CONTENTS

AUGUST 16, 2018 Volume 25 Issue 16

12 CLOSET CASE
Playwright Siegmund Fuchs looks behind the closed
doors of the closeted mind.

By André Hereford

BLOOD AND HONOR

The Trump administration’s outdated “Deploy
or Get Out” policy puts hundreds of HIV-positive
servicemembers at risk of being discharged. Sgt. Nick
Harrison refuses to go down without a fight.

Interview by John Riley

Photography by Todd Franson
22
35 BIRTHDAY GIRL
In honor of the Queen of Pop’s 60th birthday, we round
up the ten best songs from her long, iconic career.

By Sean Maunier

SPOTLIGHT: BEN’S CHILI BOWL p.7 OUT ON THE TOWN p.10

CLOSET CASE: SIEGMUND FUCHS p.12 THE FEED p.17 COMMUNITY: SOUL OF DUPONT p.19
COVER STORY: BLOOD AND HONOR p.22 GALLERY: DAMON ARHOS p.29
FILM: CRAZY RICH ASIANS p.30 TELEVISION: DISENCHANTMENT p.31
STAGE: MELANCHOLY PLAY p.33 MUSIC: MADONNA’S TEN ESSENTIAL SONGS p.35
NIGHTLIFE p.37 SCENE: NELLIES p.37 NIGHTLIFE HIGHLIGHTS p.39
PLAYLIST: DJ ED BAILEY p.43 SCENE: DIRTY GOOSE p.45 LAST WORD p.46
Real LGBTQ News and Entertainment since 1994
Editorial Editor-in-Chief Randy Shulman Art Director Todd Franson Online Editor at metroweekly.com Rhuaridh Marr Senior Editor John Riley
Contributing Editors André Hereford, Doug Rule Senior Photographers Ward Morrison, Julian Vankim Contributing Illustrator Scott G. Brooks
Contributing Writers Sean Maunier, Troy Petenbrink, Bailey Vogt, Kate Wingfield Webmaster David Uy Production Assistant Julian Vankim
Sales & Marketing Publisher Randy Shulman National Advertising Representative Rivendell Media Co. 212-242-6863 Distribution Manager Dennis Havrilla
Patron Saint Leonard Matlovich Cover Photography Todd Franson

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4 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 Spotlight
ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF BEN’S CHILI BOWL

Ben’s Chili Bowl

W
EDNESDAY, AUG. 22, MARKS 60 YEARS TO THE
day when Ben Ali first started serving up the chili
half-smokes that has made him and his original
counter store an internationally acclaimed local landmark.
Victoria Ali, the late Ben’s wife who now runs the operation,
will kick off a day-long to-do at Ben’s U Street location with an
11 a.m. press conference that will undoubtedly draw most of the
city’s biggest movers and shakers.
Things continue moving and shaking right on into the
afternoon with Ben’s Block Party featuring performances by
Maysa, Rare Essence, EU featuring Sugarbear, Soul Searchers,
DJ MelloT, and Ozone. And the festivities don’t stop until after
an official gala at the Lincoln Theatre — the historic venue next
door, right across Ben Ali Way. Billed as “A Tribute to Virginia
Ali” benefitting the Ben’s Chili Bowl Foundation, the gala, start-
ing at 7:30 p.m., will feature the Ali Family and “Special Guests”
— among them Faith Evans, Kenny Lattimore, Rayshun LaMarr,
and BSlade.
Given the institution’s large and loyal celebrity fan base —
from the Obamas and Oprah to Dave Chappelle and Taraji P.
Henson — it seems reasonable to expect even more starry sur-
prise guests. —Doug Rule

Ben’s Chili Bowl is at 1213 U St. NW. Tickets to the gala at the Lincoln Theatre are $60 to $150.
Call 202-733-1895 or visit benschilibowl.com.

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 7

 Spotlight
RA XTRA: HARD PAINT
Last February, this brooding Brazilian drama won the Teddy
Award for Best Feature Film at the Berlin Film Festival. The focus
is on Pedro, a socially alienated boy who strips and slathers himself
in glow-in-the-dark paint to transform into NeonBoy, a popular,
money-making avatar online, taking commands from men in pri-
vate chat rooms. A sensitive, melancholic portrait of a queer boy
struggling with today’s very real challenges of intimacy, commu-
nity, and security in a homophobic society, Hard Paint is offered
as part of Reel Affirmations’ monthly series. The screening will be
followed by a panel discussion with Casa Ruby’s Shareese Mone on
sex-work decriminalization. In Portuguese with English subtitles.
Friday, Aug. 24, at 7 p.m. HRC Equality Center, 1640 Rhode Island
Ave. NW. Tickets are $12, or $25 for VIP seating as well as one
complimentary cocktail, beer or wine and popcorn. Call 202-682-
2245 or visit thedccenter.org.

BEACH HOUSE
Like much of their music, the Baltimore-
based dream-pop duo’s success has been
a slow build. And 7, Beach House’s new-
est album, is the culmination of years
of precisely refining technique, doubling
down again and again on a now unmis-
takable sound and aesthetic and striving
to perfect it. The synths, soft guitars,
and Victoria Legrand’s haunting voice
make it impossible to mistake this for
anything other than her band with Alex
Scally. Beach House’s soundscapes have
always been dreamy, escapist fantasies,
but with 7, the duo has also put forth a
hopeful message of rebirth, a simple per-
fection rising out of darkness and chaos.
Beach House supports the stellar five-
star album on tour with fellow Sub Pop
labelmate Papercuts, the “soft indie pop”
four-piece founded and fronted by Jason
Robert Quever. Saturday, Aug. 25. Doors
at 6:30 p.m. The Anthem, 901 Wharf St.

WIKICOMMONS
SW. Tickets are $38 to $55. Call 202-888-
0020 or visit theanthemdc.com. (Sean
Maunier)

HOT AUGUST MUSIC FESTIVAL

The Revivalists, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, and Nikki Hill
are the headliners across the three stages at this folk and blue-
grass festival, now in its 26th year and presented by Stages
Music Arts. Other acts set to perform include Trampled by
Turtles, Psycho Killers, the Marcus King Band, Cris Jacobs
Band, Omari Banks, Whiskey Shivers, the Dirty Grass Players,
Selwyn Birchwood, and Hall Williams Band. Also, the orchestral
folk duo the Clavicles will perform in between sets in the VIP
section. Saturday, Aug. 18. Gates at 11 a.m. Tickets are $68 in
advance or $85 on the day of, or $199 for VIP including parking,
alcohol, two meal tickets, special viewing area, and restrooms.
Oregon Ridge Park, 13401 Beaver Dam Rd. in Cockeysville, Md.
Call 877-321-FEST or visit hotaugustmusicfestival.com.

8 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 Spotlight
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE
Malcolm McDowell is over-the-top mag-
nificent as the Beethoven-loving ringlead-
er of a band of thugs in a powerful satire
about the evils and capriciousness of our
modern, psychiatric-driven society. With its
extreme violence and horrific rape sequence,
A Clockwork Orange ranks as one of the most
shocking in Stanley Kubrick’s rich cinematic
oeuvre. The 1971 film, based on Anthony
Burgess’ dystopian crime novel, returns to
the screen at the AFI Silver Theatre as part
of a two-month series honoring the great
filmmaker, who died in 1999. Screenings are
Friday, Aug. 17, at 10:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug.
18, at 10:30 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 19, at 9:30 p.m.,
AFI SILVER THEATRE

and Wednesday, Aug. 22, at 7:30 p.m. Silver

Theatre, 8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring.
Tickets are $15 general admission. Call 301-
495-6720 or visit afi.com/Silver.

TABERNA DEL ALABARDERO’S

CHILLED SUMMER SOUPS
Summer isn’t ideal soup season — unless you’re
talking gazpacho and other cold varieties pop-
ularized in Spain. In that case, now through
Labor Day, D.C.’s oldest traditional Spanish
restaurant offers five varieties, rotating them by
weekday: from Monday with Gazpacho Andaluz,
the traditional tomato-based soup with cucum-

COURTESY OF TABERNA DEL ALABARDERO

bers and red and green peppers, to Friday’s
Salmorejo Cordobés, a tomato and bread puree
with Serrano ham and hard-boiled egg. Garlic
and almond soup with grapes, carrot and orange
soup with orange, and tomato and watermelon
soup round out the midday options. All soups are
$13. 1776 I St. NW. Call 202-429-2200 or visit
alabardero.com.

DC MUSIC ROCKS FESTIVAL

“Some of the best music in the country is from
right here in your neighborhood,” goes the tag-
line to this festival at the 9:30 Club, presented in
collaboration with Girls Rock DC. This year’s line-
up includes hard-hitting rockers Black Dog Prowl,
the self-described 10-piece “hip pop psych rock”
act Allthebestkids, the grunge-blues trio Fellowcraft
(“Alice in Chains meets the Black Keys”), funky blues
rockers Pebble to Pearl, and Northern Virginia’s
indie-folk/rock five-piece Kid Brother. Saturday,
Aug. 18. Doors at 7 p.m. 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW.
Tickets are $15. Call 202-265-0930 or visit 930.com.
Fellowcraft

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 9

 Out On The Town

BLAZING SADDLES
Mel Brooks is a master of shtick-heavy, knee-jerk comedy, the kind that often doesn’t require much in the way of intellec-
tual heavy-lifting. Several of his best-known works have been deemed by the American Film Institute among the funniest of
the last century. Chief among these, coming in at No. 6 on the AFI’s 100 Years...100 Laughs list, is this 1974 farcical Western
caper co-written with Richard Pryor. A satire about the racist mythology of the American West, Blazing Saddles stars
Cleavon Little as a black sheriff in an all-white town. Gene Wilder plays a gunslinging, alcoholic everyman sidekick, with a
cast aided and abetted by a bevy of Brooks’ scene-stealing regulars, including Dom DeLuise, Harvey Korman, and the late,
great Madeline Kahn. Blazing Saddles could never get made in today’s climate — and yet it seems the perfect statement for
our times. The film returns to the big screen as part of Landmark’s West End Cinema Capital Classics series. Wednesday,
Aug. 23, at 1:30, 4:30, and 7:30 p.m., 2301 M St. NW. Happy hour from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 to $12.50. Call 202-
534-1907 or visit landmarktheatres.com.

Compiled by Doug Rule with their own food and drink. It’s
all designed as a benefit for NIH
FILM Children’s Charities. On the lawn
near the Mansion, 10701 Rockville
starring Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn,
Christopher Lloyd, Lesley Ann
Warren, and Michael McKean. The
original theatrical release featured
Road, Silver Spring. Tickets are $5.
Call 301-495-6720 or visit afi.com/
Silver.

COMCAST XFINITY
OUTDOOR FILM FESTIVAL
The chief draws at this year’s free
screening series under the stars
at Strathmore are two of cinema’s
biggest, most progressive superhe-
ro tales: Black Panther (Aug. 24)
and Wonder Woman (Aug. 26). The
series launches Thursday, Aug. 23,
with Coco, the latest Oscar-winning
animated adventure from Disney-
Pixar. Disney’s classic, The Lion
King, screens on Saturday, Aug.
25. Each film is screened, start-
ing at 7:30 p.m., on a nine-story-
tall, 52-foot-wide inflatable movie
screen. The festival features bar-
becue and beverage options avail-
able for purchase from Ridgewells
catering, although patrons are
welcome to bring picnic blankets,
low beach chairs, and small coolers
Pike, North Bethesda. Call 301-581-
5100 or visit strathmore.org.
CLUE
Every Friday night through August
31, the AFI Silver Theatre co-pres-
ents a free outdoor film series at
nearby Sonny’s Green, where
patrons can bring blankets and low-
rise chairs as well as their own food
and beverage. Screening Friday,
Aug. 17, is Game Night, the offbeat
comedy released earlier this year
starring Jason Bateman and Rachel
McAdams as a hyper-competitive,
games-mad married couple, whose
interactive murder mystery game
night gets hijacked by actual crimi-
nals. Next week, Aug. 24, the series
screens Clue, Jonathan Lynn’s 1985
zinger-filled comedy based on the
classic murder-mystery board game
three different endings. It’s likely
they’ll show all three. Screenings
begin at sundown, around 8 p.m.
Off the parking lot of the Blairs
Shopping Center, 1290 East-West
Highway. Call 301-495-6720 or visit
afi.com/Silver.
LOONEY TUNES
The AFI Silver Theatre is current-
ly running several programs, each
roughly 45 minutes long, with selec-
tions of Warner Bros.’ classic car-
toons featuring the Looney Tunes
gang — Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck,
Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote, Porky
Pig, Foghorn Leghorn, Sylvester,
Tweety, and more. Program 5 is
Saturday, Aug. 18, and Sunday,
Aug. 19, at 11 a.m., while Program
6 is Saturday, Aug. 25, and Sunday,
Aug. 26, at 11 a.m. 8633 Colesville
METRIC: DREAMS SO REAL
This meticulously conceived and
constructed feature-length con-
cert documentary focuses on the
Toronto-based synth-pop/rock
quartet Metric, stadium-filling
rock stars in Canada. The footage
is of a 2016 concert at Vancouver’s
Thunderbird Arena, exhaustively
captured by filmmakers T. Edward
Martin and Jeff Rogers through
the use of a twenty six 4K cam-
eras. Intended as a stunning rec-
reation of the concert, Dreams So
Real screens once next week at the
AFI per its “Canada Now” series of
films. Friday, Aug. 24, at 7:20 p.m.
AFI Silver Theatre, 8633 Colesville
Road, Silver Spring. Tickets are $13.
Call 301-495-6720 or visit afi.com/
Silver.

