Category Archives: Celebrity
SHADE Queens of NYC
Where have I been?
My friend PAIGE TURNER asked if I saw her on SHADE – Somehow this flew under my radar until now! Apologies!
Relationships, community, family, and faith are in the spotlight in Shade: Queens of NYC, a docu-follow-musical-reality show that explores what happens to New York’s fiercest, funniest drag queens as they vie for fame, fortune, and love.
Shade: Queens of NYC reveals a side of drag life beyond the usual glam, glitz, and next-level lip syncing, instead focusing on what happens to our queens when the wigs come off.
The cast of queens includes: Justin Nako/Chelsea Piers, Chris Yoon/Jasmine Rice LaBeija, William Bailey/Jada Valenciaga, Nathan McManus/Holly Box-Springs, Kristian Seeber/Tina Burner, Marti Gould Cummings/Marti Gould Cummings, Daniel Kelley/Paige Turner, and Jesse Havea/Brita Filter.
Catch up on YouTube if ya missed it!
Harvey Fierstein’s TORCH SONG Limited Run
I am SO LUCKY, that as a young gay boy about 22 years old, I think it was 1982, I made it to New York city (from small town Michigan) and got into Studio 54 for an amazing evening and also got to see Harvey Fierstein on Broadway in Torch Song Trilogy with Mathew Broderick and Estelle Getty! ( I had read about the show in After Dark magazine, and seeing the show was the primary reason for my trip).
In that eye opening trip to the big apple I saw amazing clubs that are no longer around. I also met Andy Warhol on that trip! All the things I had read about NYC were true! What a trip! My little gay life would never be the same!
Harvey and the story left such an impression on my soul. I followed Harvey’s career over the years and saw his works whenever I could. He is genius to me, and “an icon.”
So I was THRILLED beyond belief to see Torch Song, a compact version of Torch Song Trilogy, make it to the stage in New York!
And with Michael Urie no less! Who I met in Chicago when he performed “Buyer & Cellar”. He is so wonderfully talented.
It’s magical that Torch Song is at the Hayes Theater, on it’s 35th anniversary, on the same Broadway stage where the Tony Award-winning premiere forever changed the face of popular entertainment. Along with the talented Drama Desk Award Winner Michael Urie, Academy Award winner Mercedes Ruehl shines are Arnold’s mother.
Torch Song Trilogy won Tonys for Best Play and Best Actor in a Play for Fierstein. 3 years on Broadway, it was truly a landmark show!
I am sure most of you know the story, but there may be some younger people reading who do not know the story; This show is fiercely funny and heart-wrenching. Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song follows Arnold
Beckoff’s (Mr. Urie) odyssey to find happiness in New York. All he wants is a husband, a child, and a pair of bunny slippers that fit, but a visit from his overbearing mother (Ms. Ruehl) reminds him that he needs one thing more: respect.
This story was of Arnold’s struggle to be accepted as a young Jewish gay man living in New York City in the late 1970s and ’80s. What’s amazing, in some ways, is that it was powerful then to me; this is pre AIDS, pre gay marriage, PRE EVERYTHING and today the story is still just as powerful.
“Forty years after writing Torch Song, it still speaks to audiences making them laugh and weep and happy,” says Fierstein in a statement. “Unbelievable. And to now return to the theater where it played all those years ago… Beyond wishes… Beyond dreams.. Beyond the most outrageous fantasy.”
“A great play makes you think, and what’s going on in the White House is always in the back of our minds,” Urie told NewNowNext about the timeliness of the revival. “We’re all confused, terrified, and clinging to each other, so Arnold, the ultimate caretaker, is the kind of friend we need right now. Yes, he’s flawed, but he has so much heart and compassion.”
I urge you to see this brilliant show, if you haven’t already! LIMITED RUN!!
Join Arnold on this all too human journey about the families we’re born into, the families we choose, and the battles to bring them all home.
Torch Song is playing at the Hayes Theater at 240 West 44th Street.
Directed by Tony Award nominee Moisés Kaufman
www.torchsongbroadway.com
CHER The new CD and Tour!
SEE THAT GIRL…
WATCH THAT GIRL…
SHE’S THE DANCING QUEEN!
She’s back! At 72 and going strong!
The one and only Cher will released Dancing Queen last week, a new album of all Abba hits by Warner Bros. Records.
The Oscar, Emmy and Grammy Award winning icon was inspired to record the album following her stunning performance in the recently-released mega-hit film, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
Commented Cher: “I’ve always liked Abba and saw the original Mamma Mia musical on Broadway three times. After filming Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, I was reminded again of what great and timeless songs they wrote and started thinking ‘why not do an album of their music?’ The songs were harder to sing than I imagined but I’m so happy with how the music came out. I’m really excited for people to hear it. It’s a perfect time.”
Dancing Queen was recorded and produced in London and Los Angeles with Cher‘s longtime collaborator Mark Taylor, who previously produced Cher‘s global smash “Believe” which was number one in over 50 countries. And it does not disappoint! I truly love the last song on CD I think the best, “One of Us”.
Cher is scheduled to be awarded a Kennedy Center Honor on December 2nd in Washington DC.
She is a co-producer of the The Cher Show, the upcoming Broadway musical opening on December 3rd ( we saw it in Chicago and LOVED IT!) 35 smash hits! Info here.
