Category Archives: Movers and Shakers
Nick Adams talks Broadway and Drag
Nick Adams is an entertainer on many levels. Acting, singing, dancing, film, stage, and more, he’s done it all.
He’s won Audience Choice Awards from Broadway.com, received an Astaire Award nomination for Best Dancer, and has been honored by the American Theatre Hall of Fame.
He is instantly recognizable by his signature smile, powerhouse vocals, and yes, that body that held Mario Lopez to task.
METROSOURCE did a great story and interview with Nick this month! Check it out here!
I’m From Driftwood Gala March 27
VISION
I’m From Driftwood envisions a world where every lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer person feels understood and accepted, and every straight person is an ally.
MISSION
I’m From Driftwood aims to help LGBTQ people learn more about their community, straight people learn more about their neighbors and everyone learn more about themselves through the power of storytelling and story sharing.
Increasing empathy and empowering individuals is accomplished by creating an apolitical forum for LGBTQ stories from every age, race, gender, background and culture. The stories deepen our understanding of each other, preserve history, and open hearts and minds.
VALUES
The most personal and meaningful stories are shared when the storyteller is in a trust-worthy, welcoming, judgment-free environment. I’m From Driftwood strives to create that environment on every level, whether you’re a long-time supporter at one of IFD’s events or a first-time visitor to the site. Be yourself, be comfortable and let’s get to know each other.
Grace Jones June 29th @ World Pride NYC
THE AMAZING Grace Jones will take center stage for an unforgettable day of music on Saturday, June 29th at Pier 97. Jones is most famously known for her post-disco dance track “Pull Up to the Bumper,” and an array of features in motion pictures including “Conan the Destroyer,” “Vamp,” and the 1992 classic, “Boomerang.”
In 2017 NYC Pride evolved Dance on the Pier, a 30+ year institution, into a new multi-day LGBTQIA+ cultural experience named Pride Island. After a hugely successful two consecutive years, NYC Pride is excited to bring Pride Island to Hudson River Park’s, Pier 97, in the heart of Hells Kitchen. This event showcases everyone from legendary soul singers to indie pop bands, this new inclusive experience creates a central hub for the LGBTQ community to celebrate Pride. This event has a legendary history of attracting the biggest performers for any Pride event in the world. Previous performers have included Cher, Ariana Grande, Jennifer Lopez, Janet Jackson, Demi Lovato, Years & Years, Tegan & Sara, Tove Lo, and the late Whitney Houston.
Don’t miss the biggest live music event in NYC Pride history and help us give back to the broader community! NYC Pride will be selecting nonprofits within the local New York City area to receive grants as part of this community-driven event. Pride Island serves as a fundraiser to help NYC Pride raise crucial funds to help produce a multitude of free events such as our new Youth Pride, Family Movie Night, PrideFest, The March, The Rally and many more!
Tickets are selling fast! Over 3 Million people are expected into NYC that weekend!
GET TICKETS!
Nick Adams Facebook Page
The wonderfully charming and delightful (and sexy) triple threat on Broadway, NICK ADAMS is touring now with the Tony Award Winning FALSETTO’S!!! #cantwait! And recently you are able to see him on Comedy Central’s THE OTHER TWO!
He has over 23,000 fans on Twitter, but only 7000+ on FB – so I am asking my network, to LIKE his page, to help get his numbers up! This guy is so awesome and amazing! And a little bird told me, he has a CD in the works! (Which I have been telling him for 6 years, he needs one!).
Matthew Camp – Getting GO
How did I miss this?
I stumbled upon this cute little movie by accident this week – it’s a Sexy, innovative gay romance with Tanner Cohen & Matthew Camp!
“An affecting drama full of heart and humor, reminiscent of instant classics like Weekend.” — Edge Boston
This wonderfully innovative and exceptionally sexy drama has an infectious energy and a completely unique aesthetic as it tells a classic story of lust becoming love — and then some. Super cute Tanner Cohen (Were The World Mine) returns to the big screen as a college boy named Doc who drunkenly cruises a gay go-go boy named Go (super hot Matthew Camp – well known New York night life performer) with the pretense of making a documentary about him.