10 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 MILE 22
SCREEN QUEEN: FOXFIRE
Mark Wahlberg continues his action
Joshua Vogelsong, aka drag per-
movie renaissance as an elite CIA agent
former/punk rocker Donna Slash,
tasked with smuggling a secrets-hold-
has launched a weekly queer film
ing police officer (played by Iko Uwais)
series at the 35-seat, living-room
out of Colombia. Naturally, there will
cozy Suns Cinema in Mount
be plenty of resistance — led by crime
Pleasant. Patrons can enjoy snacks,
lord John Malkovich — as well as
including fresh offerings from Suns’
explosions and gunfire in Peter Berg’s
vintage popcorn machine, as well
film — his fourth with Marky Mark.
as drinks from the full-service bar,
Opens Friday, Aug. 17. Area theaters.
which will remain open afterwards
Visit fandango.com (Rhuaridh Marr)
to encourage post-show discussion.
Expect Angelina Jolie to be a chief
KNIGHTRIDERS
topic after the screening starting
CREEPSHOW
at 8 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 20. As
The AFI Silver Theatre toasts the late
it happens, Foxfire was one of the
George Romero with screenings of
actress’ first major films — and also
notable works from the “the Father
the film that sparked her year-long
of the Zombie Film.” Knightriders is
romantic relationship with co-star
a strange entry for Romero, a hodge-
Jenny Shimizu and with it, her
podge of fantasy fiction and drama
publicly professed bisexual iden-
that is essentially horror-free. The 1981
tity. Based on the novel by Joyce
film stars Ed Harris as the leader of
Carol Oates, Jolie portrays a drifter
RYAN DONOVAN

an increasingly contentious traveling

who befriends a group of teenage
Renaissance Fair troupe. It screens
girls — the cast also includes Rilo
Monday, Aug. 20, at 8:45 p.m. It’s fol-
Kiley’s Jenny Lewis — helping them
lowed by Creepshow, Romero’s col-
bond and stand up to rampant gen-
laboration with Stephen King, cele-
der and sexual harassment at home

CLOSET CASE
Playwright Siegmund Fuchs looks behind
the closed doors of the closeted mind.
brating the days of EC Comics, with
and school. 3107 Mount Pleasant St.
an assortment of short, creepy stories
NW. Tickets are $5. Visit sunscin-
in which people tend to rise from the
ema.com.
dead to eke out revenge. The best of
the lot is a tale involving a very hun-
VENUS
gry monster in a box, and featuring
A trans woman’s life is thrown for
a brilliant performance from Fritz
Weaver. The fine cast includes Hal
another, wholly unexpected loop

T
when a 14-year-old boy, seeking to
Holbrook, Leslie Nielsen, Ted Danson,
connect with his biological father,
HE METAPHYSICAL COMEDY IN THE CLOSET IS E.G. Marshall and even King himself,
shows up on her doorstep proclaim-
set inside a closet — and not just figuratively. All four in arguably the film’s weakest segment.
ing to be her son. Eisha Marjara’s
Creepshow screens Friday, Aug. 24,
characters, men of varying ages, crowd into that hiding at 9:40 p.m., Monday, Aug. 27, at 9:05
gender-shifting, heartwarming
space with their own baggage and stories to share. The concept comedy focuses on the immediate
p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 29, at 9:30 p.m.,
aftermath of this bombshell devel-
grew out of playwright Siegmund Fuchs’ desire to do something and Thursday, Aug. 30, at 9:15 p.m.
opment and the multi-faceted fam-
8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring.
different with the traditional coming out story and “try to write Tickets are $13. Call 301-495-6720 or
ily dynamics and drama at play,
one that would be interesting.” including the involvement of the
visit afi.com/Silver for the full series.
parents and cisgender lover of lead
The play, currently having its World Premiere courtesy character Sid (Debargo Sanyal).
the Rainbow Theatre Project, started out as a one-man show. SCOTTY AND
Part of the “Canada Now” series.
THE SECRET HISTORY
“Those are really hard to write,” says Fuchs. “They are difficult OF HOLLYWOOD
Monday, Aug. 27, at 7:05 p.m. AFI
to sell. Audiences just find them torturous. So I thought, ‘Why Silver Theatre, 633 Colesville Road,
Those rumors of secretive trysts,
Silver Spring. Tickets are $13. Call
don’t I put a [few] people in a closet, and make the whole stage extramarital lovers, and rampant
301-495-6720 or visit afi.com/
promiscuity among many Hollywood
a closet, and just make it this weird, magical, metaphoric place.” heartthrobs in the postwar mid-cen-
Silver.
Though billed as a comedy, In the Closet finds room to tury era? Little surprise that many,
explore serious topics, such as age discrimination, mid-life cri- perhaps even most, turn out to be true, STAGE
ses, even rape: One of the younger men struggling with coming and mostly stemming from the same
source: Ex-Marine Scotty Bowers, DAVE
out is a victim of sexual violence. Tinseltown’s chief pimp/undercover Drew Gehling (Broadway’s
“The character in his twenties is raped,” says Fuchs. “And the sexual matchmaker at the time. Vanity Waitress) is a high school teach-
lawyer who is prosecuting the rape case tells him that he is being Fair writer and documentary filmmak- er and presidential doppelgänger
er Matt Tyrnauer (Valentino: The Last thrust into the Oval Office to avoid
too feminine on the stand and wants him to rein it in. So for the Emperor) relates the true story of the a national scandal in this musical
period of the rest of the trial, he goes back into the closet.” man whose gas station on Hollywood adaptation of the 1993 hit comedy
During the day, Fuchs, who has written two other plays prior Boulevard doubled as a rendezvous starring Kevin Kline. Tina Landau
to In the Closet, practices Constitutional law for the civil division spot for his friends and actors and directs the world premiere at Arena
actresses on the down-low. Based on Stage. Book by Thomas Meehan
of the Department of Justice. While he has worked with victims Bowers’ 2012 tell-all bestseller Full (The Producers) and Nell Benjamin
of sexual abuse and has researched the issue, he is emphatic that Service, the documentary is said to be (Mean Girls), lyrics by Benjamin,
In the Closet is not a memoir. “full of jaw-dropping reveals,” with and music by Tom Kitt (Next to
eye-opening tales about icons ranging Normal). To Aug. 19. Kreeger
“In all of my works, I pull things from my past to give back- from Cary Grant to Spencer Tracy, Theater in the Mead Center for
ground to the characters,” says Fuchs, who identifies as a mem- Katharine Hepburn to Ava Gardner. American Theater, 1101 6th St. SW.
ber of the LGBTQ community. “But my plays are not meant to be Opens Friday, Aug. 17. Landmark’s E Call 202-488-3300 or visit arenas-
autobiographical at all.” —André Hereford Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. Call tage.org.
202-452-7672 or visit landmarkthe-
atres.com.
In the Closet runs through September 15 at DCAC,
2438 18th St. NW. Tickets are $35. Call 202-462-7833,
or visit rainbowtheatreproject.org.

12 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 JAZZ IN THE GARDEN: 3DIVAS
The National Gallery of Art offers
free outdoor concerts immediately
after work every Friday through
late August. Bands offering a range
of jazz styles, from swing to Latin to
ska, perform amidst the museum’s
collection of large-scale sculptur-
al works while patrons enjoy food
and drink, including beer, wine, and
sangria, from Pavilion Cafe and out-
door grill. The 2018 series contin-
ues with the 3Divas, the swinging
Maryland trio of drummer Sherrie
Maricle, bassist Amy Shook, and
pianist Jackie Warren, on Aug. 17,
performing from 5 to 8:30 p.m.
Sculpture Garden, between 7th and
9th Streets NW. Call 202-289-3360
or visit nga.gov.

NEEDTOBREATHE
This South Carolina-rooted, four-
piece rock band, fronted by the
Rinehart brothers, puts on an
impressive and stirring live show,
courtesy of strong group cohesion,
SHEILA E. uplifting music, and especially Bear
Sheila Escovedo came to fame more than three decades ago as Prince’s drummer, song- Rinehart’s powerhouse pipes, show-
cased to greatest effect in a recent
writer, musical director, and paramour. In recent years, Sheila E. has toured through pairing with R&B belter Andra
the area with her electrifying solo show featuring her Latin-flavored soul/pop hits Day on the band’s rousing anthem
(“The Glamorous Life,” “Love Bizarre”) as well as the-hits-that-should-have-been — “Hard Love.” A more recent power-
with a focus on songs from 2013’s Icon. Her first studio album in 13 years, Icon fully house anthem from Needtobreathe
is “Forever On Your Side,” a col-
displays the artist’s skill at songcraft and prowess in percussion, even the vocal kind laboration with Abner Ramirez and
known as beatboxing, per the impressive, all-vocal track “Don’t Make Me (Bring My Amanda Sudano Ramirez, known
Timbales Out).” Her timbales will definitely be out and used to full effect in her return together as Johnnyswim. The mar-
ried, L.A.-based duo tours as an
to the Howard Theatre next weekend. Saturday, Aug. 25, at 8 p.m. 620 T St. NW. Tickets opening act for Needtobreathe along
are $49.50 to $79.50, plus $10 minimum per person for all tables. Call 202-588-5595 or with Billy Raffoul, a promising Joe
visit thehowardtheatre.com. Cocker-esque 22-year-old from
Canada. Friday, Aug. 17. Doors at
5:30 p.m. The Anthem, 901 Wharf St.
SW. Tickets are $46 to $76. Call 202-
H.M.S. PINAFORE theater experience or event venue. THE COLOR PURPLE 888-0020 or visit theanthemdc.com.
THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE After two politically inspired caba- In addition to Hamilton, the
ret shows, TBD significantly alters
The Hypocrites and the House
Theatre of Chicago, two innova- course by offering three courses
Kennedy Center is playing host to
the other big winner from the 70th READINGS
tive theaters in the Windy City, as part of a “culinary pop-up the- Annual Tony Awards in 2016, the
have teamed up to stage two of ater experience” at Slim’s Diner adaptation by Marsha Norman and RISK!
Gilbert & Sullivan’s best-loved in Petworth, devised and directed composer/lyricists Stephen Bray, Risk! True Stories People Thought
comic operettas in rotating rep at by Strother Gaines in collabora- Brenda Russell, and Allee Willis They’d Never Dare to Share is a
Olney Theatre. Celebrated for being tion with Jenny Splitter and the that won as Best Musical Revival. diverse collection of uncensored,
immersive and family friendly, the show’s cast. Based on responses to To Aug. 26. Kennedy Center confessional, and at times funny
productions are presented prome- a preliminary questionnaire, the- Eisenhower Theater. Tickets are personal stories compiled by Kevin
nade style, with some seats on stage atergoers are matched with one of $69 to $149. Call 202-467-4600 or Allison of MTV’s comedy troupe,
with the actors. These silly tales nine performers — all portraying visit kennedy-center.org. The State. The stories are most-
of scurvy pirates, modern Major- supernatural “Legends” charged ly drawn from the podcast and
with keeping order in the universe live show Allison created and that
MUSIC
Generals, and star-crossed lovers
were both directed by Sean Graney, — sitting with and guiding patrons Rolling Stone has touted as “The
who co-adapted The Pirates of through a meal starting with salad Moth’s scrappier, freakier little sib-
Penzance with Kevin O’Donnell, and offering choices for entree CREATIVE CAULDRON CABARET ling.” Allison will read from and
and H.M.S. Pinafore with Andra (Shrimp and Grits, Meatloaf, or The 9th annual summer cabaret sign copies of the book next week,
Velis Simon and Matt Kahler. To Ratatouille) and dessert (Apple or series at ArtSpace Falls Church two days before a Risk! show fea-
Aug. 21. Mulitz-Gudelsky Theatre Key Lime Pie). Each experience, continues with: Jim Van Slyke in turing D.C.-area storytellers to
Lab, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring lasting roughly 90 minutes, will be two different shows: a tribute to the be recorded for the hit podcast.
Road, Olney, Md. Tickets are $30 to slightly different, affected by indi- pop music of Neil Sedaka in “Sedaka The reading is Thursday, Aug. 16,
$64 each. Call 301-924-3400 or visit vidual engagement and interaction is Back!” offered Friday, Aug. 17, at 8 at 6:30 p.m. Kramerbooks, 1517
olneytheatre.org. as well as external variables such p.m., and “Just Me and the Boys,” a Connecticut Ave. NW. Call 202-
as “chaos, gluten, and uninvited toast to Mel Torme, Nat King Cole, 387-1400 or visit kramers.com. The
LEGENDARY: guests.” Clearly, this isn’t theater Bobby Darin, and Sammy Davis Jr., live show is Saturday, Aug. 18, at the
SWEET SLICE OF LIBERTY nor dinner as usual. “Think of the on Saturday, Aug. 18, at 8 p.m. 410 Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. Doors
Partly inspired by New York’s Sleep show as a world to explore rather South Maple Ave. Tickets are $18 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25. Call 202-
No More and nurtured at Capital than a play that you watch,” reads to $22 per show, or $55 for a table 667-4490 or visit blackcatdc.com.
Fringe, TBD Immersive is a devised, an official note. To Aug. 25. 4201 for two with wine and $110 for four
participatory theater company that Georgia Ave. NW. Tickets are $45, with wine. Call 703-436-9948 or
intentionally blurs the line between including three-course meal. Visit visit creativecauldron.org.
audience and performer, while also TBDImmersive.com.
straying far afield from the usual

