Signature Theatre's Eric Schaeffer

June 20, 2019

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CONTENTS

Volume 26 Issue 8

SOUTHERN COMFORT

The San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus lift their voices for peace and protest in Gay Chorus Deep South.

By André Hereford

SIGNATURE ACHIEVEMENT Thirty years ago, Eric Schaeffer founded what would become one of America’s finest regional theaters.

Interview by Doug Rule Photography by Julian Vankim

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PLAYTIME

Toy Story 4 carries the legacy of Pixar’s magnificent series into an inspired new direction.

By Randy Shulman

SPOTLIGHT: JACK FALAHEE p.7 OUT ON THE TOWN p.10 SOUTHERN COMFORT: GAY CHORUS DEEP SOUTH p.12 THE FEED: TOP-DOWN BIGOTRY p.19 THE FEED: WELCOME TO (GAY) HELL p.20 COMMUNITY: DISTRICT OF PRIDE p.21 COMMUNITY CALENDAR p.21 COVER STORY: SIGNATURE ACHIEVEMENT p.26 FILM: TOY STORY 4 p.33 STAGE: FALSETTOS p.35 STAGE: RIPCORD p.36 NIGHTLIFE: RIOT! CAPITAL PRIDE OPENING PARTY p.37 NIGHTLIFE LISTINGS p.38 NIGHTLIFE HIGHLIGHTS p.39 SCENE: NIGHT OUT AT THE NATIONALS p.44 SCENE: DACHA NATS AFTER PARTY p.45 LAST WORD p.46 Real LGBTQ News and Entertainment since 1994 Editorial Editor-in-Chief Randy Shulman Art Director Todd Franson Online Editor at metroweekly.com Rhuaridh Marr Senior Editor John Riley Contributing Editors André Hereford, Doug Rule Senior Photographers Ward Morrison, Julian Vankim Contributing Illustrator Scott G. Brooks Contributing Writers Sean Maunier, Troy Petenbrink, Bailey Vogt, 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 Alice Marie Guignon Franson Cover Photography Julian Vankim Metro Weekly 1775 I St. NW, Suite 1150 Washington, DC 20006 202-638-6830

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JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

JEREMY DANIEL

Spotlight

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Jack Falahee

N EVAN LINDER’S BYHALIA, MISSISSIPPI, JACK Falahee plays Jim Parker, a lax, tacitly racist Southern dude whose wife gives birth to their first child — who turns out to be a child of color. To say Jim goes ballistic is an understatement, but Linder’s masterfully-written drama heads into powerful territory, presenting in ways comedic, poignant, and shocking topics that reverberate in society today.

“What struck me was Evan’s ability to write a well-structured, effective comedy that also directly takes on very complex and serious issues, such as family, forgiveness, racial disparity, and what it means to raise a biracial child in the south,” says Falahee. The actor’s performance is guileless, natural, at times explosive, and he’s joined by Caroline Neff, Aimé Donna Kelly, Blake Morris, and the astounding Cecelia Wingate (pictured above with Falahee), who collectively blow the roof off the Terrace Theater in the Kennedy Center production.

Falahee’s national star blazed when he took on the role of law student Connor Walsh in ABC’s How to Get Away With Murder, recently renewed for season six. “When I accepted the role,” says the 30-year-old actor, who is straight, “I actually didn't think Connor was gay. I read it as this guy who's super-overachieving and ruthless, sleeping with a guy in that first episode in order to get information. It’s absolutely symptomatic of heteronormative straight privilege in the way I was reading the script back then.

“Then when we were shooting the pilot, I sat down with [series creator] Pete Nowalk, and he was like, ‘Oh, no, no, no, no!

He's gay!’ I was like, ‘Okay, cool.’ I later educated myself on the history of ‘gay for pay’ in Hollywood and came to learn about the outrageous double standard of straight actors being applauded for playing queer characters, which is absolutely ridiculous

when the opposite isn't true. There's plenty of queer actors playing straight all day, every day — or LGBTQ youth pretending to be straight all day, every day.”

At first, Falahee would get famously rankled when the press inquired about his own sexuality. “I felt a little bombarded,” he admits. “That's the stuff they don't teach you in drama school, right? ‘Hey, you're going to play this character that’s going to be a lighthouse for hundreds of thousands of queer people. Good luck!’ So, in the beginning, I took a pretty militant stance and refused to talk about it, because I personally thought it was ridiculous they were only asking about my sexuality and not, say, Matt McGorry, or anyone else on my show.”

He eventually softened, and is a notable straight ally for the LGBTQ community. “I had a conversation with a couple of queer friends and realized that by me having this theoretical dialog about sexuality, and the closet, I wasn't allowing myself to really be the best ally I could, because every single conversation became about, ‘Is he or isn't he?’ rather than us being able to talk about the show, the relationship that is portrayed on the show, and representation on the show.”

Falahee is currently learning the ropes of political influence.

“I've always wondered about the effectiveness of celebrities endorsing candidates. Like, is that helpful? I feel like maybe it could do more harm than good in some cases.” Still, with the prospect of another four years of Trump looming, the Michigan native is “trying to figure out how I can be more politically engaged but in a helpful and non-harmful way.” He won’t commit yet to endorsing a candidate — though he likes Kamala Harris a lot — but he will concede one thing with absolute certainty with regard to Pete Buttigieg: “I'm ready for a gay president. I think it'd be great.” —Randy Shulman

Byhalia Mississippi runs through July 7 at the Terrace Theater. Tickets are $25 to $89.

Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

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Spotlight DANCE EXCHANGE: A SENSE OF WONDER

Science meets modern dance in an evening of mixed repertory by choreographers Elizabeth Johnson Levine, Liz Lerman, Cassie Meador, and Keith Thompson. A Sense of Wonder features excerpts from three works demonstrating the range and breadth of collaborations by the company that was founded 43 years ago by Lerman and has been under the direction of Meador since 2011. Saturday, June 22, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, June 23, at 7 p.m. Dance Place’s Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Theater, 3225 8th St. NE. Tickets are $15 to $30. Call 202-269-1600 or visit www.danceplace.org.

GREASE

Go for a drive up to Columbia if you’d like to go back in time — all the way back to the 1950s — for Toby’s Dinner Theatre’s production of Grease, the hit musical circa 1971 by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical-writing duo set the show in a mid20th century American high school — one where even cool kids can’t resist breaking out into the sing-along fun of such hit staples as “Summer Nights,” “You’re The One That I Want,” and “Hopelessly Devoted to You.” Mark Minnick directs and choreographs a that stars Matt Hirsh as Danny and Nicki Elledge as Sandy.

To July 28. 5900 Symphony Woods Rd. Columbia, Md. Tickets are $47.50 to $63, including buffet-style dinner and coffee and tea. Call 301-596-6161 or visit www.tobysdinnertheatre.com.

FOREST TREÁS

Pointless Theatre presents a newly commissioned work devised by company member Navid Azeez and inspired by the Beltway Sniper from 2002, in which a neighborhood on the outskirts of the city decides to put cameras everywhere and live-stream what transpires.

What could possibly go wrong? Directed by Kelly Colburn, Forest Treás — pronounced as “Triage” — examines the unforeseen effects of the Information Age on a community in violent crisis. The setting has been described as “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood meets Dogville, with live video-streaming as a form of post-modern puppetry.” Now to June 30. Dance Loft on 14 Theater, 4618 14th St. NW 2nd Floor. Tickets are $15 to $32. Call 202-733-6321 or visit www.pointlesstheatre.com.

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Spotlight STEAM ROOM STORIES: THE MOVIE!

A bawdy comedy from JC Calciano, the niche Hollyood director of Is It Just Me? and The 10 Year Plan. This movie adaptation stars what promotional materials simply refer to as “a bunch of handsome hunks” who are as seemingly allergic to shirts. Top billing goes to former porn star Traci Lords, the movie’s villainess Sally Fay. The failing cosmetics magnate becomes convinced that fame, fortune, and the fountain of youth are all within her grasp — with only a gym full of gay himbos standing in her way. Thursday, June 27, at 7 and 9 p.m. Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. Tickets are $14. Call 202-452-7672 or visit www.thedccenter.org/events/steamroomstories.

BEBEL GILBERTO

She was born 53 years ago in New York City but to Brazilian music royalty, as the daughter of bossa nova legend João and bossa nova star singer Miúcha. Yet this Gilberto long ago proved deserving of recognition of her own musical talent — from the get-go, in fact, with 2000 debut Tanto Tempo — and her notably consistent style: A lushly orchestrated, gently swaying sound that perfectly complements her sensual, soothing voice. Saturday, June 22, at 7:30 p.m. The Birchmere, 3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria. Tickets are $45. Call 703-549-7500 or visit www.birchmere.com.

RAFIKI

The colorful street style and music of Nairobi’s vibrant youth culture is the backdrop to a tender love story between two young women in a country where homosexuality is still a criminal act. Despite the political rivalry between their families, Kena and Ziki encourage each other to pursue their dreams in Kenya’s conservative society. Wanuri Kahiu directs Rafiki, which screens as one of two films in Reel Affirmations’ Xtra monthly film series this month. Thursday, June 27, at 9 p.m.

Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. Tickets are $14. Call 202-452-7672 or visit www.thedccenter.org/events/rafiki.

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Out On The Town

DC SHORTS: LAUGHS

Three local stand-ups introduce a slate of comedic shorts in this popular annual program from the DC Film Alliance and the DC Shorts International Film Festival. The evening will feature Natalie McGill, a correspondent and writer for the political satire show Redacted Tonight on RT America, Baltimore’s Chris Lawrence, and original Funniest Fed competition winner Freddi Vernell. Six shorts will be screened: Cat Ventura’s Holly Goes to Therapy, following a troubled woman participating in an unconventional therapy session; Bastien Alexandre’s How Tommy Lemenchick Became a Grade 7 Legend, about an 11-year-old girl’s scheme to score her first kiss; Margaret Bialis’ Opening Night, which finds a man reflecting on his past with a humorous, musical twist; Alejandro Saevich’s Marmartuile, about an international conflict that erupts in the final days of the president of Mexico’s term in office; Robert Bruce Carter’s WHAM, showing the ripple effect that results after two people fall violently in love on the sidewalk; and David Malouf’s The Pharaohs, a fictional dark comedy about the “mean girls” in a senior living facility and based on the screenplay that won the 2017 DC Shorts Screenwriting competition.

Beverages, including beer and wine, and snacks will be available. Friday, June 21, at 7 and 9 p.m. The Miracle Theatre, 535 8th St. SE. Tickets are $20. Call 202-400-3210 or visit www.laughs.dcshorts.com.

Compiled by Doug Rule

FILM BEFORE STONEWALL

A week after Tongues Untied screens as part of AFI Docs, AFI showcases another, even earlier groundbreaking LGBTQ-themed documentary. Greta Schiller’s 1984 film, narrated by Rita Mae Brown, charts the evolution of LGBTQ life and culture in America from the early 1900s to the early ’80s, when the modern LGBTQ movement was still emerging. Before Stonewall: The Making of a Gay and Lesbian Community features eye-opening historical footage and illuminating interviews with some brave, openly LGBTQ pioneers, from Harry Hay, Frank Kameny, and Barbara Gittings, to Audre Lorde, Richard

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Bruce Nugent, and Allen Ginsberg.

A salute to pride and to the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, the run, ending on the 4th of July, kicks off with a special screening and introduction by Montgomery County Councilmember Evan Glass on Thursday, June 27, at 7 p.m.

8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring.

Tickets are $13 general admission.

Call 301-495-6720 or visit www.afi. com/Silver.

THE MASTERS OF SILENT COMEDY

The Avalon Theatre presents a program featuring three classic silent films, with live musical accompaniment, from the same era that birthed the historic movie house in D.C.’s Chevy Chase neighborhood nearly a century ago. Charlie Chaplin’s The Adventurer from 1917, Buster Keaton’s One Week from

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1920, and Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy’s Habeas Corpus from 1928 will screen while their original orchestral scores, all restored by conductor Andrew Greene, are performed by the Peacherine Ragtime Society Orchestra. Hailed by the Washington Post as “the premier American ragtime ensemble,” Peacherine was founded by Greene nearly a decade ago when he was just a student at the University of Maryland. Thursday, June 27, at 7:30 p.m. Avalon Theatre, 5612 Connecticut Ave. NW. Tickets are $25. Call 202-966-6000 or visit www.theavalon.org.

