means working to make sure that everyone affected by HIV can benefit from these advances. We also need to help long-term HIV survivors, particularly those over the age of 50. Many of them are reporting dealing with depression, isolation, and PTSD. We need to make sure that these men and women who survived the greatest public health crisis of the latter 20th Century have the resources they need to live long, healthy, engaged, and happy lives. SOLEM: In some ways, 2017 has seen a reawakening of HIV

awareness in the U.S. PrEP’s influence is creeping more and more into the mainstream; cities and states across the U.S. are undertaking bold “Getting to Zero” plans; threats to the Affordable Care Act raise awareness of those whose chronic illnesses like HIV rely on stable access to health care. AIDS in 2017 reminds us that everything we’ve worked to accomplish with ending the epidemic could go up in flames if we lose momentum under President Trump.

MCCRAY-PETERS: In Third World countries the spread of HIV/AIDS is not addressed in a way that changes the spread of the virus. I recently was in West Africa and noticed no public advertisement of treatment on billboards. TENNER: The last HIV funeral I went to was just about 10 years ago. While HIV is no longer the cruel reaper that it once was, the lessons are critical as we look to eradicate HIV and stay vigilant for other diseases that thrive where there is poverty, lack of education, stigma and discrimination.

deep South, where inequities are deeply entrenched and the epidemic is concentrated in the Black community and exacerbated by mass incarceration, where Republican elected officials often feed into racism and homophobia and have resisted expanding Medicaid or other efforts to make healthcare more accessible to lower-income folks, we see the epidemic gaining steam. This is intolerable in 2017. It really shows priorities. BAKER: HIV in 2017 is a complex mix of emotions and thoughts

for me. Most importantly, I think of the past 36 years and so many dead friends. They are with me every single day. Their lives give me inspiration to look ahead to bringing an end to the continued needless infections and deaths.

SCHOETTES: For me, personally, it means a health condition that

“WE NEED TO HELP LONGTERM HIV SURVIVORS, PARTICULARLY THOSE OVER THE AGE OF 50. We need to make sure they have the resources they need to live long, healthy, engaged, and happy lives.”

I will probably live with the rest of my life. It means taking my medication every day and doing other things to remain as healthy as possible. It also means a lot of moments of disclosure and explaining and a more limited pool of potential partners, including potential sexual partners. But that is changing as well, with the availability of PrEP and as more people realize that a person living with HIV who has an undetectable viral load has no chance of transmitting HIV to a partner. In fact, it is probably safer to have sex with a person with an undetectable viral load than it is to have sex with someone who thinks they are HIV negative but has been sexually active since their last HIV test. Are you worried about the future of U.S. HIV/AIDS funding under Trump?

HUCKS-ORTIZ: It concerns me that

under this administration the Office of National HIV/AIDS Policy has literally disappeared, and what that may mean for our coordinated efforts to address HIV. The National HIV/ DOUGLAS YEUELL, Executive Director, AIDS Strategy talked about making the Atlas Performing Arts Center, 57: In United States a place where “new HIV 2017, HIV/AIDS brings an aching and infections are rare and when they do sad memory back to my life. Thank God occur, every person regardless of age, —Paul Kawata the scourge has lessened, but the loss gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orienof human life especially those near and tation, gender identity or socio-ecodear to me leaves a tearful wound that will never heal. nomic circumstance, will have unfettered access to high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination.” I have SMITH-CAMEJO: In 2017, HIV is an example of a condition that yet to see the current Administration move in any way to support should be preventable, since we have the tools we need to prevent this strategic vision. it, and yet we see that, while overall rates of new cases of HIV continue to decline, in certain communities, there is no decline ANGELO: President Trump has stated he is “determined to build but an increase. Poverty, structural racism, inadequate access to upon these improvements and continue supporting domestic health care, underfunded education, marginalization, mass incar- and global health programs that prioritize testing and treatment ceration — these are all root causes that dramatically increase the for HIV/AIDS,” which would mark a continuation of the policies likelihood that one will acquire HIV in one’s lifetime. first elevated under President George W. Bush to end HIV and HIV is just one more manifestation of the gap between the AIDS as we know it around the world. President Trump’s reauhaves and have-nots in our country, as well as a testament to thorization of the President’s Council on HIV & AIDS is further who our government (and, by extension, society) values. In the demonstration of this commitment. NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

SIMMONS: AIDS activists will have to plan for the long term to deal with Trump’s madness. We must demonstrate and ensure health care becomes a human right. There has to be funding for treatment and prevention, here and abroad. At the same time, since funding may be cut for the next few years, we have to develop behavioral interventions that build resilience in young black gay men, particularly, so they can overcome the pitfalls of social and structural determinants of HIV infection. ROBINSON: Yes. The loss of the Office of National AIDS Policy

should not have occurred. I have not heard the current President speak about the epidemic, which is especially troubling since he is from New York City.

CRUZ:

The Trump-Pence administration’s efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act would significantly reduce access to HIV medical treatment and biomedical interventions in communities that are disproportionately affected. Furthermore, the administration’s failure to name a Director to the Office of National AIDS Policy sends a signal they are not focused on bringing an end to the epidemic.