14 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

MUSEUMS
& GALLERIES
CAESURA OBSCURA
An installation of screen-printed
banners bursting with color, pat-
tern, and energy fills the tiny out-
door space that has become known
as Takoma Park’s Pump House
Pop-Up Gallery. Pyramid Atlantic
Arts Center created the gallery with
funding from the city government.
The works in the exhibition are a
combination of photographic and
cut paper patterns, assembled in
such a way as to transform what
might be considered ordinary
images and objects into something
magical. Through Aug. 18. Hilltop
Road between Maple and Geneva
Avenues, Takoma Park. Call 301-
608-9101 or visit pyramidatlanti-
cartcenter.org.
POP: RECALL
Paintings and sculptures reminis-
cent of popsicles, ice creams, and
other frozen treats from childhood
are the focus of a solo exhibition
by a nostalgia-steeped pop culture
artist who teaches at the Corcoran
School of the Arts and Design
and American University. Corey
Oberndorfer’s works are set up in
the window displays of the exper-
imental Metro Micro Gallery in
Arlington that, among other things,
bills itself as “a 24/7 viewing space”
— with exhibited works visible at
night via the gallery’s interior spot-
lights. Founded by and adjacent to
the studio of visual artist Barbara
Januszkiewicz, the gallery further
styles itself as a shared space nur-
turing a community of emerging
artists and curators. To Aug. 24.
Metro Micro Gallery, 3409 Wilson
Blvd., Arlington. Visit metromicro-
gallery.com.
FRACTAL WORLDS
BY JULIUS HORSTHUIS
The latest installation at D.C.’s
unique art-meets-technology gal-
lery ArTecHouse is billed as the
first immersive art exhibition
bridging the gap between the real
and the virtual world. This visu-
al “journey of discovery” explores
mind-bending sci-fi worlds and
infinite 3D geometric patterns,
transporting viewers to another
dimension. Horthuis, whose work
was featured in the 2016 Oscar-
winning film Manchester by the Sea
and has been seen in collaborations
with American EDM duo Odesza
among other musical artists, incor-
porates both projection and virtual
reality elements. To Sept. 3. 1238
Maryland Ave. SW. Tickets for
timed-entry sessions are $8 to $15,
with evening admission for those
over 21 years of age, including
exhibit-related Augmented Reality
Cocktails available for purchase.
Visit artechouse.com.
BREWERS ON THE BLOCK
Gina Chersevani, one of D.C.’s longtime leading mixologists, hosts this fifth annual event
at Buffalo & Bergen’s outdoor beer garden in Union Market as a Spotlight event of DC
Beer Week (see entry under Food & Drink). Guests can get unlimited pours in a souvenir
tasting glass from nearly 40 participating area craft brewers, with representatives on hand
in a “Meet The Neighbors”-themed event. The lineup includes popular DMV breweries,
including 3 Stars, Atlas, Blue Jacket, the Brewer’s Art, DC Brau, Denizens, Evolution,
Manor Hill, and Port City, cideries, from D.C.’s own Anxo to Bold Rock from Virginia,
and Jack’s from Pennsylvania, and meaderies such as Baltimore’s gluten-free Charm City
Meadworks. Saturday, Aug. 25, from 6 to 9 p.m. Suburbia, 1309 5th St. NW. Tickets are
$55, or $75 for VIP including entrance at 5 p.m. with exclusive food and reserved seating.
Call 202-543-2549 or visit 5thbrewersblock.eventbrite.com.
PICTURES OF THE YEAR:
75 YEARS OF THE WORLD’S BEST
cionados with a dream. Now there
are a dozen breweries in D.C.
DRAG
PHOTOGRAPHY proper and the whole region has
BAR ROUBAIX:
The Newseum celebrates one of the seen an explosion in the craft. DC
SASSY DRAG BRUNCH
world’s oldest and most prestigious Beer Week has grown by leaps and
Over the past year, the local Hilton
photojournalism competitions with bounds, with more than 50 events
brothers have expanded well
a show featuring just a sampling of taking place over the course of the
beyond Marvin and The Brixton
the more than 40,000 award-win- next week, all kicking off with the
and their original U Street base.
ning images in the archives of 8th Annual Cask Night on Friday,
None of the additions, however,
Pictures of the Year International. Aug. 17, and the 4th Annual Cask
stand out as much as Bar Roubaix
Tracing the evolution of photojour- Day on Saturday, Aug. 18, both at
in Columbia Heights with its racing
nalism from World War II to today, the Brewer’s Lounge at the District
bike theme, complete with chains
the images on display depict the Chophouse. Other notable events
dangling behind the bar and wheels
people and events that have defined on tap: the 1st Annual Lager Fest
serving as light fixtures. Named
the times, capturing war and peace, at City Winery on Sunday, Aug. 19;
after the French city sponsor-
disaster and triumph, and the social Churchkey’s Total Tap Takeover
ing one of the world’s oldest and
and cultural shifts that have shaped featuring all-D.C. brews, on
most iconic professional bike races
the past 75 years. Founded in 1944 Tuesday, Aug. 21; Beers and Brats
and housed in the former Acre 121
at the University of Missouri, POYi at Denizens Brewing Company on
space, Roubaix features a menu of
recognizes excellence in photo- Thursday, Aug. 23; DC Beer Royale,
European-inspired bites from Chef
journalism as well as multimedia a battle for the title of D.C.’s “Most
Rafael Nunez. And now, Roubaix
and visual editing. To Jan. 20. Beloved Beer” presented by Roofers
stands out even more thanks to a
Newseum, 555 Pennsylvania Ave. Union on Thursday, Aug. 23; a guid-
drag brunch the third Sunday of
NW. Tickets are $22.95 for general ed tour of three D.C. breweries
each month, organized by Josael
admission. Call 888-NEWSEUM or organized by City Brew Tours DC
Abraham Gutierrez. Sassy Drag
visit newseum.org. on Saturday, Aug. 25; and Brewers
Brunch features Desiree Dik as the
on the Block outside Union Market
“master of sassiness” along with
on Sunday, Aug. 25. Runs to Sunday,
FOOD & DRINK Aug. 26. Visit dcbeerweek.net for a
her sassy sisters Laronica Vegas
and Paula, in addition to special
full schedule of events.
DC BEER WEEK guests, next round Rose and Mariah
When this promotion was launched Black. Drink specials include $18
10 years ago, there weren’t any Bottomless Mimosas, Bloody
breweries based in D.C. — just a Mary’s, and Bloody Maria’s, $9
dedicated crew of craft beer afi- Margaritas, and $9 Irish Coffees.
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 15
KRISTI MALAKOFF / NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

Maibaum by Kristi Malakoff - paper and foam core 2009

BLACK OUT: SILHOUETTES THEN AND NOW

The National Portrait Gallery presents the first major museum exhibition to explore silhouettes. Curated by Asma Naeem,
Black Out reveals the complexities of this relatively unstudied artform’s rich historical roots and the contemporary rele-
vance of silhouettes today. Ranging in scale from three inches to nearly 40 feet, the exhibit features mixed-media installa-
tions in a presentation of approximately 50 unique objects, dating from 1796 to the present, in particular with the inclusion
of large works by four contemporary women artists: Kara Walker, with her panoramic wall murals, Camille Utterback
via an interactive digital installation that reacts to visitors’ movements and shadows, Kristi Malakoff’s life-size cutouts of
children dancing around a Maypole, and Kumi Yamashita’s intricate, shadowy installations. Also notable is a section illu-
minating silhouettes previously “blacked out” in historical narratives — those featuring same-sex couples, cooks, activist
women, enslaved individuals, and the disabled. On display to March 24, 2019. National Portrait Gallery, 8th and F Streets.
NW. Call 202-633-8300 or visit npg.si.edu.

Sunday, Aug. 19, from noon to 2
p.m. 1400 Irving St. NW. Ste. 109.
Tickets are $21 inclusive of show,
one entree, and 18-percent gratuity,
or $10 for show with no food. Call
202-560-5721 or search “Sassy Drag
Brunch” on eventbrite.com.
ABOVE
AND BEYOND
CIRQUE ITALIA
“The water, it kind of gives us a new
type of animal in the business, I like
to say,” says Chanté DeMoustas, the
chief operating officer and producer
of Cirque Italia. Dubbed the “Water
Circus,” it’s a first-of-its-kind trav-
eling production currently touring
the states. Although unaffiliated,
comparisons between the Florida-
based Cirque Italia and Quebec-
based Cirque du Soleil often arise,
given their similar focus on present-
ing multi-varied and animal-free
staged shows. Additionally, Cirque
Italia’s gravity-defying physical
artists — including clowns, contor-
tionists, trampolinists, and roller
skaters — often perform in or with
water via a “custom-built, high-tech
design stage.” The setup features a
digital water curtain, used to dis-
play graphics and images while
the artist is performing. Naturally,
front-row spectators are liable to
get a little wet. Thursday, Aug. 16,
and Friday, Aug. 17, at 7:30 p.m.,
and Saturday, Aug. 18, and Sunday,
Aug. 19, at 1:30, 4:30, and 7:30 p.m.
Under the White & Blue Big Top
Tent near Marshalls, 2700 Potomac
Mills Circle, Woodbridge. Tickets
are $10 to $50. Call 941-704-8572 or
visit cirqueitalia.com.
THE DC WEIRDO SHOW:
SPECTROCIRCUS!
Held the third Friday of every
month, the Weirdo Show bills
itself as a “cult favorite for freaks,
geeks, and exposed buttcheeks.”
Lights and zany visual treats are the
guiding theme of the latest romp,
which will be enhanced by patrons
donning glow-in-the-dark brace-
lets. Mark Shufflemaster Anduss
helms the production lights and
sound and Dr Torcher serves as
host for the whole spectacle, with
highlights including a glowing
belly dance from Rin Ajna, fire play
with Coryn Rose and Pyrate, Lottie
Ellington’s Blacklight Burlesque,
Coffin & Eon of OhYesYo perform-
ing Blacklight Yo-Yo Stunts, and
Blaq Milk’s Liquid Performance
Art Friday, Aug. 17, at 9 p.m. Bier
Baron Tavern, 1523 22nd St. NW.
Tickets are $15 in advance, or $20 at
the door. Call 202-293-1887 or visit
dcweirdoshow.com. l

16 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 theFeed
MOB RULES
Oklahoma school district cancels classes after parents declare
“open hunting season” on transgender student. By John Riley

A
N OKLAHOMA SCHOOL DISTRICT HAS CAN-
celled classes after parents made threats to harm
and castrate a 12-year-old transgender student. The
threats, made on social media, were so serious that law
enforcement agencies are now involved.
According to the Sherman, Texas-based CBS affiliate
KXII, Superintendent Rick Beene of the Achille (Okla.)
Public Schools agreed to cancel classes on Monday and
Tuesday, at the suggestion of the Bryan County Sheriff’s
office. The sheriff’s office wanted to avoid confrontation
should parents, community members, and outside agitators
protest over the transgender student’s use of the girls’ bath-
room.
The student in question, known as Maddie, has been
attending school in the district since fifth grade, and has
used the staff bathroom at Achille Elementary School during
that time. But her
mother, Brandy Rose
— who has declined
to use her last name
out of fear for her
family’s safety — says
her daughter was
unfamiliar with the
location of the staff
restroom in the dis-
trict’s middle school
building, which only
recently reopened.
Because her
daughter could not
hold her bladder, she
resorted to using the
girls’ restroom. Rose
says Maddie only
used the facilities one
time — but that was
apparently enough for the lynch mob of parents who took to
Facebook to air their grievances and threaten Maddie with
harm.
While Maddie was using the bathroom, another student
accused her of peeping under a bathroom stall. “My daughter
leans very far forward to use the bathroom,” Rose explained.
“I can understand why someone seeing her lean forward
would think, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s trying to look under.’”
The gossip mill in the small town began to churn, and
a parent complained on the Achille ISD Parents Group on
Facebook (which has since been deleted).
“Heads up parents of 5th thru 7th grade girls,” Jamie
Crenshaw wrote. “The transgender is already using the girls
(sic) bathroom. We have been told how the school has gone
above and beyond to make sure he has his own restroom yet
he is still using the girls. REALLY ... Looks like it’s gonna be
a long year.
“We have made school board meetings over this situation
last year but nothing seems to be changing,” the post contin-
ued. “This is the same kid that got an [sic] trouble as soon as
he transferred two years ago for looking over the stalls in the
girls (sic) bathroom. Enough is enough.”
Jamie Crenshaw’s post was subsequently shared on a
relative’s Facebook page, which prompted other community
members from Achille, southern Oklahoma, and northern
Texas to pile on, referring to the 12-year-old as “it,” “thing,”
and a “half-baked maggot.”
“Why are parents letting their kids be transgender?”
wrote one Facebook user on the relative’s page. Another
responded: “Parents and Churches need to shut this down,
the Bible says God created man, and woman ... not any trans-
gender bs ... Hell with
new laws and new
rules, this is what our
future is if WE don’t
stop it!!!”
Other Facebook
users suggested par-
ents allow their chil-
dren to beat Maddie
up, including one
who wrote: “Just tell
the kids to kick ass in
the bathroom and it
won’t want to come
back!!”
A second posted:
“If he wants to be a
female make him a
female. A good sharp
knife will do the job
Achille Public Schools, via Facebook
really quick.”
A third said: “You know we have open hunting seasons
on them kind. Ain’t no bag limit in them neither.”
Some of the comments have since been deleted or made
private, but pro-LGBTQ advocates and allies saved screen-
shots of the comments.
“That’s a threat against her life–that’s scary,” Rose told
KXII. “These are adults making threats against a child. I
don’t understand it.”
The sheriff’s office has confirmed that Rose has since
obtained a protective order against a parent who has the
same surname as one of the Facebook posters. KXII reports
that the FBI has gotten involved to see if the comments con-
stitute a hate crime.
Beene, the superintendent, told KXII that there haven’t
been any problems with Maddie over the past two years

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 17

 theFeed
prior to this incident. He added that the school district
has no control over what parents post online, and noted that
some of the commenters weren’t even parents from Achille.
“Achille Schools and administration take the safety of
every student very serious (sic),” Beene said in a prepared
statement. “Achille School[s] believes everyone should
OUTCO CALIFORNIA - UNSPLASH
SUBSTANCE ABUSE
LGBQ youth twice as likely to use illegal drugs as straight youth. By Rhuaridh Marr
A
new study has found that LGBQ youth are twice as
likely to use illegal drugs compared with straight
youth. The study, Substance Use Among Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual, and Questioning Adolescents in the United
States, was published by researchers at San Diego State
University in California last month, Reuters reports.
By analysing data from almost 15,000 high schoolers,
researchers examined both lifelong substance abuse in addi-
tion to use within the past month. The substances included
illegal drugs, alcohol, marijuana and cigarettes.
Lifetime substance abuse among LGBQ teens (the study
didn’t account for gender identity) was 12% higher than
their straight peers, while the number of students who
reported substance abuse in the month prior to the survey
was 27% higher than for straight teens.
LGBQ youth were three times as likely to try heroin
(6.6% versus 1.3%) or methamphetamines (8.6% versus
2.1%), and twice as likely to try ecstasy or cocaine.
Comparatively, marijuana use was much higher for all
18 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
receive a safe and free education. We have a very talented
staff that cares about each and every student.”
Meanwhile, Rose says her daughter, who is usually
upbeat, is now afraid for her life.
“She’s an awesome kid,” she says. “To see any fear in her, I
can’t explain how bad that hurts me for them to hurt her.” l
teens — half of LGBQ youth reported having tried it, versus
almost 38% of straight teens.
Smoking and alcohol use were also higher among LGBQ
teens — 47% had tried smoking at least once, and 72% had
drank at least once. That compares with 31% and 63%
respectively for straight youth.
John Ayers, senior study author, told Reuters that
stress factors such as isolation “may make drugs foolishly
appear attractive as a coping mechanism. Even exper-
imentation with these harder drugs can derail a teen’s
future.”
A first-of-its-kind national survey recently found high
levels of stress, depression and fear due to daily challenges
among LGBTQ-identifying youth.
The Human Rights Campaign’s 2017 LGBTQ Teen
Survey highlighted a number of problem areas for LGBTQ
youth, including at home, where two-thirds have heard a
family member make anti-LGBTQ comments, and in school,
where only a quarter of youth feeling safe. l
 Community
THURSDAY, August 16
AGLA’S MONTHLY BOOK
CLUB discusses Naomi
Alderman’s book Disobedience
at Crystal Thai Restaurant.
Open to both men and women’s
literature groups. Please RSVP
in advance if you wish to dine
while at the restaurant. 7:30
p.m. 4819 1st St. N., Arlington,
Va. For more info, email info@
agla.org.

The DC Center holds a meet-

ing of its POLY DISCUSSION
GROUP, for people interested
in polyamory, non-monogamy
TOM DONOHUE / FILE PHOTO

or other non-traditional rela-

tionships. 7-8 p.m. 2000 14th
St. NW, Suite 105. Visit thedc-
center.org.