She is currently performing a residency at MGM Resorts. Get tickets HERE!
NEW TOUR – The Here We Go Again Tour is the seventh solo concert tour by American singer-actress Cher in support of her twenty-sixth studio album Dancing Queen. It is the first time the singer tours Oceania since her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour in 2005. The tour started on September 21, 2018 and will finish on May 18, 2019.
Cities with Ticket links HERE
RuPauls DragCon 2018 NYC!
During the final weekend of September, tens of thousands of people will fill New York’s Javits Center. Many will be dressed in colorful wigs and fierce heels; they’ll flock to panels for over-the-top makeup tutorials and fashion runway shows. Others will wait in line to meet former contestants from hit reality TV show “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” and they’ll buy merchandise such as “Charisma” pins and “Oh, Pit Crew!” underwear. All this for a $40-a-day ticket.
Welcome to DragCon, or more specifically, RuPaul’s Dragcon, the multimillion-dollar extravaganza that’s the drag industry’s answer to comic con.
Debuted on the West Coast in 2015 off the success of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” DragCon now happens twice a year: September in New York — Sept. 28 through 30 this year — and May in Los Angeles, California. And it’s become big business.
“In New York at the Javitz Convention Center, DragCon sold out its first year” in 2017, Fenton Bailey, executive producer of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and co-creator of DragCon with fellow executive producer Randy Barbato, tells CNBC Make It. Andre Charles, better known as RuPaul, is a partner in DragCon, according to the company.
Last September, at the New York and Los Angeles conventions, over $8 million worth of merchandise — particularly wigs, makeup and “Drag Race” merchandise such as T-shirts — sold on the convention floor, he says. That doesn’t include the $40 entrance fee ($70 for the whole weekend) each of the 35,000 attendees had to pay in N.Y.C.
In its near decade on the air, it’s not only entertained, it has also helped introduce much of America to drag and its community. The show features contestants outside of their drag clothes, talking about personal hardships like being unaccepted in society or their family. In addition to Emmys, in 2010 the show won Outstanding Reality Program at the GLAAD Media Awards, for fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the LGBTQ community and surrounding issues.
Read more about the Money Making Sensation HERE
THREE DAYS OF ART, POP CULTURE, AND ALL THINGS DRAG – SEPTEMBER 28, 29, AND 30
JAVITS CENTER
WIGSTOCK Returns to New York City 201
WIGSTOCK, the legendary annual event that dominated drag culture from 1985 until 2003, is being relaunched Saturday, September 1, during Labor Day weekend by feisty festival founder Lady Bunny and Tony Award winner Neil Patrick Harris.
The day-long event will take place at the gorgeous new Pier 17 Rooftop in New York City’s Seaport District starting at 2PM and going until 10PM. This event will occur rain or shine.
Official Wigstock Design By ©Tabboo! 2018, courtesy Gordon Robichaux, NY
TICKETS– (Click image above for tickets!)
GENERAL ADMISSION
$95.00 + Ticketmaster Fees
(*YES, $95. Fee’s explained below)
…..……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
THE PYRAMID PASS
$250 +Ticketmaster Fees
BENEFITS:
Exclusive surrounded-by-the-action standing ticket in VIP section (Front of Stage & Runway)
VIP post-show backstage afterparty with Drag Queen performers and other cast members
T-Shirt custom designed especially for WIGSTOCK 2.HO by Tabboo!
Commemorative poster
Two (2) Complimentary Drink Tickets
Portion of each Pyramid Pass ticket benefits GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis)
…..……………………………………………………………………………………………
THE WIGSTOCK VERY IMPORTANT QUEEN EXPERIENCE
$1000 + Ticketmaster Fees (Limited Quantities)
BENEFITS:
Exclusive premium VVIP Seating in the VVIP Riser, the only seated section at the event
Premium Open Bar and Food
Exclusive access to the dedicated VVIP lounge and service area
T-Shirt custom designed especially for WIGSTOCK 2.HO by Tabboo!
Autographed commemorative poster (principal cast members including Lady Bunny and Neil Patrick Harris)
VVIP lanyard
Exclusive VVIP reception directly after the show with Lady Bunny and Neil Patrick Harris
VIP post-show backstage afterparty with Drag Queen performers and other cast members
Portion of each VIQ Experience ticket benefits GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis)
*fee’s explained. People have no idea, what costs are involved in throwing a huge event of this magnitude!
Lady Bunny explains. “Hey! I was thrilled by the positive response to Wigstock returning. I wasn’t thrilled by the disappointment from some when they learned that the cheapest tickets were $95—apart from a few blocks of $18.95 tickets. If you think that’s too high, then you know I think it is. When I post about DJing Sundays at The Monster, my favorite thing to type is “Free!” at the end. When I performed Trans-Jester! for two years at Stonewall Inn, I loved making tickets affordable to most at $19.99.
I shun VIP anything, so you know that way higher than $95 VIP tickets was not my idea. Some forget that when we moved the event from Tompkins Square Park to the much larger piers, the production costs grew and we had two choices: to charge admission or not put on the show. We felt so guilty about charging at all that we donated 1/2 of our net profits to GMHC. This year’s tickets sales also contribute a portion to GMHC. So if you think I’m gouging, please know that gouging just isn’t in my nature.