SHNIDERMAN: I am worried about

the future of almost everything in the current circumstances. Most of those living with HIV/AIDS are members of marginalized groups and as such are often the first adversely impacted by funding reductions. Homophobic thinking and behavior increase the likelihood of adverse public policy and decreased funding.

LANEY: I am not only concerned about

KARI STEFFEN, 38: I am worried that I will lose my insurance and not be able to go to the doctor, which in my mind means that I will get sick again and DIE!!! I want to live. TENNER: The future of HIV/AIDS funding has been at risk for many years. Even under President Obama, Michael Kharfen, the current head of the HIV/AIDS unit of the Department of Health, used to say that of the few good things about a stuck Congress was the fact that they had not yet agreed to slash HIV/AIDS funding.

“As long as our government is in charge of our health, we will never see a vaccine or a cure. THEY DO NOT CARE BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT AFFECTED BY THE DISEASE.”

HIV/AIDS under this administration, but I am concerned about the lack of respect for science and sound public —Kari policy based on evidence. It should alarm us all that the wife of the Sec. of Health and Human Services, who is also a state representative in Georgia, thought that suggesting that HIV positive people be quarantined was a reasonable question in 2017.

KAWATA: Very. This year, the administration proposed mas-

sive cuts to federal HIV programs, including the Housing Opportunities for People With AIDS program, research, prevention, and care services. Those cuts would have devastated the HIV community and probably led to a resurgence in new HIV cases. Fortunately, Congress has so far restored the funding for those programs. But that may not always be the case. This is a fight we will have every single year. And there’s always a chance that, one year, it won’t go our way and we’ll lose this vital funding. It’s going to take constant vigilance and constant pressure on our elected officials to keep that from happening.

TAFEL: I’m always worried about AIDS funding. Most AIDS organizations never really developed access to the Republicans 30

and that’s a concern now that the GOP controls all parts of the government. That’s where Log Cabin Republicans will need to take a leadership role and make sure we don’t lose ground.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

HASSELL: Yes, but the problem is

more than who is in the White House. Congress makes final funding decisions, not the president. Do we have the political interest, attention and will to demand that Congress fully fund lifesaving HIV programs? Do we have the will to demand that drug companies stop charging obscene prices for HIV medications? Do we have the will to stop stigmatizing people living with HIV? Those problems worry me more.

FOWLKES: The current administration

has proven to be hostile to communities of color and LGBTQ people, all of whom are impacted by HIV/AIDS at some level.

YEUELL: Yes, as long as Trump is in power I am concerned about the care of humanity. I do not believe Trump understands the concepts of right and wrong.

SMITH-CAMEJO: I’m extremely worried about funding specifically for HIV, but Steffen also more generally for health care. Dismantling the essential health benefits guaranteed under the ACA mean that people living with HIV could once again be “uninsurable,” or have to pay exorbitant costs for their care. This means more people will die from AIDS, and that we will see rises in the rates of new HIV cases. SCHOETTES: I am not as worried about funding as I am about

the ways in which that funding is directed and channeled. I have confidence we will continue to convince Congress that funding for HIV/AIDS programs is essential. I worry about how this Administration will direct those funds, given that they are putting people in place who support very discredited “abstinence-only” sex education, have called for cuts to certain programs addressing the needs of minorities, and are hell-bent on eliminating the Affordable Care Act, even though it has been a wonderful thing for people living with and at higher risk for HIV. And I would be even more worried were Pence ever to become President.

Do you think we will ever see a vaccine?

eradicate HIV/AIDS is a dream deferred.

ANGELO: If the trends we have seen in HIV treatment and

STEFFEN: As long as our government is in charge of our health, we will never see a vaccine or a cure. They do not care because they are not affected by the disease.

SIMMONS: Yes. Because AIDS research will do it. I remember when my friends were dying around me. Now we take one pill and strive. I have no doubt that a vaccine will be developed. I just don’t know if I will live long enough to see it.

FOWLKES: If the United States can send a spacecraft to Mars,

prevention continue, finding a cure or vaccine for HIV is not a matter of if, but when.

ROBINSON: We have only been aware of HIV for less than forty years. It took centuries to get other vaccines, and we are well on our way. NABHA: A preventative vaccine would not only make a major

dent in the incidence rates for HIV but would also greatly reduce the burden of the cost of this illness and the progression to AIDS. Currently, HIV vaccine research is buzzing with activity. We have made great strides but also face big challenges. The virus is smarter than other viruses and it is genetically diverse making it difficult to create a preventative vaccine. However, the majority of HIV research is focused on finding a safe and effective vaccine with major studies underway at the National Institute of Health. I am cautiously optimistic. In our practice, we have seen a rapid uptake of PrEP, which may help people stay HIV negative until a vaccine is available.

MCCRAY-PETERS: If and when monies are redirected from the

dollars spent fighting wars outside of the U.S. that will never be won to finding a vaccine, then the likelihood of a vaccine to

surely we can develop a HIV/AIDS vaccine.