Weekly Events

ANDROMEDA
TRANSCULTURAL HEALTH
offers free HIV testing and HIV
services (by appointment). 9

THE SOUL OF DUPONT

a.m.-5 p.m. Decatur Center,
1400 Decatur St. NW. To
arrange an appointment, call
202-291-4707, or visit androm-
edatransculturalhealth.org.
The 17th Street Festival is a celebration of the artistic
and entrepreneurial spirit of Dupont Circle. DC AQUATICS CLUB practice
session at Takoma Aquatic

T
Center. 7:30-9 p.m. 300 Van
Buren St. NW. For more infor-
HE 17TH STREET FESTIVAL IS SMALL BUT MIGHTY,” SAYS NATALIYA mation, visit swimdcac.org.
Andreyeva. “It’s really like a big block party.” A local artist who will sell her wares
during the Aug. 25 festival, Andreyeva says the festival does a good job of finding a DC FRONT RUNNERS run-
ning/walking/social club
variety of artists and creators who want to showcase and sell their works, which range from
welcomes runners of all ability
pottery to jewelry to oil paintings. levels for exercise in a fun and
Andreyeva will be selling collages dedicated to the evolution of the D.C. Metro system, supportive environment, with
her pop-art renditions of the D.C. flag, and pieces chronicling historical events or honoring socializing afterward. Route
distance is 3-6 miles. Meet at
groups like the District’s LGBTQ community. “I try to have the viewer ask a question or 7 p.m. at 23rd & P Streets NW.
elicit an emotion,” she says. “I want people to probe deeper and find their own meaning.” For more information, visit
Now in its ninth year, the 17th Street Festival will also feature street vendors represent- dcfrontrunners.org.
ing local businesses or nonprofit organizations, and a “Kids Zone” with an inflatable slide,
DC LAMBDA SQUARES, D.C.’s
snow cones, and a soccer demonstration. Mandy Warfield, the past president of the Rotary gay and lesbian square-dancing
Club of Dupont Circle, says this year’s festival will include new street entertainers, includ- group, features mainstream
ing a funk band, a New Orleans jazz band, a Chinese lion dancer, a mariachi band, flamenco through advanced square
dancing at the National City
dancers with guitars, and a performance by drag queen Brooklyn Heights at 5 p.m. Christian Church. Please dress
Organized by Historic Dupont Circle Main Streets, with support from the D.C. casually. 7-9:30 p.m. 5 Thomas
Department of Small and Local Business Development and local community organizations, Circle NW. 202-930-1058,
dclambdasquares.org.
the festival not only promotes the cultural and economic life of the Dupont neighborhood,
but encourages attendees to patronize local businesses, particularly the 16 restaurants that DC SCANDALS RUGBY holds
line the 1500 and 1600 blocks of 17th Street NW, including mainstays Floriana, Dupont practice. The team is always
Italian Kitchen, Trio’s, Hank’s Oyster Bar, and Annie’s Paramount Steak House. looking for new members.
All welcome. 7-9 p.m. Harry
“There’s many streets that make up the Dupont neighborhood, but 17th Street is sort of Thomas Recreation Center,
the soul of Dupont Circle,” says Warfield. “It’s the area where everyone wants to go and 1743 Lincoln Rd. NE. For more
hang out.” —John Riley information, visit scandalsrfc.
org or dcscandals@gmail.com.

The 17th Street Festival is Saturday, Aug. 25 from Noon to 6 p.m. in the 1500 to 1600 blocks THE DULLES TRIANGLES
of 17th St. NW. There is no entry fee. Rain or shine. For more information, Northern Virginia social
group meets for happy hour at
call Historic Dupont Circle Main Streets at 202-656-4487 Sheraton in Reston. All wel-
or email Bill McLeod at execdirector@dupontcircle.biz. come. 7-9 p.m. 11810 Sunrise
Valley Drive, second-floor bar.

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 19

 For more information, visit dulles-
triangles.com.
HIV TESTING at Whitman-Walker
Health. 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and from
2-5 p.m. at 1525 14th St. NW, and
9 a.m-12 p.m. and 2-5 p.m. at the
Max Robinson Center, 2301 MLK
Jr. Ave. SE. For an appointment
call 202-745-7000 or visit whit-
man-walker.org.
IDENTITY offers free and confi-
dential HIV testing at two separate
locations. Walk-ins accepted from
2-6 p.m., by appointment for all
other hours. 414 East Diamond Ave.,
Gaithersburg, Md. or 7676 New
Hampshire Ave., Suite 411, Takoma
Park, Md. To set up an appoint-
ment or for more information, call
Gaithersburg, 301-300-9978, or
Takoma Park, 301-422-2398.
METROHEALTH CENTER
offers free, rapid HIV testing.
Appointment needed. 1012 14th
St. NW, Suite 700. To arrange an
appointment, call 202-638-0750.
SMYAL offers free HIV Testing, 3-5
p.m., by appointment and walk-in,
for youth 21 and younger. Youth
Center, 410 7th St. SE. 202-567-
3155 or testing@smyal.org.
STI TESTING at Whitman-Walker
Health. 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 2-3
p.m. at both 1525 14th St. NW and
the Max Robinson Center, 2301
Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave. SE.
Testing is intended for those with-
out symptoms. For an appointment
call 202-745-7000 or visit whit-
man-walker.org.
US HELPING US hosts a Narcotics
Anonymous Meeting. The group
is independent of UHU. 6:30-7:30
p.m., 3636 Georgia Ave. NW. For
more information, call 202-446-
1100.
WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP
INSTITUTE for young LBTQ
women, 13-21, interested in lead-
ership development. 5-6:30 p.m.
SMYAL Youth Center, 410 7th St.
SE. For more information, call 202-
567-3163, or email catherine.chu@
smyal.org.
FRIDAY, August 17
GAY DISTRICT, a group for
GBTQQI men between the ages of
18-35, meets on the first and third
Fridays of each month. 8:30-9:30
p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105.
For more information, visit gaydis-
trict.org.
The TRANS AND GENDERQUEER
GAME NIGHT features board and
card games and a chance to social-
ize with other people from across
the LGBTQ spectrum. All welcome.
7-9 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite
105. Visit thedccenter.org.
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
SATURDAY, August 18
ADVENTURING outdoors group
hikes 10 strenuous miles on the
Appalachian Trail in southern Pa.
Bring plenty of beverages, lunch
sunscreen, bug spray, sturdy boots,
and about $15 for fees. Stop for
ice cream afterwards. Carpool
at 8:30 a.m. from the Grosvenor-
Strathmore Metro Station. For more
information, contact Martin, 240-
988-5304 or visit adventuring.org.
AGLA hosts its MONTHLY
BRUNCH at Freddie’s Beach Bar.
No reservation necessary. Come
and meet neighbors and fellow
LGBTQ Arlingtonians for a fun
social. 11 a.m.-1 p.m. 555 23rd St. S.,
Arlington, Va. For more info, email
info@agla.org.
KHUSH DC, a support group
for LGBTQ South Asians, hosts
a monthly meeting at The DC
Center. 1:30-3 p.m. 2000 14th St.
NW, Suite 105. For more informa-
tion, visit facebook.com/khushdc.
The DC Center hosts a month-
ly LGBT ASYLEES SUPPORT
MEETING AND DINNER for LGBT
refugees and asylum seekers. 5-7
p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105.
For more information, visit thedc-
center.org.
The DC Center holds a meeting of
its LGBTQ PEOPLE OF COLOR
SUPPORT GROUP, facilitated by
Dakia Davis. 1-3 p.m. 2000 14th St.
NW, Suite 105. For more informa-
tion, visit thedccenter.org.
Weekly Events
DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a prac-
tice session at Montgomery College
Aquatics Club. 8:30-10 a.m. 7600
Takoma Ave., Takoma, Md. For more
information, visit swimdcac.org.
DC FRONT RUNNERS running/
walking/social club welcomes run-
ners of all ability levels for exercise
in a fun and supportive environ-
ment, with socializing afterward.
Route distance will be 3-6 miles.
Walker meet at 9:30 a.m. and run-
ners at 10 a.m. at 23rd & P Streets
NW. For more information, visit
dcfrontrunners.org.
DIGNITYUSA sponsors Mass for
LGBT community, family and
friends. 6:30 p.m., Immanuel
Church-on-the-Hill, 3606 Seminary
Road, Alexandria. All welcome. For
more info, visit dignitynova.org.
SUNDAY, August 19
ADVENTURING outdoors group
hikes 7 moderate miles with 600
feet of elevation gain in Gambrill
State Park, in the mountains over-
looking Frederick, Md. Tasting at
a nearby meadery to follow. Bring
plenty of beverages, lunch, sun-
screen, bug spray, sturdy boots, and
about $12 for fees, plus $7 for the
tasting. Carpool at 9:30 a.m. from
the Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro
Station. For more info, contact
Jackson, 410-422-9257, or visit
adventuring.org.
ADVENTURING outdoors group
strolls about 4 miles through the
National Zoo and on city streets,
ending up at an ice cream shop
near the U Street Metro. Bring
water, lunch or snacks, sunscreen,
bug spray, $2 for trip fee, and some
money for ice cream. Meet at 10
a.m. at the top of the escalators on
the eastern side of Connecticut
Avenue at the Cleveland Park
Metro Station. For more informa-
tion, contact Elaine, 215-510-06121,
or visit adventuring.org.
CHRYSALIS arts & culture group
visit the National Portrait Gallery
to see current exhibits on 1968, the
role of silhouettes in art history,
and other subjects. Free admission.
Lunch in the neighborhood follows.
Meet at noon in the 8th and G
Street NW lobby of the Old Patent
Office, near the 9th Street exit of
the Gallery Place Metro Station. For
more info, contact Craig, 202-462-
0535 or craighowell1@verizon.net.
Volunteers are needed to help
with CASA RUBY’S MONTHLY
DINNER. Held on the third Sunday
of each month, in conjunction with
The DC Center, the event provides
a hot meal to those housed at Casa
Ruby. Homemade or store bought
meals welcome. 7-8 p.m. Casa Ruby
Shelter, 1216 Kennedy St. NW. For
more information, contact lamar@
thedccenter.org, jon@thedccenter.
org, or visit casaruby.org.
MONDAY, August 20
The Metro D.C. chapter of PFLAG,
a support group for parents, family
members and allies of the LGBTQ
community, holds its monthly
meeting at The DC Center. 7-9 p.m.
2000 14th St. NW, Suite 105. For
more information, visit thedccen-
ter.org.
Weekly Events
DC AQUATICS CLUB holds a
practice session at Dunbar Aquatic
Center. 7:30-9 p.m. 101 N St. NW.
For more information, visit swim-
dcac.org.
NOVASALUD offers free HIV test-
ing. 5-7 p.m. 2049 N. 15th St., Suite
200, Arlington. Appointments: 703-
789-4467.
STI TESTING at Whitman-Walker
Health. 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at both 1525
14th St. NW and the Max Robinson
Center, 2301 Martin Luther King,
Jr. Ave. SE. Testing is intended for
those without symptoms. For an
appointment call 202-745-7000 or
visit whitman-walker.org.
The DC Center hosts COFFEE
DROP-IN FOR THE SENIOR LGBT
COMMUNITY. 10 a.m.-noon. 2000
14th St. NW. For more information,
call 202-682-2245 or visit thedc-
center.org.
US HELPING US hosts a black gay
men’s evening affinity group for
GBT black men. Light refreshments
provided. 7-9 p.m. 3636 Georgia
Ave. NW. 202-446-1100.
WASHINGTON WETSKINS
WATER POLO TEAM practices 7-9
p.m. Newcomers with at least basic
swimming ability always welcome.
Takoma Aquatic Center, 300 Van
Buren St. NW. For more informa-
tion, contact Tom, 703-299-0504
or secretary@wetskins.org, or visit
wetskins.org.
WHITMAN-WALKER HEALTH
HIV/AIDS SUPPORT GROUP
for newly diagnosed individuals,
meets 7 p.m. Registration required.
202-939-7671, hivsupport@whit-
man-walker.org.
TUESDAY, August 21
CENTER BI, a group of The DC
Center, hosts a monthly roundtable
discussion around issues of bisex-
uality. 7-8 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW,
Suite 105. Visit thedccenter.org.
THE HIV WORKING GROUP of
The DC Center hosts a “Packing
Party,” where volunteers assemble
safe-sex kits of condoms and lube.
7-9 p.m. 2000 14th St. NW, Suite
105. For more information, visit
thedccenter.org.
WEDNESDAY, August 22
The DC Center hosts a monthly
meeting of its HEALTH WORKING
GROUP, a volunteer-driven
LGBTQ health outreach, education,
and advocacy initiative that meets
on the fourth Wednesday of the
month. 6:30-8 p.m. 2000 14th St.
NW, Suite 105. For more informa-
tion, visit thedccenter.org.
The LAMBDA BRIDGE CLUB meets
at the Dignity Center, across from
the Marine Barracks, for Duplicate
Bridge. No reservations needed.
Newcomers welcome. 7:30 p.m. 721
8th St. SE. Call 202-841-0279 if you
need a partner. l
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
 Blood
and
The Trump administration’s outdated “Deploy or Get Out” policy puts

hundreds of HIV-positive servicemembers at risk of being discharged.

Honor Sgt. Nick Harrison refuses to go down without a fight.