I hope you’ll understand that the last outdoor, full-fledged Wigstock was around 17 years ago. And I’m sure you’ve noticed that the city has changed a lot since then, and is far more upscale. Tompkins Square Park’s bandshell is razed and that rusty pier is shut. I used to pay a permit fee of $50 to the Parks Dpt. for the use of Tompkins Square. The new space costs $35,000 to roll in equipment and use for rehearsals the day before, and $75,000 to use the day of the show and then roll the equipment back out. A whopping $66,000 go to union wages. I was never in charge of Wigstock’s finances, but lordy did I gag at the over $15,000 “filing fee” on this year’s budget. I was too defeated to even ask what that filing fee was for. But we lost our first location and then found this brand new, rooftop concert venue Pier 17 where Diana Ross will perform later in September. If it’s good enough for her, it’s good enough for me, I thought. It is gorgeous, and the view of water in the back and a wall of skyscrapers beside the stage is splendid and unique. But not at all cheap.
We’re also paying performers this time around, which only ever happened the two years we did that Wigstock-themed cruise. I’m happy about that, but paying 50+ performers adds up.
Around 13 of them are from out of town and they must be flown in and housed in hotels for two nights because the show starts at 3PM. They can’t arrive the day of the show from LA or SF, and the show needs Lina and Candis and Glamamore and Alaska and Juanita More and Latrice to rule. And if the oldest performing drag queen in the US—Darcelle XV from Portland–needs an assistant along her trip, then I want to provide two tickets for her. Bianca Del Rio will literally wipe off her make-up backstage and hop a flight directly from the festival to Sweden for a gig which pays her more than I ever could. So if her assistant carrying her extra bags of merch needs to accompany her, I want to pay for that. (I never said her plane would actually land, however.)
A bus for the 8 acts coming from Provincetown costs thousands to hire for 24 hours. But these gals have been doing back to back shows all summer and have taken the day off on their last weekend to lose money at Wigstock, departing at 4AM from P’town and back that same night. To me, they are all drag stars who are doing me a huge favor by appearing at all. I can’t repay them with a crappy bus which signals to them that I’m not concerned with their comfort. And have you seen Dina Martina and Ryan Landry? They definitely need to catch up on some beauty rest en route! Desmond Is Amazing needs edits on his track—that comes out of my own pocketbook and I’m happy to pay it. The festival didn’t last for 20+ years because I have a reputation of mistreating talent–or Flotilla. But the costs incurred by talent and the splashy new venue naturally get transferred to ticket buyers.
Most agree that our line-up is a sensational. And while $95 IS pricey, the show is 6 hours long. I totally understand that it may not be affordable for everyone, but that’s what it costs to bring Wigstock back—which is what people all over the world have begged me to do for decades. So we are back on Saturday, September 1st, and I sure hope you can make it!
Broadway Bares Raises $1.8 MILLION
Sexy seamen were ready to sink Battleships, frolicsome friends played “Striptionary,” and a rambunctious round of flashlight tag involved the entire audience during the steamy evening of sensational stripteases at Broadway Bares: Game Night.
This year’s record-breaking edition of the annual spectacular raised $1,875,090 with two standing-room-only performances at New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom.
Produced by and benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Game Night gave your ordinary night out a tantalizing twist with striptease production numbers inspired by beloved board, video, and arcade games.
Check out more photos on Gay Cities
50th Anniversary of Stonewall Inn
The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative (SIGBI), the official 501(c)3 of the Stonewall Inn, announced that it will host its annual PRIDE reception on Monday, June 4th at the historic Stonewall Inn.
Launched in 2017, SIGBI is inspired by the struggles and ideals of the LGBTQ rights movement born from the Stonewall Inn Rebellion of 1969 though its awareness campaigns, educational programming, fundraising and candid public dialogue.
“We are excited to once again partner with Jet Blue and Brooklyn Brewery to support The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative. The Initiative supports grass roots organizations across the country and especially those in places where equality has been slow to arrive.” Said Stacy Lentz, Co-owner of the Stonewall Inn and CEO of the Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative. “With their generous support the Initiative is able to do the much-needed work of helping some of the most undeserved LGBTQ communities.”
This year, in response to the devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico, SIGBI will highlight the work of Proyecto Matria www.proyectomatria.org, which works to advance the equity of LGBTQ communities from two areas: human rights activism and the offering of services in the field of economic development and housing. Matria also has educational programs to train other organizations, public agencies and communities on how to stop discrimination against LGBTQ people and create safe spaces from an equity perspective.
SIGBI will also announce two major campaigns:
The inaugural Stonewall Auction, running now through June 12th on Charitybuzz is offering once in a lifetime celebrity experiences and items for bid, https://bit.ly/2J1ztNZ . Also, the Stonewall Inn Ambassadors, a cohort of activists, celebrities, and influencers, who will work together to elevate awareness and support for SIGBI over the next 12 months and through the 50th anniversary of Stonewall on June 28, 2019. Stonewall Inn Ambassadors include Chelsea Clinton, Bryan Lourd, Laverne Cox, Robbie Rogers, Geena Rocero and Cleve Jones. Please see full list at the end of this release. www.stonewallinitiative.org/new-index/
Both campaigns are programs of Pride Live Nation, www.pridelivenation.org.
During the reception, there will be a performance by Michael Blume and remarks by featured speaker Chely Wright.