THE SHINING

The popular Capital Classics series at Landmark’s West End Cinema presents a new 4K digital restoration of Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 psychological horror masterpiece,

whose influences are still felt in the genre today. Based on Stephen King’s bestselling novel, Kubrick’s creepy, stylized film stars Jack Nicholson as aspiring writer Jack Torrance, who is tipped over the edge by all of the deranged, venge-seeking supernatural forces haunting the cavernous, empty, isolated hotel where he serves as winter caretaker. Wednesday, June 26, at 1:30, 4:30, and 7:30 p.m. 2301 M St. NW. Happy hour from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $12.50. Call 202-534-1907 or visit www.landmarktheatres.com.

STAGE A MISANTHROPE

Matt Minnicino’s new contemporary distillation of Molière's classic comedy The Misanthrope is the last

show of WSC Avant Bard’s 29th season. Where the 17th-century original skewered the hypocrisy of the French aristocracy, A Misanthrope is set in the present, and further characterized per official publicity materials as “a send-up of trendy suck-ups and phonies during a booze-fueled pool party with the wealthy and wanna-be famous.”

The 90-minute intermission-less production is overseen by Megan Behm, directing a sizable 10-member cast including Sara Barker, Elliott Kashner, Thais Menendez, Tendo Nsubuga, and Hannah Sweet. To June 30. Gunston Arts Center Theatre Two, 2700 South Lang St. Arlington. Tickets are $40.

Call 703-418-4804 or visit www. wscavantbard.org.

HELLO, DOLLY

SOUTHERN COMFORT

The San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus lift their voices for peace and protest in Gay Chorus Deep South.

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EFORE THE SAN FRANCISCO GAY MEN’S CHORUS SET OUT ON THEIR LAVENDER Pen Tour — 25 performances in eight days across five southern states — a few members circled in close to listen to a voicemail that had been left by an angry bigot. The anonymous ranter demanded that they all get back into their “little, stupid closets where they belong,” because they would never be accepted in the South.

Captured in the documentary Gay Chorus Deep South, the moment underscores the urgency driving the tour’s mission to spread love through music. Called into action by the 2016 election — and the accompanying wave of discriminatory bills and laws that came crashing down especially hard on LGBTQ communities in the South — the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus jumped on a tour bus and headed for Tennessee.

David Charles Rodrigues and an eight-person film crew were along for every mile of the tour’s course from Tennessee through Mississippi, Alabama, and the Carolinas. Now the movie is on its own whirlwind tour of theaters and festivals from coast to coast, including AFI DOCS Film Festival, where it screens this Friday and Saturday.

Gay Chorus Deep South pursues the Chorus’ mission of unity with song, sass, and through the personal stories of several chorus members — chief among them the SFGMC Artistic Director and Conductor Dr. Tim Seelig, a former Southern Baptist minister. Seelig, a bright and funny presence, leads the chorus through perhaps the film’s most moving moment, as they sing a traditional Irish blessing while gathered among family and friends who’ve come to see them perform.

The power of that gathering hit especially close to home for Rodrigues. “I lost my mother fifteen years ago,” he says. “And in the film when Tim says, ‘I miss my mom and I'm inviting her here,’ it's as if I'm inviting my own mother, as well, to that moment. And to all these screenings.”

The film conveys a strong message of openness, while also presenting the SFGMC’s southern tour as a fierce act of resistance. That resistance is directly connected to the Civil Rights Movement when the chorus sings at First Baptist Church in Selma, Alabama. The scene reflects Rodrigues’ belief that “we’re at a time right now where we don't need separate movements.”

“It all needs to be one movement,” he says. “Having all those people together in that church, they were all minorities. And everyone's suffering from oppression that's going on right now. It wasn't just about gay rights, it was about equal rights for everyone. And I feel like the more we divide ourselves in these different sub-fights, we're just weakening our own movement. Instead, we should just all come together.” —André Hereford Gay Chorus Deep South is not rated, and screens as part of AFI DOCS Film Festival on Friday, June 21, at 6:30 p.m. at Landmark’s E Street Cinema, and on Saturday, June 22, at 2:30 p.m. at AFI Silver Theater, Silver Spring. Visit www.afi.com/afidocs.

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Tony-winning Broadway legend Betty Buckley (the original Grizabella in Cats) stars as Dolly Levi, following in the formidable footsteps of Bette Midler and Bernadette Peters (and way before them, Carol Channing and Barbra Streisand). The touring production of Jerry Herman’s masterpiece, per Jerry Zaks’ swell Tony-winning revival, now settles in for a monthlong run at the Kennedy Center.

Also starring Lewis J. Stadlen. To July 7. Opera House. Tickets are $49 to $159. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

KLECKSOGRAPHY 2019

Six theater companies and more than 40 artists will team up in creative collaborations led by Rorschach Theatre Company, joined this year by representatives from Theater Alliance, Solas Nua, Longacre Lea, Flying V Theatre, and We Happy Few. Named after a childhood game that later inspired Hermann Rorschach’s famous Inkblot Test, Klecksography embraces the metaphor of that test by showing all participating artists a single, distinctive piece of visual art. They will then work together in assorted teams of directors, playwrights, actors, and filmmakers to create 12 new stage works and six films. This year’s teams are not theater-specific and will also include new and freelance artists in an attempt to foster greater networking and connections in the field.

Saturday, June 22, at 5, 7, and 9 p.m.

Sprenger Theatre at the Atlas, 1333 H St. NE. Tickets are $15 to $20.

Call 202-399-7993 or visit www. atlasarts.org.

MUSIC ARIANA GRANDE

Three months after her first stop at Capital One Arena on the Sweetener World Tour, the pipsqueak-piped pop star returns to coat her fans once more in her syrupy sound, this time with opening sets from

DJ Snake are this year’s headliners.

Other notable acts in the lineup include, per day: Louis The Child, AWOLNation, Courtney Barnett, X Ambassadors, Bob Moses, TLC, The Knocks, Ekali, Cuco, Arkells, Grizfolk, and Shaed, on Friday, June 21; Passion Pit, Young The Giant, Alison Wonderland, Dashboard Confessional, King Princess, Bishop Briggs, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Tank and the Bangas, Joywave, MansionAir, Max, Let’s Eat Grandma, Great Good Fine Ok, Rubblebucket, Max Frost, and Yoke Lore, on Saturday, June 22; and Griz, Walk The Moon, Lykke Li, Gucci Mane, AJR, Car Seat Headrest, Jessie Reyez, LovelyTheBand, Nora en Pure, Jukebox the Ghost, Nombe, VHS Collection, and Magic Giant on Sunday, June 23. The Woodlands of Dover International Speedway, 1131 N. Dupont Highway, Dover, Del. Passes start at $129 for a single day or $319 for a Weekend pass.

Call 855-281-4898 or visit www. fireflyfestival.com.

EN VOGUE

From the start, the Bay Area-formed girl group’s sound was fresh. Often playful and sassy, it drew from its early hip-hop era — think 1992’s “My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)” — and was always confident and empowering, courtesy of the group’s signature sound of tight vocal harmonies initially inspired by doo-wop (1992’s “Giving Him Something He Can Feel”). And unlike most other girl groups, En Vogue has always been about collaboration and teamwork. There has never been one member known as lead singer, and every member alternates between lead and backing vocal duties. (Just try to imagine Diana Ross or Beyonce agreeing to that.) Originally a quartet, En Vogue has been a trio the last few years, with Cindy Braggs, fellow founder Terry Ellis, and Rhona Bennett, who first joined the group in 2003. The trio returns to the area at the end of the month, or exactly four years after a Capital Pride performance that may have taken place during a steady downpour, yet no one’s spirits were dampened. The ladies definitely gave their all to make sure of that — and fans certainly felt it. Friday, June 28, and Saturday, June 29, at 8 p.m. Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club, 7719 Wisconsin Ave. Tickets are $79.50 to $94.50, plus $20 minimum purchase per person. Call 240-330-4500 or visit www.bethesdabluesjazz.com.

Normani and Social House. Friday, June 21, at 7 p.m. Capital One Arena, 601 F St. NW. Call 202-628-3200 or visit www.capitalonearena.com.

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." The Afrobeat-driven group has won 13 Washington Area Music Association Awards, including Artist of the Year in 2008 and as best World Music Group the last nine years in a row. Chopteeth performs regularly throughout the region, with a return to the Hamilton up next. Saturday, June 22. Doors at 6:30 p.m. 600 14th St. NW. Tickets are $20 to $25.

Call 202-787-1000 or visit www. thehamiltondc.com.

CHRIS URQUIAGA

A former Strathmore Artist-in-

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Residence, Urquiaga has made a gradual move away from classical compositions and into pop. Last summer, he served as music director for Signature Theatre’s cabaret “Everything Elvis” and also performed at the venerable Blues Alley.

He’s released two pop albums — I’m Here and Complete — and calls his style of music a blend of pop with R&B and Latin influences, owing to his Brazilian and Peruvian heritage. Currently working on his third Latin pop album, Urquiaga is likely to give a sneak peek into some of his newer material at a concert at DC9 at the end of the month that features two other D.C.-based artists as opening acts. There’s the gritty rock/folk quintet Rock Creek Kings, which was formed by songwriters Evan Sharess, Jonah Belser, and Erich Collins and also features jazz saxophonist Christopher Lawrence and bassist Evan St. John.

And there’s also Anjali Taneja, a

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jazzy/R&B artist of Indian descent who is in at least one sense following in Urquiaga’s footsteps: She’s a current Artist-in-Residence at Strathmore. Sunday, June 30.

Doors at 7:30 p.m. 1940 9th St. NW. Tickets are $10. Call 202-483-5000 or www.dcnine.com.

FIREFLY MUSIC FESTIVAL

Spread out over a scenic, woodsy 100 acres at Dover Downs, Delaware’s Firefly, now in its eighth year, offers non-musical diversions, including The Great Atlantic Campout, an immersive camping experience including daily yoga, panels, meetand-greet events, silent discos, “Spruce Up” stations and showers, plus a farmers market, bar, and general store. But the chief focus is on catching many of music’s latest and greatest. Panic! At The Disco, Tyler, The Creator, Zedd, Travis Scott, Kygo, Death Cab for Cutie, Post Malone, Vampire Weekend, and

LANDAU EUGENE MURPHY JR.

Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. won America’s Got Talent eight years ago by singing his heart out a la Susan Boyle. Touted as the “Soul of Sinatra,” the West Virginia-native paid tribute to Ol’ Blue Eyes by reinterpreting standards popularized by Frank Sinatra on his debut album That’s Life, released in 2011. Sunday, June 23, at 8 and 10 p.m. Blues Alley, 1073 Wisconsin Ave. NW. Tickets are $35, plus $6 fee and $12 minimum purchase. Call 202-3374141 or visit www.bluesalley.com.

NSO POPS: 50 YEARS OVER THE RAINBOW: A JUDY GARLAND CELEBRATION

Principal Pops Conductor Steven Reineke leads the National Symphony Orchestra in a program marking the loss, 50 years ago this month, of Judy Garland. He’ll do so by recreating the gay icon’s legendary, comeback concert at Carnegie Hall in 1961 that featured her signature standards (“Over The Rainbow,” “The Trolley Song,” “Puttin’ On The Ritz” among them) and that, recorded and released as a double album, earned Garland the designation of being the first woman to win the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. (And yes, it’s the same concert and live album that Rufus Wainwright re-created and recorded a dozen years ago, with his own Grammy to show for it.) Young Broadway sensations Laura Osnes (Bandstand, Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella) and Capathia Jenkins (Newsies, Caroline, or Change), and Pink Martini frequent guest vocalist Jimmie Herrod join the NSO to celebrate the music, life, and legacy of Garland. Friday, June 28, and Saturday, June 29, at 8 p.m.

PHOTO COURTESY OF STRATHMORE

DAVID DIMITRI: THE ONE-MAN CIRCUS

With his latest feat, this veteran of Cirque du Soleil and the Big Apple Circus and an acrobat and high-wire dancer that the New York Times has called the “Lord of the Wire,” isn’t just a circus act — he’s the whole darn show. Performed in an intimate, one-of-a-kind tent, L’homme Cirque is a one-man show featuring what Dimitri refers to as “unique magic” as he balances dramatic feats, such as high-wire flips or a human cannon launch, with humor, poetry, and accordion serenades. Strathmore welcomes Dimitri to help christen the Bernard Family Foundation Pavilion, the new addition to the Music Center. Performances begin Thursday, June 27. To July 7. 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda. Tickets are $20 to $33, or $75 for Opening Night VIP Reception and Meet & Greet. Call 301-581-5100 or visit www.strathmore.org.

