David Magazine v9_i51 | Sparking Joy

V9-51 12.17.25

Unwrap Something Naughty

Cirque's Surreal Mexico

Body Manual: Built to Move

Queerly Beloved: Permission to Rest

MORE BOYS STARTING NIGHTLY AT 9PM

DAVID I N 6

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DEC 17, 2025 V9-51

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Editor-in-Chief Mikkel Hyldebrandt mikkel@davidatlanta.com

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Naughtier Is Edited by Mikkel Hyldebrandt

T

Nice

he holidays are the perfect excuse to slip something a little naughtier

under the tree. Whether you’re gifting a partner, a crush, or that oh-so-special friend who keeps ending up on your list, this guide will point the way. Think gifts worth unwrapping slowly and intimate objects that turn cozy nights into sexy connection.

Trunk Collection Be a Real Bummer Set the tone for a This exfoliating luxurious holiday. Iconic, shower scrub bold, and irresistibly removes dead skin soft, these designer cells, promoting trunks bring a touch of new cell growth gold – literally – to your while leaving your gift-giving. Perfect for the skin feeling fresh man who likes his basics and rejuvenated – anything but basic. perfect for your whole body, including that bum Versace Men’s 2-Pack Greca Border Trunks, $175 of yours that often gets neglected in the scrub game.

Joystick to the world Pure For Men Bum & Body Scrub, $20 On the more playful side and a playful nod Bondage for Beginners to nostalgia with a Ready to explore seductive twist. Fun, something new? We cheeky, and flattering in thought so. Crafted all the right places, this is with premium vegan underwear designed to leather, this ultra-luxe lift the mood (and more). set makes the perfect Shinesty Video Game Ball Hammock Pouch surprise gift for those Underwear, $30 ready to take their sex life to new heights.

The Hole Thing 7-Piece Bondage Set from Jimmy Jane, $99 Who says that you shouldn’t treat your Get Him In a (Body) Suit maybe most prized Another kind of suit you possession like the gem can’t wait to get him out of. it is? Asset’s Hole Serum This cheeky-cut bodysuit does just that with a is untamed with slashes soothing daily serum that at the front and back, calms stressed perianal revealing just a hint of abs skin and boosts skin and a touch of cheek. radiance. Hole-in-one?

Ruffskin Sextus Heather Asset Hole Serum, $49 Grey, $69

pg| 6

DAVID Magazine

Cirque du Soleil’s

Surreal Mexico

By Matt Bearden

Cirque du Soleil’s touring LUZIA captures color, music, and acrobatics in a beautiful imagination inspired by Mexican culture. Here, under the Big Top, audiences are transported to a “surreal escape” and witness “grand visual surprises” that only the masterminds behind Cirque du Soleil could imagine. Audiences will instantly recognize how the acts and set designs draw on diverse Mexican traditions, including marigolds, Día de los Muertos, the Tarahumara running tribe, mariachi, and regional textile patterns. half-joked saying “acrobatics and water just don’t go well” together. Could have fooled me.

The way the trapeze and aerial strap performers move through the falling water and jump out of the shallow pool on stage tells me more about why these people are superheroes. The strap performers artistically fly at dizzying heights, holding tight to their bungee straps, through the programmed but potentially unpredictable water.

Water and acrobatics are a risky business, but so is the handbalancing act on bendable pegs. With this water feature, a new dimension is added. It becomes vital that cast and crew stay alert and watch each other’s backs.

LUZIA was originally created in 2016 by husbandBy the end of the show, the parachutist arrives and-wife duo Daniele Finzi Pasca and Julie at a party. All the performers gather around a Hamelin Finzi. They spent 10 years in Mexico, table full of food, laughter, and celebration. It is where they were inspired by the country’s cinematic, the ending, because time slows down bright colors, culture, landscapes, and wildlife.

Together, they wrote a fantastical journey where a on us, and a sad realization washes over the parachutist experiences singing, love, thirst, and parachutist: was it all a dream? The comedy, the singing, chasing the butterfly? He doesn’t know. spectacle.

We don’t know, either. This ending is personal to everyone—performers, staff, coaches, and When I spoke with head coach Emerson Neve, audience. I won’t tell you much more about he described the show, saying, “The show is the ending except that it is beautifully tender. I set with the clown jumping out of a plane. And cannot recall an ending like this from Cirque in then his parachute doesn’t work, and he ends up landing. There’s a key that he turns, and then the years I have been attending their shows. it becomes a fantastic world. The journey of the LUZIA is unique in its own right. Taking direct show—it is a journey through Mexico.” inspiration from Mexico, the magical world that Daniele Finzi Pasca and Julie Hamelin Finzi Neve originally performed in Cirque’s originally dreamed of has evolved into a beautiful Saltimbanco, the show that brought Cirque worldwide fame. From performing to becoming artwork. The story and show have mostly stayed an artist coach to becoming LUZIA’s head coach, the same since their original debut. However, the show you see may be slightly different from one Neve knows the inner workings that bring to day to the next. As is the nature of performance life the magic we all love from Cirque du Soleil. art, there are always substitutions at the ready He also has the knowledge to bring out the in case of an injury or new cast member. performers’ full brilliance and potential. Going Nonetheless, what you will see under the Big Top from performer to coach equips Neve with a will take you to a surreal world where you watch trusting bond with the performers. superheroes make you believe in magic.