SMITH-CAMEJO: I hear there have been some successful trials in Africa. I think it will still take a while, because it will require a lot of testing and follow-up. Even if and when a vaccine is available, we will likely still face the same problem we face now when it comes to access to care. Will the most vulnerable communities have access to the vaccine? Will they be able to get it free of charge? Will there be outreach in their communities to let them know it’s available and that they are good candidates for it? Will the same religious right community that has virulently attacked the HPV vaccine for kids go after the HIV vaccine as well, with their usual noise about how it will encourage “risky behavior”? SCHOETTES: I think we will see a vaccine, but I am not sure we

will ever see a cure. l

The opinions expressed above are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect those of Metro Weekly’s staff or freelancers. The responses were edited for clarity and consistency. To read an expanded version, or to learn how you can participate in future Public Forums, visit metroweekly.com/forum.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

SCOTT SUCHMAN

Stage

Flight of Fancy

Shakespeare Theatre’s Twelfth Night is a truly original production of a topsy-turvy tale. By Kate Wingfield

NE OF THE CLEVEREST REIMAGININGS OF THE SIDNEY HARMAN Hall to date, director Ethan McSweeny’s take on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night (HHHHH) is — quite literally — a theatrical journey. His intriguing concept is brilliantly realized by scenic designer Lee Savage, presenting itself in the opening minutes and then with even greater resonance at the end. Without spoiling it, suffice to say this is a true original. It’s also an interesting way of casting what, for modern eyes, is in truth a somewhat fanciful plot of mistaken identities, love at first sight, and mischievous servants. Whereas A Midsummer Night’s Dream is explained by potions and sleep, here there is no such signaling. For a 17th century audience it wasn’t an issue, since everything they needed to know was in the title itself. In Shakespeare’s day, Twelfth Night was a holiday held on the twelfth day after Christmas. A day of festive anarchy, wealthy households often held entertainments in which everyone in the house — servant or master, child or adult — dressed up and joined in a joyful, chaotic performance. Flash forward to the present day and McSweeny’s rationale replaces this (for us, obscure) context with an idea that tickles the brain and just about works. If there is a tiny smidgen of slack or a touch of incongruity, it pays to remember that Shakespeare (unless heavily adapted) is a voice from another far more patient, ponderous and contemplative time. His pace will never cater to the relentless appetites of our screen-addled attention spans and McSweeny should be applauded for so creatively bridging this cultural divide. The plot is largely Shakespeare’s version of a romcom set, just to be exotic, in the

courtly homes of a coastal city on the Adriatic Sea. There is farce, absurdity, and plenty of his signature undercurrents of melancholic angst. Keeping it all on track is an ensemble job and the cast here carries it well, give or take a few weaker moments. Immediately wonderful is the superb Derek Smith as the haughty Malvolio, servant and secret admirer of the supremely aristocratic Olivia, a lady of note among the landed gentry. Smith is that rare actor who can be as convincingly hilarious as he is sincere and he runs the gamut here from fabulous buffoonery to authentic outrage. It’s a large and impressive performance and thoroughly entertaining. Another standout is Jim Lichtscheidl as the clueless Sir Andrew Aguecheek, delivering some of the best laughs with priceless, skillful abandon and great comic timing. Hannah Yelland’s Olivia is also a highlight for her crisp, classical way with the language and her cool believability. Jennifer Moeller dresses Olivia with such style it is almost a distraction. In the smaller role of Sebastian, a twin who arrives in time to confuse everyone (inexplicably, but that’s Shakespeare), Paul Deo, Jr., injects a surprising amount of nuance and a great command of the language — and it doesn’t

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

SCOTT SUCHMAN

hurt that he is a bona fide hunk, an attribute not lost on director McSweeny. Cornerstones to the high jinks are Andrew Weems as Sir Toby Belch and Emily Townley as servant Maria. Weems enjoys his Falstaffian Belch, mentoring Aguecheek into all sorts of trouble and enjoying the torment of Malvolio. It’s easy to overlook just how skilled Weems is with his Shakespeare — he makes it all seem so natural. As Maria, Townley brings a bit of edge to her crafty maidservant, making her a little less about fun and a bit more about giving a comeuppance. Townley plays it large and it brings a needed continuity to the goings-on. Not quite as effective is Bhavesh Patel as Orsino, suitor to Olivia but inexplicably attracted to his new male servant Cesario, who is really the young woman Viola (who, finding herself shipwrecked on the coast, has disguised herself as a man). Patel gets that a big space needs a big performance, but he pushes it a tad too far and the effect feels harsh. He comes into his own in the second act when he finally turns off the high beams, but it comes a bit too late in the proceedings. As Cesario/ Viola, Antoinette Robinson has presence and command of the language, but she lacks a certain connectedness. Yes, her char-

acter is an outsider and, yes, Shakespeare gives her a certain passivity, but Robinson exudes a modern detachment that keeps her too apart from the high emotions and silliness in play. One can’t blame her for not finding a toe-hold in this almost histrionic Orsino, but she doesn’t seem to really like anyone, despite Shakespeare’s tender words. Also just off-point is the multi-talented Heath Saunders as Feste, the court fool. Saunders has a gorgeous singing voice, the élan of a seasoned street performer, and he is very good with the language, but there is something here he doesn’t quite capture. This is a wise fool and Saunders gets that, but — and it’s hard to put a finger on it — there is a bit too much “I told you so” and not quite enough irony. As watchable as Saunders is, this aspect subtly deflates the fun. All that said, this play must always be about the whole — a topsy-turvy world and its chaotic passions and antics, through which Viola must eventually find her way. McSweeny and his talented cast deliver this strongly and, like all great stories well told, we feel the characters live on, even as McSweeny leaves us with a final fascinating suggestion that, in this telling, it can never be. l

Twelfth Night runs to Dec. 20 at Shakespeare Theatre, 610 F Street NW. Tickets are $25 to $118. Call 205-547-1122 or visit shakespearetheatre.org.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

C STANLEY PHOTOGAPHY

Stage

That’s Dancing!