Kennedy Center Concert Hall.

Tickets are $24 to $99. Call 202467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

START MAKING SENSE W/ SEEPEOPLES

Jon Braun leads this New Yorkbased seven-piece band that pays tribute to David Byrne by faithfully recreating the music of Talking Heads including the hits “Once In A Lifetime,” “Burning Down the House,” and “Psycho Killer,” as well as other songs the band never performed live — and of course never will, given the “bad blood” between Byrne and the others. The “antigenre indie pranksters” known as SeepeopleS and led by songwriter/producer Will Bradford open.

Saturday, June 29. Doors at 6:30 p.m. The Hamilton, 600 14th St. NW. Tickets are $18 to $25.50. Call 202-787-1000 or visit www.thehamiltondc.com.

DANCE 10 HAIRY LEGS: GAY PRIDE CELEBRATION

The New Jersey-based all-male dance troupe returns to Baltimore with a mixed-repertory program

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on the theme of Pride. Now concluding its 7th season, 10 Hairy Legs is focused, in part, on dispelling assumptions about male dancers. “If you watch two women dance on stage, you don't normally assume that they are homosexuals,” says founder and leader Randy James, himself a gay man.

“But if you watch two men dance on stage, people do assume that sometimes. And hopefully, that is one of the things that we're kind of educating audiences on.” The program includes: Al Blackstone’s commissioned quintet Brian, a 2018 Emmy Award-nominated work touching on the loneliness of adolescence, the desire for friendship, and the journey to self-realization; an excerpt from Christopher Williams’ The Portuguese Suite, a sinuous duet set to traditional Fado songs; David Parker’s Friends of Dorothy, a tongue-in-cheek duet set to a rousing score of songs by Debbie Reynolds and Jane Powell; Stephen Petronio’s Bud, a duet with intricate partnering set to Rufus Wainwright’s “Oh What A World”; and Raj Feather Kelly’s Andy Warhol’s Bleu Movie, a 2017 commissioned quintet alluding to the 1970s gay club scene and the

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nature of fleeting attraction and romance and set to an original score

by Bryan Strimpel. Thursday, June 20, and Friday, June 21, at 8 p.m.

Baltimore Theatre Project, 45 West Preston St. Baltimore. Tickets are $20 to $25. Call 410-752-8558 or visit www.theatreproject.org.

CHAMBER DANCE PROJECT: NEW WORKS +

The sixth annual contemporary-ballet-with-live-music program from this New York-birthed, D.C.-based company features a new collaboration between artistic director Diane Coburn Bruning and Studio Theatre’s associate artistic director Matt Torney. Based on the T.S. Eliot poem, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock navigates the emotional and psychological intricacies of the masterwork through the movement of five dancers and the text read by Torney, with an original score composed and performed live by James Garver. A second world-premiere comes from international choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, whose Rondo Ma Non Troppo is a dynamic work for four dancers having a physical conversation around a table that mirrors the drama of Schubert’s String Quartet

No. 14 as performed by principal musician Claudia Chudacoff. Also in the lineup is the Washington premiere of Extremely Close, an evocative duet amidst a stage of white feathers by Spanish choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo and a lush piano score by Philip Glass. The program is rounded out with two additional works by Bruning: 2017’s Songs

by Cole, a witty and stylish collaboration between dancers and a jazz trio featuring vocalist Shacara Rogers performing Cole Porter standards; and Journey, a pas de deux exploring a relationship and intimacy and set to Samuel Barber’s soaring adagio. Opening Night, featuring a white-attire-suggested Summer Solstice Celebration with the artists after the performance at the Hotel Monaco (700 F St. NW), is Thursday, June 20, starting at 7:30 p.m. Additional performances Friday, June 21, and Saturday, June 22, at 2 and 8 p.m. Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW. Tickets are $38 to $52, or $125 to $175 for Opening Night. Call 202-499-2297 or visit www.chamberdance.org.

COMEDY THE SECOND CITY: AMERICA; IT’S COMPLICATED

The legendary comedic troupe from Chicago returns to the Kennedy Center for another allnew, made-for-Washington politically minded show mixing sketch comedy, improv, satire, and original music. Mary Catherine Curran, Cody Dove, Jillian Ebanks, Jordan Savusa, Adam Schreck, and Holly Walker are the featured players for America; It’s Complicated. Now to Aug. 11. Theater Lab. Tickets are $49 to $59. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

ABOVE & BEYOND BIG FREEDIA AND KARAMO BROWN AT NMAAHC

The National Museum of African American History and Culture toasts pride this year with a special event as part of the Smithsonian Summer Solstice celebration that features the Queen of Bounce from New Orleans and the queen of culture from Netflix’s Queer Eye, each focused on their recently published memoirs. After discussions with Big Freedia about God Save the Queen Diva and Karamo Brown with Karamo: My Story of Embracing Purpose, Healing and Hope, there will be a brief bounce demonstration by Freedia as well as a dance party. Saturday, June 22, from 7 to 10 p.m Heritage Hall, 14th St. & Constitution Ave. NW. Free, but first-come, first-seated. Call 844750-3012 or visit www.si.edu/solsticesaturday.

Dozens of installations, pop-up performances, and discussions — many of them free — will take place over the next week at various venues around town, from Union Market to the hotel Eaton DC to a floating art barge on the Potomac River, all part of the annual arts and innovation festival organized by Georgetown’s Halcyon House. Yet the majority of activities take place at the Smithsonian’s Arts + Industries Building (900 Jefferson Dr. SW), which once again serves as the festival hub on weekends, with installations including: Walking on Clouds

by New York mixed-media collage and digital technologies artist Jonathan Rosen; Post Referendum....

More Than a Number, featuring 272 pedestals commemorating the lives of the enslaved people sold

by Jesuit priests at Georgetown University in 1838, by Baltimore multimedia artist Ada Pinkston; Cosmic Warrior, an augmented reality sculpture from Virginia interdisciplinary artist Alexis Gomez; Pillar of Salt: Illuminated History in Writing, a series of crowdsourced written histories and light sculptures exploring gender equality, by interdisciplinary artist Mengxi “Althea” Rao; We The People, an augmented reality reflection on the embrace and expression from one citizen to another, by digital artist and animator Marjan Moghaddam; various sculptures from D.C. artist Martha Jackson Jarvis; a work exploring the delicate threads of directions presented, journeys chosen, and paths leading you here, by D.C. mixed-media fiber artist and printmaker Rania Hassan; Eye See You, a comment on the age of surveillance, by D.C.-based NigerianAmerican painter Victor Ekpuk; Red/Act, a virtual reality experience featuring poetry written by incarcerated and previously incarcerated indigenous women, by Cherokee Nation citizen Jessica Mehta; 108+1, collaborative performances calling for collective healing through sound baths and an immersive live experience and featuring Naoko Wowsugi and Estefani Mercedes; Night Light: Half-World, a work-in-process meditative, contemporary dance and movement piece from UNUM Dance Collective founder Tariq Darrell O’Meally; and Two Truths and a Lie, a dance work weaving together seven short pieces from D.C.-based company Agora Dance.

And during the Solstice Saturday event on June 22, the building will remain open until midnight with “Soulstice Soundscapes” by Les The DJ plus performances by Nicoletta Daríta de la Brown and Shanna Lim. Among highlights elsewhere, there’s the By The People Art Fair featuring 51 local artists, curated

by Nina O’Neil in partnership with Monochrome Collective and on dis-

play in the former Jonathan Adler Store (1267 Wisconsin Ave. NW).

Festival runs to Sunday, June 23.

Call 202-796-4240 or visit www. bythepeople.org.

SMITHSONIAN SUMMER SOLSTICE CELEBRATION

This Saturday, June 22, you can spend the evening at your favorite Smithsonian museum, as most of them will stay open until midnight.

The occasion is the annual institution-wide, all-day celebration honoring the official start of summer.

Held this year in association with the By The People Festival, whose central hub is the Smithsonian’s Arts and Industries Building (900 Jefferson Dr. SW), which will host art installations, programs, and performances, and also with Hofstra University’s Astronomy Festival on the National Mall, taking place Saturday evening in front of the Smithsonian Castle (1000 Jefferson Dr. SW) and featuring solar, optical, and radio telescope observations, hands-on activities, and presentations by educators and scientists, including astronomers. The Summer Solstice event will certainly be the longest day of the year at the various museums, whose cafes and gift shops will also stay open well into the evening hours. And all day long, there’s the free, multisite music festival America Now!, honoring the Smithsonian’s Year of Music 2019 celebration with, among other activities, a dance party on the National Mall with DJs Adrian Loving, Ayes Cold, and Les the DJ, and live music from Baltimore rapper Wordsmith and the hip-hop/classical collaborative Classically Dope, at the American History Museum (14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW); plus evening performances by go-go band Rare Essence, Christylez Bacon, the Out of Town Blues Band, and Eric Hilton (of Thievery Corporation) with The Archives, in the Kogod Courtyard (8th and F Streets NW).

Visit www.si.edu/solsticesaturday.

SUMMER SOLSTICE AT GEORGETOWN WATERFRONT

The Georgetown BID, in partnership with Athleta, presents this three-hour event featuring free outdoor fitness classes, prizes, and giveaways and all to celebrate the official start of summer as well as International Yoga Day and the longest day of the year. A special offshoot of the free Georgetown Sunset Fitness classes held every Wednesday at 6 p.m. and featuring the neighborhood’s more than 40 studios and athletic specialty stores, this Solstice event on Friday, June 21, starts at 4 p.m. and offers hour-long yoga class-

PHOTO COURTESY OF KENNEDY CENTER

BY THE PEOPLE: ARTS AND DIALOGUE FESTIVAL

HANNAH GADSBY: DOUGLAS

Art criticism is generally about as far from stand-up comedy as it gets, and any comic with the notion that the two endeavors could be forged together seamlessly, to say nothing of successfully, would have been laughed off the stage — if they weren’t booed off first. That is, until the Australian lesbian Gadsby came around with Nanette, her popular and provocative Netflix special from last year that rattled both the art and comedy worlds and had everyone on the edge of their seats. As it happens, Gadsby spent a decade honing her variant of comedy — which could be called critical standup — via comedy art lectures focused on collections at major galleries, art documentaries expounding on her artistic insights, and of course her art history degree at root. The wry comedian makes her Kennedy Center debut with a new show that reportedly delves more into her personal and cultural experiences. Meanwhile, everyone who goes to see Douglas — a show named after her dog — will have a completely “phone-free experience,” as all smartphones and smartwatches will be locked in special cases during the performance, and no other cameras or recording devices will be permitted. Performances are Tuesday, June 25, and Wednesday, June 26, at 7:30 p.m., and also Thursday, June 27, at 7 and 9:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater. Tickets are $39 to $75. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org. es sponsored by Down Dog Yoga, The Wing, and Athleta, plus bottled water and healthy snacks.

(Attendees must bring their own yoga mat.) The first 300 attendees receive an Athlete swag bag filled with goodies and discount coupons and surprises, while all attendees will get the chance to win a $100 Athleta gift card, a Down Dog Yoga 10-class pack, a Tuckernuck clutch and earrings, and a Kendra Scott giveaway, among other prizes. And attendees sporting their #GeorgetownSummerSolstice

Wristband will be offered drink specials and discounts at nearby businesses including Church Hall, The Tavern, Pinstripes, and Tuckernuck. Visit www.georgetowndc.com/summersolstice for more information and to register. l

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

17

theFeed

TOP-DOWN BIGOTRY

Anti-gay activist Tony Perkins will lead a federal commission on religious freedom. By Rhuaridh Marr

US COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

T

ONY PERKINS, LEADER OF THE VEHEMENTly anti-LGBTQ Family Research Council, is the new chair of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. Perkins, a pastor with close ties to Donald Trump, was first nominated to the commission last year by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

He was elected as chair on Monday, June 17.

The USCIRF is a bipartisan commission that reviews violations of religious freedom globally, before making policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress Perkins — who has claimed that pedophilia is a “homosexual problem” and said LGBTQ activists want to “destroy” America — sits alongside a number of other conservative voices on the commission, including former FRC president Gary L. Bauer, who was appointed to the commission by Donald Trump.

In a statement, Perkins said he looked forward to “continuing our efforts to promote the fundamental human right of religious freedom for all people.”

However, Nick Fish, president of American Atheists, said Perkins has “no place” on the commission and his election to chair is “an embarrassment to the United States.”