Indie/soul artist Michael Blume has released his latest songs “R U Mad” and “Blunder” – from his upcoming EP Cynicism &Sincerity, which will be out June 8th via S-Curve Records. The songs are available now at all digital music outlets, including Spotify, Apple/iTunes, and Amazon……
See the new video! (PRESS HERE to watch)
The forthcoming EP release comes following a whirlwind year for Blume. Since arriving on the scene in 2015, New York-based singer, songwriter, and artist Michael Blume has consistently delivered daring, diverse, and dynamic anthems blurring the lines between simmering and soaring. He’s attracted acclaim from Rolling Stone, GQ, Nylon, Ladygunn, Pigeons & Planes, Earmilk, and Dujour and turned the uninitiated into believers at Governor’s Ball, Firefly, Lollapalooza, and will be performing at the Bonnaroo Music Arts Festival on June 10th.
Chely Wright www.chely.com rose to fame as a commercial country singer in the 90’s and has since released eight studio albums and charted more than 15 singles on the Billboard charts. The Academy of Country Music named Wright “Top New Female Vocalist of 1995.”
About Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative
The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative is inspired by the struggles and ideals of the LGBTQ rights movement born from the Stonewall Inn Rebellion of 1969. Through awareness campaigns, educational programming, fundraising and candid public dialogue, The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative supports grassroots organizations across the country with a focus on those in communities where progress toward equality has been slow and discrimination, harassment, substance abuse, depression and suicide have become an unacceptable way of life. You can donate to SIGBI by visiting: www.stonewallinitiative.org/donate/
“ANGELS IN AMERICA” Establishes Angel Fund
Producers Tim Levy (Director, NT America) and Jordan Roth (President, Jujamcyn Theaters) announced today that the Olivier Award®-winning National Theatre revival of Tony Kushner’s masterwork, Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes, has established the “Angels Fund” to provide hundreds of $5 tickets to each part of the play to NYC-area LGBTQ & HIV/AIDS service organizations.
Some of the organizations that have received these specially-priced tickets include: Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BC/EFA), Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC), SAGE, Callen-Lorde Community Health Center and The LGBTQ Center.
The Angels Fund is supported by Howard Gilman Foundation and SHS Foundation with additional support from Debby Landesman, Barbara Whitman/Purple Plume Foundation, Daryl & Steven Roth & Elizabeth Armstrong.
“Everyone should have the opportunity to experience art as important, topical, and challenging as Angels in America – especially people like the clients and staff of GMHC, the world’s first AIDS service organization, who may not otherwise get the chance,” said Gay Men’s Health Crisis CEO Kelsey Louie. “Thanks to the Angels Fund and the National Theatre, many of our clients and staff will be able to see the production.”
“This season’s revival of Angels in America is much more than revisiting Tony Kushner’s brilliant plays with a spectacular cast,” said BC/EFA Executive Director, Tom Viola. “It is a deep dive into how we find the courage, outrage and love to survive, even thrive in the midst of any calamity. Angels in America is a searing reflection of how we dare to love each other, as our best, worst and most exhilarating selves. I thank the producers for sharing that mirror with Broadway Cares, our staff and volunteers. We are blessed and ripped open by the experience.”
Angels in America producer Tim Levy said: “We wanted to make sure that individuals who are most directly connected to the content of the show, but who couldn’t afford full-priced tickets, had the opportunity to see it at an affordable price. We wanted to be able to share ‘The Great Work’ with those in the community who are actually doing The Great Work.”
Angels in America, which was nominated for a record-breaking 11 Tony Awards® will play its limited engagement through Sunday, July 15, 2018. The show began previews on February 23, and opened to ecstatic reviews on March 25 at the Neil Simon Theatre (250 West 52nd Street).
Angels in America is directed by two-time Tony Award® winner Marianne Elliott, and stars Academy Award® and Tony Award nominee Andrew Garfield and two-time Tony Award winner Nathan Lane, and also features Susan Brown, Denise Gough, Amanda Lawrence, James McArdle, Lee Pace, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Beth Malone, Patrick Andrews, Glynis Bell, Amy Blackman,Curt James, Rowan Ian Seamus Magee, Mark Nelson, Matty Oaks, Genesis Oliver, Jane Pfitsch, Lee Aaron Rosen, Ron Todorowski, Silvia Vrskova, and Lucy York.
When it first premiered, Angels in America won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, seven Tony Awards, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, and the Evening Standard Award for Best New Play. HBO’s 2003 screen adaptation won both the Emmy® and the Golden Globe® Awards for Best Miniseries.
The design team includes Tony Award winner Ian MacNeil (Scenic Design), Tony Award nominee Nicky Gillibrand (Costume Design), Tony Award winner Paule Constable (Lighting Design), Drama Desk Award winner Adrian Sutton (Music), Tony Award nominee Ian Dickinson for Autograph Sound Ltd. (Sound Design), Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell (Puppetry Designers), Finn Caldwell(Puppetry Director and Movement), Robby Graham (Original Movement), Chris Fisher (Illusions), Steven Hoggett (Movement Consultant). Casting is by Jim Carnahan, CSA.