A sweet, embraceable twosome lifts Signature’s beautifully sung and danced Crazy for You. By André Hereford

HE SPARKLING NEW PRODUCTION OF THE GERSHWINS’ AND KEN Ludwig’s Crazy for You (HHHHH) at Signature Theatre has more than just rhythm. The show’s got two marvelous leads, a lush songbook of Gershwin standards, and a chorus line stocked with former Rockettes kicking through some of the best dancing in any musical in town. Who could ask for anything more? Well, not to quibble with an otherwise delightful confection, but Ludwig’s book does seem wanting for sharper comedy and richer depth of character. Set in the ’30s, the story of New York City banking heir Bobby Child (Danny Gardner), who longs to break into show business, serves as the thinnest conveyance to shuffle Bobby and the other characters through a collection of George and Ira-composed tunes. Of course, they are some sterling jazz and show tunes, assembled from a handful of films and shows, most prominently the Gershwins’ 1930 Broadway musical Girl Crazy. Included from that nearly forgotten production are classics like “Embraceable You” and “I Got Rhythm,” joined by several gems, from “They Can’t Take That Away From Me” to “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” that originally were introduced on-screen by Fred Astaire. The great song-and-dance man’s legacy appears to be in safe and deft hands with true triple-threat performer Gardner, who taps up a storm in a tuxedo, and makes a charmingly sunny Bobby. The reluctant banker, dispatched by his snooty Mother (Sherri L. Edelen) to fore-

close on a property in middle-of-nowhere Deadrock, Nevada, would much rather dance and sing onstage in the Zangler Follies. Luckily for him, the Nevada property turns out to be the Gaiety Theater, a failing show palace owned by the quixotic Everett Baker (Harry A. Winter), and maybe the perfect platform for Bobby to start pursuing his showbiz ambitions. At the Gaiety, Bobby meets formidable opposition, and his love match, in the theater owner’s headstrong daughter, Polly Baker. And it’s in Ashley Spencer’s performance as Polly that this production, directed by Matthew Gardiner, finds its truest-feeling character. Spencer’s mellifluous renditions of Polly’s pivotal ballads “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “But Not for Me” help define the woman’s restless spirit, seeking or suddenly bowled over by love. She and Gardner are a joy to watch together, and they’re ably supported by Winter, supplying necessary heft as Polly’s loving dad, and the entire exquisite line of Zangler Follies Girls, especially Colleen Hayes, as dimwitted chorine Patsy. A slight letdown comes with the jumble of misunderstandings and mistaken

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

C STANLEY PHOTOGAPHY

identities that ensnare Polly and Bobby, along with Bobby’s catty fiancée, Irene (Natascia Diaz), and vaudeville impresario, Bela Zangler (Bobby Smith). This should be the sort of breezy farce that Fred and Ginger (and their directors) made look effortless, but there’s an element of wit or effervescence missing from Ludwig’s romantic-comic entanglements, and from director Gardiner’s broad staging, with some members of the ensemble taking showmanship a leap or two beyond over-the-top. The production, sumptuously costumed by Tristan Raines,

is light on its feet when Gardner, Spencer, and the tapping, tulle-clad chorus beauties are putting over the Gershwin hits. Choreographer Denis Jones’ moves accentuate the best that Gardner, in particular, has to offer, and make fun, inventive use of props. It’s the stretches between songs that don’t trip so lightly. But when those live horns and winds blow, and Bobby (impersonating Zangler) takes Polly’s hand for a spin through “Embraceable You,” it’s impossible to keep from swooning and smiling. l

Crazy for You runs until January 14 at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington. Tickets are $40 to $103. Call (703) 820-9771, or visit sigtheatre.org.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

Games

Blocked

Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 makes saving the universe an exercise in tedious frustration By Rhuaridh Marr

HE LEGO GAMES HAVE ALWAYS HELD A PECULIAR POSITION IN THE world of gaming. Their blend of simplified gameplay, bright graphics, and humor-laced storylines seem tailor-made to appeal to burgeoning young gamers. And yet, when you look back at some of the most successful titles in the franchise, it’s obvious that they’re also making them for adults. There’s pop culture references galore, blocky remakes of mature properties like Star Wars and Jurassic Park, and some of the gameplay tropes — advanced puzzling and collectibles gathering — associated with older gaming audiences. Those two worlds, the young and the older, frequently mash against one another. In the best Lego titles, the simplified gameplay melds with superior storytelling to create a fun twist on a well-known property (Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens). In the worst, lazy repetition and needless excess conspire to bloat the whole thing into a barely tolerable slog (Lego Marvel’s Avengers). The first Lego Marvel Super Heroes landed on the good side of that scale. It offered players a wealth of classic Marvel characters — some known, others requiring a Google search for less diehard fans — and a big, original storyline to play through. With the recently released Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 (HHHHH) looking to largely replicate that formula, what could go wrong? Quite a lot. Unlike the first game, which used Manhattan as its hub and took players on a journey through various worlds in the Marvel franchise, Super Heroes 2 brings all of those worlds together. Kang the Conqueror has rampaged through various realities, stealing sections of each world he visits and turning them into one giant city, Chronopolis, over which he rules. There’s snippets of everything from Asgard to Hydra’s headquarters, ancient Egypt to Attilan, the Old West to Wakanda. There’s even three variants of New York City: present day, Noir, and Nueva York 2099 — each with their own version of Spider-Man. It’s up to Marvel’s wealth of characters — hundreds of them — to fight back against Kang. There’s the Avengers, the Inhumans, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and others including Spider-Gwen (from a reality where Gwen Stacey was bitten by the spider), Iron Duck (Howard the Duck in Iron Man’s armor), and a cowboy Captain