“As the leader of a Christian supremacist group that weaponizes religion against the LGBTQ community and regularly attacks religious minorities as un-American, Tony Perkins is unqualified to serve as a commissioner or in any other capacity at the USCIRF, let alone to lead it,” Fish said in a statement.

He continued: “Perkins has spent his career advocating a dangerous, distorted, and discriminatory vision of “religious liberty” that only protects orthodox Christians and leads an organization that supports abusing LGBTQ children with conversion therapy at home and enforcing the death penalty for LGBTQ people abroad.”

At the time of his appointment last year, LGBTQ advo-

cates feared that Perkins would use his position to encourage the promotion of anti-LGBTQ religious discrimination legislation.

“Tony Perkins does not embody the values that many Americans would associate with religious freedom — values like treating others the way we’d like to be treated ourselves, respecting those with whom you disagree, and demonstrating a reverence for the many different faiths and types of people who make our country so strong,” Masen Davis, the CEO of Freedom for All Americans, said in 2018.

“There are many conservatives who understand that securing freedom and opportunity for LGBTQ people is consistent with conservative values,” Davis added.

“Tony Perkins is absolutely not one of those individuals.

His appointment to USCIRF does not advance religious freedom, and goes against the values that so many Americans from all walks of life hold dear.”

Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD, called Perkins “the most recognizable anti-LGBTQ activist in America” after his appointment, noting that he has “espoused the most extreme views of LGBTQ people and other vulnerable communities including vocally supporting foreign laws that Perkins punish LGBTQ identity with death.”

Ellis added: “The idea that Perkins would be making policy recommendations to an administration that is already anti-LGBTQ is dangerous and puts LGBTQ people directly in harm’s way.”

Perkins has a long history of anti-LGBTQ statements, including earlier this year deriding the Trump administration’s plan to decriminalize homosexuality globally, calling it “cultural imperialism” and arguing that the U.S. should “refrain from imposing the values of the sexual revolution” on other nations.

Last month he also blamed a rise in sexual assault reports on the military on gay soldiers, and in April said it was “jarJUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

19

theFeed ring” and “unpleasant” that lawmakers were flying transgender pride flags outside their Congressional offices.

Perkins has also called for the impeachment of former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy for authoring the Obergefell decision legalizing same-sex marriage, has advocated for conversion therapy, and compared LGBTQ advocates to terrorists. He has slammed transgender-inclusive restroom policies adopted by businesses like Target,

compared the fate of Christians living in a society where LGBTQ rights are respected to the plight of Jews during the Holocaust, and insists that pedophilia is “a homosexual problem.”

In addition, he has used his position at FRC to promote laws restricting LGBTQ adoption, oppose the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and advocate for Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” law that doles out punishments for homosexuality.

WELCOME TO (GAY) HELL G

AY MUSICIAN AND COMEDIAN ELIJAH DANIEL, also known by the name Lil Phag, has temporarily bought the town of Hell, Michigan, and renamed it “Gay Hell.”

Daniel has also reportedly banned any flag other than Pride flags in the town, in protest over the Trump administration’s ban on U.S. embassies flying the Pride flag.

“Ahead of pride month Trump’s administration put a ban on embassy’s flying pride flag,” Daniel tweeted. “So as of today, I am now the owner of Hell, Michigan. I bought the whole town. And my first act as owner, I have renamed my town to Gay Hell, MI. The only flags allowed to fly are pride.”

In a follow-up tweet, Daniel proclaimed that the town — which is about 15 miles northwest of Ann Arbor — “has everything,” including “a library, a place to lock your love in Gay Hell, and even a wedding chapel to get gay married in hell!”

Daniel has a connection to the town, after previously serving as Mayor of Hell for a day in 2017. Hell allows anyone to pay $100 to be mayor for a day, with mayors receiving devil horns, a shirt, and a square inch of property in the town, Mashable reports.

During his 2017 tenure, Daniel responded by banning heterosexuality in the town, tweeting that his “#1 priority is the safety of my town. Until the heterosexual threat has been reviewed we cannot allow them to enter.”

“The straights coming into our town, procreating, having more straight children to take our rightfully gay jobs…. I 20

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

currently feel as if it would just be safer to ban all heterosexuality until we can assess the situation further and build a strategy to resolve our problem,” he wrote in his 2017 proclamation.

Daniel added that heterosexuals would have to pay a “reproductive precautionary deposit” of $84,000, refundable if they refrained from heterosexuality for one year. Anyone who refused to attend “ex-heterosexual therapy” would be forced to wear a scarlet H and “meet in the town center at 5:30am wearing cargo shorts every morning to be publicly straight-shamed.”

Daniel opted to rename Hell to Gay Hell after the Trump administration banned embassies from flying Pride flags in support of Pride month. At least four embassies in Germany, Israel, Brazil and Latvia requested permission to fly Pride flags on embassy flag poles, but were rejected by the State Department.

The department argued that only the American flag should fly on embassy flagpoles, a reversal on department policy under former President Barack Obama’s tenure. Speaking last week, Vice President Mike Pence told NBC News that it was “the right decision.”

“As the president said on the night we were elected, we’re proud to be able to serve every American,” Pence said.

“We both feel that way very passionately, but when it comes to the American flagpole, and American embassies, and capitals around the world, one American flag flies.” l

PHOTO COURTESY OF ELIJAH DANIEL

Gay musician buys Michigan town, names it “Gay Hell” in protest of Trump’s Pride flag ban. By Rhuaridh Marr

Community call 202-745-7000 or visit www.whitman-walker.org.

THURSDAY, June 20 The DC Center holds a meeting of its POLY DISCUSSION GROUP, for people interested in polyamory, non-monogamy or other nontraditional relationships. 7-8 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. Visit www. thedccenter.org.

KARING WITH INDIVIDUALITY (K.I.) SERVICES, 20 S. Quaker Lane,

Suite 210, Alexandria, Va., offers $30 “rapid” HIV testing and counseling by appointment only. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Must schedule special appointment if seeking testing after 2 p.m. Call 703-823-4401.

Weekly Events ANDROMEDA TRANSCULTURAL HEALTH

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 www.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 www.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 afterwards. Route distances vary. For meeting places and more information, visit www.dcfrontrunners.org.

DC LAMBDA SQUARES, D.C.’s

LGBTQ square-dancing group, features an opportunity to learn about and practice various forms of modern square dancing. No partner required. Please dress casually. 7:30-9:30 p.m.

National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle NW. For more info, call 202-930-1058 or visit www.dclambdasquares.org.

DC SCANDALS RUGBY holds

practice. The team is always looking for new members.

All welcome. 7-9 p.m. Harry Thomas Recreation Center, 1743 Lincoln Rd. NE. For more information, visit www. 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 www.dullestriangles.com.

HIV TESTING at Whitman-

Walker Health. 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 2:30-5 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,

METROHEALTH CENTER Be Steadwell

PRIDE SHOWCASE The Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs hosts its second annual “District of Pride” celebration this weekend.

T

HE MAYOR’S OFFICE OF LGBTQ AFFAIRS ATTENDS over 30 events during Pride season,” says Sheila AlexanderReid, the director of the office. “In addition to the seven Prides that occur in D.C., many federal agencies and local organizations have their own Pride events, and want us to attend. So, last year, we decided the mayor’s office should have its own Pride event, something that would bring all those groups and the entire LGBTQ community together in one place.”

That celebration, “District of Pride,” also serves as a showcase of local D.C. talent. Organizers go out of their way to recruit cutting-edge local LGBTQ singers, musicians, and performance artists for the three-hour event, headlined this year by vocalist Be Steadwell.

Other performers scheduled to appear include the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, Batala, Carlita Caliente, Venus Thrash, Anthony Oakes, Morgan Givens, Xemiyulu Manibusan Tapepechul, Majic Dyke and Vagenesis, Tezrah, and Geneva Confection. Local emcee Rayceen Pendarvis will make a special appearance.

“The event really started out as a way to reach out to millennials,” says Alexander-Reid. “Most of the Pride events are run by seasoned LGBTQ activists and advocates. When we looked at the audience we were reaching as an office, we realized we needed to do more outreach to the millennial LGBTQ community, and District of Pride was our first foray into that.”

While District of Pride is curated by local LGBTQ millennials, the variety of talent — everything from vocalists to comedians to drag queens and kings — draws an all-ages audience, although some of the content is more adult-oriented. It’s open to everyone and admission is free, though attendees are encouraged to RSVP beforehand by booking a ticket through Eventbrite.

“I really like the fact that the mayor wanted us to prioritize this,” says Alexander-Reid. “At last year’s event, I came on stage at the end, and it was such an incredible, empowering feeling. Every segment of the community was there, and it was a ‘wrap your arms around each other’ atmosphere.

“This was something the community needed and had really longed for. D.C. can be very compartmentalized, and this was something that broke down barriers, broke down walls. It was a community uplifting, a session of support and love. And the show has such diverse talent that there’s something that appeals to everyone. This is the one place where you can have it all under one roof and free of charge.” —John Riley Mayor Muriel Bowser’s second annual “District of Pride” is on Saturday, June 22, from 7-10 p.m. at the Lincoln Theatre, 1215 U St. NW. Admission is free. To reserve a space, register by visiting www.eventbrite.com. For more information, visit lgbtq.dc.gov.

offers free, rapid HIV testing.

Appointment needed. 1012 14th St. NW, Suite 700. To arrange an appointment, call 202-849-8029.

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 www. 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 202-446-1100.

FRIDAY, June 21 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. The DC Center.

2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105.

For more information, visit www.gaydistrict.org.

The DC Center hosts an LGBTQ GAME NIGHT where participants can play board and card games and socialize with other people from across the LGBTQ spectrum. All welcome. 7-9 p.m.

2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105.

Visit www.thedccenter.org.

Weekly Events BET MISHPACHAH, founded

by 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 www.betmish.org.

DC AQUATICS CLUB holds

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

PROJECT STRIPES hosts

LGBT-affirming social group for

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

21

ages 11-24. 4-6 p.m. 1419 Columbia Road NW. Contact Tamara, 202319-0422, www.layc-dc.org.

SMYAL’S REC NIGHT provides a

social atmosphere for LGBT and questioning youth, featuring dance parties, vogue nights, movies and games. 4-7 p.m. For more info, email rebecca.york@smyal.org.

SATURDAY, June 22 ADVENTURING outdoors group

hikes several miles on trails in the northernmost section of Shenandoah National Park near Front Royal, Va. Bring plenty of beverages, lunch, sturdy boots, bug spray, sunscreen, and about $15 for fees. Carpool at 8:30 a.m. from the East Falls Church Metro Kiss & Ride lot. For more information, contact David, 240-938-0375, or visit www.adventuring.org.

Join The DC Center as it volunteers for FOOD & FRIENDS, packing meals and groceries for people living with serious ailments.

10 a.m.-noon. 219 Riggs Rd. NE. Near the Fort Totten Metro. For a ride from the Metro, call the Food & Friends shuttle at 202-6696437. For more information, visit www.thedccenter.org or www. foodandfriends.org.

Join the DC REUNION PROJECT for “THRIVING WITH HIV,” an event aimed at long-term survivors with HIV living anywhere in the DMV area. Confidentiality respected, photography restricted. Registration is free and confidential. Continental breakfast and lunch provided.

Attendance is limited to 150 people.

10 a.m.-5 p.m. The Milken Institute at George Washington University, 950 New Hampshire Ave. NW. To register, or for more information, visit www.dcreunionproject2019. eventbrite.com.

The DC Center hosts a RUMMAGE SALE selling clothes, decor, and lightly used items at a fraction of their original sale price. If you’re looking to clear out your own closet, book a table via The DC Center website. Set up begins at 10 a.m. 11 a.m.-2 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, contact Rebecca, rebecca@thedccenter.org.

Weekly Events DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a

practice session at Montgomery College Aquatics Club. 8:30-10 a.m.

7600 Takoma Ave., Takoma, Md. For more information, visit www. 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 afterwards.

22

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

Route distance will be 3-6 miles.

Walkers meet at 9:30 a.m. and runners at 10 a.m. at 23rd & P Streets NW. For more information, visit www.dcfrontrunners.org.

SUNDAY, June 23 Join Steve Honley for a FREE CONCERT where he will perform keyboard works by American LGBTQ composers at the Beverley Hills Community United Methodist Church. All are welcome. 4 p.m. 3512 Old Dominion Blvd., Alexandria, Va. For more information, visit www.bevhillsumc.org.