Interview by John Riley • Photography by Todd Franson

S
INCE CHILDHOOD, SGT. NICK HARRISON
seemed destined to be in the Judge Advocate
General’s Corps, a branch of the military dedicat-
ed to military law and justice. Growing up in Del
City, Okla., the 41-year-old attorney and indepen-
dent defense consultant possessed many of the
traits that make good lawyers: a strong interest in public service,
a spirit of perseverance, and a sharp, inquisitive mind.
“Back in elementary school, I was always the one who was
really interested in government and social studies and wanted
to know all about the Founding Fathers,” he says. “The teacher
would ask a question, and I’d be the kid that would hop up out
of his chair, run back, grab an encyclopedia, open it up, and go
to the section of the Constitution to try to figure out what the
answer to the question was.”
His life took a more determined step towards entering the
JAG Corps when, midway through college at the University of
Central Oklahoma, Harrison decided to enlist in the military.
“I kind of got to a place where I didn’t think I was making
enough progress forward in my degree, so I decided to take a
break,” he says. “And thinking about it, the most productive use
of my time — or the most honorable way to do it — would be to
go and do something in the military.”
For three years, Harrison was stationed at Fort Richardson
outside Anchorage, Alaska, where he was an airborne infantry-
man. Afterwards, he announced his intention to commission as
an officer, and was sent back to school to finish his degree. Over
the next decade, as a member of the Oklahoma National Guard,
Harrison served two tours of duty — one in Afghanistan, one in
Kuwait — separated by a stint in law and graduate school, where
he earned both his Juris Doctor and an MBA. In short, he was on
track to realize his dream of becoming a JAG officer.
That dream came to a crashing halt shortly after his second
deployment. Harrison, who came out at 28 and survived the mil-
itary’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” era, had come down with flu-like
symptoms. He went to a clinic for treatment, where the clinician,
puzzled at the symptoms, likened them to something she would
see in a person who was HIV-positive. A few weeks later, with
some additional bloodwork, Harrison was officially diagnosed
with the virus.
That diagnosis — and his subsequent antiretroviral therapy
— meant that Harrison quickly ran afoul of the military’s policy

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
regarding HIV-positive soldiers. Crafted at the height of the
AIDS epidemic in the late 1980s, it dictates that any soldier with
HIV is considered undeployable, and cannot be sent to military
posts outside the country for more than 12 consecutive months.
The policy also prevents enlisted members from applying to
become officers, and recommends eventual separation from the
military.
Despite obtaining supporting documentation and testimony
from his doctors that he would be able to meet all the necessary
requirements to become a JAG officer, Harrison’s request for a
medical waiver was rejected. His hopes of becoming an officer
met an abrupt end.
“That really frustrated me, because I’d been told that it was
a perfectly reasonable request,” he says. “The medical profes-
sionals were all on the same page, the legal professionals were
all on the same page, and for some reason, they were stuck in the
process of ‘We don’t give waivers, we don’t give exceptions for
people with HIV.’”
Enlisting the help of Lambda Legal, Harrison, now a member
of the D.C. National Guard, began mounting a lawsuit against
the Department of Defense for a policy that he says disregards
the most up-to-date scientific information on HIV. They also
claim that it violates his Fifth Amendment rights to due process
and equal protection under the law, and discriminates against
HIV-positive people in a way that triggers heightened scrutiny.
Since filing the lawsuit in May, Harrison’s lawyers have
asked a federal judge for an injunction to stop the Pentagon from
forcibly discharging Harrison or other service members living
with HIV while the case is being litigated.
For Harrison, the Department of Defense’s policy on HIV-
positive individuals hearkens back to a time when individuals
were judged solely by their membership in a group, not on their
ability to do a job.
“The military philosophically has this ingrained ‘One Team,
One Army’ approach, where even though people may have per-
sonal opinions or prejudices or issues coming from different
backgrounds, and they may not share the same perspective on
things, the Army as a whole says that we don’t really care about
differences,” Harrison says. “We don’t care about race, gender,
ethnicity, socioeconomic background, religion. You can have all
these things as long as it doesn’t detract from the mission.
“One of the reasons I have such a problem with the HIV pol-
icy is that this medical condition is one of those differences that
the Army says we don’t care about. Diversity makes us stronger.
If it doesn’t affect the mission, it shouldn’t impact anything.”
METRO WEEKLY: What was your coming out experience like?
NICK HARRISON: I came out late in life, after I was 28. I actually
was married to a woman for a little bit. We were together two or
three years before I came to accept my identity.
I never really had the formal conversation with the parents,
or with anyone else, saying “I’m gay.” My younger brother is
actually gay, too, and he decided that before me, and so he came
out to our parents and did that whole thing. But it took me a
while to come to understand that about myself.
I guess I should’ve always known that I was gay. Looking
back on instances in high school and college, I’d see somebody
that I thought was attractive. A lot of times I would self-ratio-
nalize it as hero worship, rather than sexual attraction. I went
through the phase where I was in denial for a long time. Close
to the end of receiving my bachelor’s degree, I started exploring,
and then I went through a period where I identified as bi, and
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
eventually, I’ve come to accept that I’m primarily gay.
Coming from Oklahoma, there’s a lot of social stigma. In the
military, when I first started exploring, first started coming to
accept that part of my identity, we were under the “Don’t Ask
Don’t Tell” policy as well. So there was a period in which I was
closeted and bisexual. While I was deployed overseas and in the
military, the OutServe-SLDN organization was helpful to me,
and I began meeting other soldiers through that.
MW: Did you ever fear being outed?
HARRISON: During the early part of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” I
did. It was a time in which I didn’t want to show affection in
public. If I was out on a date or something, I was always con-
cerned about “Well, is there anybody around here that’s also in
the National Guard?” So that was always something that was a
concern for me.
On my second deployment, in 2011-2012, under President
Obama, the pendulum shifted. It was much easier to be gay in
the military even though “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was still in
place, because Obama had raised the bar, so it was very difficult
to throw anyone out because they were gay. I think it required a
three-star general, a bunch of evidence and stuff, and the hand-
writing was already on the wall that the president intended to
get rid of that policy. He wanted to change it, and so that was a
very freeing, liberating experience.
MW: What impact has the military had on your life?
HARRISON: It really helped me grow up. When I took a break
from school because I ran out of financial aid, the military was
the place I went to resolve that, to think about who I wanted to
be and what I wanted to become. That’s where the most forma-
tive stages of my life were: in the military. It was an opportunity
for me to experience new things, become a more well-rounded
person, do some stuff that I missed out on, and learn how to
become part of a bigger team. That was really important and very
fulfilling for me.
MW: What motivated your decision to pursue law and apply for
the JAG Corps?
HARRISON: Serving in the military, both on active duty and the
National Guard. There are a lot of good officers that you serve
under, and there are a lot of bad officers that you serve under.
To a non-commissioned officer, to a sergeant, to somebody who
has served as enlisted, one of the driving forces for becoming an
officer is, “Oh, this will let me take care of the men better than
some of the officers that I’ve served under.” I came to a decision
that I could take that role, and I could take care of the people
who were in my unit and the people in the platoon who were
assigned to me.
JAG officers are the people who take care of everybody else if
their first line officer doesn’t take care of them. If a soldier gets
into trouble or his officers have failed him, his leaders haven’t
trained him properly or whatever, they usually end up in some
sort of a UCMJ process, a legal process in the military, and the
only people who can really do anything about that, and look out
for a soldier’s interest, are the JAG officers.
MW: Let’s talk about your serostatus. When did you learn that you
were HIV-positive?
HARRISON: It was shortly after my second deployment in 2012,
back in Oklahoma. I thought I had a cold or a flu, so I went into
a clinic. They put me on antibiotics initially. That didn’t seem
to help, so a week later, I came back. The clinician said “Some
of these symptoms look like something that I would see with
someone who was HIV-positive.” That triggered me to go in and
get another blood test, and that’s when they confirmed that I was
HIV-positive.
MW: How did you react to the diagnosis?
HARRISON: I probably took it better than most people would,
because in law school I dated a guy who was HIV-positive and
undetectable for a year, year and a half, and so I had been up
close, around it, and seen that it isn’t this huge devastating thing.
Because I had dated and been intimate with somebody who was
HIV-positive, I understood what it meant to have the virus, and
what the treatment was.
It was a little tough getting into the system initially, because
I was coming off active duty going into the VA medical system.
After I got the test results, I remember going to Tinker Air
Force Base, because that’s where I was receiving my medical
treatment. I ended up asking to see the patient advocate who
took me back to a room. I told him I’d just been diagnosed with
HIV, and I needed to start that process of treatment. They put
me on Atripla, a pill-a-day regimen. I became undetectable fairly
quickly after that. After I sought treatment, Tinker Air Force
Base notified up the chain of command to Washington, D.C. and
the Department of the Army. Then they reached back to the
Oklahoma National Guard and down the chain of command to
my unit.
The brigade’s Medical Readiness Officer was very nice. She
“You can be HIV-positive and serve in law enforcement, the
foreign services, healthcare, food service. So if we’re saying
discrimination is not allowed in any of those places,
WHY ARE WE ALLOWING DISCRIMINATION
TO CONTINUE IN THE MILITARY?”
reached out to me, and her initial concern was whether I was
all right, because most people are devastated by the news. She
talked to the chain of command, and told me about who needed
to be notified. Then she moved to me to the office of Joint Force
headquarters, where I currently serve because I’m not consid-
ered deployable.
MW: Besides having an outdated understanding of HIV, why do
you think the military classifies people with HIV as non-deploy-
able, since the condition is now treatable with a daily medication?
HARRISON: At the time the policy was written, back in the ‘80s or
’90s, it made a lot of sense and it was actually a very compassion-
ate policy. That was before they really had effective treatments.
You weren’t expected to live that long, and so the military was
doing a very compassionate act at the time, saying, “Okay, we’re
gonna identify these people. We’re gonna make sure they get the
best medical treatment that’s available.” The scientific under-
standing of HIV has changed dramatically, but they haven’t
rewritten the policy.
The interesting thing is that some branches of the military are
rewriting the policy. If you look at the Navy or the Marine Corps,
they’ve changed their policy. In others, like the Army and the Air
Force, you have bureaucratic inertia, and the people in positions
of power aren’t rewriting the policy like they should be.
MW: Why is there resistance?
HARRISON: I think it’s twofold. One is just bureaucratic inertia.
The other is a lack of understanding. If you actually talk to the
medical professionals and the legal professionals who are in the
military right now, they’re all on board. The Army does some of
the most cutting-edge HIV research. They write articles. They
put things in publications. They give lectures on it. They go to
these HIV sessions where everybody gets together. They’re
always presenting. The problem is that you have people who
don’t have that medical or legal expertise, or that understanding
of HIV, who are involved in writing the policy.
MW: Is there still ignorance around how HIV is transmitted or
treated in the military?
HARRISON: There’s always going to be an education or training
component whenever you implement any policy. The military
has done that repeatedly. Anytime they made a change, they had
to go out there and explain: “This is the policy change that we’re
making. This is why we’re changing it. This is how you should
look at people who are coming into the military who fit into that
category.” I think the military is very adaptable. We’re a very
mission-oriented organization. I think we can deal with that.
It’s just the leadership or the headquarters has to expend the
effort to do it, to do the training and the education, as part of the
change in the overall policy.
MW: Is there a cost concern for the military, given that HIV medi-
cations can carry a large price tag?
HARRISON: I don’t think cost is really a legitimate issue. They
have HIV-positive service members now. They’re just not fully
utilizing them. They’re not deploying them, they’re not allowing
them to be advanced and to be promoted, and so they already
have that expense as well, but I mean that’s an expense that is
everywhere else too. It’s in the federal government. It’s in the
civilian sector.
MW: Why did you decide to move forward with a lawsuit?
HARRISON: I was graduating law school, and I’d been offered a
commission in the National Guard or the Reserves. I wasn’t able
to pursue that at that time, because I was being deployed and
couldn’t take the bar exam. When I came back, I did an interview
with the D.C. National Guard, and was offered a position in the
Legal Services Office supporting the Director of the National
Guard Bureau. So I decided to start the process and go through
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
asking whether I could get an exception to the policy or a waiver.
I sent letters out to several different people. One of them
ended up bouncing around to the headquarters at the Pentagon.
A lieutenant colonel, who was the medical resilience officer at
the time, reached out to me and said, “We got your memoran-
dum. This is exactly what you need to submit to get an exception
to policy, but you don’t have any of the supporting materials.”
She really helped me build the packet asking for an exception.
She also said that what I was asking for was a perfectly reason-
able request.
So I assembled the packet. I got all the supporting documents
together. They wanted medical records, history, and service
records, and all that different stuff. The packet went in front
of a medical person up there who said, “There’s no reason he
shouldn’t be an officer. He’s fully capable of all of his duties.”
Then the medical resilience officer put the request in front of
the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army. He said, “Okay, this looks
good. This is what I need to consider this.” But he has to go
through the chain of command. He has to get their endorsement,
so they kicked it all the way back down to the beginning, and
“Under President Obama, it was much easier to be gay in the
military even though Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ was still in place. It
was very difficult to throw anyone out because they were gay.
IT REQUIRED A THREE-STAR GENERAL,
AND A BUNCH OF EVIDENCE.”
they said, “Go to each leader through the level of your organi-
zation and get them to sign off that says, yes, I’ve seen this, I
concur, or I don’t concur.”
MW: How did you hear you had been rejected for a waiver?
HARRISON: I was originally offered the commission back in
November of 2013. But then I didn’t hear back until July 2015,
and they sent me a form letter saying no. “We’ve looked at the
packet that you put together, and we’ve determined that it is not
in the best interest of the Army.” That’s all it was: a one-para-
graph answer.
The D.C. National Guard had assigned a JAG attorney, Capt.
Cravins, to help me through the process. He was working at the
National Urban League as his civilian job. He introduced me to
people at the Human Rights Campaign and said, “Maybe you
should talk to these people.” They set up a bigger meeting with a
bunch of HIV advocacy groups, one of which was Lambda Legal.
They said that this policy was something that they’d been trying
to change for a while, that they’d gotten some language included
in the NDAA [National Defense Authorization Act] back a few
years, but hadn’t seen any movement forward since then, so they
were very interested in the case. Lambda Legal, in particular,
thought that my case and the circumstances surrounding my
situation were the ideal test case to challenge the policy.
I also did a little advocacy on my own. I went to Capitol Hill,
met with the legislative aides on the House Armed Services
Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee, going
to each and every office that would let me in the door and have
a meeting, sitting down with them, showing them my packet,
showing them the current HIV policies.
Surprisingly, it was extremely well-received on both sides of
the aisle up there. The Democrats see it as a social justice issue.
They view it from a rights perspective. Republicans see it from a
readiness perspective. They’re like, “We have all these people in
the military, they’re perfectly able to do the duties, but for some
reason, the military isn’t letting them deploy, isn’t letting them
move up.”
MW: The Pentagon has now introduced a “Deploy or Get Out”
policy, which has primarily been used to argue for the expulsion of
the transgender community and other groups that are considered
“non-deployable.” Was the announcement of the policy the impe-
tus to move forward with the lawsuit?
HARRISON: We were always planning on bringing the lawsuit. I
think when “Deploy or Get Out” came out, there was a greater
sense of urgency. It was seen as a target of opportunity, some-
thing else that needs to be fixed, that needs to be added to the
lawsuit because fundamentally, the problem is the HIV poli-
cy. People who are HIV-positive shouldn’t have deployment
limitations. They shouldn’t have these bars that limit their
advancement, or compromise their ability to continue to serve.
Fundamentally, it’s a problem with the HIV policy itself. The
“Deploy or Get Out” policy is kind of a complication because
they want to kick everybody out who’s non-deployable, and at
the same time, you have people in the Army that are not expend-
ing any effort to rewrite the HIV policy as they should.
MW: How is it affecting day-to-day life in the military?
HARRISON: I think everybody in the military right now is in a
state of limbo because of the “Deploy or Get Out” policy. All of us
are very concerned about what that means because the HIV pol-
icy hasn’t been rewritten and because we’re waiting to see how
that broad statement that’s been put out there is implemented by
the services. It’s possible at some point that the military might
just try to kick all of us out. There are about 1800 of us in the
military right now with this condition.
It continues to put me in a certain level of uncertainty. I know
where I can put my skills to best use in the military, serve on
JAG office, but I’m precluded from doing that. So I’m basically
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
in limbo as far as what I can do, and just sitting in a Joint Force
Headquarters slot waiting until this is resolved.
MW: Besides a revision of the policy, what else are you asking for?
HARRISON: We’re focused on the deployment restrictions and
on the ability to commission. I think, more broadly, the military
does need to consider what the medical professionals tell them
about how the policy needs to be updated and implemented in
order to be effective.
MW: How often is a JAG officer required to deploy?
HARRISON: It really depends on the position. There are people
who do deploy overseas, but the interesting thing is that they’ll
deploy overseas, and then they’ll work right alongside civilian
attorneys, government attorneys, or contractors, each of whom
don’t have HIV restrictions.
MW: To that end, some people are going to say why should we chal-
lenge this policy? Why can’t you apply as a civilian lawyer?
HARRISON: I think it’s a question of fairness and the inconsisten-
cy of the HIV policy. Across the federal government, agencies
have taken a look at the situation. You can be HIV-positive and
“I know where I can put my skills to best
use in the military, but I’m precluded from
doing that. So I’m basically in limbo as far
as what I can do, and
JUST SITTING IN A JOINT
FORCE HEADQUARTERS
SLOT WAITING UNTIL THIS
IS RESOLVED.”
serve in law enforcement, you can serve in the foreign services,
healthcare, food service. There are not restrictions in any of
these other industries. So if we’re saying discrimination is not
allowed in any of those places, then why are we allowing dis-
crimination to continue in the military, particularly with the
philosophy that the military is supposed to be “One Army, One
Team”?
MW: Do you worry that some people might wrongly use your sexual
orientation and HIV status to argue that we shouldn’t have openly
gay soldiers?
HARRISON: I haven’t really been concerned about it. I don’t think
HIV is an exclusively gay issue. I think it applies to everyone.
MW: Who do you rely on for support?
HARRISON: I’ve got a very good team around me, in terms of the
coalition that’s been built. My legal team, communications team.
There’s a congressional team as well. I have a boyfriend, Brock.
We live together in Columbia Heights. He’s been incredibly sup-
portive. Whenever you undertake something like this lawsuit,
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
it’s not just you that is undertaking it.
Most of the other support I have is from coworkers. One of
my bosses is a really good friend of mine and is well aware of the
situation. People in the National Guard have been supportive as
well, as have the people in Stonewall Kickball, and at The DC
Center, where I’m a member of the board of directors.
MW: How much stigma is there about HIV in the LGBTQ com-
munity?
HARRISON: There is still a lot of HIV stigma in the com-
munity. It’s something that is gradually being addressed
through education and training as well. The Undetectable
= Untransmittable campaign is important and a vital part of
that. I think that that’s really made a very big impact in the
community. So far, the reception I’ve gotten with this case and
coming out because of it has been positive. At the same time, I
haven’t read the comments on all the articles. I’ve purposefully
avoided them because I know that that’s where I would see
negative comments.
MW: Have you gotten any nasty emails or direct mail?
HARRISON: Nothing yet. Everybody who’s approached me so far
has been positive. I’ve had people that I haven’t been in contact
with for a while reach out to say they’ve read the story and
express their support.
MW: When we talk more broadly about being HIV-positive, what
still needs to be done to combat stigma?
HARRISON: I think it’s mainly a process of getting people to
understand that people who are HIV-positive and are on effec-
tive treatment become undetectable, it really doesn’t affect their
day-to-day lives. They can’t transmit the virus. There are really
no harmful side effects with the drugs these days. It’s really a
pill-a-day regimen. They can still have long lifespans. They can
still have meaningful relationships without putting anyone at
risk. They’re just normal human beings. I think it’s very import-
ant for people to understand that. l
For more information on Sgt. Harrison’s case and others like it,
visit lambdalegal.org.
 Gallery
Damon Arhos
T
HE D.C.-BASED INTERDISCIPLINARY ARTIST DAMON
Arhos attempts to show the contradictory feelings and
circumstances he often experiences as a gay man in
today’s world: both proud and shamed, affirmed and reviled.
Such a disorienting state of affairs is represented or reflected in
“I Love To Hate You,” a series of artworks currently on display
at the contemporary art gallery now known as IA&A at Hillyer.
In his painting series The Antidote, for instance, Arhos evokes
Now to Sept. 2. IA&A at Hillyer, 9 Hillyer Court NW. Call 202-338-0325 or visit athillyer.org.
the stigma and shame associated with being HIV-positive, as
well as with taking Truvada as an HIV preventative measure.
Yesterday’s 30, filmed on Super 8, mourns the tragic loss of 30
transgender people in the United States in 2017. Finally, with
Trapped, Arhos has constructed a lustrous tower out of rat traps
enhanced with metallic paint, intended as a metaphor for how
many LGBTQ Americans feel when facing both embrace and
disdain. —Doug Rule
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
SANJA BUCKO - WARNER BROTHERS
MOVIES