America. And that’s before you get to all of the supervillains — each promised a slice of the pie by Kang — you’ll battle along the way. Dollar for dollar, Super Heroes 2 offers a staggering array of content. In addition to the 18 locations present in Chronopolis and the 20 story missions that take place there, there’s side missions to do, hundreds of collectibles to gather, petty crimes to stop, statues to blow up, propaganda to alter, even cats to find — and more beyond that. Covering every last inch of Chronopolis and unearthing its myriad secrets will take you dozens of hours. How you’ll feel after the first dozen hours, though, will likely depend on your tolerance for core Lego gameplay. Last year’s Avengers title was one of the most tedious and sloppy in recent memory, but Super Heroes 2 will test players’ patience even more. And it does so not because it’s worse than Avengers, but because, while that game settled for mediocrity throughout most of its runtime, Super Heroes 2 constantly jumps between epic highs and crashing lows. Starting with the highs, this is one of the most stunning Lego games ever — heck, even outwith the Lego franchise, the quality of Traveller’s Tales animations, texture work, scenery, and environments shames other developers. Sound design is almost uniformly excellent, from voice performances to sound effects to scoring. And what those characters are saying rarely fails to please. Not hemmed into fol-

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

lowing a specific story like Avengers, the Super Heroes games can offer grandiose originality. The narrative here is compelling and the scripting is among the strongest of any Lego franchise. The humor lands consistently, especially in great characterizations like Ms. Marvel, whose peppy optimism is a constant delight. Where everything starts to fall apart is in actually playing the game. There’s one word that consistently came to mind while working through the story missions in Super Heroes 2: busy. Levels are so overstuffed with things to do and see that players can frequently and easily become overwhelmed or confused. Quest markers aren’t always explicit and progression isn’t always obvious — do you break a random object to see if you can build something, or was there a cue you missed after coming out of a cutscene? More often than not, the answer is the former. What’s more, while the core gameplay of smashing objects and building things still works, it’s showing its age more than ever, particularly given the game’s focus on combat, which has always been the weakest part of any Lego game. Characters are given a superb array of powers and abilities, all beautifully animated, but are then hemmed in by the same “mash a button” style of interaction as every other game. It isn’t helped by enemies that take much more effort to kill than in other Lego games, such as those with shields/additional powers/regenerating health. It makes fights — of which there are many — tediously repetitive. You’ll spend far too long clearing an area of enemies, only to enter the next and have to repeat it all again. It doesn’t help that much of Super Heroes 2 feels unnecessarily padded, such as deliberately slowing character movement or adding in

yet more invulnerable enemies to stretch out the length of each level or boss fight. It’s as if it’s constantly trying to run out some lengthy, imaginary clock. And then there’s the technical issues. Deep into the game, you’ll explore an Egyptian tomb on your way to fighting N’Kantu the Living Mummy. It’s one of a few levels that put fighting on the backburner in favor of puzzling and platforming, and it was a joy to play through — right up until the game crashed as it loaded the battle with N’Kantu. These crashes happened a few times during my testing, and while Ancient Egypt was a level I didn’t mind having to run back through, in more tedious worlds it became an absolute chore. That, really, is the big takeaway from Super Heroes 2. How much of the game you will ultimately see depends on your level of tolerance for its various foibles. For every compelling cutscene or genuinely challenging puzzle, there’s a laborious boss fight, or game-breaking bug, or needlessly convoluted series of actions required to advance through a small portion of a level. Maybe it’s the Lego franchise finally starting to show its age, its ideas wearing perilously thin in a game that relies so heavily on combat. Or maybe it’s because, as bad as some parts of this game are (don’t get me started on the ridiculous flying controls), there are glimmers of a truly outstanding adventure here, one freed from the being a “Lego” game and instead allowed to be a “Marvel” game. Hundreds of characters, great narrative, and a wealth of powers on-hand as you save the universe? It’s the game Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 promises, but one the Lego part ultimately fails to deliver. l

Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 retails for $60 and is available now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One (as reviewed), and Nintendo Switch, and $40 on PC.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