Angels in America is produced by Tim Levy for NT America, Jordan Roth, Rufus Norris & Lisa Burger for the National Theatre, Elliott & Harper Productions, Kash Bennett for NT Productions,Aged in Wood, Baruch-Viertel-Routh-Frankel Group, Jane Bergère, Adam Blanshay Productions, CatWenJam Productions, Jean Doumanian, Gilad-Rogowsky, Gold-Ross Productions, The John Gore Organization, Grove Entertainment, Harris Rubin Productions, HornosMoellenberg, Brian & Dayna Lee, Benjamin Lowy, Stephanie P. McClelland, David Mirvish, Mark Pigott,Jon B. Platt, E. Price-LD ENT., Daryl Roth, Catherine Schreiber, Barbara Whitman, Jujamcyn Theaters, The Nederlander Organization, and The Shubert Organization.
Angels in America is a two-part performance — Part One, Millennium Approaches and Part Two, Perestroika.
For a complete list of performances (including the final two weeks), please visit, www.angelsbroadway.com. Tickets ($99 – $318) of Angels in America are available at Ticketmaster.com, by calling 877.250.2929, or in person at The Neil Simon Theatre box office (250 West 52nd Street).
Susan Brown, Denise Gough, Amanda Lawrence, James McArdle, and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett are appearing with the support of Actors’ Equity Association. The Producers gratefully acknowledge Actors’ Equity Association for its assistance of this production
www.angelsbroadway.com
www.instagram.com/angelsbway
Lady Bunny Special Engagement
So excited to return to the legendary Stonewall Inn for my first ever Christmas show! Expect plenty of raunchy version of Christmas carols, side-splitting one-liners and pop parodies to boot. And you’ll get to meet E-Bunny-Neezer Scrooge, in a demented skit with a cameo by the one and only (thank god!) Bianca Del Rio. Well, not in person, but via recording from LA. Drag Race favorites are skewered as well, and you must meet Lardi B, my version of hip-hop sensation Cardi B.
Christmas Leftovers is a last minute endeavor which came together after seeing a supremely silly performance at Joe’s Pub by my friend John Roberts, who does the voice of Linda on Bob’s Burgers. I also miss Stonewall after my long run of Trans-jester! So I’m back, with a hodge podge of both old and new favorites. Why watch Mariah Carey butcher All I Want For Christmas when you can see me struggle for to hit those high notes? The news is currently so wretched that I just wanted to bring you some holiday glad tidings.
6 shows only beginning December 22nd at 7PM. $25 + 2 drink minimum. 21 and up.
For more info/tix, please visit: https://www.brownpapertickets.
Broadway Cares holiday CD
Dear Evan Hansen, Come From Away, Hamilton, Waitress and A Bronx Tale.
The Christmas season is in full show tune swing now that the 19th volume of Broadway’s Carols for a Cure has arrived. The latest compilation from the beloved series continues Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS’ tradition of pairing the casts from award-winning Broadway musicals with seasonal songs that are both classic and new. Once again, the result is pure magic and is sure to help make the 2017 holiday season shine brighter than ever before.
“These are all new, original recordings, creatively arranged and performed by the incredibly talented performers and musicians from the 2017 Broadway season,” explains producer Lynn Pinto who, once again, collaborates with engineer Andros Rodriguez on the album. Pinto allows each company a great deal of freedom in choosing the material and the style of the arrangement. She adds, “We record the musicians and singers in layers, utilizing isolation booths for a higher quality recording. It gives the album a unique sound from most cast albums and allows us to showcase some of the best voices and instrumentalists in the world.”
The first Broadway’s Carols for a Cure album debuted in 1999, making this year’s album the 19th in the annual series. Fans of Broadway will be overjoyed to hear recordings from Tony Award winning casts of Dear Evan Hansen, Hamilton, Come From Away and many more:
Highlights are copious but include Billy Porter and the cast of Kinky Boots singing an all-new, rockin’ version of “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and the cast of A Bronx Tale performing “I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day” in a New Yawker-style that will have listeners humming for days.Additionally, Meghan Toohey (Sara Barielles’ long-time guitarist) serves up a lovely 1960s-style original song, “Wonder What You Got For Me,” featuring the talented Anastacia McCleskey and the rest of the company and band from Waitress; and Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, the composer/lyricist team behind Anastasia perform their original carol, “All Those Christmas Cliches,” along with their award-winning cast.
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is a nonprofit organization that helps individuals with serious illnesses including AIDS receive the health care and support they need. In addition, they provide financial support in the form of grants to AIDS and family service organizations throughout the country.
“The 19th volume of Broadway’s Carols for a Cure is the best yet,” promises Lynn Pinto. “It exudes such warmth, like a cozy blanket on a snowy Winter’s day.”
The 2-CD set is in the web store at BroadwayCares.org or by calling Broadway Cares at 212-840-0770.
Rick Skye as Liza! Nov. 25th
RICK SKYE STARS AS LIZA MINNELLI
IN
DON’T TELL MAMA’S NEW HIT SHOW
BAZAZZ!
A SEQUINED VARIETY
Saturday, November 25th
Rick Skye, who won the 2017 MAC Award for “Best Impersonation,” opened Don’t Tell Mama’s new monthly variety show Bazaaz! A Sequined Variety last month to a sold-out audience and the media is buzzing. In New York magazine said, “There’s a new sequined variety show in town that is a must see!”