cast, and luxe clothes and locales. The

Cents
soundtrack of fizzy pop and jazz, most of
it sung in Mandarin or Cantonese, adds
to the siren appeal of all the glamour and

and Sensibility
opulence.
Rachel experiences culture shock ven-
turing into Nick’s rarefied world, but she,
as Chu also must intend for the audience,
is too dazzled to be mad that Nick hid his
Crazy Rich Asians is an enjoyable rom-com with a spring in its step wealth from her. He had his decent-guy
and money on its mind. By André Hereford reasons for the deception, and the movie
sticks with him as a sincere love interest

C
for Rachel, who otherwise is thrown to the
RAZY RICH ASIANS (HHHHH) ANNOUNCES WITH ITS TITLE AND wolves — Nick’s rude or condescending
opening scene its mission — brazen for Hollywood — to center a mainstream relatives, conniving exes, jealous stalkers,
film around a predominantly Asian cast. Then the film, based on the wildly and various blockers who have their rea-
popular best seller by Kevin Kwan, quickly gets down to the business of being a lively, sons, too.
luxurious, oft-hilarious romantic comedy. The film acknowledges but doesn’t
Playing up the light farce of a bigot getting served his comeuppance by the regal pick apart the intricacies of large-scale
Michelle Yeoh, the brief London-set prologue introduces the sometime action star as class warfare. Instead, it focuses on Rachel
the imperious Eleanor Young, grande dame of a crazy rich, old-money Singapore fam- standing up to relentless pressure, and a
ily. Eleanor’s son, Nick (Henry Golding), grows up to be a fine man, in more than one parade of put-downs, intended to break
sense of the word. her spirit and her engagement to Nick.
Nick happens to be the favorite grandson of Eleanor’s mother-in-law, Ah Ma (Lisa Yet, for all the weight of tradition and
Lu), the Young family’s true grande dame. Due to his status as the chosen one to classism driving the drama, the film is as
eventually control the family’s vast real estate fortune, all hell breaks loose after Nick frothy and fun as it could be.
returns to Singapore with his new fiancée, Rachel. Not only is Rachel an American-born Wu anchors an ensemble that boasts
Chinese, but she’s the humble daughter of a working-class, immigrant single mom. quite a few rapid-fire jokesters, including
Of course, as an Economics professor at NYU, Rachel is no slouch, and she’s also comedians Ken Jeong and Ronny Chieng,
delightfully embodied by Constance Wu, star of the ABC sitcom Fresh Off the Boat. Wu who deliver consistently. As Rachel’s
smoothly adjusts her comic rhythms to light romance, essaying a sweet and resilient best friend, Peik Lin, rapper and actress
heroine attuned to the peppy energy that director Jon M. Chu draws out of the story, continues on page 32

30 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 Television

each episode follows her various exploits

Disenchanted
as she tries to live free and command her
own destiny. On this journey she’s joined
by Elfo, an elf who fled from a land where
everyone is always happy, and Luci, a
Matt Groening’s newest animated show fails to justify demon who has been eternally bonded to
the need for its existence. By Rhuaridh Marr Bean by mysterious, faraway forces.
It’s a curious setting, and one rich

M
with comedic potential — class squab-
ATT GROENING DIDN’T NEED TO MAKE A NEW TV SHOW. AS CREATOR bles, mythological and fantastical crea-
of The Simpsons, he has an estimated half a billion dollars in personal wealth, tures, the plague — but the end result is
holds the record for the longest-running primetime show in U.S. television scattered, overstuffed, and frequently dull.
history, and has helped create a multi-billion dollar entertainment powerhouse that Each episode runs close to half an hour in
encompasses movies, games, music, theme park rides, and an almost ludicrous amount length, and Disenchantment — like a lot
of merchandise. of Netflix’s comedic output — feels like it
The last time he tried creating something new, it was a decade after The Simpsons could use the editing restrictions of broad-
first aired on Fox. Futurama was more daring than its yellow-tinged cousin. It was cast television to economize its joke-tell-
snappier, zanier, but no less brilliant. Criminally underappreciated by audiences, it ing. What’s worse is that the opening epi-
was canceled twice on two different networks, but stands tall alongside the first eight sode is frequently laugh-out-loud funny,
seasons of The Simpsons as proof that Groening knows what he’s doing. despite its need to establish Bean, Elfo,
That’s why the prospect of a new animated show from Groening is pretty tantaliz- Luci, and the myriad other characters in
ing. With enough wealth to last multiple lifetimes, he isn’t doing it for the money. And this zany kingdom. But what follows just
by partnering with Netflix, he isn’t catering to the demands of broadcast restrictions fails to match that momentum. Sure, you’ll
and advertisers. A new show, dropping on a streaming platform, from the man who has laugh, but it’s the exception, not the rule.
gifted the world two of TV’s best animated shows? What’s not to love? Whether it’s Bean trying and failing
A lot, as it transpires. Disenchantment (HHHHH) isn’t just a disappointment, it begs to get a normal job, ultimately winding
the question why Groening ever felt the need to make it. As a grand return to television, up as the kingdom’s executioner, or her
it proves that the third time definitely isn’t the charm. attempts to throw a party in the castle
A medieval fantasy described by one of the cast as “the offspring of The Simpsons while King Zøg and stepmother Queen
and Game of Thrones,” Disenchantment is set in the kingdom of Dreamland, an ironi- Oona are at a spa — only for gatecrashing
cally named city filled with death, depression, and drinking galore. It centers on Bean, land vikings to try and seize the throne —
an alcoholic princess desperate to escape the tedious trappings of her royal life, and the premise of each episode is sound, but

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 31

the delivery falters. There are long stretches where exposition is
being delivered, but the jokes just aren’t landing, or where the
writing feels inexorably laborious to sit through in the hope that
a more amusing scene is to follow.
And that’s not to discredit the voice acting delivering the
lackluster scripts. Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson gives Bean her
defiant, feminist soul, while also nailing the exasperation, the
alcoholism, and the occasional drug-induced hallucination. Nat
Faxon as Elfo and Eric Andre as Luci round out our core trio, and
the three actors bounce off one another with tangible chemistry.
There’s also a number of recognizable voices from Futurama —
for instance, John DiMaggio traded Bender for King Zøg, Billy
West swapped Fry and Professor Farnsworth for the King’s wiz-
ard Sorcerio, and Tress MacNeille replaced Mom with Queen
Oona. The voice acting is uniformly excellent, from the towns-
people to the kingdom’s visitors, to the chorus of walruses who
lure an idiot prince to have sex with them (no, really).
Disenchantment is as much a treat to look at as it is to listen
to. Animated by the same studio that handled Futurama, the
family resemblance is incredibly strong. Character designs are
occasionally a little bland and rough for some of the minor char-
Disenchantment starts streaming August 17 on Netflix. Visit netflix.com.
continued from page 30
Awkwafina makes a stronger impression here than earlier this
summer alongside Sandra Bullock and crew in Ocean’s 8.
Partly it’s Peik Lin’s colorful, outrageous style that sets the
character apart, but really it’s Awkwafina’s bouncy swagger.
Unlike other characters in Nick and Rachel’s circle, Peik Lin is
one-hundred percent authentically herself, yet always still jovi-
ally flexible, ready for whatever life or the party throws at her.
Ever-resourceful, she keeps an impressive array of wardrobe
choices in the trunk of her Audi.
The film’s side-trips to the ostentatious crib of Peik Lin’s
nouveau riche family are the best satire that Chu and the script,
by Adele Lim and Peter Chiarelli, have to offer. Those scenes
also set up a loving surrogate home for only-kid Rachel in a story
that’s so expressly concerned with living within, or without, the
embrace of family.
It’s worth noting that Crazy Rich Asians might challenge a
few conventions that older generations hold dear, but it’s a fam-
ily-friendly flick. Nick and Rachel’s romance is chaste enough
for grandma, with the two pictured waking up in bed together
wearing pajamas and underwear.
Crazy Rich Asians is rated Pg-13, and opens in theaters everywhere August 16. Visit fandango.com.
32 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
acters, but the environments, a mix of traditional animation and
3D imagery, are lush and vibrant.
Unfortunately, constant reminders of Futurama do little to
help Disenchantment. From animation to voice-acting to setting
— Oona’s home kingdom of Dankmire feels a lot like Futurama’s
Sewer City, and her character design has elements of Kif Kroker
— a lot of comparisons can be drawn between the two. Even
Bean feels like the strong rebelliousness of Leela mixed with
Fry’s loser nature. The problem is that, with multiple compari-
son points, Disenchantment never feels like the stronger or better
show. And while animated series typically take a season or two
to find their groove — The Simpsons’ Golden Age started with
its third season — there was a lot more to like in Groening’s two
previous shows than there is with Disenchantment.
It all begs the question of why Groening felt this was such a
great concept that he had to bring it to Netflix. Critics were given
access to seven of the ten episodes that will drop on August 17.
A further ten are on order, and will air at a future date. Perhaps
Disenchantment will find its groove in those subsequent episodes,
and stand alongside Groening’s other animated efforts. Perhaps
so few will finish the first ten episodes that we’ll never find out. l
Content to forgo heated clenches, the movie derives its sex
appeal from the conspicuous consumption on display, the man-
sions and supercars, jewels and fashions. Chu even dishes up a
fashion makeover montage that, at least in this context, makes
sense for a girl who packed a suitcase full of what one charac-
ter calls her “Gap look.” Luckily for Rachel, she’s welcomed by
Nick’s clotheshorse cousin Astrid (Gemma Chan).
As the family’s unhappy princess, Chan swans through scenes
swathed in Dior and warmly sells the idea that people so fla-
grantly wealthy might be caring and generous. However, she and
Pierre Png, as Astrid’s husband Michael, don’t really sell the cou-
ple’s side-drama of infidelity and resentment. Crazy Rich Asians
is not about tearing down the fantasy, but about the extravagance.
And that extravagance surrounding Rachel is a lot for her to
live up to. The same could be said of the film, which must live
up to the expectations of author Kwan’s legions of fans. Readers
have continued to follow the romance and adventures of Rachel
and Nick, and their families and friends, through two sequels,
which easily could beget sequel films to this soapy, smile-induc-
ing soon-to-be hit. l
DJ COREY
Stage

Tilly and himself.