“As they grow closer, flirtation blurs the line between subject and filmmaker,” the film’s description reads, “until a steamy night together solidifies deeper feelings.”
Though his character “Go” was inspired directly by his dancing alter-ego, Matthew Camp says he’s actually pretty different from what most believe him to be behind closed doors — he’s quite reserved, completely monogamous, an artist, a perfumer, and nothing like what you’d assume a New York City bar star to be.
“What you see in Getting Go is a rough representation of me,” he says. “I mean, I do run around shirtless all the time, Go and I are both not afraid of a lot of things, and we danced in our underwear, so we’re both confident. But I wouldn’t have handled most of the situations in the same way Go did. I’m not as sexual as him… I don’t go on a lot of dates, I’m very reclusive, hanging out at my house. Go-go dancing was very much a job for me and after I’d perform, I’d leave right away rather than hang out at the club.”
Now 30, Camp reveals that he began go-go dancing when he moved to the city at 21 in order to pay his bills. “I’ve never felt I should be embarrassed by go-go dancing,” he says. “It’s not prostitution – which I’m not judgmental about – but I view dancing more as performance. I don’t like opening myself up to people, so with go-go dancing, people get to just see my body, they don’t see what’s going on in my head.”
See more at Queerty.
WOLFE movies on demand
Ian Reisner Admits Poor Judgment
Ian Reisner,
one of the two gay hoteliers facing boycott calls for hosting an event for Senator Ted Cruz, who is adamantly opposed to same-sex marriage, apologized to the gay community for showing “poor judgment.”
Mr. Reisner put the apology on Facebook, where a page calling for a boycott of his properties, the gay-friendly Out NYC hotel and his Fire Island Pines holdings, had gotten more than 8,200 “likes” by Sunday evening.
“I am shaken to my bones by the emails, texts, postings and phone calls of the past few days. I made a terrible mistake,” wrote Mr. Reisner.
Will people forgive him?
more at New York Times
Humans of New York
I just love this site – and I am sure you must know of it, but if not, NOW YOU DO!
“Brandon and I began Humans of New York in the summer of 2010. I thought it would be really cool to create an exhaustive catalogue of New York City’s inhabitants, so I set out to photograph 10,000 New Yorkers and plot their photos on a map. I worked for several months with this goal in mind, but somewhere along the way, HONY began to take on a much different character.
I started collecting quotes and short stories from the people I met, and began including these snippets alongside the photographs. Taken together, these portraits and captions became the subject of a vibrant blog. With over eight million followers on social media, HONY now provides a worldwide audience with daily glimpses into the lives of strangers in New York City. It has also become a #1 NYT bestselling book.. It’s been quite a ride so far. Feel free to follow along.”
I would highly recommend the BOOK as well!
New York Pier 55 Project
GOTHAMIST has the scoop on Pier 55 this week!
A crumbling old Hudson River pier once used by ocean liners like the Lusitania will be torn down and replaced by a 2.7 acre park on the water featuring rolling hills and an outdoor amphitheater. Mayor de Blasio is expected to reveal further details about the park at a press conference this morning, but the Hudson River Park Trust has revealed that the park will be largely financed by a foundation formed by the billionaire couple Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg.
“New York has always reminded me of Venice, so I am happy the time has come to properly honor its waterways,” Diane von Furstenberg said in a statement. “What better than a park on the city’s western bank to rest, watch a sunset or a performance?” The talented producer Scott Rudin, theater directors George Wolfe and Stephen Daldry, and British theater executive Kate Horton will oversee the performance spaces, with Diller pledging to fund cultural events there for 20 years.
Read more and see all the cool pictures!
***UPDATE 2015 – THIS IS GOING TO HAPPEN! The project has won unanimous approval from the Hudson River Park Trust on Wednesday and is moving forward! The next step in Pier55’s development is for the developers to apply for permits from the Army Corps of Engineers and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Construction is expected to begin in 2016.