MONDAY, June 24 Red Bear Brewing Company hosts “CELEBRATING PRIDE MONTH

WITH ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON,” a relaxed fireside chat

with the congresswoman discussing issues that affect the LGBTQ community and local D.C. issues. Questionand-answer session to follow. 7-8 p.m.

209 M St. NE. To RSVP, register via www.eventbrite.com.

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 www. swimdcac.org.

DC’S DIFFERENT DRUMMERS

welcomes musicians of all abilities to join its Monday night rehearsals.

The group hosts marching/color guard, concert, and jazz ensembles, with performances year round.

Please contact Membership@ DCDD.org to inquire about joining one of the ensembles or visit www.

DCDD.org.

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 www. thedccenter.org.

US HELPING US hosts a black gay

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

WASHINGTON WETSKINS WATER POLO TEAM practices 7-9

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 www.wetskins.org.

TUESDAY, June 25 GENDERQUEER DC, a support and discussion group for people who identify outside the gender binary,

meets at The DC Center on the fourth Tuesday of every month.

7-8:30 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit www.thedccenter.org.

Weekly Events DC AQUATICS CLUB practice

session at Takoma Aquatic Center.

7:30-9 p.m. 300 Van Buren St. NW. For more information, visit www. 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 afterwards.

Route distances vary. For meeting places and more information, visit www.dcfrontrunners.org.

DC SCANDALS RUGBY holds practice. The team is always looking for new members. All welcome.

7-9 p.m. Harry Thomas Recreation Center, 1743 Lincoln Rd. NE. For more information, visit www. scandalsrfc.org or dcscandals@ gmail.com.

Steam, 17th and R NW. All welcome. For more information, call Fausto Fernandez, 703-732-5174.

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 www.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 www.thedccenter.org.

HISTORIC CHRIST CHURCH

offers Wednesday worship 7:15 a.m. and 12:05 p.m. All welcome.

118 N. Washington St., Alexandria.

703-549-1450, www.historicchristchurch.org.

HIV TESTING at Whitman-Walker

Health. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. at 1525 14th St. NW, and 9 a.m-12:30 p.m. and 1:30-5 p.m. at the Max Robinson Center, 2301 MLK Jr. Ave. SE. For an appointment, call 202-745-7000 or visit www.whitman-walker.org.

THE GAY MEN'S HEALTH COLLABORATIVE offers free

JOB CLUB, a weekly support pro-

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.

gram for job entrants and seekers, meets at The DC Center. 6-7:30 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105.

For more info, email centercareers@thedccenter.org or visit www.thedccenter.org/careers.

OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS

KARING WITH INDIVIDUALITY (K.I.) SERVICES, 20 S. Quaker

holds an LGBT-focused meeting every Tuesday, 7 p.m. at St. George’s Episcopal Church, 915 Oakland Ave., Arlington, just steps from Virginia Square Metro. Handicapped accessible.

Newcomers welcome. For more info, call Dick, 703-521-1999 or email liveandletliveoa@gmail.com.

Support group for LGBTQ youth ages 13-21 meets at SMYAL. 5-6:30 p.m.

410 7th St. SE. For more information, contact Rebecca York, 202-567-3165, or rebecca.york@smyal.org.

US HELPING US hosts a support

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

WEDNESDAY, June 26 The DC Center’s HEALTH WORKING GROUP holds a monthly meeting to discuss initiatives based around HIV prevention and providing resources to support long-term survivors of HIV/AIDS. 6:30-8 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For more information, visit www.thedccenter.org.

Weekly Events AD LIB, a group for freestyle con-

versation, meets about 6-6:30 p.m.,

Lane, Suite 210, Alexandria, Va., offers $30 “rapid” HIV testing and counseling by appointment only. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Must schedule special appointment if seeking testing after 2 p.m. Call 703-823-4401.

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 202-849-8029.

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

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 www.whitman-walker.org.

WASHINGTON WETSKINS WATER POLO TEAM practices 7-9

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 www.wetskins.org. l

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

23

Signature

Achievement Thirty years ago, Eric Schaeffer founded what would become one of America’s finest regional theaters.

Interview by Doug Rule • Photography by Julian Vankim

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ATTHEW GARDINER HAS WORKED FOR Eric Schaeffer for 13 years and counting.

“I don’t want to blow his head up too much,” Gardiner laughs, “but he is the best boss — truly.” For starters, Gardiner says the co-founder and artistic director of Signature Theatre “doesn’t think of himself as the boss, he thinks of himself as one of a team, and he thinks of himself as creating a community. And that’s really special.”

Signature’s Associate Artistic Director considers himself “very lucky” that Schaeffer hired him right after he graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in 2006. “He took a chance on me, and gave me the opportunity to direct at Signature when I was only 24 years old,” says Gardiner, now 35. “That’s pretty amazing. And it says something about his ability to take risks, in all aspects.

“I’m always so amazed by the many plates that he’s able to juggle and the many balls that he’s able to keep in the air at any time,” he continues. “He’s always working on a million things, and dreaming of a million things for the future for Signature.”

Maggie Boland couldn’t agree more. “I just can’t believe how many plates he can keep spinning at the same time,” says Boland, Signature’s Managing Director, who adds that Schaeffer “is the most entrepreneurial person I’ve ever met.... He works at a higher capacity level than anybody else I know. And he’s always thinking about how to make Signature better.”

Boland also says Schaeffer has treated her as his equal in heading up the company since she came on staff 11 years ago.

“What’s great about him as a partner is that he actually wants to have a partner,” Boland says. “He doesn’t want to be charging out there alone in making decisions or shaping the organization’s future.... We just communicate constantly and really like each other, which is an awesome side benefit. We have a lot more fun at work than I ever thought an adult could.”

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JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

As it happens, everyone at Signature Theatre is in a particularly celebratory mood these days, given the theater company’s upcoming 30th anniversary. What began as a community-focused suburban professional troupe became a theatrical juggernaut, and the leading purveyor of musicals in Washington’s thriving theater community.

Schaeffer and Signature have also become the nation’s central champions of the works of Stephen Sondheim, and the company’s 30th anniversary season will kick off in August with a Schaeffer-helmed production of Assassins that will mark Signature’s 30th production of a Sondheim musical — the most produced by any one theater in America. Schaeffer has also helped shepherd and lead multiple shows to Broadway, including Follies, the Kennedy Center’s noteworthy 2011 revival of the Sondheim musical starring Bernadette Peters.

At the moment, Schaeffer is focused on the World Premiere of Blackbeard, a new musical with book and lyrics by John Dempsey and music by Dana P. Rowe, the same team behind previous Signature standouts The Witches of Eastwick and The Fix. “John and Dana have been here the whole time, really working hard,” says the 57-year-old Schaeffer. “David Holcenberg was the music director on Matilda and Groundhog Day in New York, and he is the music director ,but also one of the orchestrators. The other orchestrator, Scott Wasserman, is the programmer from Hamilton. So with the two of their minds together, they’re bringing the music to life in this amazing way that is just really spectacular.”

Since 1989, Signature has carved a niche for itself, not just in terms of musicals, but in terms of quality. It raised the musical theater bar so incredibly high, all other theaters had no choice but to follow suit. Still, when you attend a musical at Signature, more often than not you’re in for an evening that pays tribute to the art form while reinvigorating it. The company has a fistful of

t

METRO WEEKLY: Let’s talk about

Helen Hayes Awards to show for its efforts, and, in 2009, was presented with the prestigious Regional Theatre Tony in recognition of its consistent artistic excellence.

Perhaps, however, Gardiner sums it up it best.

"There have been many opportunities that have been presented to me to leave,” he says. “To be the artistic director in other theaters. But I don’t get the commitment to what I’m interested in — in terms of musical theater and new works and contemporary plays — the way that Signature does. Signature’s just a really unique, special place."

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your new musical, Blackbeard, which just opened in previews.

ERIC SCHAEFFER: Blackbeard is something like we've never done at Signature before.

People are not going to expect what they get when they see it.

It's also maybe one of the hardest things we've ever done.

New musicals are hard to begin with, but this musical is really complicated because there are 10 actors playing over 60 roles.

And musically, the styles go all over the map, in a great way.

It's very eclectic. As I said to the cast, we want the audience to feel like they're getting on a rollercoaster and the best amusement park ride they've ever been on. And they're not going to know where they're going to go or where they’ll end up.

It’s fun because there are sword fights, there are gun fights, there are dead pirates, there are alive pirates — there’s everything. We go to Japan, we go to India, we go to Norway.

It's this 90-minute jaunt around the world. I think it's perfect for the summer.

MW: Broadway veteran Chris Hoch makes his Signature debut as Blackbeard, leading a cast including two performers often identified as “Signature favorites” — Nova Y. Payton and Bobby Smith.

SCHAEFFER: Yeah, and you get to see them stretch muscles that they don't normally stretch. I've never seen Nova do what she's doing in the show. Or Bobby. I think audiences are going to particularly love Bobby's Judy Garland imitation that comes out.

MW: He does that in Blackbeard?

SCHAEFFER: Oh, yeah. Let's just say, there's a drinking contest and he loses.

MW: As it turns out, you’re also directing Smith and Payton as part of the cast of Assassins. What inspired you to return to that Sondheim show?

SCHAEFFER: This is actually the third time we've produced it. I directed it 27 years ago, and I'm excited to go back to it. I felt like it was the right time to do this show in today's world. I think the whole political climate, and how politics is so polarizing right now, and how you can understand people's frustrations — it's almost like there are no rules anymore. Assassins really magni-

fies that.

MW: How are you approaching it differently than in the past?

SCHAEFFER: The physical design is totally different. And I think it's going to have a much different resonance than it did 27 years ago. It's really going to affect people in a different way. When we decided to do it as a kick-off to the 30th anniversary, we cast it with people who have all worked at Signature. So they're all part of the Signature family. To really make it a celebration.

MW: It’s certainly worthy of a celebration. What pops to mind when you reflect on the milestone?

SCHAEFFER: I think it's been an amazing time and an amazing journey of 30 years. Seeing how the theater's grown over that time from starting out as this little idea to what it's become. And I look at all the artists that have been able to work here. And the work that we've done and how eclectic it is and continues to be. When you look back at it and you see all the shows in a list, it's kind of amazing, really.

MW: What inspired you to start a theater in this region in the first place?

SCHAEFFER: I'm originally from this little town called Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, in the middle of Amish country, and we had one traffic light and that was about it, and a curfew at ten o’clock at night. When I moved down here, I was doing community theater, and that's where I met Donna Migliaccio. And we were both on different boards — I was on the board of the Arlington Players, and she was on the board of Dominion Stage.

And I just remember we both were trying to get them to do more cutting-edge work. Sometimes they would, and sometimes, more than likely, they wouldn’t — and I totally understand that. But one night we just had a discussion: "Hey, maybe we should start a theater." It was just one of those off-the-cuff discussions. And then the next day, she asked, "Were you serious?" And I said, "Yeah, why not?" Because I was 27, young, and naïve, and thinking like, "Oh, the grass is greener everywhere."

Also, at the time, there was no professional theater in Arlington. That was a big thing. It was the late ’80s, and so there was that mentality of people in Virginia didn't go into D.C. at night. Everyone kind of stayed in their own neighborhoods. So we just thought there's an audience here that would actually love a contemporary theater, and we just thought the time felt right: "Let's do it." And that's really how it started.

MW: So you conceived of it not as a D.C.-area regional theater but as merely a Virginia-based organization?

SCHAEFFER: We totally did. From the very beginning, we sat down and made a five-year business plan and said, "This is what we want to do in the first five years. And if it's successful, we'll see how it goes." The interesting thing is, by the end of the second year, half into the third year, we had hit all those goals. And so then we did a new set of goals. It was always about filling a need in the community: there wasn't a professional theater here, and we just wanted to make one.

The other thing I remember from the beginning is, I had done some set design down at the Source Theater when that was running, and it was very bare-bones. I felt really passionate about wanting the acting on stage to be just as strong as the design — to make everything equal, that one wasn't given more attention than the other. And we’ve really tried, throughout our history here at Signature, to keep that.

MW: Along the way, Signature Theatre became known as the preeminent musical theater company in the area.

SCHAEFFER: What's interesting is, we never set out to be that.

The first year we only did plays. The first year, Donna and I, we just ran the company. I didn't direct anything. It was about making sure the theater was successful.

And then the second year was the first time we did a musical.

We did Sweeney Todd. Then the third year we did Assassins. And then people would ask, “What's the next Sondheim musical?"