Melancholy Baby
As with most of the cast, Montgomery
shares a fine rapport with Krishawn,
whose Tilly has to be a muse to many.
Certainly she has the effect of discom-
bobulating all who meet her, including a
Constellation opens their Epic Love season with the lovely longing of lesbian couple, Frances (Mary Myers) and
Melancholy Play: A Contemporary Farce. By André Hereford Joan (Lilian Oben). Desiring Tilly delivers
a pleasurable shock to the ladies’ systems

I
that Myers makes quite funny, and Oben
T’S WISTFUL AND POETIC, BUT SARAH RUHL’S MELANCHOLY PLAY: A conveys especially well with her richly
Contemporary Farce ( ) is no sob story. In fact, Nick Martin’s fresh stag- arch turn — her lingering pause or side-
ing of Ruhl’s first full-length play lives up to the comedic spirit of its subtitle. The eye would make Eve Arden proud.
production likewise lives up to the adventurous spirit of Constellation Theatre, a com- Struck by an urge to console Tilly, so
pany that consistently takes playful risks with high-concept material. beautiful when she’s sad, Joan epitomizes
This farce revolves around Tilly, an inadvertent enchantress who longs to feel the questionable tendency of some roman-
melancholy and cries perfect rivulets of woeful tears in her all-out effort to achieve tics (or masochists) who seek out messes to
sadness. Maybe she just wants to dance with gloom and heartache, or merely feign the clean up and care for. Ruhl relays the con-
depth of someone who’s substantial enough to be miserable. But Tilly can’t quite shake nection explicitly by making Joan a nurse,
her upbeat air to bring herself totally down. And in the process, she attracts the ardor someone who cares for the broken and
of a raft of admirers, women and men, all drawn to her bright-eyed sadness. sick for a living. Adding a nice visual touch
Described as a river her admirers have yet to swim in, Tilly is played by the aptly to the joke, Joan is dressed by costume
appealing Billie Krishawn, who does cry angelically and on-cue. If a person can seem designer Kitt Crescenzo in the white uni-
like a Tilly, then her performance captures it, amusingly so. Krishawn’s Tilly swans form of a WWII-era army nurse, complete
across her therapist’s couch, or atop her tailor’s step-stool, leading an ensemble that with starched hat and jaunty blue cape.
stirs up slapstick with romance and repartee. Joan is here to save Tilly’s day — as
John Austin supplies passion and innocence as Frank, the tailor who falls hardest long as the object of her affection stays
for Tilly. Christian Montgomery goes broadest with his performance as Tilly’s therapist darlingly despondent. Tilly discovers, as
Lorenzo, who hails from an “unspecified European country” and wields an exaggerat- others have before her, that her admir-
ed, vague accent to match his indeterminate origins. Montgomery swings big with the ers like her best when she’s forlorn and
characterization, and hits more than he misses elaborating Lorenzo’s obsessions with radiating need. They demonstrate little

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 33


DJ COREY
interest in a happy Tilly.
As the plot unfolds, Tilly yields less and less interest as a char-
acter, but not because of her mood swings. Rather, it’s because
her wannabe sadness is so utterly self-absorbed. She more or less
admits that fact, but the script doesn’t compensate with layers of
sincere introspection or dimension. She doesn’t genuinely care
enough about anyone or anything else to fully ingratiate herself
to those not written to fall madly in love with her.
Tilly does, however, burst into song. Leaning on the melod-
Melancholy Play runs through September 2 at the Source Theatre, 1835 14th St. NW. Tickets are $19 to $45.
Call 202-204-7741, or visit ConstellationTheatre.org.
34 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
ically melancholy score by composer Wytold,
the play swerves unsurely in its homestretch
towards surrealism. Although Tilly, Lorenzo,
Frank, Frances, and Joan potentially turning into
nuts doesn’t push the play completely off the
rails, that symbolic conceit, among others, comes
close. Ruhl’s ruminations on the “disappearing
emotion” that is melancholy get to be precious.
Thankfully, director Martin maintains a
gentle, assured hand with the fanciful story-
telling and lyrical language. He coaxes from
his cast a complicity that keeps the comedy
buzzing. They’re a dynamic ensemble, alter-
nately funny and charming, though the char-
acters aren’t that deep. Tilly and company do
make swell canvases for projecting a mix of
emotions as they swoon, cry, and kiss across
one very helpful chaise, bathed in A.J. Guban’s
gorgeous, atmospheric lighting.
The actors also get a major assist from musi-
cian Kate Rears Burgman, who performs Wytold’s score from a
seat set slightly upstage from the action. The string player briefly
speaks, entering the fray to kindly lament that it’s hard to play
happy-sounding tunes on a cello. It must also be hard to shape a
performance that seriously contemplates sadness while aiming
for laughs, and the cast do better on the latter than the former,
resulting in a solid farce that’s sometimes just trivially preoccu-
pied with sorrow. l
 Music

8. FROZEN (1998)

Birthday Girl!
Among Madonna’s many turning points
and personal reinventions, Ray of Light
was the most pronounced. The album was
heavily influenced by her experience of
In honor of the Queen of Pop’s 60th birthday, we round motherhood and her newfound spiritu-
up the ten best songs from her long, iconic career. By Sean Maunier ality. Madonna had been leaning heavily
on religious themes and imagery for over

O
a decade by this point, but the uncharac-
N AUGUST 16, THE ORIGINAL, UNIMPEACHABLE QUEEN OF POP teristically intimate, introspective single
celebrates 60 years. Madonna has been a superstar for the better part of those “Frozen” conveyed a sense of spiritual
six decades, and her influence on the modern pop landscape is by now unmis- forces bigger than her.
takable and inescapable. A true diva, her different eras, and the looks that have accom-
panied them, are every bit as iconic as her music — but even these are only a sideshow 7. SORRY (2005)
to her politics, activism, and consistent, unapologetic sex positivity. In honour of her While it’s hard to imagine Madonna need-
60th, we pay tribute to the Material Girl with a countdown of her most iconic and ing a self-empowering pick me up, “Sorry”
essential songs. is about as close as she gets. Addressed to a
man who has finally gone too far, the song
10. BORDERLINE (1983) has an appropriately fierce energy about
Given the explosive success of Like a Virgin, we can probably forgive Madonna for it. Like the rest of Confessions on a Dance
brushing off her debut album. But for the rest of us, her self-titled album is well worth Floor, it hearkens back to the hits of her
revisiting for its sincerity and confidence, not to mention the catchiness of early hits early career, lending another layer to its
like “Borderline.” This Madonna was not yet the headline-grabbing provocateur that self-congratulatory sense of hindsight.
would be a household name by the end of the decade, but the simplicity and instant
relatability of “Borderline” did much to define the rest of her career, not to mention an 6. MUSIC (2000)
entire generation of dance music. Cowboy hats can be deceiving. Although
Madonna may have dressed up in western
9. INTO THE GROOVE (1985) garb and copped selectively from folk and
Evita notwithstanding, Madonna’s short-lived acting career is mostly notable for the country for Music, its title track is all cas-
material she produced for her films’ soundtracks. It’s hard to recall much about 1985’s cading synths and futuristic dance beats.
Desperately Seeking Susan, other than that it gave us “Into the Groove,” easily one of Just two years after Ray of Light, her glee-
Madonna’s most memorable and enduringly popular songs. fully campy, Americana-inflected eighth

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 35

album marked another abrupt turn, this
time delivering her most club-friendly
track since “Vogue.”
5. LIKE A VIRGIN (1984)
One of Madonna’s most iconic and
instantly recognizable tracks, “Like a
Virgin” was the first single to truly play
with and upend the religious implica-
tions of her stage name. From the very
beginning it was clear the Madonna
was an artist who was out to provoke
and unsettle just as much as she was to
dominate the charts.
4. DEEPER AND DEEPER (1992)
Brash and unflinching, widely panned
yet underrated in hindsight, Erotica was
Madonna at her most blunt and cerebral. Thoughtful and nuanced
from beginning to end, Erotica was aloof and inaccessible by design
even on “Deeper and Deeper,” a dance track that is as cold and
ambiguous as it is catchy. The album more than earned its parental
advisory label, although in retrospect it is easier to appreciate that
there is much more to it than shock value alone.
3. HUMAN NATURE (1994)
“Express yourself, don’t repress yourself.” So opens “Human
Nature,” one of the most overlooked tracks of one of Madonna’s
most overlooked albums. Her voice drips with defiant sar-
Turn to page 43 in the Nightlife section to see DJ Ed Bailey’s Ultimate Madonna Playlist.
36 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
casm as she repeats the line, “Oops,
I didn’t know we couldn’t talk about
sex.” Bedtime Stories was her first album
since Sex and Erotica, and “Human
Nature” reads as a timely downtempo
rebuke to her critics, delivered with a
pointed tone and an unexpectedly infec-
tious rhythm.
2. VOGUE (1990)
Madonna’s early career owed much to
New York’s flourishing queer under-
ground, most notably to the Harlem ball
scene of the 1980s, famously immortal-
ized in Paris is Burning. She was obvi-
ously far from the first to vogue, but she
brought it into the popular conscious-
ness, acting for many as the first point
of access to a rich culture to which she was heavily indebted.
1. LIKE A PRAYER (1989)
Although Madonna has been many different things to different
people, few would disagree that “Like a Prayer” remains her
most iconic, most quintessentially “Madonna” song, bringing
together the sacred and profane and blurring the line between
the two. Upon its release, it earned her sweeping condemnation
from the Vatican to Pepsi, who famously canceled a $5 million
ad campaign, inadvertently helping to cement her reputation for
artistic integrity. l
NightLife Photography by
Ward Morrison

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 37

Scene Nellie’s Sports Bar - Saturday, August 11 - Photography by Ward Morrison
See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

DrinksDragDJsEtc... • Special Late Night menu Friday, On, Lights Off, 9pm-close • Special Late Night menu
till 1am • Visit pitchers- • Featuring DJ Lemz and till 11pm • Visit pitchers-
bardc.com August 17 The Barber Streisand • bardc.com
$5 Cover (includes clothes
Thursday, GREEN LANTERN
Happy Hour, 4-9pm
SHAW’S TAVERN 9 1/2 check) SHAW’S TAVERN
August 16 • Shirtless Thursday,
Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3
Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon,
Open at 5pm • Happy
Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink, NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR
Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3
Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon,
10-11pm • Men in
$5 House Wines, $5 Rail 5-9pm • Friday Night Open 3pm • Beat the $5 House Wines, $5 Rail
9 1/2 Underwear Drink Free,
Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas Videos, 9:30pm • Rotating Clock Happy Hour — $2 Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas
Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any 12-12:30am • DJs
and Select Appetizers DJs • Expanded craft beer (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), $4 and Select Appetizers •
drink, 5-9pm • Multiple BacK2bACk
• All-You-Can-Eat Ribs, selection • No Cover (7-8pm) • Buckets of Beer, Comedy Show, Second
TVs showing movies,
$24.95, 5-10pm • $4 $15 • Weekend Kickoff Floor, 7pm
shows, sports • Expanded NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR
Heineken and Corona A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Dance Party, with Nellie’s
craft beer selection • Beat the Clock Happy Hour
all night 2319 18th St. NW DJs spinning bubbly pop TRADE
Music videos featuring — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm),
Doors open, 5pm-3am • music all night Doors open 5pm • Huge
DJ Wess $4 (7-8pm) • $15 Buckets
TRADE Happy Hour: $2 off every- Happy Hour: Any drink
of Beer all night • Sports
Doors open 5pm • Huge thing until 9pm • Video NUMBER NINE normally served in a cock-
A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Leagues Night
Happy Hour: Any drink Games • Live televised Open 5pm • Happy Hour: tail glass served in a huge
2319 18th St. NW
normally served in a cock- sports 2 for 1 on any drink, 5-9pm glass for the same price,
Doors open, 5pm-2am • NUMBER NINE
tail glass served in a huge • No Cover • Friday Night 5-10pm • Beer and wine
Happy Hour: $2 off every- Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any
glass for the same price, FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Piano with Chris, 7:30pm only $4 • Otter Happy
thing until 9pm • Video drink, 5-9pm • No Cover
5-10pm • Beer and wine Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Hour, 5-11pm
Games • Live televised
only $4 Karaoke, 9pm PITCHERS
sports PITCHERS
2317 18th St. NW ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS
2317 18th St. NW
ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS GREEN LANTERN Doors open, 5pm-3am Men of Secrets, 9pm •
FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Doors open, 5pm-2am
All male, nude dancers • Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $3 • Happy Hour: $2 off Guest dancers • Rotating
Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • • Happy Hour: $2 off
Open Dancers Audition • Rail and Domestic • Free everything until 9pm • DJs • Kristina Kelly’s Diva
Karaoke, 9pm everything until 9pm •
Urban House Music by DJ Pizza, 7-9pm • $5 Svedka, Video Games • Foosball Fev-ah Drag Show • Doors
Video Games • Foosball
Tim-e • 9pm • Cover 21+ all flavors, all night long • Live televised sports •
• Live televised sports •
• Rough House: Hands Full dining menu till 2am
Full dining menu till 9pm

38 AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 NIGHTLIFE HIGHLIGHTS
DRINK COMPANY: WUBBA LUBBA DUB PUB
Every few months, Derek Brown, Angie Fetherston, and their fellow Drink-
ers take inspiration from a particular pop culture show or reference and
go all-in — transforming three small connected spaces that used to house
at 9pm, Shows at 11:30pm per glass • World Tavern
Brown’s hip Shaw dining spots into exhaustively designed, immersively
and 1:45am • DJ Don T. in Poker Tournament, 1-3pm themed pop-up bars, or PUB, that fans clamour to get hammered in. For
Ziegfeld’s • Cover 21+ • Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • the current incarnation, the team dives into Adult Swim’s Rick and Morty,
Freddie’s Follies Drag
Show, hosted by Miss the animated series about an eccentric, alcoholic scientist who shows his
Destiny B. Childs, 8-10pm grandson the world — and then some. Wubba Lubba Dub PUB offers inter-
Saturday, • Karaoke, 10pm-close pretations of the show’s Anatomy Park, Rick’s garage-cum-laboratory, the
August 18 GREEN LANTERN iconic Space Cruiser, and Farmer Rick’s Mega Tree farm — all enhanced by
Happy Hour, 4-9pm • $5 Rick and Morty-themed cocktails, plus a few craft beer and wine options.
9 1/2 Bacardi, all flavors, all
Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any night long • The Bear
Drink highlights this round include the refreshing tequila with watermelon
drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut Cave: Retro to Electro, and St. Germain concoction “Get Schwifty,” to “Existence is Pain,” an
and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close • Featuring DJ intense blend of gin, vermouth, blue curacao, and absinthe with coconut
9pm-close • Expanded Popperz • No Cover
craft beer selection • water and lemon. A few munchies — from pickles to pickle chips — are
No Cover NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR also available to purchase to wash down all the booze. Weekend evenings
Drag Brunch, hosted
by Chanel Devereaux,
from 5 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Runs through Oct. 6. Drink Company, 1839 7th
A LEAGUE OF HER OWN
2319 18th St. NW 10:30am-12:30pm and St. NW. Call 202-316-9396 or visit popupbardc.com.
Doors open, 2pm-3am • 1-3pm • Tickets on sale
Video Games • Live tele- at nelliessportsbar.com
vised sports • House Rail Drinks, Zing DC9: PEACH PIT
Zang Bloody Marys, Nellie Named for the diner on Beverly Hills, 90210, Peach Pit was started by
FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Beer and Mimosas, $4, DJ Matt Bailer more than eight years ago at Dahlek, the former Eritrean
Saturday Breakfast Buffet, 11am-3am • Buckets of
10am-3pm • $14.99 with Beer, $15 • Guest DJs restaurant that also birthed Mixtape. Bailer describes the party as a “kind
one glass of champagne of sweaty mosh pit of guys and girls, straights and gays, black people and
or coffee, soda or juice •
Additional champagne $2
white people, old people and young people — all just dancing and singing
at the top of their lungs.” Peach Pit is very strictly ’90s, as Bailer only plays
and takes requests for tracks released between Jan. 1, 1990, and Dec. 31,
1999. Saturday, Aug. 18. Doors at 10:30 p.m. DC9, 1940 9th St. NW. Cover
is $5, or $ 8 after midnight. Call 202-483-5000 or visit dcnine.com.

