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M. Cristina Garcia‘s Tacones (Rhymes with Cojones), a play that was a hit at last year’s Capital Fringe Festival.This weekend, Garcia’s queer immigrant story will be granted a reprise with a performance as part of this year’s Atlas Intersections Festival.

herstory — than history, but it still works to honor what has become known as Women’s History Month.Perfectly in tune with such a cause is the second annual Women’s History Month Festival organized by RE:Her DC, the local chapter of a national organization of woman- and nonbinary-owned food and drink purveyors established in 2021.The festival has inspired roughly two dozen menu collaborations, special events, and special offerings at participating establishments, some available all month long, others on specific days or dates, and the rest throughout the festival, which officially runs Monday, March 13, through Sunday, March 19.A portion of sales from the festival-related offerings will benefit RE:Her DC and its various efforts to empower and advance hospitality industry businesswomen.The following specials are this year’s Top 8, at least in terms of holding the most appeal to our palates. All are available during festival week unless otherwise specified.Beauty Champagne & Sugar Boutique, the nearly year-old “wine bar, bottle shop, bistro, boutique” in Crystal City/National Landing, offers “Cuveé Red Wine Chocolate Chip Cookie,” a bake shop original infused with wine from a woman-owned vintner (576 23rd St.

Washington Post and Washingtonian, and Rachel Cothran, former communications director for the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the retailer promises fresh merchandise each day of the weekend, drawing from its reserves of mid-century modern Carlo Moretti glassware, handmade ceramic studio pottery, and more.The centerpiece of the pop-up is a “completely shoppable” Pride “flag” installation: An array of vintage objects sorted by hue and displayed atop six rectangular tables, each representing a different color of the traditional Pride flag — red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet.The first 25 shoppers to spend $150 or more will receive a Rare Form tote painted by local artist Rose Jaffe. In a subtle nod to Whitman-Walker’s anniversary tagline of “50 Years Rooted in Community,” plants are also a featured part of the mix courtesy of local shop Little Leaf.The pop-up is intended as a way to honor the space, its legacy, and the vibrancy and resilience of the LGBTQ community overall.“We’re thrilled to be working with Rare Form on a project that so deeply and symbolically celebrates the vibrance of the communities we serve,” says Abby Paige Fenton, executive director of the Whitman-Walker Foundation.Friday, March 10, through Sunday, March 12, from 10 a.m.

The Whale as an obese gay man is nothing short of astounding. Though Fraser does not identify as gay, his performance is convincing and a marvel to watch.

Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Whale, and Tár, among others. Looking at the actual list of people up for the awards, however, shows that only a handful of LGBTQ artists are in the running for prizes.In fact, it appears that only five talents who identify as LGBTQ (or who appear to be, in one instance) are nominated this time around.

Shazam! sequel, Shazam! Fury of the Gods is one of the most highly anticipated films of 2023, and now there’s even more reason to be excited – especially for LGBTQ fans of the brand.In an interview with a website called Dorkaholics, the film’s screenwriters Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan opened up about their decision to confirm that one of the main characters in the franchise is, in fact, gay, as many had suspected.“The only new addition for this movie is being a lot more forthright about Pedro being gay,” Gayden admitted. “That was hinted at in the first movie very subtly.”While he didn’t get into the discussions the screenwriters had with those in charge at DC, it sounds like Gayden and his writing partner faced some blowback regarding their decision.“I thought it was really important and really, really fought for us including that and bringing that into the fore in this movie,” the writer stated in the interview.Pedro, portrayed by DJ Cotrona, is the older foster brother to Shazam (Zachary Levi), the main superhero in the film.

Metro Weekly. The audience likely identifies as part of the acronym. Or Same-Gender-Loving (SGL).

MLive Media Group.Democratic lawmakers — who control the legislature for the first time in 40 years following the 2022 election — spoke favorably of the bill, which was one of the first six pieces of legislation they introduced on the first day of this year’s legislative session.Taken together, those six bills provide a glimpse at the party’s economic and social agenda, which includes repealing a 1931 ban on abortion, repealing “right-to-work” laws, rolling back the retirement tax for seniors, and expanding the earned income tax credit.“No one should be afraid to go to work, or school, in fear of their safety,” openly gay Rep. Mike McFall (D-Hazel Park) said of the nondiscrimination law, which liberals have argued is long overdue in a so-called “blue state” like Michigan.“It’s long past time for us to amend Michigan’s civil rights law so we can make our state a place where everyone is welcome, regardless of who they love or how they identify,” McFall added.Republicans offered a series of amendments to the bill seeking to carve out special exemptions for religious individuals or organizations, to drop gender identity from the bill, and to require individuals to use restrooms matching their assigned sex at birth.