The audience planted that idea. That's really how the Sondheim

“There are sword fights, there are gun fights, there are dead pirates, there are alive pirates. We go to Japan, we go to India, we

It’s this 90-minute jaunt around the world. I think [Blackbeard ] is perfect for the summer.” go to Norway.

annual show came into being. It wasn't like a brainchild of anyone's but the audience's. We thought, "Oh, we better do another one." And then after that, we automatically went, "Well, what's our Sondheim going to be?" And it became a staple. Those shows in the early years really became successful, so then we thought, "Maybe we should do two musicals." And then it became three musicals, and then we were doing five shows [a season] and more musicals. So it's just grown and grown.

MW: How long was it before you were able to stop doing non-theater work to pay the bills after starting the company?

SCHAEFFER: It wasn't until the ninth season when I finally stopped as the art director at WETA. It just became too much. I remember I didn't know how my parents would take it. I called them and I said, "I just want to let you know, I’ve decided to work full-time at the theater." I remember my mom’s response.

She was a nurse, and she asked, "Do you have health insurance at the theater?" And I said, "Yep." And she was like, "Well, that's all I care about. Do what you want to do. That's great." They were really supportive and great about it.

MW: Is your family still supportive? Do they come to see shows?

SCHAEFFER: Oh yeah. My dad's a donor to the theater.

And he comes. He'll bring a bus from my hometown. They pick a show, "Oh, the Fleetwood bus is coming." We'll get 54 of them on the bus and they'll come down for the day and see a show.

MW: Who comes with him, friends?

SCHAEFFER: My brother organizes it. He has an email list, because all these people have been coming. And literally the bus fills up in 24 hours. He has a waiting list because everyone wants to come.

MW: Have they planned next year’s show yet?

SCHAEFFER: Oh, yeah, they're coming to A Chorus Line. He's already picked it.

MW: Is it true that you’re pretty much all self-taught when it comes to your work in theater, including directing?

SCHAEFFER: Yes, I am. I've learned from seeing the great shows and also the terrible shows. You learn from going to the theater — you see things that work and that don't work.

MW: Have you noticed any changes in overall stage direction, or perhaps of your individual directing style, since you first started?

SCHAEFFER: Not that I can think of. With all the technology and JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

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everything that's changed over the years, it still goes back to the same thing: What is the story you're telling and why are you telling it? I think as long as you know that and understand that, you'll be okay.

Another thing I’ve learned is: Only do stuff that you really want to do. It's okay to say no to something. I've done some stuff over the years where I thought, "I shouldn't have ever done that." So, now I don't. I’ll say, "No, this is what I want to do. I'm not going to do that." I'd rather not do anything than just do it to say I did it, because it's not going to be good for myself and it's not going to be good for the audience or the actors. I think that's really important.

MW: I don't suppose you'd be willing to share an example of what you're referring to.

MW: That's a musical also notable for being one of the first shows

to feature a gay character.

SCHAEFFER: Oh, yeah, the Paul character. The fact that they put that on a Broadway stage in the ’70s, that was huge. We literally just did some callbacks this week, and we actually called back the Pauls, and they did that monologue. And I have to say it is just as moving today as it was then. I welled up.

MW: You mentioned Matthew Gardiner, who is, essentially, your right-hand man. How did that partnership develop?

SCHAEFFER: I met Matt [through] this overtures program, one of our outreach programs in the summer for musical theater training. He took it the first year. He was on a break from school, and he said, "Could I be an A.D. on one of your shows and just be in the room?" I said, "Oh, absolutely." Then it just kept growing, and I remember when he was graduating college, I asked, "What are you going to do?" And he said, "Well, I'm not sure. I might move to New York, I don’t know." And I said, "If we made a job for you here, would you want to stay and be the assistant director?" He said, “That would be amazing.” So there he was. It’s great how much he has grown as an artist. And he gets to do things that I don't think he could do at other places.

And he just contributes so much here to Signature, so we're lucky to have him.

MW: How has the company changed over the past 30 years?

SCHAEFFER: Well, on the administrative side, it's gotten way, way, way, way, way more professional. It’s really a top-notch organization in that department. It's grown so much. We have 56 full-time employees now. All of a sudden, you're managing 56 people on a daily basis. That's a whole different monster.

MW: You must have a good working relationship with Maggie Boland.

SCHAEFFER: Yeah, we have a great working partnership together. There's a real respect for each other and we really appreciate and understand what both of our roles are. We really work well together, and...the staff sees that. It's not like we're running away from each other, ever. It's the direct opposite: We do everything together. So she's been a great asset to the theater and has really helped the theater grow and get to where it is.

MW: Do you have a favorite production of those that you've done?

SCHAEFFER: Oh, that's so hard — that's like picking your favorite child. I have so many fond memories. Obviously I love all of Sondheim's work. I just think it's brilliant, and every time you see it or work on one, you find something new and exciting you didn't see before. And I love Kander & Ebb. I love them. Jerry Herman. But then I also love all the new writers. I love Dempsey and Rowe, who we're working with right now on Blackbeard.

I've done five shows with them.

MW: I’m sure many Sondheim fans would cite the Kennedy Center Sondheim Celebration, the star-studded summer repertory series you oversaw in 2002.

SCHAEFFER: It was exciting to have that summer camp — as we called it, Camp Sondheim — where we were all just there, working really hard, but just having the best time doing his shows that we all love.

Looking back, I really feel like that was a huge turning point in how people looked at Sondheim's work. And it actually started a whole renaissance of his work being revived around the world.

For the last 17 years, you look at all of those revivals, and I think

“The first year we only did plays. The second year was the first time we did a musical.

Sweeney Todd. Then the third year we did Assassins. And then people would ask,

‘What’s the next Sondheim musical?’

The audience planted that idea.”

SCHAEFFER: [Laughs.] No, I don't want to share that! That's on

my private list.

MW: It seems a safe bet that Titanic is not on that list. Is it true your 2017 production of that blockbuster may yet see the lights of Broadway?

SCHAEFFER: That's the plan. We're waiting to get a theater.

There's a producer who did some auditions already. Next season is the hope. I think people thought, "How is Signature going to do this? They’ve lost their minds.” I've always loved the show, and I've always wanted to do it — and it was one of those where I had this idea of how to do it. But that's an interesting case in point of not staying in a box. We're always pushing boundaries, trying to do something that's different and trying to reinvent in a bigger way.

It’s the same thing with A Chorus Line, which we’ve never done. I think people think, “Oh, Signature wants to do A Chorus Line,” we make a phone call, and it’s, “Oh, here you go, you can do the show.” And that’s not the case at all. It took almost a year to get the rights to do A Chorus Line, and part of that was because we're not going to be doing the original choreography. Denis Jones, who choreographed Tootsie, is doing all new choreography. So working all of that out with the estates and the rights holders took a long time — to get them to allow us and to trust us to do it, because it is a masterpiece. So that's what's really, really exciting about that show. To be able to see it in an intimate setting, that you feel like you're actually in the room with them. And then to be able to see it has a whole new life. Are people going to fall over if Cassie's not in a red dress? Well, she may not be. But that's what's great. And that's Signature, I think, in a nutshell.

MW: Are you directing that?

SCHAEFFER: No, Matt Gardiner is. He's working with Jason Sherwood, who designed Billy Elliott for us but also did Rent Live. So the concept of the set design is totally fresh and new. I think people are going to be really surprised, excited, and love it.

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JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

that was a main [impetus] because there was so much press about that festival... And we had thirty-some countries come to see that festival.

It was just groundbreaking. I think once we started getting the caliber — once Christine Baranski and Brian Stokes Mitchell signed on, then Lynn Redgrave — the list of people just went on and on.

MW: Any chance you might do something like that again?

SCHAEFFER: I'd love to. It would be really exciting to do something like that again. But the cost of doing something like that has become so extreme.

MW: What do you see for your future?

Do you think you’ll still be here, working in the theater, in another 30 years?

SCHAEFFER: Oh, God no! Lord, I'll be 87! I'm not going to be George Abbott, that's for sure. There are still things that I want to do, and there are new projects I'm working on that I'm really excited about.

In the last two years, I [staged] a hologram concert of Roy Orbison.

So I've been working in holograms, which is a whole new different thing, and really interesting and fun and creative. And I just did a Buddy Holly hologram, and that's actually going to go out on tour with the hologram of Roy Orbison. That's going to start in Europe in the fall. So to just expand in other ways creatively, I'll keep doing that.

MW: You don't find holograms — and live hologram performances of dead singers and stars specifically — unsettling or creepy at all?

SCHAEFFER: No, because this company that does it, Base Hologram, they really are very creative and just do it with really great respect. So Roy has a live band behind him, but the hologram is the hologram. And it's kind of wonderful [to] get to see these iconic people that I obviously never would have seen or got to see. And when you see older audiences who did know Roy, they just go crazy, because it is so real. It's so dimensional, you think, "How is this happening? How do they do this?" It's really kind of great.

MW: Do you think you’d bring holograms to the Signature stage?

SCHAEFFER: I think it would be interesting to explore holograms in the theater. There might be something interesting in that.

MW: Turning to a more personal topic, I wanted to ask, how is your love life these days?

SCHAEFFER: It's good. I’ve had a partner for over eight years.

He's not in the business, so it's perfect.

MW: Do you hear wedding bells in your future? What about kids?

SCHAEFFER: Oh, I don't know. We've talked about it. Everyone keeps asking, "When are you guys getting married?” If we do, we're not telling. And we're not having it at Signature Theatre, I can tell you that.

And no kids. I mean, I love kids — other people's kids. I have seven nieces and nephews, who are all great, and now they're having children, so I'm actually a great uncle three times already.

So with all of them, there's enough kids.

MW: Do you think of the theater and of your work in the industry

as a way of leaving a legacy, especially in lieu of having children?

SCHAEFFER: No, I don't. I think when I'm not here, then I'll think it's my legacy. While I'm still here, I’ve got to keep thinking big: “What else should we do? Let's push the boundary.”

MW: It is worth noting that over the years, some real stars of D.C.’s theater scene got their start or first big break with you at Signature — Nova Y. Payton is the first to come to mind. That must make you feel like a proud papa, to some extent.

SCHAEFFER: It's funny you say that because she [actually] calls me "papa."

And it does. It's great to see people whose careers have taken off and just get noticed how they should for their talent. There's so many of them, and I think it's made this city a stronger arts city. I think it's really important to provide those opportunities and continue to do that, to let people shine and let people get discovered like that. That's what makes it great.

MW: Although naturally that’s not something you set out to do when starting the company.

SCHAEFFER: No, not at all, not at all. But it's one of those nice, icing-on-the-cake things. There are people that you see them in the room and think, "This person is really special." And you just hope that they'll have a career that they deserve. It's great to see people getting that. l Blackbeard, directed by Eric Schaeffer, runs to July 14, with a Pride Night performance on June 28, in Signature’s MAX Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington. Call 703-820-9771 or visit www.sigtheatre.org.

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

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Movies

Playtime

Toy Story 4 carries the legacy of Pixar’s magnificent series into an inspired new direction. By Randy Shulman

C

ONSIDER THIS: WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF ALL OF THE TOYS IN THE world suddenly came out? Not out of the closet, mind you, though that’s very often where toys are stored, but rather revealed themselves to their human owners that they are, in fact, sentient beings with feelings, neuroses, dreams, souls?

Can you imagine?

In many respects our toys — particularly dolls — are already “alive” to their young owners. They are essential tools that help forge our imaginations, comfort us when we’re frightened or in need, and serve as companions for those times when we are most alone. Tea with teddy bears, war games with G.I. Joes, racing with Hot Wheels, crafting with Legos are all time-honored passages of — and into — life. Eventually, toys become a part of our past, and though there may be sentimental and nostalgic value attached to a cherished few, we basically lose our childhood bonds as we take on the often cumbersome shackles of adulthood.

The folks at Pixar brilliantly tapped into the primal nature of toys in 1994 with their breakout hit Toy Story, a stunning animated romp that dealt with, in ways both heartfelt and exuberant, the rivalry that comes to light when a favored, old-fashioned toy is supplanted by the latest craze. Over the course of fifteen years, through two more films, the Toy Story series gradually deepened, winding up in 2010 with a narrative that had such startling emotional weight, it left entire audiences in fully-earned tears. It was the quintessential capper to a trilogy that both shone a light on Pixar’s unique CGI animation skills — hand-drawn is still the most astounding of all the animated forms, but the Toy Story films found a rich, visual resonance all their own — and on the company’s ability to craft narratives that were simultaneously adventure based and deeply, profoundly heartfelt.