TRADE: GAY/BASH
Josh Vogelsong started his monthly alternative drag-focused party more
than six years ago at the Black Cat, but it wasn’t until it moved to Trade
that it became what he had long envisioned it could be. “People show up
in looks, everybody comes dressed up,” Vogelsong says. “Everybody gets
crazy during the show. You can just spray beer on the crowd, and they’d
cheer and love it. It’s wild.” Miss LaBella Mafia is the featured guest
performer at this month’s event, with additional shows to come from
Vogelsong per his drag alter-ego Donna Slash, Jaxknife Complex, Salvadora
Dali, and Jane Saw, with jams from Diyanna Monet. Saturday, Aug. 18.
Doors at 10 p.m., with shows at 11:30 p.m. and 1 a.m. 1410 14thSt. NW.
Call 202-986-1094 or visit facebook.com/gaybashdc. – By Doug Rule

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY 39

NUMBER NINE
Doors open 2pm • Happy
Hour: 2 for 1 on any drink,
2-9pm • $5 Absolut and $5
Bulleit Bourbon, 9pm-close
• THIRSTY, featuring DJ
Chord Bezerra, 9:30pm
PITCHERS
2317 18th St. NW
Doors open, 12pm-3am •
Video Games • Foosball
• Live televised sports •
Full dining menu till 9pm
• Special Late Night menu
till 2am • Visit pitchers-
bardc.com
SHAW’S TAVERN
Brunch with $15
Bottomless Mimosas,
10am-3pm • Happy Hour,
5-7pm • $3 Miller Lite,
$4 Blue Moon, $5 House
Wines, $5 Rail Drinks •
Half-Priced Pizzas and
Select Appetizers
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
TRADE
Doors open 2pm • Huge
Sunday, GREEN LANTERN
Happy Hour, 4-9pm •
PITCHERS
2317 18th St. NW
TRADE
Doors open 2pm • Huge
Happy Hour: Any drink August 19 Karaoke with Kevin down- Doors open, 12pm-2am Happy Hour: Any drink
normally served in a stairs, 9:30pm-close • $4 Smirnoff, includes normally served in a cock-
cocktail glass served in a 9 1/2 flavored, $4 Coors Light or tail glass served in a huge
huge glass for the same Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR $4 Miller Lites, 2-9pm • glass for the same price,
price, 2-10pm • Beer and drink, 2-9pm • $5 Absolut Drag Brunch, hosted Video Games • Foosball 2-10pm • Beer and wine
wine only $4 • Gay Bash, and $5 Bulleit Bourbon, by Chanel Devereaux, • Live televised sports • only $4
10pm-close • Drag shows 9pm-close • Multiple TVs 10:30am-12:30pm and Full dining menu till 9pm •
at 11pm and 1am, hosted showing movies, shows, 1-3pm • Tickets on sale Visit pitchersbardc.com
by Donna Slash and featur- sports • Expanded craft at nelliessportsbar.com
ing Jaxknife Complex, Jane
Saw, and Salvadora Dali •
beer selection • No Cover • House Rail Drinks, Zing
Zang Bloody Marys, Nellie
SHAW’S TAVERN
Brunch with Bottomless
Monday,
No Cover A LEAGUE OF HER OWN Beer and Mimosas, $4, Mimosas, 10am-3pm • August 20
2319 18th St. NW 11am-1am • Buckets of Happy Hour, 5-7pm • $3
ZIEGFELD’S/SECRETS Doors open, 2pm-12am • Beer, $15 • Guest DJs Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, 9 1/2
Dance Party, 9pm • Guest $4 Smirnoff and Domestic $5 House Wines, $5 Rail Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any
dancers • Music by DJ Cans • Video Games • NUMBER NINE Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas drink, 5-9pm • Multiple
Steve Henderson • Ladies Live televised sports Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on and Select Appetizers TVs showing movies,
of Illusion Drag Show, any drink, 2-9pm • $5 • Dinner-n-Drag, with shows, sports • Expanded
featuring Ella Fitzgerald FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR Absolut and $5 Bulleit Miss Kristina Kelly, 8pm craft beer selection •
• Doors at 9pm, Shows Champagne Brunch Buffet, Bourbon, 9pm-close • Pop • For reservations, email No Cover
at 11:30pm and 1:45am • 10am-3pm • $24.99 with Goes the World with Wes shawsdinnerdragshow@
Cover 21+ four glasses of champagne Della Volla at 9:30pm • gmail.com FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR
or mimosas, 1 Bloody No Cover Crazy Hour, 4-8pm •
Mary, or coffee, soda or Singles Night • Half-Priced
juice • Crazy Hour, 4-8pm Pasta Dishes • Poker Night
• Karaoke, 9pm-close — 7pm and 9pm games •
Karaoke, 9pm
AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY
GREEN LANTERN
Happy Hour, 4-9pm •
NUMBER NINE
Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any
Tuesday, FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR
Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • Taco
NUMBER NINE
Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any
SHAW’S TAVERN
Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3
$3 rail cocktails and drink, 5-9pm • No Cover August 21 Tuesday • Poker Night — drink, 5-9pm • No Cover Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon,
domestic beers all night 7pm and 9pm games • $5 House Wines, $5 Rail
long • Singing with the SHAW’S TAVERN 9 1/2 Karaoke, 9pm PITCHERS Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas
Sisters: Open Mic Karaoke Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any 2317 18th St. NW and Select Appetizers •
Night with the Sisters Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, drink, 5-9pm • Multiple GREEN LANTERN Open 5pm-12am • Happy Half-Priced Burgers and
of Perpetual Indulgence, $5 House Wines, $5 Rail TVs showing movies, Happy Hour, 4pm-9pm Hour: $2 off everything Pizzas all night with $5
9:30pm-close Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas shows, sports • Expanded • $3 rail cocktails and until 9pm • Video Games House Wines and $5 Sam
and Select Appetizers • craft beer selection • domestic beers all night • Foosball • Live televised Adams
NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Shaw ’Nuff Trivia, with No Cover long sports • Full dining menu
Beat the Clock Happy Hour Jeremy, 7:30pm till 9pm • Special Late TRADE
— $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), A LEAGUE OF HER OWN NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR Night menu till 11pm • Doors open 5pm • Huge
$4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of TRADE 2319 18th St. NW Beat the Clock Happy Hour Visit pitchersbardc.com Happy Hour: Any drink
Beer, $15 • Half-Priced Doors open 5pm • Huge Doors open, 5pm-12am • — $2 (5-6pm), $3 (6-7pm), normally served in a cock-
Burgers • Paint Nite, 7pm Happy Hour: Any drink Happy Hour: $2 off every- $4 (7-8pm) • Buckets of tail glass served in a huge
• PokerFace Poker, 8pm • normally served in a cock- thing until 9pm • Video Beer $15 • Drag Bingo glass for the same price,
Dart Boards • Ping Pong tail glass served in a huge Games • Live televised with Sasha Adams and 5-10pm • Beer and wine
Madness, featuring 2 Ping- glass for the same price, sports Brooklyn Heights, 7-9pm • only $4
Pong Tables 5-10pm • Beer and wine Karaoke, 9pm-close
only $4

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 Playlist

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MADONNA!

SUBMITTED BY
DJ ED BAILEY

“RAY OF LIGHT”
Ray Of Light (1998)

“KEEP IT TOGETHER”
12” REMIX
Like A Prayer (1990)

“HOLIDAY”
Madonna (1983)

“4 MINUTES”
Hard Candy (2008)

“MUSIC”
Music (2000)

“GET TOGETHER”
Confessions On A Dance Floor (2005)

“INTO THE GROOVE”

Like A Virgin (1985)

“EXPRESS YOURSELF”
12” REMIX
Like A Prayer (1989)

“DRESS YOU UP”

Like A Virgin (1984)

“EVERYBODY”
Madonna (1983)

“HUNG UP”
Confessions On A Dance Floor (2005)
Wednesday, FREDDIE’S BEACH BAR
Crazy Hour, 4-8pm • $6
shows at the 9:30 Club •
$15 Buckets of Beer for
Full dining menu till 9pm
• Special Late Night menu “LIKE A PRAYER”
August 22 Burgers • Beach Blanket SmartAss Teams only • till 11pm • Visit pitchers-
CLASSIC 12” EXTENDED MIX
Drag Bingo Night, hosted Absolutely Snatched Drag bardc.com
9 1/2 by Ms. Regina Jozet Show, hosted by Brooklyn Like A Prayer (1989)
Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any Adams, 8pm • Bingo prizes Heights, 9pm • Tickets SHAW’S TAVERN
drink, 5-9pm • Multiple • Karaoke, 10pm-1am available at nelliessports- Happy Hour, 4-7pm • $3 “MILES AWAY”
TVs showing movies, bar.com Miller Lite, $4 Blue Moon, Hard Candy (2008)
shows, sports • Expanded GREEN LANTERN $5 House Wines, $5 Rail
craft beer selection • Happy Hour, 4pm-9pm • NUMBER NINE Drinks • Half-Priced Pizzas
No Cover
“BEAUTIFUL STRANGER”
Bear Yoga with Greg Leo, Happy Hour: 2 for 1 on any and Select Appetizers •
6:30-7:30pm • $10 per drink, 5-9pm • No Cover Piano Bar and Karaoke Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
A LEAGUE OF HER OWN class • $3 rail cocktails with Jill, 8pm (1999)
2319 18th St. NW and domestic beers all PITCHERS
Doors open, 5pm-12am • night long 2317 18th St. NW TRADE “RAIN”
Happy Hour: $2 off every- Doors open, 5pm-12am Doors open 5pm • Huge Erotica (1993)
thing until 9pm • Video NELLIE’S SPORTS BAR • Happy Hour: $2 off Happy Hour: Any drink
Games • Live televised SmartAss Trivia Night, everything until 9pm • normally served in a cock-
sports 8-10pm • Prizes include Video Games • Foosball tail glass served in a huge
DJ Ed Bailey is the co-owner of Trade and
bar tabs and tickets to • Live televised sports • glass for the same price, Number Nine. His Madonnarama party has not
5-10pm • Beer and wine only been a legendary DC event since the early
only $4 l 90s, but has also toured all over
the U.S. and Europe. l

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

Scene Dirty Goose - Saturday, August 11 - Photography by Ward Morrison
See and purchase more photos from this event at www.metroweekly.com/scene

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY

 LastWord.
People say the queerest things

“I love Vermont because we look beyond these surface issues.

I just happen to be a leader who is transgender.
Vermonters know that.
”
— CHRISTINE HALLQUIST, who on Tuesday became the first out transgender person to claim a major party nomination for governor.
Hallquist defeated three other candidates to earn the Democratic nomination for governor of Vermont, and told Reuters
that the state is “a beacon of hope for the rest of the country” after the results were announced.
She will face incumbent GOP Gov. Phil Scott in November.

“It’s very perverse and foolish,

and needs to be called out as such.
”
— STUART DINENNO, owner of Botanica Atlanta Landscape Design, responding on Yelp to a review from a gay man who claims
Dinenno refused to work with him when Dinenno learned he had a husband. Dinenno confirmed his refusal, saying it “is
necessary to work with the homeowners closely over several months through the design and installation phases. I can’t do that,
all the while going along with the delusion of two men calling themselves a married couple,
with one man referring to the other man as his husband.”

“I have no intention of divorcing,

no intention of quitting,
and no intention of not telling anyone why I have to leave the job I’ve loved so much.
”
— SHELLY FITZGERALD, guidance counselor at Roncalli High School in Indianapolis, in a message on social media addressed to
parents and students. Fitzgerald is currently on indefinite paid leave from the Catholic school after officials learned she is lesbian
and had been married to another woman since 2014. “I ask that you pray for my family, for change in the world,
and know I have absolutely loved my job for the past 15 years,” she wrote.

“The George W. Bush White House was one of the most homophobic administrations in recent history, and
Brett Kavanaugh was at the center of the action.”
— SHARON MCGOWAN, Legal Director and Chief Strategy Officer at Lambda Legal, in a statement announced that the organization
has filed eight freedom of information requests seeking documents related to Supreme Court nominee Kavanaugh’s involvement
in Bush administration policies that impacted the LGBTQ community. “The American people deserve to know the whole truth
about Judge Kavanaugh’s record on LGBTQ rights and other important civil rights issues,” McGowan said.

“Being misgendered and deadnamed in my death felt like

it would be the ultimate insult.”
— LAVERNE COX, in a letter posted to Instagram addressing police forces who insist on “deadnaming” transgender murder victims
by using their birth name instead of their chosen name. “Many years ago when I was contemplating suicide, I was planning to
have a note in my pocket at the time of my death and several other notes in my home which would state my name, preferred
gender pronouns and that I should be referred to as a woman in my death,” Cox wrote. “Being misgendered and deadnamed in
my death felt like it would be the ultimate insult to the psychological and emotional injuries I was experiencing daily
as a black trans woman in New York City, the injuries that made me want to take my own life.”

AUGUST 16, 2018 • METROWEEKLY