When you are under the Big Top and watching 47 performers, you’ll see more than just their unique talent. To Neve, these performers are akin to superheroes. Just like many of us, Neve has hard days. But when he, like us, sits there to watch the show, he witnesses more than just choreography and storytelling. These performers take us into a different world, a fantasy world. They use their special talents—their superpowers—to transport us somewhere else entirely. To Neve, and to many of us, LUZIA dazzles. Under the Big Top, we all come together to experience the extraordinary, the daring, and the bizarre. After all, this is a circus show. These performers, in their crocodile or jaguar costumes, their tight spandex or hummingbird feathers, and their astounding flexibility, unite us. That’s pretty super, don’t you think?

Go to cirquedusoleil.com to order LUZIA is the only touring Cirque du Soleil show that uses water as a main component. Neve

tickets to see LUZIA at Atlantic Station between now and January 25, 2026.

12.31.25

9pm - 1am

Get tickets at www.georgiaaquarium.org

Here’s Your Permission to Slow Down Edited by Mikkel Hyldebrandt

For many LGBTQ+ people, the end of the year arrives with a unique combination of exhaustion and expectation. After months of showing up – for community, for political battles, for friends in crisis, for ourselves – December can feel less like a festive runway and more like a crash landing.

Activism, advocacy, visibility, and the constant emotional labor of simply existing as a queer person in a charged political climate take their toll. And yet, when the holidays approach, we often push ourselves even harder: to attend every event, to be relentlessly cheerful, and to keep giving more when our energy is already frayed. This season, it’s time to reclaim something radical: rest as a queer right, not a reward.

The Politics of Rest Rest isn’t just about catching up on sleep—it’s a deeply political act in a world where queer people are expected to be resilient at all times. Many in the LGBTQ+ community carry an unspoken pressure to stay vigilant: to monitor legislation, support others in crisis, and represent our identities proudly even when we’re tired. This perpetual readiness is emotionally draining.

Recognizing that we deserve rest is a first step.

�

Temperature Reset: Hold something warm (tea, a heating pad) or cold (an ice pack) to anchor your senses and interrupt spiraling thoughts.

�

Sensory Grounding: Name five things you can see, four you can touch, three you can hear, two you can smell, and one you can taste.

�

Micro-Movement Breaks: Stretch, shake out your hands, or take a brief walk—especially useful if stress sits heavy in your body.

Giving yourself permission to slow down doesn’t diminish your commitment to the community.

In fact, rest restores clarity, compassion, and stamina—qualities every activist needs. You These small rituals accumulate, building cannot pour from an empty cup, and you certainly resilience without demanding extra emotional cannot change the world from burnout. bandwidth.

Reclaiming Guilt-Free Downtime

Rest Practices That Restore the Queer Spirit

Holiday downtime often comes with guilt, especially for high-achieving LGBTQ+ folks Queer rest can be joyful, creative, sensual, and who feel responsible for everything around them. Let this be the year you choose relief over deeply personal. Consider: responsibility. Try reframing rest as maintenance: something essential, non-negotiable, and deeply � Digital Quiet Zones: Choose a day nourishing. or evening without news, political updates, or doomscrolling.

A helpful mindset shift: imagine speaking to a friend you adore. Would you ever tell them � Queer-Centric Comfort Media: they’re “not allowed” to slow down after a Rewatch your favorite LGBTQ+ films stressful year? Offer that compassion to yourself. or shows that feel familiar and safe.

Rest isn’t avoidance—it’s replenishment.

Grounding Practices to Help You Reset Grounding practices can help re-center you when exhaustion or overwhelm creeps in. These are simple, gentle, and don’t require perfection:

�

Five-Minute Breath Check: Place a hand on your chest and another on your belly. Inhale slowly for four counts, exhale for six. Repeat for five minutes. It signals the body that it’s safe to relax.

�

Creative Escape: Doodle, cook, craft, journal—whatever reconnects you to yourself without pressure to produce.

�

Community Cocooning: Spend time with people who make you feel affirmed and relaxed, even if it’s low-key.