NightLife Photography by Ward Morrison

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 â&#x20AC;¢ METROWEEKLY

Scene

DrinksDragDJsEtc... Thursday, November 30 9 1/2 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • Multiple TVs showing movies, shows, sports • Expanded craft beer selection • Music videos featuring DJ Wess BALTIMORE EAGLE Happy Hour, 5-9pm, all liquors, beers and wines up to 50% off • $3 Well Drinks All Night • Thrifty Thursdays Drag Show, hosted by Whimsey Thrift and Shaunda Leer, 8-9:30pm in the Nest — First well or domestic drink is on us! • $5 Cover at door • Underwear Night, 9pm-2am • For men in underwear, all well drinks

$2, 9pm-12am • Best Underwear Contest at Midnight • Code enforced in Code Bar after 9pm • Beige Hip-Hop Dance Party in the Nest, featuring DJ Waterzz, 10pm-close • thebaltimoreeagle.com COBALT/30 DEGREES Happy Hour: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light, 4-9pm • Locker Room Thursday Nights, 10pm-close • $3 Rail Drinks, 10pm-midnight • DJs Sean Morris and MadScience • Best Body Contest at midnight, hosted by Ba’Naka & Kristina Kelly • $200 Cash Prize • Doors open 10pm, 21+ FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Karaoke, 9pm

Town’s 10th Anniversary feat Lady Bunny - Saturday, Nov. 28 Photography by Ward Morrison See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

GREEN LANTERN Doors open 9pm • Shirtless Thursday, 10-11pm • Men in Underwear Drink Free, 12-12:30am • DJs BacK2bACk NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Doors open at 4pm • Football Games on Big Screens • Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer $15 • Drag Bingo NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines & Half-Priced Pizzas

TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Beer and wine only $4 ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS All male, nude dancers • DJ • 9pm • Cover 21+

Friday, December 1 9 1/2 Open at 5pm • Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • Friday Night Videos, 9:30pm • Rotating DJs • Expanded craft beer selection • No Cover

BALTIMORE EAGLE Baltimore Bear Happy Hour, 5-9pm, all liquors, beers and wines up to 50% off • Bad Bears After Dark in the Code Bar, 9pm • $5 Cover • That’s Talent Weekly Open Mic Contest in the Nest, hosted by Washington Heights, 7:30-9:30pm • $25 Prize each week, with $250 Grand Prize after finals on Dec. 15 • Senator Barbara Robinson hosts a $30 Prime Rib Dinner and Discussion on Operation Be Safe as part of World AIDS Day, 8-10:30pm in the Nest • Grindhouse: Burlesque, featuring Betty O’Hellno in the Nest, 10:30pm-1am • Cover: $10 in advance, $12.50 at door • Elyx Vodka and Any Red Bull Flavor for $7 all day long • thebaltimoreeagle.com

COBALT/30 DEGREES Happy Hour: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light, 4-9pm • Fancy Ass Fridays, 10pm • $8 Grey Goose • $6 Skyy Vodka all night • Two 30-minute open bars featuring Skyy, 11-11:30pm and 1-1:30am • DJ MadScience upstairs • DJ Keenan Orr downstairs • $10 cover, 10pm-close • 21+ FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Karaoke, 9pm GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $5 Smirnoff, all flavors, all night long • Naughty Santa Toy Party, 11pm-close • $2,000 in Prizes to be raffled off • $8 Long Islands, $5 Margaritas, $5 Fireball

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR DJ Matt Bailer • Videos, Dancing • Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer $15 NUMBER NINE Open 5pm • Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover • Friday Night Piano with Chris, 7:30pm SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines & Half-Priced Pizzas TOWN Patio open 6pm • DC Bear Crue Happy Hour, 6-11pm • $3 Rail, $3 Draft, $3 Bud Bottles • Free Pizza, 7pm • No cover before 9:30pm • 21+ • Tatianna’s Birthday Celebration • Drag Show starts at 10:30pm • Hosted by Lena Lett and featuring Miss Tatianna, Shi-Queeta-Lee, Riley Knoxx and Ba’Naka • DJ Wess upstairs, DJs BacK2bACk downstairs following the show • GoGo Boys after 11pm • Doors open at 10pm • For those 21 and over, $12 • For

those 18-20, $15 • Club: 18+ • Patio: 21+ TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Beer and wine only $4 ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS Men of Secrets, 9pm • Guest dancers • Rotating DJs • Ladies of Illusion Drag Show • Doors at 9pm, Shows at 11:30pm and 1:30am • DJ Don T. in Ziegfeld’s • Cover 21+

Saturday, December 2 9 1/2 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close • Expanded craft beer selection • No Cover BALTIMORE EAGLE $5 Drinks all day • Capitol Bar Crawl, sponsored by the DC Eagle, Baltimore

Eagle and Bike Stop, 5pm-3am starting at DC Eagle and then moving onto the other locations • $75 General Admission, $50 beforehand online with promo code BEAGLE • All proceeds benefit Leather Heart Foundation • Leather and Fetish Saturdays, Code Bar, 8pm-2am • Code enforced after 9pm in the Code Bar • Shipmates of Baltimore Bar Night, 9pm-close • Dance Party in the Nest, 9:30pm-close • Backspin: Dance Music from 19802000, featuring DJ Vince Christopher, in the Eagle, 9:30pm-close • $5 Cover • thebaltimoreeagle.com COBALT/30 DEGREES Drag Yourself to Brunch at Level One, 11am-2pm and 2-4pm • Featuring Kristina Kelly and the Ladies of Illusion • Bottomless Mimosas and Bloody Marys • Happy Hour: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light, 4-9pm • Latin Night, 10pm-close • Doors open 10pm • 21+ • $10 Cover