The show features Skye’s heralded impersonation as Liza Minnelli singing in his own voice and showcases award-winning impersonations, guest performers and Skye’s Kit Kat Boyz. Bazaaz! A Sequined Variety will next play on Saturday, November 25th at 8:00PM.
Liz Smith said, “Save your Saturday nights every month, from now on. Why? Because down at New York’s famous Don’t Tell Mama cabaret,Rick Skye is the host with the most at Bazazz! A Sequined Variety. Skye’s impersonation of Minnelli is sensitive, boisterous and moving although ’impersonation’ is too banal a word for his affectionate, on-target work.”
Skye is well-known in London and New York for having written and performed in a series of outrageously comic, award-winning shows including The Flip Side of Neil Sedaka, which earned him a Bistro Award, A Slice O’Minnelli and The War of the Mama Roses. His show Its Madame with an E! played Atlantic City and Las Vegas and brought him to television where he appeared on Watch What Happens, Live! With Andy Cohen and Celebrity Apprentice as well as Fox & Friends and the WB. His most recent success was Judy and Liza Together Again which closed after an unprecedented seven-year run at Don’t Tell Mama’s and garnered two MAC Awards.
He has performed in many shows as Liza Minnelli in a number of hit shows that played internationally. He co-starred with Steven Brinberg in the London production of Barbra and Liza LIVE! which played the Dublin Gay Theater Festival and he toured with Liza LIVE! playing the New Players Theater in London and many spots in England. A Slice O’ Minnelli enjoyed successful seasons at the Apollo Theatre in London’s West End, The Dublin and Edinburgh Festivals, and from cities New York to Chicago. Critics called Skye “Masterful…Astonishing…
Skye’s special guests in November’s Bazaaz! A Sequined Variety will include Steven Brinberg as Barbra Streisand and entertainer Sidney Myer. Cabaret favorite Rick Ritzel is the evening’s Musical Director.
Bazaaz! A Sequined Variety will also play on:
Friday, December 29 – Guest stars TBA
Sunday, December 31 – Guest stars TBA
Don’t Tell Mama’s is located at 343 West 46th Street in New York City. There is a $20.00 Cover/2 Drink Minimum (Cash only). Reservations can be made at www.donttellmamanyc.com.
Torch Song with Michael Urie
Michael Urie takes on Harvey Fierstein’s epic play
Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song was originally written as a trilogy of three plays, but is now more commonly performed as one play in three acts. Centering around a gay Jewish drag performance artist and torch singer as he searches for love, purpose, and family, this epic, four-hour work focuses on three different periods in Arnold’s turbulent life. Dealing with heartbreak, bigotry from close quarters and raising a family, this touching drama first premiered in 1978, Off-Off Broadway. Torch Song will be helmed by Moises Kaufman and star Michael Urie, the Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel and LA Critics Award winning actor of Buyer & Cellar.
An iconic play returns to New York
Fierstein’s drama arrived on Broadway in 1982, winning two Tony Awards for Best Play and Best Actor in a Play (Fierstein) running for an epic 1,222 performances, before being adapted for the silver screen in 1988, also starring Fierstein, Matthew Broderick and Anne Bancroft, and directed by Paul Bogart. – As a young boy seeing this in 1982, I was awestruck and emotionally moved! And to see it with Matthew Broderick and Estelle Getty! What a cast!
Michael Urie first came to international prominence in the hit TV show Ugly Betty, and has since appeared as an immature NSA contractor on The Good Wife. On stage, he is most well-known for his one-man led show Buyer and Cellar, which premiered Off- 2013 to rapturous reviews, winning the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Solo Show. Urie’s performance was universally praised for playing multiple roles in the show, including Barbra Streisand! Now he is set to take on the role that Fierstein wrote and originated himself.
More info at 2ndStage
Cher Show Heading to Broadway
NY TIMES reports –
It’s official – the new musical using Cher’s songs to tell her story — with three actresses playing different aspects of her life — is heading for Broadway 2018.
“The Cher Show” will play first in Chicago, beginning performances June 12 at the Oriental Theater and running for five weeks. It will then transfer to the Neil Simon Theater on Broadway, opening next fall, the producers, Flody Suarez and Jeffrey Seller, said Thursday.
“We have been discussing this musical for 10 years,” Cher, a pop star and Academy Award-winning actress, said in a statement. “It’s exciting and scary.”
The musical has an unusual approach — it will be structured like a variety show, nodding to “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour,” which helped propel her to celebrity in the 1970s. The show currently features all or part of 35 to 40 of Cher’s best known songs.
“The Cher Show” is one of many jukebox biomusicals now in development, including “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical,” also featuring three actresses playing the title role, which is scheduled to run this fall at La Jolla Playhouse in California; “Ain’t Too Proud — The Life and Times of the Temptations,” now playing at Berkeley Repertory Theater in California; and “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical,” which is scheduled to open in London next spring.
Charles Busch August 12th
FOR most of his adult life, Charles Busch, the playwright, actor and drag artist, has lived in one room near Abingdon Square in the West Village.
“I’ve been on this block for 26 years,” said Mr. Busch, who became legendary in New York in the 1980s for Off Broadway plays like “Vampire Lesbians of Sodom” and “Psycho Beach Party,” which he wrote as star vehicles for himself. “My first apartment was around the corner on West 12th Street. When it came time to buy, I only looked at places within a three-block radius. I saw a nice apartment on Fifth Avenue and 11th Street, but it was too far away.”