So when Pixar announced Toy Story 4, a healthy skepticism emerged — how do you top that third film? Is there more story to tell? Turns out, there is. Much more.

Pixar, to its credit, doesn’t try to match Toy Story 3, but rather leans into the strengths of the series to advance the story, in the process uncovering a fresh, new thematic hold in which to grip the audience. True, Toy Story 4 treads familiar tropes foraged

from the first three films, but it deals far more directly with the sentient nature of the toys themselves. They are more fully realized than ever before, and their own sense of longing, their ability to sacrifice elements of themselves for a greater good, their humanity is on powerful display throughout the film’s 100-minute running time.

All good animated films carry lessons, sometimes on their sleeves, sometimes buried deep within. Toy Story 4 does a little of both. Metaphors of liberation (“Who needs a kid’s room when you can have all of this,” says one character gesturing to a gorgeous, glowing carnival vista), of following one’s desire, of coming to terms with one’s sense of self-worth and sense, are magnificently, deftly evoked in the profound (and very, very funny) screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Stephany Folsom, and in the visually witty, timed-to-perfection direction from first-timer Josh Cooley. Toy Story 4 (HHHHH) does the series proud, both thematically and in pacing, balancing over-the-top, whiz-bang action sequences with genuine, nuanced encounters between the toys. It’s also the most visually spectacular of the series, blending a sense of reality with just enough artifice to transport us to a world that is as routinely familiar as it is enmeshed in fantasy.

Contrary to what you might think, the narrative has not been spoiled by the previews, which are remarkably sly in what they reveal. A bounty of new characters introduced into the mix, including Gabby

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

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Gabby (Christina Hendricks), an antique doll with sinister designs and an army of unnervingly creepy ventriloquist henchdolls, a fantastically narcissistic daredevil doll (Keanu Reeves, in perhaps his best performance ever), and a pair of carnival plushies who harbor alarmingly overactive imaginations (Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key), keep things fresh and lively.

The most interesting addition, however, is Forky, a creation of five-year-old Bonnie on her first day in Kindergarten. He’s a white plastic spork, with popsicle sticks for feet, a pair of mismatched googly eyes, blue clay for a mouth, and red pipe cleaner for arms and hands. “He was made from trash,” Woody (Tom Hanks, the film’s heartbeat) says, introducing the awkward creation to the rest of the toys, and “he’s now Bonnie’s most

important toy.” Amusingly, Forky (Tony Hale, who brings utter perfection to the role), fully understands his origins, and his instincts draw him to hightail it to every wastebasket in sight.

Part of the movie’s journey is Forky’s acceptance that he’s not landfill fodder, but something that was created out of love and worthy of being cherished. A toy is what you make it.

Which brings me back to the original question: What if all the toys revealed themselves to their humans. Sure, it would be a very different film — no doubt inducing cardiac arrest in the adult characters — but watching the gang in Toy Story 4 go to extreme lengths to hide the fact that they’re living beings coexisting in our world is, quite honestly, exhausting. You want them to spring to joyful life and exclaim, “We’re here. We’re dear. Play with us. l

Toy Story 4 is rated G and is playing at theaters everywhere. See it in IMAX if you can. Totally worth it. Visit www.fandango.com.

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JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

JOAN MARCUS

Stage

Breakups and Breakdowns F

A fine Falsettos makes itself at home — but only for a brief run — at the Kennedy Center. By André Hereford

AMILY AND FRIENDS SING THROUGH THE BEST AND WORST OF TIMES in William Finn’s queer-themed ’90s musical Falsettos (HHHHH). James Lapine, who wrote the book with Finn and served as director of the original Broadway production, polished up the show — about a family fractured, then found, after a married father comes out as gay — for a well-received 2016 Broadway revival.

The national touring production, ably led by Max von Essen as Marvin, a neurotic New Yorker who has left his wife Trina (Eden Espinosa) and 10-year old son Jason (Jonah Mussolino) for hot-to-trot Whizzer (Nick Adams), feels fresh and timely, even as it drives home timeless themes of kinship, compassion, and redemption.

Redemption doesn’t come easy for Marvin, a character who causes and inflicts a great deal of pain, though not intentionally most of the time. Usually, he’s just selfish — although he can be cruel too, even while the music’s playing. He wants to be a better man, a better dad, a good partner, and the show seems to want that for him. Von Essen’s portrayal is sympathetic without letting Marvin off the hook for some of his shittier behavior. And he sings the part beautifully, making Marvin the warm but flawed center of a makeshift family cobbled together with love and persistence.

The family’s unconventional arrangement also runs on patience, personified in

the story by Trina. In the role of a jilted wife and struggling mom who learns to be stronger than she thinks she can be, Espinosa wears that patience like armor.

She delivers a suitably distressed, and wryly self-deprecating, take on Trina’s solo “I’m Breaking Down,” while also suggesting that Trina definitely can and will recover from whatever life or her family throws at her.

Trina garners several solos within the show’s sung-through format, as do Whizzer and Jason. They, along with Jason’s psychiatrist, Mendel (Nick Blaemire), are allowed ample space to project their feelings and insights about the family’s delicate situation. But for all the disparate perspectives Falsettos explores, the show’s compelling interest is always Marvin, which seems a limitation for a show about how those many separate shards can hold fast together as something stable and whole.

The second act introduces two major new characters, Dr. Charlotte (Bryonha Marie Parham) and Cordelia (Audrey Cardwell), who add spunk and broaden the scope of the early AIDS era the show depicts. Yet, as welcome and well-per-

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formed as they are, they also really just serve Marvin’s story: the Falsettos fantasy that a self-centered man can tear his own house down coming out of the closet, then still be adored as the head of one big, happy family.

Marvin gets to live out his fantasy — but then again, he doesn’t. This cast essays the shifting moods of the story exceptionally well, abetted by a small but formidable orchestra conducted by P. Jason Yarcho. There’s passion and exuberance in von Essen and Adams’ spin on Marvin and Whizzer’s “Thrill of First Love.” That rush gives way to tenderness in Marvin’s poignant “What More Can I Say,” and later, the company hits a home run with their humorous antics singing “The Baseball Game.” David Rockwell’s set, consisting of austere building blocks that the company arranges and rearranges into rooms, provides an inventively malleable space for those shifting emo-

tions.

Finn’s songs shape space through their witty, wordy lyrics — far more than the melodies themselves, which won’t convert any listener who doesn’t already believe in the power of showtunes. These aren’t jazz or pop standards, this is real show music. Luckily, this is an ensemble equipped to hitch nuance and authenticity to those songs, particularly von Essen and Espinosa.

Mussolino (who alternates performances in the role of Jason with Thatcher Jacobs) adds a spark of innocence, too. The youngster’s singing sounds pinched in its upper register, but, whether he’s acting the story’s intense father-son scenes, or hoofing through Spencer Liff’s light choreography, his characterization is as assured as any of the adult performers onstage. They all capture the spirit of cooperation that defines this family’s desperate attempt to heal, and to seize one, big happy ending. l

C. STANLEY

Falsettos runs through June 23 in the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater. Tickets are $49 to $139.

Call 202-467-4600, or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

Room Service

Deb Gottesman and Claire Schoonover let ’er rip as dueling retirees in Keegan’s rollicking Ripcord. By André Hereford

D

AVID LINDSAY-ABAIRE’S RAUCOUS FARCE RIPCORD (HHHHH) MIGHT be about the beginning of a beautiful friendship, or the origin of one nasty feud, depending on whether anyone’s left standing when this duel of pranks finally comes to an end. But Abby (Deb Gottesman) and Marilyn (Claire Schoonover), retirees and new roommates on the top floor of the Bristol Place Senior Living Facility, are both too stubborn and too competitive to relent once their war of wagers gets going.

Director Megan Thrift and her game cast make an amusing and heartwarming Scrooge-style tale of Lindsay-Abaire’s odd-couple comedy, now in a regional premiere production at Keegan Theatre. Led by Gottesman’s gloriously grumpy Abby and Schoonover’s unassailably sunny Marilyn, the play develops a seaworthy balance between the ladies’ often vicious ribbing, and the obvious relationship-building that proceeds no matter how hard Abby tries to fight it.

The roomies are at odds over Abby’s desire to have the room to herself. She’s been there for years, while Marilyn was installed only weeks ago in their two-bed studio, with a view of the nearby park. Marilyn, who especially enjoys the view, covets Abby’s bed next to the window. So the pair comes to terms on a bet that would see Abby

regain her private room if she wins, or award Marilyn the bed by the window if she wins.

Even for a shared studio in a retirement facility, Matthew J. Keenan’s set hardly looks like a room worth fighting over, but the decor and props, and the performances, do invest the space with real meaning. Abby and Marilyn both have lost a lot along the way to Bristol Place, so every little bit they can hold onto counts.

Craig Miller’s hair and makeup design and Alison Samantha Johnson’s costumes also do more than a little to accentuate the characterizations, although Schoonover and Gottesman have that matter well in hand.

Schoonover carries off Marilyn’s perpetual sunniness and Doris Day hairdo with aplomb, while a marvelous Gottesman manages to keep Abby’s blooming heart so well-concealed as to actually create suspense about where this escalating prank war is so clearly heading.

Both ladies adroitly navigate the play’s turns between Golden Girls banter and tear-jerking revelations, with able assists from Jared Shamberger as facility orderly Scotty and Kari Ginsburg as Marilyn’s daughter Colleen.

Robert Bowen Smith is less successful, however, in his thin characterization of one of Abby’s long-lost relatives. The two confront each other in a pivotal scene that could have elevated the drama beyond its Very Special Episode atmosphere, but the scene falls flat — it seems Rabbit Hole scribe Lindsay-Abaire put away his Pulitzer pen for Ripcord. Still, his play and Thrift’s staging do capture the birth of a friendship in the fun little farce, which is a beautiful thing to experience at any age. l

Ripcord runs through July 6 at The Keegan Theatre, 1742 Church St. NW. Tickets are $20 to $46.

Call 202-265-3767, or visit KeeganTheatre.com.

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NightLife Photography by Ward Morrison

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Scene

Riot: Capital Pride Opening Dance at Echo Stage - Friday June 7 - Photography by Ward Morrison See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

DrinksDragDJsEtc...

Thursday, June 20

of Bud Products all night • Sports Leagues Night

A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Open 5pm-2am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Live televised sports

NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover

GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • Shirtless Thursday, 10-11pm • Men in Underwear Drink Free, 12-12:30am • DJs BacK2bACk

PITCHERS Open 5pm-2am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Foosball • Live televised sports • Full dining menu till 9pm • Special Late Night menu till 11pm • Thirst Trap Thursdays, hosted by Venus Valhalla, 11pm-12:30am • Featuring a Rotating Cast of Drag Performers • Dancing until 1:30am

NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • $15 Buckets

SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail

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

Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers • Half-Priced Bottles of Wine, 5pm-close 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, 9pm-close • “New Meat” Open Dancers Audition • Music by DJ Don T. • Cover 21+

Destinations A LEAGUE OF HER OWN 2317 18th St. NW 202-733-2568 www.facebook.com/alohodc AVALON SATURDAYS Soundcheck 1420 K St. NW 202-789-5429 www.facebook.com/ AvalonSaturdaysDC 38

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Friday, June 21 A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Open 5pm-3am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Live televised sports FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Karaoke, 9pm GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $3 Rail and Domestic • $5 Svedka, all flavors all night long • Davon Hamilton presents Lit! Underwear Party, featuring DJ Tryfe, 10pm-close • $10 Cover (includes clothes check) • GoGo Dancers • $5 Margaritas and $8 Long Islands NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Open 3pm • Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2

FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR 555 23rd St. S. Arlington, Va. 703-685-0555 www.freddiesbeachbar.com GREEN LANTERN 1335 Green Ct. NW 202-347-4533 www.greenlanterndc.com

(5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer, $15 • Weekend Kickoff Dance Party, with Nellie’s DJs spinning bubbly pop music all night NUMBER NINE Open 5pm • Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover • Friday Night Piano with Chris, 7:30pm • Rotating DJs, 9:30pm PITCHERS Open 5pm-3am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Foosball • Live televised sports • Full dining menu till 9pm • Special Late Night menu till 2am

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 • Otter Happy Hour with guest DJs, 5-11pm ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS Men of Secrets, 9pm • Guest dancers • Rotating DJs • Kristina Kelly’s Diva Fev-ah Drag Show • Doors at 9pm, Shows at 11:45pm • Music by DJ Jeff Eletto • Cover 21+

SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers

NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR 900 U St. NW 202-332-6355 www.nelliessportsbar.com NUMBER NINE 1435 P St. NW 202-986-0999 www.numberninedc.com PITCHERS 2317 18th St. NW 202-733-2568 www.pitchersbardc.com

NIGHTLIFE HIGHLIGHTS Compiled by Doug Rule

PITCHERS DRAG PICNIC You have options galore around town if you want to sashay away to a weekend brunch with queens. But only Pitchers offers the rather novel idea of a drag picnic, every second and fourth Saturday. Brooklyn Heights hosts the feast and show starting “PROMPTLY” at 1 p.m. And for this picnic, you don’t need to pack your own basket, as food from the venue’s menu will be available along with drinks at the bar. The next picnic is Saturday, June 22. Pitchers is at 2317 18th St. NW. Call 202-733-2568 or visit https://pitchersdc.eventbrite.com to make reservations.