HuffPost. (Even Florida’s only goes up to third grade, while requiring that such topics be “age or developmentally appropriate” in older grades.)According to Newsweek, Kelley, a former teacher, said, in remarks introducing the bill, that school-age children are “very naive and easily influenced,” arguing that “exposure to such topics is inappropriate for children, creating confusion which may then cause doubt in their identities.”“It is not the place of the school to indoctrinate our children by exposing them to gender and sexual identity curriculums and courses,” she said. “Therefore, we must keep our educational instruction pure, without the political nuances.”But Christofanelli challenged the wording of Kelley’s bill and the logic behind it, wondering if the prohibitions on “sexual orientation” might prohibit teaching about heterosexuality as well as homosexuality.“I’m just going to read you the language in your bill,” Christofanelli said, referring to the prohibition on instruction regarding sexual orientation.

Repubblica.According to Gay Ireland News, Freddi noted that some of the extracurricular activities he proposed were canceled by the university, often without explanation.In one instance, he helped organize a meeting with a student group to talk about HIV, but the meeting was canceled after administrators learned of the proposal.In 2019, after being offered a position to teach a mathematics course, and working for 60 of the 100 estimated hours involved with the course, the university dismissed him, without any explanation, and refused to pay him for the work he’d done. He then filed a lawsuit in the Civil Court of Rome alleging he had been terminated unfairly. On January 24, the judge ruled in his favor, ordering the university to pay out 2,500 euros, or about $2,669 U.S.

Metro Weekly reached out to the managing partners of Bunker, and to the Mayor’s Office of Nightlife and Culture and its director, Salah Czapary, about these concerns, including the legal ability of venues to set specific dress codes involving clothing traditionally associated with one gender.In response, Q, a managing partner at Bunker, told Metro Weekly in a statement that the prohibition on certain footwear was adopted out of concern for the safety of patrons.“We recently implemented a no high heels and open-toed shoes policy at Bunker as a safety precaution,” Q wrote in an email. “Bunker is a dimly lit, underground dance club with concrete floors and steps.

transgender athletes from competing in sports that match their gender identity; and ban gender-affirming care, not only for minors, but some legally recognized adults in their twenties.Narissa Rahaman, the executive director of Equality Virginia, told Metro Weekly that some of the “forced outing” bills were especially pernicious.One measure would have required school administrators to out students to their parents, regardless of whether trans-identifying students have discussed their identities with their parents or whether they may be living in a home with parents who are not supportive of LGBTQ identity.“There was one forced outing bill that would require a court order for a student to be able to update their name in their school record,” Rahaman said.  “And not just their official school record, like a roster, but just any sort of school document, like a library card reflecting their correct gender, would have required a court order.”Rahaman said the organization’s priority this year was primarily aimed at defeating such bills, although Equality Virginia was monitoring other pro-LGBTQ measures that were introduced, including three bills — one introduced by Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria), one introduced by Del.

a form of retaliation against the Walt Disney Company for speaking out against the so-called “Parental Rights in Education” bill, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.The measure prohibits instruction or discussion in grades K-3 of gender or sexual orientation, and requires that any discussion of those topics in older grades be “age or developmentally appropriate.”Disney was initially silent on the bill, which Republicans were determined to pass, but the company later spoke out and agreed to pause all political donations to Florida politicians following internal backlash from LGBTQ employees and demonstrations protesting Disney’s response to the law.According to CNN, Peri has frequently made derogatory remarks about the LGBTQ community, lamenting the greater visibility of LGBTQ people and the lack of societal condemnation for homosexuality.“So why are there homosexuals today?” Peri said in a January 2022 Zoom discussion, later posted to YouTube. “There are any number of reasons, you know, that are given.

Daily Wire, said that eliminating “transgenderism” from public life would be “for the good of society.” (Transgender rights advocates say the term “transgenderism” is offensive because it dehumanizes trans people and reduces their gender identity to a clinical problem or to a political ideology.)“There can be no middle way in dealing with transgenderism,” Knowles said in his speech. “It is all or nothing.

shared the news of Ciccone’s passing on Instagram.Henry expressed his grief and also reflected on the complexity of their relationship as brothers. In his post, Henry said, “Anthony was a complex character, and God knows we tangled in moments, as true brothers can.