Now, he has finally traded up by turning his apartment into a duplex. “I persuaded the lady upstairs to leave,” he said ominously, raising an eyebrow in femme fatale fashion. Check out article and renovations HERE.
BROADWAY sings for PRIDE
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Tyler Clementi Foundation
The Tyler Clementi Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to end online and offline bullying, harassment, and humiliation.
Max Emerson’s HOOKED June 26
Max Emerson & NewFest to Debut the U.S. Premiere of Hooked , An Original Film on LGBT Homeless Youth
Instagram Icon Max Emerson (@Maxisms) will premiere his crowdfunded film Hooked in New York City on Monday, June 26th.
The feature film Hooked , written and directed by Instagram superstar Max Emerson, will make its U.S. premiere on Monday June 26th at 8pm. Hooked received its world premiere last month at Toronto’s Inside Out Festival, propelled by more than $200,000 in crowdfunded donations from over one thousand participants.
The premiere is presented in partnership with NewFest: New York’s LFBT Film & Media Arts Organization and the Ali Forney Center.
Hooked tells the story of Jack, a homeless teenage prostitute with a smart mouth and impulsive tendencies. He battles through a violent world of reckless “Johns” between New York City and Miami, desperately seeking a better life with his boyfriend Tom. This timely narrative feature debut from Emerson poignantly captures the under-covered plight of LGBTQ youth. Funded through crowdsourcing and a commitment to donating to LGBTQ organizations, Hooked is proof that cinema can tell powerful stories of underrepresented populations while directly giving back to the community. Half of all proceeds from Hooked will be donated to LGBTQ homeless youth shelters including Ali Forney Center, Albert Kennedy Trust, LA LGBT Center and Lost N’ Found.
All proceeds from this evening will benefit homeless LGBTQ youth via the Ali Forney Center. The film premieres at 8:00pm, preceded by a 6:30pm cocktail reception. Tickets are $25 ($15 for NewFest Members) and can be purchased
here: newfest.org/film/hooked . VIP tickets are also available for $75 and include a “meet and greet” with Max and a gift bag. Both tickets include cocktail reception.
There will be a talkback directly following the screening with Max Emerson and the cast and crew.
The film stars Conor Donnally, Katie McClellan (NBC’s Believe) , Terrance Murphy (USA’s Burn Notice ), Sean Ormond, Jared Sandler (CBS’s Kevin Can Wait ), Casper Andreas (Kiss Me, Kill Me) and Steve Hayes (Trick). Max Emerson and Melissa Llewellyn serve as producers, alongside executive producer (and GLAAD Board Member) Anthony Watson.
Writer & Director Max Emerson says: “I couldn’t be more excited to finally be sharing this piece with my community. Working with NewFest and Ali Forney Center is such an honor, and has been nothing less than a pleasure. It’s taken countless time and effort from everyone involved in this project, so it’s a real treat to finally be able to put this little melodrama out into the world.”
“NewFest has a long history of supporting emerging filmmakers and community partners,” said Robert Kushner, Executive Director of NewFest . “Max Emerson’s poignant debut feature Hooked is an opportunity to celebrate a new voice in filmmaking, while shining a light on marginalized members of the LGBT community via The Ali Forney Center for homeless LGBT youth.”
“As longtime partners with Max Emerson, the Ali Forney Center is humbled and honored to be a beneficiary of his first feature-length film, which we have so proudly watched grow from idea to reality,” said Carl Siciliano, founder and Executive Director of the Ali Forney Center . “Support and generosity from individuals like Max helps educate people worldwide about the perils of LGBTQ youth homelessness, and for that we are most grateful.”
Max Emerson ( @Maxisms ) is an actor, model, YouTuber, activist and media personality. Well known in the gay and entertainment landscapes, he’s built a rabid fanbase among his 750,000+ Instagram followers with his adventurous spirit, good looks and fearless attitude. Max has been seen on numerous TV shows including ABC’s The Real O’Neals and FOX’s Glee, and is often recognized from ad campaigns with major brands like Abercrombie and Target. He recently wrote, directed and produced his first feature length film Hooked and is the author of Hot Sissy, now available via his website: www.maxismsmedia.com.
Founded in 1988, NewFest is a non-profit 501(C)(3) dedicated to giving voice and visibility to the full spectrum of the LGBT experience through year-round screenings, community empowerment programs, and our signature annual event, New York’s LGBT Film Festival. As the largest convener of LGBT audiences in New York, we proudly shine a light on the diverse stories that make our community unique, while nurturing and supporting the filmmakers whose work inspires dialogue, shifts cultural bias and creates positive
change. For information on our programs, partnerships, or how to support, visit www.NewFest.org .
The Ali Forney Center ‘s mission is to protect LGBTQ youths from the harms of homelessness and empower them with the tools needed to live independently. Since AFC’s launch with just six beds in a church basement, the organization has grown to become the largest agency dedicated to LGBTQ homeless youths in the country—assisting nearly 1,400 youths per year through a 24-hour Drop-In Center which provides over 70,000 meals annually, medical and mental health services through an on-site clinic, and a scattered site housing program.