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Saturday Breakfast Buffet, 10am-3pm • $14.99 with one glass of champagne or coffee, soda or juice • Additional champagne $2 per glass • Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Freddie’s Follies Drag Show, hosted by Miss Destiny B. Childs, 8-10 pm • Karaoke, 10pm-close GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $5 Bacardi, all flavors, all night long • REWIND: Request Line, an ‘80s and ‘90s Dance Party, 9pm-close • Featuring DJ Darryl Strickland • No Cover NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Guest DJs • Zing Zang Bloody Marys, Nellie Beer, House Rail Drinks and Mimosas, $4, 11am-5pm • Buckets of Beer, $15 NUMBER NINE Doors open 2pm • Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close • Time Machine and Power Hour with DJ Jack Rayburn, 9:30pm

SHAW’S TAVERN Brunch with Bottomless Mimosas, 10am-3pm • Happy Hour, 5-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines & Half-Priced Pizzas TOWN DC Rawhides host Town & Country: Two-Step, Line Dancing, Waltz and West Coast Swing, $5 Cover to stay all night • Doors open 6:30pm, Lessons 7-8pm, Open dance 8-10:30pm • Happy Birthday, Britney!: A Tribute to Britney Spears by DJ Wess, 10pm-close • Special Britney performances by Tatianna on both floors • Drag Show starts at 10:30pm • Hosted by Lena Lett and featuring Tatianna, Shi-Queeta-Lee, Riley Knoxx and Ba’Naka • Doors open 10pm • $15 Cover from 10pm-12am • $12 after midnight • 21+ TRADE Doors open 12pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 12-10pm • Beer and wine only $4

ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS Men of Secrets, 9pm-4am • Guest dancers • Ladies of Illusion Drag Show with host Ella Fitzgerald • Doors at 9pm, Shows at 11:30pm and 1:30am • DJ Don T. in Ziegfeld’s • DJ Steve Henderson in Secrets • Cover 21+

Sunday, December 3 9 1/2 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close • Multiple TVs showing movies, shows, sports • Expanded craft beer selection • No Cover BALTIMORE EAGLE Lizzie Beaumont and Betty Whitecastle present Queens Who Brunch, 12-2pm • $34 per person includes All You Can Eat • Free pitcher of Mimosas per 4 admissions • Reservations highly suggested and can be made online beforehand • Ravens Game, 1-5pm • T-Dance Sundays, 4-9pm • Buy a cup for $5 and fill

it with any Absolut Flavor and Mixer for $3 each time (excluding energy drink mixers) • thebaltimoreeagle.com COBALT/30 DEGREES Happy Hour: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light, 4-9pm • Homowood Karaoke, hosted by Robert Bise, 10pm-close • No Cover • 21+ FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Champagne Brunch Buffet, 10am-3pm • $24.99 with four glasses of champagne or mimosas, 1 Bloody Mary, or coffee, soda or juice • Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Karaoke, 9pm-1am GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • Open Mic Night Karaoke with Kevin downstairs, 9:30pm-close NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Drag Brunch, hosted by Shi-Queeta-Lee, 11am-3pm • $20 Brunch Buffet • House Rail Drinks, Zing Zang Bloody Marys, Nellie Beer and Mimosas, $4, 11am-close • Buckets of Beer, $15

NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close • Pop Goes the World with Wes Della Volla at 9:30pm • No Cover SHAW’S TAVERN Brunch with Bottomless Mimosas, 10am-3pm • Stoli Sundays: $5 Stoli Specials with DJ, 3:30pm • Happy Hour, 5-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines & Half-Priced Pizzas TRADE Doors open 12pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 12-10pm • Beer and wine only $4

Monday, December 4 9 1/2 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • Multiple TVs showing movies, shows, sports • Expanded

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

craft beer selection • No Cover BALTIMORE EAGLE Happy Hour, 5-9pm, all liquors, beers and wines up to 50% off • Micro Brew Draft/Bottle Mondays — $4 all day • SIN: Service Industry Night, 11pm-2am • First Well Drink or Domestic Beer Free • 10% off your Food Order all day • thebaltimoreeagle.com COBALT/30 DEGREES Happy Hour: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light, 4-9pm • Monday Night’s A Drag, featuring Miss Kristina Kelly • Doors open at 10pm • Showtime at 11:30pm • No Cover • 21+ FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Singles Night • Half-Priced Pasta Dishes • Karaoke, 9pm GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour all night long • Singing with the Sisters: Open Mic Karaoke Night with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, 9:30pm-close NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer $15 • Texas Hold’em Poker, 8pm • Dart Boards

NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines and Half-Priced Pizzas • Shaw Nuff Trivia, with Jeremy, 7:30pm TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Patio open until 11pm • Beer and wine only $4

Tuesday, December 5 9 1/2 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • Multiple TVs showing movies, shows, sports • Expanded craft beer selection • No Cover BALTIMORE EAGLE Happy Hour, 5-9pm, all liquors, beers and wines up to 50% off • Well Bomb Shots $4 all Day • Tavern Tally presents Family Feud Game Show Night, 8pm • thebaltimoreeagle.com