Casper Andreas KISS ME KILL ME
While confronting his unfaithful boyfriend Dusty blacks-out. When he comes to, his boyfriend was murdered and he’s the prime suspect.
“Kiss Me, Kill Me” is an Alfred Hitchcock/Agatha Christie-style “Who-done-it” set in a little town called West Hollywood.
The fantastic film maker CASPER ANDREAS is back again! An accomplished filmmaker who got his start in 2003 when he wrote, directed, and produced the short film “Mormor’s Visit” as well as his first feature, the romantic comedy “Slutty Summer” (in which he also stars). In the following years Casper produced and directed another five feature films (three of which he also wrote): “A Four Letter Word” (2007),”Between Love & Goodbye” (2008), “The Big Gay Musical” (2009), “Violet Tendencies” (2010), and “Going Down in LA-LA Land” (2011). Casper co-starred in the last two. Casper has collected multiple awards at film festivals around the world for each of his films.
AN AMAZING CAST has been assembled for his new project, KISS ME, KILL ME! Model / actor Matthew Ludwinski, Queer As Folk’s Gale Harold, Michael Maize from True Blood, International Superstar Willam, and many more!
This movie is a passion project. Every single person both before and behind the camera is involved because we believe in it. We are a small group, with a small film, and we want to make this movie for a small amount of money.
Our risks and challenges will be enormous. Even though that is true of every film production, at every budget, the smaller the budget the greater the challenges. Actors can drop out, locations can become unavailable. Pretty much anything that can go wrong in life can go wrong while making a small movie. But our team has a lot of experience in film production and overcoming the various obstacles that will inevitably arise.
And we have passion!
We believe that passion plus experience will equal a great little movie that will, with your help, come together to truly be something special.
This is going to be a great creative adventure.
With your support, there is no challenge too great or risk to large – and KISS ME, KILL ME will then be coming soon to a theater near you!
They need $100,000 and are 1/3 of the way there!
VISIT KICKSTARTER and read more!
HERO Awards Broadway and Ballet
The best of both worlds performing together.
Featuring performances from the brightest stars from Broadway and Ballet.
A benefit for HERO – HIV Experience Resources Organization.
Honoring The Actors Fund.
Sunday, October 19th, 2014
42 West, 516 West 42nd Street, NYC
8–10 p.m. Doors open at 7 p.m.
Purchase Tickets $20 General Admission – Premium seating $100 – Tables of Ten
The awards are given to those organizations and individuals who have gone above and beyond to help the HIV/AIDS community. The event will screen short tribute videos highlighting the accomplishments of the honorees and organizations.
Talent participating in Broadway and Ballet will include: Michael Leon Wooley (Broadway – The Plant – Little Shop of Horrors, American Buffalo, The Music Man, Five Guys Named Moe, the voice of Louis – Walt Disney’s The Princess and the Frog), Stephen Hanna (Broadway – On The Town, Billy Elliot, Principle Dancer at New York City Ballet), Michael Cusumano (Broadway – All Shook Up, Chicago,” “American in Paris”) ABT, World Ballet Gold Medalist), Patrick Boyd (Me and My Girl, “Grease” and starring in the upcoming movie, “Touch: A Love Story”), Kelly King (“Silver Seagull” Award for best international singer at the Viña Del Mar International Song Festival, top 20 recording artist), Sean Stewart (ABT Ballet), Alina Fay (ABT Ballet alumni), Marty Thomas and The Divas, (Broadway – Wicked, The Secret Garden” Xanadu), Russell Brown, (Irish historian , harpist and Irish dance sensation), and many surprise celebrity guests.
The first HERO Awards Broadway and Ballet will be hosted in order to honor the individuals and collectives that have helped HERO become a valuable resource where those afflicted by HIV/AIDS can find the information and help they need. Our event aims to showcase the brightest in the ballet and Broadway worlds while also screening short tribute videos for the recipients of our HERO awards The awards are given to those individuals who have gone above and beyond to help the HIV/AIDS community. Top talent from the Broadway and ballet worlds, will be in attendance to entertain YOU! There will be five awards presented. The Broadway HERO Award, presented to Jerry Mitchell (on availability), in honor of a Broadway artist who has helped the HIV/AIDS community by promoting awareness.