Dec 31 8 PM

Apache XLR 393 Marietta St NW Atlanta, GA 30313 United States

powered by

Built to Move, Trapped in Chairs

By Dr. Zachary LaVigne, B.S., D.C Your body was designed for motion. one wakes up the muscles that hold Every muscle, tendon, and joint you together and signals your nervous evolved for a life that demanded it. system to stay alert.

Our ancestors walked miles each day, carried heavy loads, climbed, crouched, The environment you live and work in and squatted to rest. Today, we spend plays a big role. Rearrange your space most of our waking hours seated and so movement becomes natural. Try a still. The body does not thrive in this standing desk or alternate between position. It tolerates it for a while, then sitting and standing throughout the day. starts to protest.

Set reminders to move every 20 minutes.

If you sit on the floor sometimes, you The moment you sit down, your will notice that your hips and spine have metabolism slows. Blood circulation to adjust constantly. That micro-activity decreases, and the enzymes that help keeps your joints healthy. burn fat switch off. Muscles go quiet.

The glutes and core disengage, while For nearly all of human history, sitting the hip flexors tighten and shorten. was temporary. It was what you did Joints stiffen, and posture changes. between tasks, not the task itself. Our Over time, this pattern adds up to circulatory and musculoskeletal systems fatigue, stiffness, back pain, and expect that pattern. When we stay still even metabolic problems like insulin for too long, the entire system slows resistance. Scientists now know that too down. It is like a stream that stops much sitting increases the risk of heart flowing and becomes stagnant. disease and depression.

The good news is that your body is This problem is not about exercise. adaptable. The more you move, the You can spend an hour at the gym and more it remembers how to function still suffer the effects of sitting all day. efficiently. You do not need to become What matters more is the frequency of an athlete. You just need to move more movement. The human body depends often. Movement is your body’s native on continuous low-level activity to keep language. Every step, stretch, and shift blood flowing, joints lubricated, and is a way of saying thank you to the the brain alert. Even subtle movements machine that carries you through life. like fidgeting or stretching activate circulation and lymphatic drainage.

You do not need a fitness program to fix it. You need interruptions. Stand up while taking phone calls. Stretch when you get coffee. Sit on the floor while watching TV. Walk during meetings if you can. Small shifts add up. Each

Dr. Zachary LaVigne, B.S., D.C

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Ponce De Leon Ave. NE

Dining

BARS 2 Blake's 3 Bulldogs 4 Friends

227 10th St NE 893 Peachtree St NE 736 Ponce De Leon Ave NE

6 My Sister’s Room66 12th St NE 7 X Midtown 990 Piedmont Ave NE

9 Casa Almanera 991 Piedmont Ave NE 10 Campagnolo 980 Piedmont Ave NE 16 G’s Midtown 219 10th St NE 17 Henry’s 132 10th St NE 19 La Hacienda 900 Monroe Dr NE

fitness

14 Urban Body Fitness 500 Amsterdam Ave NE

spa/bath 15 Flex Spa

76 4th St. NW

PAPI’S ORIGINATED WITH A FAMILY RECIPE, A DREAM, AND THE WILLINGNESS TO RISK EVERYTHING.

pg| 16

DAVID Magazine

NEW ONLINE CALENDAR of EVENTS

User submitted .

See page for details

Cheshire

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20 BJ Roosters

2043 Cheshire Bridge Rd

22 Tripps

1931 Piedmont Cir NE

Dining

24 Las Margaritas Closed Temporarily

Retail

1842 Cheshire Bridge Rd

26 Barking Leather 27 Southern Nights

1510 Piedmont Ave Suite A 2205 Cheshire Bridge Rd

28 Heretic 29 Tokyo Valentino

2069 Cheshire Bridge Rd 1739 Cheshire Bridge Rd

30 Gravitee Fitness

2201 Faulkner Rd NE

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32 Atlanta Eagle 33 Felix's

1492 Piedmont Ave NE 1510 Piedmont Ave NE

35 Mixx 1492 Piedmont Ave NE 36 Oscar's 1510 Piedmont Ave NE Mary's 1287 Glenwood Ave SE Sister Louisa’s Church 466 Edgewood Ave SE Lips Atlanta 3011 Buford Hwy NE 465 Boulevard SE The T Woof's 494 Plasters Ave NE

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41 Equilibrium Fitness 1529 Piedmont Ave, Suite L

pg| 17

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Don’t ask me what I need from the grocery store. I don’t know, and I’m upset.

Just a few more hours of scrolling, and then I will finally Know.

It’s literally the most wonderful time of the year, you stupid b!tch.

Having a dog is 90% following each other around, watching each other go potty, and wondering what the other one has in their mouth.

Work emails are just turn-based combat.

How is Christmas next week, and it was just October 5!

Why would anyone choose to go big when the alternative is getting to go home.

Me at the end of the year: My ducks: in a row My elephant: addressed My eggs: several baskets My bigger fish: fried