INFORMATION ABOUT HOOKED:
www.HookedProject.com
Trailer: http://bit.ly/HookedTrailer Photos/Poster: http://bit.ly/
INFORMATION ABOUT MAX:
www.youtube.com/TheMaxVicious www.instagram.com/Maxisms www.maxismsmedia.com
Broadway Bares 2017 Highlights
THIS YEARS 27th edition of Broadway Bares pulled in a whopping $1,568,114 in two performances at NYC’s Hammerstein Ballroom to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
This year’s Broadway Bares stripped away the fears of freshmen and saluted seniors as a journey across the Strip U campus took us to a seductive observatory, exploding chemistry lab, flirty fine arts class, frat party-turned-Greek god fantasy, a lesson in stiletto strutting and Havana, Cuba, for a sizzling semester studying abroad.
Two-time Tony Award nominee and seven-time Emmy winner Allison Janney started the show with a video invitation as Strip U’s president, offering sexy salutations, a campus history and words of wisdom: “Our motto reminds us of our core values every day: Honorem, Integritas, Nuditas, Erectus.”
Internet personality Randy Rainbow and On Your Feet’s Ana Villafañe made special guest appearances as a psychology professor and a foreign exchange student.
In the finale, Instagram sensation Tom Lenk (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), playing a pesky Department of Education auditor who appeared throughout the show, finally saw the Strip U way and offered the university full federal funding. The entire cast of more than 180 dancers flooded the stage, providing an electrifying finale to the show.
Tony-winning director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell, who created Broadway Bares in 1992 and serves as executive producer, and Tony winner Judith Light thanked the audience at the show’s close. “We must take the power of our diverse communities and dedicate our energies to the importance of taking care of ourselves and each other,” Light said. Light and Mitchell also reminded the audience: “Safe sex is hot sex. We can best love each other by protecting each other.”
WATCH the video highlights HERE
Invasion of the Pines..Gay New York / Fire Island
Mascara, Mirth & Mayhem is a collection of photographs taken by renowned photographer Susan Kravitz over the past thirty years at the annual LGBTQ event known as the Invasion of the Pines.
The Invasion of the Pines occurs every July 4th and involves participants from the Fire Island communities of Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines. It began in 1976, when a member of the Cherry Grove community had been refused service in a Pines’ restaurant because he had been dressed in drag. In protest, a small group of Cherry Grove residents cross-dressed and took a water taxi to the Pines on Independence Day of that year, to stand up against this “height of insult” by “invading” their neighboring community. Four decades later, the Invasion has evolved into a uniquely raucous event that joyfully celebrates human rights and freedom of expression by thousands of people, straight and gay.
Kravitz’s photographs capture the rebelliousness, the high camp, and the joy of the Invasion. They are provocative, introspective, sad and funny, and tinged with sexual innuendo. Yet they also reflect another journey, one that gives insight into the LGBTQ movement itself.
From the fearful, AIDS-ridden years of the 1980s and 1990s, to the joyous years of this decade when LGBTQ people are out and proud (and, if they choose, legally married), these Invasion photographs celebrate a day to be free, to be whoever you want to be, and to be gay.
“My photographs are as much about the times I which they were taken as they are about the people who populate them. Ultimately, they are about human rights and freedom of expression seen through the lens of the Invasion.” said Kravitz of her eighty-eight color and black and white photographs.
Susan Kravitz is a social documentarian of daily life. Over the past thirty years she has exhibited her photographs in galleries and museums in the United States and abroad, including China, South Korea, Russia, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and the Czech Republic. Her Cherry Grove photographs were recently featured on the New York Times Lens blog (A Gay Haven on Fire Island) and in the International New York Times, Paris edition.
The book comes out next week! 148 pages, available in softcover or hardcover.
Book is available now on http://www.
Bette Midler Wins TONY Award
CONGRATS TO BETTE!
Great speech and she took time to honor Carol Channing and Pearl Bailey, it’s and class!
She shuts down the orchestra!
See Glenn Close present Bette Midler with the Tony Award for Best Performance By An Actress In A Leading Role In A Musical for her work in Hello, Dolly! WATCH.
CHER on Broadway 2018
A musical based on Cher’s life is slated to debut on Broadway in 2018. The singer confirmed the news on Tuesday night on her Twitter account.
“Just got off phone w/Writer & Director of musical,” Cher wrote. “There will [be] performance in theatre with actors, dancers, singers!! It’ll be on Broadway 2018.”
News of a possible musical production tracing Cher’s life – and using Cher’s extensive catalog of pop hits – surfaced in January, when the singer attended a read-through of the production. According to The New York Post, Jason Moore, known for Pitch Perfect, will direct. Rick Elice, of Jersey Boys, penned the musical. Three different actresses will portray Cher at various points in her life. At the read-through, one of the actresses was Tony Award-winner Lena Hall.
After Cher attended the event in January, she tweeted her support for the project. “Just walked [off] the musical,” she wrote. “I SOBBED & LAUGHED & I WAS PREPARED NOT 2 LIKE IT. AUDIENCE CLAPPED AFTER SONGS & GAVE IT STANDING OVATION.”
Earlier this year, the singer accepted the Icon Award at the Billboard Music Awards. “I’ve wanted to do what I do since I was four years-old,” she said during her speech. “And I’ve been doing it for 53 years … I’m 71 yesterday. And I can do a five-minute plank, ok? Just saying.”