The Ballet Hero, presented to Ballet Star, Stephen Hanna, who has also gone above and beyond for the community. The HERO Partner Award, presented to The Actor’s Fund, is to acknowledge our partner, who has distinguished itself by assisting those afflicted with HIV/AIDS. The Super HERO award, will be given to a corporation that has shown outstanding advocacy for both the HIV/AIDS and LGBT communities. And a special award given to Stephen Lessard from Orrick who helped us to gain our 501 (3) (c) status.
YOUR HELP:
To produce this event, we need your help. There are many costs associated with putting on an event of this magnitude. Although we have many volunteers, and no one is paid at HERO, we are hoping for your support to help us pay for venue costs and promotion materials including: posters, postcards and donation envelops, press kit production, promotion and PR assistance. Go to INDIE GOGO
WHY WE ARE DOING THIS:
Although we have been fighting the spread and helping people with HIV/AIDS for more than five years, we have not ever done a national media event to let people know about the resources we offer. In addition to valuable local, national and international resources and tools, we provide a large amount of video content, celebrity support and coverage for many other HIV/AIDS related charities. We also put the latest news regarding HIV/AIDS from the World AIDS Map which is updated weekly under NEWS.
ABOUT HERO:
HIV Experience Resources Organization (HERO) is a non-profit 501(3)(c) organization founded in 2009 by Michael Cavnaugh, former vice president of Event Presentation at Madison Square Garden. HERO helps people find the most pressing, up-to-date information available critical to their heath. HERO’s Websites, HIVhero.org and HEROnews.org, provide local, national and international resources and interactive tools which provide assistance in:
· finding doctors
· getting medication
· mental health counseling
· housing
· financial assistance
· insurance
and much more. We also serve as a portal site providing free content and promoting the services, activities and fundraising efforts of our partner organizations including: Broadway Cares, Equity Fights AIDS, The Actors Fund, Gay Men’s Health Crisis, The LBGT Center and Housing works.
HERO produces celebrity interviews and event coverage that support the services, activities and events of our partners. These videos are filmed and edited in-house and provided to partner organizations and the media open free of charge. Celebrity interviews discussing safe sex, and healthy living with HIV/AIDS, have been conducted with Cyndi Lauper, Matthew Bomer, Angela Lansbury, Neil Patrick Harris, Bebe Neuwirth, Alley Sheedy, Kelly Ripa, Mary Louise Parker, Alan Cumming ,Chita Rivera and many other.
Broadway Bares Raises $1.3 Million
The annual flesh fest BROADWAY BARES this year featured performances by Alan Cumming, war veteran-turned-underwear model Alex Minsky, and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” winner Bianca Del Rio giving actor James Franco a “full cavity search”, the rock-and-roll themed Broadway Bares: Rock Hard!
Playbill reports:
The 75-minute show opened with two dads (Matthew Saldivar and Joey Taranto) complaining that they had been dragged to a One Direction concert by their daughters and reminiscing about the great old days of rock. Through the magic of Broadway Bares, they were whisked back in time to watch performances inspired by the likes of Elvis, Michael Jackson, Queen, The Rolling Stones, Led Zepplin and Prince, with their memories putting the sex back in sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll.
To date, Broadway Bares has raised more than $11.3 million in the fight against AIDS.
New Book looks at the history of New York Nightlife…THE FUN: THE SOCIAL PRACTICE OF NIGHTLIFE IN NYC
is a first-of-its-kind publication, documenting the new forms of
nightlife practitioners to emerge since the turn of the millennium.