COBALT/30 DEGREES Happy Hour all night: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light • Gaymer Night, 7-10pm • Multiplayer Games on 7 TVs • Tournaments on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month • Dance Floor opens 10pm • Featuring DJ MadScience • 21+

Wednesday, December 6

FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Taco Tuesday • Karaoke, 9pm

BALTIMORE EAGLE Happy Hour, 5-9pm, all liquors, beers and wines up to 50% off • Domestic Bottles are $3 all day • Sen. Joan Carter Conway Re-election Campaign event, in the Nest, 6-7:30pm • No Cover, but suggested donations (via check) begin at $50 • Team Trivia, 8-10pm • thebaltimoreeagle.com

GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour all night long, 4pm-close NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer $15 • Karaoke and Drag Bingo NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover SHAW’S TAVERN Half-Priced Burgers and Pizzas, 5-10pm • $5 House Wines and $5 Sam Adams TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Beer and wine only $4

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY

9 1/2 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • Multiple TVs showing movies, shows, sports • Expanded craft beer selection • No Cover

COBALT/30 DEGREES Happy Hour: $6 Top Shelf, $3 Rail, $3 Bud Light, 4-9pm • $4 Stoli and Stoli Flavors and Miller Lite all night • Wednesday Night Karaoke, hosted by Miss India Ferrah, 10pm-close • 21+ FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • $6 Burgers • Drag Bingo Night, hosted by Ms. Regina Jozet Adams, 8pm • Bingo prizes • Karaoke, 10pm-1am

GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour all night long, 4pm-close • Bear Yoga with Greg Leo, 6:307:30pm • $10 per class • Lantern Dancers, 9pm-2am • Upstairs opens 9pm • GoGo Boys at 10pm NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR SmartAss Trivia Night, 8pm and 9pm • Prizes include bar tabs and tickets to shows at the 9:30 Club • $15 Buckets of Beer for SmartAss Teams only • Bring a new team member and each get a free $10 Dinner NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines and Half-Priced Pizzas • Piano Bar with Jill, 8pm TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Beer and wine only $4SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 Rails and House Wines & Half-Priced Pizzas

TOWN Patio open 6pm • DC Bear Crue Happy Hour, 6-11pm • $3 Rail, $3 Draft, $3 Bud Bottles • Free Pizza, 7pm • No cover before 9:30pm • 21+ • Drag Show starts at 10:30pm • Hosted by Lena Lett and featuring Miss Tatianna, ShiQueeta-Lee, Riley Knoxx and Ba’Naka • DJ Wess upstairs, DJs BacK2bACk downstairs following the show • GoGo Boys after 11pm • Doors open at 10pm • For those 21 and over, $12 • For those 18-20, $15 • Club: 18+ • Patio: 21+ TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Beer and wine only $4 ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS Men of Secrets, 9pm • Guest dancers • Rotating DJs • Ladies of Illusion Drag Show • Doors at 9pm, Shows at 11:30pm and 1:30am • DJ Don T. in Ziegfeld’s • Cover 21+ l

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 â&#x20AC;¢ METROWEEKLY

LastWord. People say the queerest things

“We were wrong. We are sorry. And we will never let this happen again.” — Canadian Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU, apologizing to those convicted under historic anti-LGBTQ laws. “This is the devastating story of people who were branded criminals by the government — people who lost their livelihoods, and in some cases, their lives,” Trudeau said. “These aren’t distant practices of governments long forgotten. This happened systematically, in Canada, with a timeline more recent than any of us would like to admit.”

“If you have gay fans walking down the street holding hands, will they face danger in doing so? That depends on which city they are in and the time of day. ” — PIARA POWAR, executive director of Fare, a pressure group that campaigns for equality in soccer, discussing the potential threats for LGBTQ supporters of soccer when in Russia for the 2018 World Cup. Speaking with the Guardian, Powar said Fare will produce a guide for people to help stay safe in the country. “[It] will advise gay people to be cautious in any place which is not seen to be welcoming to the LGBT community.”

“We urge the Parliament to get on with it as Australians are not interested in delaying marriage equality any longer.” — ANNA BROWN of Australia’s Equality Campaign, speaking in a statement after the Senate voted in favor of legalizing marriage equality, following a nationwide postal survey which saw an overwhelming majority of Australians support same-sex marriage. The vote now moves to the House of Representatives, where conservative lawmakers are expected to try and add anti-LGBTQ “religious freedom” amendments.

“It truly pains us

to have offended any member of our community.

”

— THE GAYVN AWARDS, which honor those in the adult film industry, in a statement offering a “heartfelt, unequivocal apology” after drawing widespread criticism for creating a Best Ethnic Scene category and failing to nominate any actors of color for Best Performer or Best Supporting Performer. Producers said it was intended to “recognize producers who work largely with performers of particular ethnic backgrounds,” not “restrict performers of any non-European ethnic background from competing fully in ANY other category.”

“Ensuring the safety of our users worldwide is a top priority for Grindr.” — JACK HARRISON-QUINTANA, Director of Grindr for Equality, announcing new measures that will allow people in anti-LGBTQ nations to better protect themselves, including the option to change the Grindr app logo on their phone and implement a security password, and providing regular safety tips to avoid police entrapment.

NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • METROWEEKLY