Cut 4 Me.Her unique sound, which blends elements of R&B, electronic, and alternative music, has earned her widespread recognition and critical acclaim. She makes tunes that are weird, lovely, and worth checking out if you’re searching for something unlike anything you’ve heard before.She recently released her sophomore album Raven to rave (get it?) reviews.Fans are thrilled to have her back after a six-year-long break from sharing full-lengths, and now is the time for others to discover her talent.1. Genre-Defying SoundKelela’s music is known for its fusion of traditional R&B with futuristic electronic and alternative sounds.

Selling Kabul (★★★★☆) at Signature Theatre might have been able to hear the actors’ hearts racing.The Afghanistan-set drama by Sylvia Khoury, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2022, draws us fully inside the humble, endangered lives of Taroon (Mazin Azar), a translator desperately awaiting a visa to flee Kabul, and his sister Afiya (Awesta Zarif). Afiya, along with husband Jawid (Yousof Sultani), risks freedom and safety by hiding Taroon from the Taliban, and from the couple’s nosy neighbor, Leyla (Neagheen Homaifar).Ghaheri’s production draws us close inside the characters’ dire reality, and Afiya and Jawid’s cozy apartment, rendered in textured, naturalistic detail by Tony Cisek.Images on the living room television of former Afghan president Hamid Karzai — with Obama, with Putin — usher in the atmosphere of 2013 and America’s longest war, reinforced by the heap of Army fatigues piled in a corner.

The Consultant (★★☆☆☆) falls in line with this era of TV dramas, trying to go a step above the rest to craft something worthwhile, but whether it achieves any of this is a different story.Created by Tony Basgallop, who previously helmed the Apple TV+ series Servant alongside M. Night Shyamalan, the dark thriller (which alleges it is also a comedy) stars Christoph Waltz as Regus Patoff, a sociopathic consultant who takes over Comp Ware, a successful mobile game company, after the CEO is killed by a “devil-possessed” kid obsessed with the company’s games.Quickly forced to abide by Patoff’s strange and demanding requests, the Comp Ware employees, unable to afford to quit, suffer through Patoff’s quirks and increasingly strange demands.

ABC News. “One year later, after we had posted on our website and made a stance, [in] December of 2022 we raised $14,809.”As a result, UCA has announced it will close its doors in May, at the end of the current school year.The school shared several letters from churches and individual donors taking issue with the statement of support for the LGBTQ community with ABC News.In one, a church that withdrew its support of UCA called the LGBTQ community “a diverse collection of behaviors,” adding, “Our greatest concern about the Accepting and Affirming stance is that it denies the Biblical definitions of sin and identity and thereby renders the grace of God meaningless.”Other letters were harsher.“Do not call yourself a Christian school if you are affirming sin,” one donor wrote.

Billboard charts. But then again, when does she not?Swift has achieved a new milestone in her career by earning the rare feat of having 10 albums find space on the Billboard 200 chart simultaneously.She’s just the fifth artist to do so, according to Billboard, and the first without a major event to connect the sales jump to. The singer-songwriter takes up 5% of all available real estate on the weekly ranking of the most-consumed albums and EPs in the U.S., which is no small accomplishment.The “Anti-Hero” talent has always been known for her dominance in the music industry, and her latest achievement proves once again how popular and powerful she remains.

debunked theory that claims young people — especially those assigned female at birth, and those who claim to have so-called “autism” or similar neurological or developmental disorders — will identify as transgender due to “social contagion” or peer pressure. The newly enacted law makes Mississippi the sixth state to pass either a complete or partial ban on gender-affirming care, although complete bans in other states, such as Alabama and Arkansas, have been halted as lawsuits challenging those laws work their way through the courts.Other states, such as Utah and Arizona, have enacted partial bans, blocking all surgical treatments on minors. Utah’s law also imposes a permanent moratorium on puberty blockers for any youth who has not already been receiving hormonal interventions for at least six months.The passage of the Mississippi law continues the trend of Republican-dominated legislatures and Republican governors taking aggressive action to prohibit doctors from providing gender-affirming care to trans-identifying minors.A similar law signed by South Dakota Gov.