Through profiles of over 30 artists, including the royalty of Manhattan
nightlife like Susanne Bartsch and Ladyfag; hybrid forms like Xtapussy
and FCKNLZ; the continuation of minimal wave and goth communities
through Pendu Disco; and the vibrant queer scenes of JUDY, Frankie
Sharp, and My Chiffon is Wet, THE FUN documents the rich
contemporary cultural activity keeping NYC as weird and innovative as
decades past.
voices in the nightlife, including artists Rob Roth and Genesis
P-Orridge, curators and critics Claire Bishop and Jake Yuzna, as well as
journalist Michael Musto providing both historical context and
contemporary understanding of nightlife as a vital artistic practice
that has been marginalized by the arts sector for hundreds of years.
from the explosion of large and small discos throughout the 1970s like
Studio 54, which paved the way for 80s megaclubs; the candy-colored club
kid movement of Michael Alig and the Limelight in the early 90s; the
parallel expansion of the boundary shattering merger of drag,
performance, and music in downtown venues such as the Pyramid Club and
Mother; the rise of Brooklyn as a new focal point in the 2000s with the
emergence of Luxx, Secret Project Robot, Silent Barn and other hybrid
arts/music/nightlife venues; and on into the many vibrant forms found
today.
978-1-57687-659-6, $39.95)
from Paris Hilton and Lydia Hearst to the Backstreet Boys, Foxy Brown
and Gwen Stefani was drawn to their taste for sparkly streetwear glam.
“The clothes were attention getting and fun,” Heatherette’s longtime
friend and muse Amanda Lepore remembers. “They had a distinct look,
which at that time — everyone wanted it. David LaChapelle was using it. All the
celebrities wanted it. It was in demand.” (from Paper Mag).
while Rich is set to launching two fashion lines this spring: Rich
& Warr, a mens line, and a womens, Chantilly Rich, with Chantilly
Lace designer, Chantelle Warr. Although busy, Rich still has his eye on
the club scene. “It’s been fun watching the new generation of kids. When
I moved to New York I was ‘the new’ to the old nightlife generation,”
Richie says. “Now it’s fun to see all the new kids coming on the block
and dressing up. I feel like the style is coming back. Who knows, maybe
Heatherette will too.”
Amanda Lepore FACELIFT for FORTWO Car
Amanda Lepore is a name synonymous with glamour in nightclubs and burlesque halls around the world. ‘The most expensive body on Earth,’ as she is known, and unofficial ambassador of New York City’s nightlife scene was catapulted into the spotlight after being discovered by visionary photographer David LaChapelle.
Breaking into the music scene with ease, Amanda has left a string of hits in her wake – including “My Hair Looks Fierce,” “Cotton Candy,” “Champagne” and her latest offering “Doin’ It My Way.” Lepore continues winning over new fans every day – her recent appearance in a viral video by photographer/director Marco Ovando lip-synching Marina And The Diamond’s hit song “Primadonna” with friends in the New York City nightlife scene prompted Marina herself to exclaim “Oh my god, I died! I love Amanda Lepore so much.”
These days, Amanda is still a jet-setter with an upcoming appearance on Here TV’s new reality show titled Because Of An Earlier Incident, a featured role in Smart Car’s commercial for their Fortwo model airing in a majority of Europe, a stop in Vienna where she wowed crowds at Europe’s largest HIV/AIDS fundraiser ‘Life Ball’ alongside The Scissor Sisters and as if that weren’t enough, she also served as host for the star-studded GLAAD fundraiser in Manhattan on August 7th. The new show, Because Of An Earlier Incident, is a reality show shot in a documentary style that highlights NYC’s most intriguing artists as they share their insights, inspiration, creative pursuits, and personal style. It debuts on September 28th promising to be reminiscent of the early 80’s street culture and portray NYC as a place to “play,” collaborate, and have fun.
Always a hit in the high end fashion world, Amanda served as both muse and actress for Brazilian fashion designer Sergio K’s 2012 Winter Campaign shot by noted American fashion photographer Terry Richardson. Fans in NYC can also catch her at the Grand Opening of Sephora’s new 45 East 17th Street store on Friday, August 10th from 4-6pm where she will appropriately perform her song “Nails Done” alongside DJ Roxy Cottontail. With her over-the-top lifestyle more in demand than ever before, Amanda is a star burning brighter every day.
For more information and to stay up-to-date on Amanda Lepore, please visit www.peacebisquit.com/artists/