Saturday, June 22 A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Open 2pm-3am • Video Games • Live televised sports AVALON SATURDAYS @Soundcheck 1420 K St. NW LGBTQ Dance Party, 10pm-4am • $15 Cover • Drink specials • Drag Show, 10:30-11:30pm, hosted by Ba’Naka and a rotating cast of drag queens • Open Bar on Tito’s and Jameson, 11pm-midnight • Visit www.dougiemeyerpresents.com 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, 8-10pm • Karaoke, 10pm-close GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $5 Bacardi, all flavors, all night long • JOX: The GL Underwear Party, 9pm-close • Featuring DJs Chaim, UltraPup, and Pup Phoenix • $5 Cover (includes clothes check) NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Drag Brunch, hosted

by Chanel Devereaux, 10:30am-12:30pm and 1-3pm • Tickets on sale at nelliessportsbar.com • House Rail Drinks, Zing Zang Bloody Marys, Nellie Beer and Mimosas, $4, 11am-3am • Buckets of Beer, $15 • Guest DJs playing pop music all night

SHAW’S TAVERN 520 Florida Ave. NW 202-518-4092 www.shawstavern.com TRADE 1410 14th St. NW 202-986-1094 www.tradebardc.com ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS 1824 Half St. SW 202-863-0670 www.ziegfelds.com

HARDER DC: THE BARBER STREISAND + SPRKLBB Back in March, D.C. became the fourth American city to get Harder — following Chicago, San Francisco, and the party’s Brooklyn home base. Promoter Eric Bloom has described his party as a “sexy underground-branded queer party” that is open and welcoming to all ages (above 18), genders, orientations, and fetishes. The second edition features grooves from D.C.’s own DJ The Barber Streisand as well as Andy Egelhoff, a Brooklyn-based queer underground club DJ and photographer who performs as SPRKLBB. Jane Saw, Matt Schwarz, and Ricardo Tavares are the local Harder hosts who will help to enforce the party’s stated plea asking patrons to refrain from picture-taking and phone-usage, especially on the dance floor, “so everyone can have a full and true underground experience.” Friday, June 21, starting at 10 p.m. U Street Music Hall is at 1115A U St. NW. Tickets are $20. Call 202-588-1880 or visit www.ustreetmusichall.com.

NEW ORDER DANCE PARTY On Saturday, June 22, at 9 p.m., the Black Cat hosts another retro-themed dance party guided by three of the venue’s most popular and longest-spinning DJs — Steve EP, Missguided, and Killa K. The focus is on the pioneering post-disco acts that originated from the U.K.’s Factory Records in the early 1980s — foremost among them the seminal synth-rock band New Order. “True Faith,” “Blue Monday,” “Bizarre Love Triangle,” and “Confusion” are among the group’s hits you can expect to groove to, along with songs from other acts associated with the Manchester-based Factory, including OMD (“If You Leave”), the Happy Mondays (“24 Hour Party People”), James (“Laid”), and ACR (“Do The Du”), as well as New Order’s precursor, Joy Division (“Love Will Tear Us Apart”). The Black Cat is at 1811 14th St. NW. Tickets are $12. Call 202-667-4490 or visit www. blackcatdc.com.

SPLASHY POOL PARTY Six years after forming their partnership for the mega-popular holiday-Sunday party Flashy Sundays, Sean Morris and Kurt “TWiN” Graves are readying a special Sunday party of a different sort. The pool at the Capitol Skyline Hotel near Nationals Park will play host to the Splashy Sunday pool party, soundtracked by the two veteran club DJs. Although they never materialized, last Sunday’s forecasted afternoon thunderstorms prompted organizers to postpone the party’s debut to this Sunday, June 23. Diving commences at 5 p.m., with swimming, synchronized and otherwise, until 10 p.m. The hotel is located at 10 I St. SW. Cover is $10. Call 202-488-7500 or visit www.facebook.com/splashypool.

SATELLITE ROOM’S DRAG BINGO BASH PRIDE FINALE Bombalicious Eklaver serves as Bingomaster and host of a special Drag Bingo Bash on Tuesday, June 25, to send off Capital Pride 2019 once and for all. Expect multiple rounds of b-i-n-g-o, unique prizes including boozy treats from Republic Restoratives, and pizza and pitcher specials featuring local brews including DC Brau and 3Stars. The free bash runs from 6 to 9 p.m. at Shaw’s Satellite Room, 2047 9th St. NW. Call 202-506-2496 or visit www.satellitedc.com. l JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

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NUMBER NINE Doors open 2pm • Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close • Jawbreaker: Music of the ‘90s and 2000s, featuring DJs BacK2bACk, 9:30pm PITCHERS Open Noon-3am • Video Games • Foosball • Live televised sports • Full dining menu till 9pm • Special Late Night menu till 2am SHAW’S TAVERN Brunch with $15 Bottomless Mimosas, 10am-3pm • Happy Hour, 5-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers

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TRADE Doors open 2pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 2-10pm • Beer and wine only $4 ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS Men of Secrets upstairs, 9pm-close • Guest dancers • Ladies of Illusion Drag Show with host Ella Fitzgerald in Ziegfeld’s • Doors open at 9pm, Show at 11:45pm • Music by DJs Keith Hoffman and Don T. • Cover 21+

Sunday, June 23 A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Open 2pm-12am • $4 Smirnoff and Domestic Cans • Video Games • Live televised sports FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Ella’s Sunday Drag Brunch, 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-close GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • Karaoke with Kevin downstairs, 9:30pm-close NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Drag Brunch, hosted

by Chanel Devereaux, 10:30am-12:30pm and 1-3pm • Tickets on sale

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

at nelliessportsbar.com • House Rail Drinks, Zing Zang Bloody Marys, Nellie Beer and Mimosas, $4, 11am-1am • Buckets of Beer, $15 • Guest DJs NUMBER NINE 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 • Pop Goes the World with Wes Della Volla at 9:30pm • No Cover PITCHERS Open Noon-2am • $4 Smirnoff, includes flavored, $4 Coors Light or $4 Miller Lites, 2-9pm • Video Games • Foosball • Live televised sports • Full dining menu till 9pm

SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 5-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers • Dinner and Drag with Miss Kristina Kelly, 8pm • For reservations, email shawsdinnerdragshow@ gmail.com TRADE Doors open 2pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge glass for the same price, 2-10pm • Beer and wine only $4

Monday, June 24 FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Singles Night • Half-Priced Pasta Dishes • Karaoke, 9pm GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $3 rail cocktails and domestic beers 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 • Half-Priced Burgers • Paint Nite, 7pm • PokerFace Poker, 8pm • Dart Boards • Ping Pong Madness, featuring 2 PingPong Tables

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

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NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover

Tuesday, June 25

SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 5-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers • Paint Nite, Second Floor, 7pm • Shaw ’Nuff Trivia, with Jeremy, 7:30pm

A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Open 5pm-12am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Live televised sports

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

GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $3 rail cocktails and domestic beers all night long

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

NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Beat the Clock Happy Hour — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer $15 • Drag Bingo with Sasha Adams and Brooklyn Heights, 7-9pm • Karaoke, 9pm-close

NUMBER NINE Open at 5pm • Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover PITCHERS Open 5pm-12am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Foosball • Live televised sports • Full dining menu till 9pm • Special Late Night menu till 11pm SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers • Half-Priced Burgers and Pizzas, 5-10pm TRADE Doors open 5pm • Huge Happy Hour: Any drink normally served in a cocktail glass served in a huge

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

glass for the same price, 5-10pm • Beer and wine only $4

Wednesday, June 26 A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Open 5pm-12am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Live televised sports FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • $6 Burgers • Beach Blanket Drag Bingo Night, hosted

by Ms. Regina Jozet Adams, 8pm • Bingo prizes • Karaoke, 10pm-1am GREEN LANTERN Happy Hour, 4pm-9pm • Bear Yoga with Greg Leo, 6:30-7:30pm • $10 per

class • $3 rail cocktails and domestic beers all night long NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR SmartAss Trivia Night, 8-10pm • Prizes include bar tabs and tickets to shows at the 9:30 Club • $15 Buckets of Beer for SmartAss Teams only • Absolutely Snatched Drag Show, hosted by Brooklyn Heights, 9pm • Tickets available at www.nelliessportsbar.com NUMBER NINE Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm • No Cover PITCHERS Open 5pm-12am • Happy Hour: $2 off everything until 9pm • Video Games • Foosball • Live televised sports • Full dining menu till 9pm • Special Late Night menu till 11pm

SHAW’S TAVERN Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas and Select Appetizers • Democratic Debate Watch Party, 9pm • $5 Stoli Flavors and $5 House Wines 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 • Women’s Crush Wednesdays: A Monthly Happy Hour for LBT women, Non-genderconforming, and Nonbinary Folks Who Love Women, 5-10pm l

Scene

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Team DC’s Night OUT at Nationals - Tuesday, June 4 - Photography by Ward Morrison See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

Scene

Dacha Nats After Party - Tuesday, June 4 - Photography by Ward Morrison See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY

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LastWord.

People say the queerest things

“I’m certainly very proud of my marriage and my husband.

We don’t shy away from that. It’s also not the only thing that defines me. ” — Presidential hopeful Mayor PETE BUTTIGIEG, speaking to the Des Moines Register about how proud he is to be gay and married, but that he’s also more than his sexuality. “I think some people have an image of what a gay person or an LGBTQ activist is supposed to look like,” he continued. “And I think if you’ve met one gay person, you’ve met one gay person. We have different styles and different approaches. But what I try to do is just be who I am. I don’t know who else to be.”

“Arousal associated with perceived physical attractiveness, especially in the context of sexual intercourse, may override intentions to use condoms.”

— Dr. TOM NARDARZYNSKI, discussing with Gay Star News the results of a University of Maryland study which found that gay men are less likely to use condoms with people the more physically attractive they find that person to be, because they are less likely to believe that the person has HIV or STDs. “The findings of this research demonstrate a specific bias in thinking that sex with an attractive person could be less risky, which is unlikely to be accurate,” Nardarzynksi said. “Also, physical attractiveness is highly subjective, therefore it cannot be a reliable determinant of HIV status.”

“This poor guy needs to move to a place he is wanted.

Freaking queers have gotten too much sympathy.

A real abomination. ” — Republican politician PHIL BENSON, elected treasurer of Mobile County, Alabama, in a comment on the county’s Republican Party Facebook page. Benson was responding to a news story about a baker who refuses to bake cakes for LGBTQ people.

Speaking to WPMI, Benson refused to apologize, instead saying, “Gay people are offensive to me.”

“For all the hard-won progress, for as much as we can celebrate how much better things have gotten — this fight is not over.”

— Former Vice President JOE BIDEN, in a tweet after making a surprise stop at the Stonewall Inn in New York City. Biden visited to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots and bought a round of beer for patrons. He tweeted: “We have to come together to stand up to abuses of power, ensure that everyone is treated with dignity, and fight for full equality.”

“For stories about transgender people to be truly real and authentic, trans people need to be behind the camera as well as in front of it.”

— NICK ADAMS, director of transgender media and representation at GLAAD, in a statement after trans author and Pose director, writer and producer Janet Mock announced she had signed a deal with Netflix to produce content for the streaming giant. Mock celebrated the landmark deal in an interview with Variety: “As someone who grew up in front of the TV screen, whether that was watching talk shows or family sitcoms or VHS films, I never thought that I would be embraced. And more than embraced. Given not just a seat at the table but a table of my own making.”

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JUNE 20, 2019 • METROWEEKLY