Take a nap, drink some water, and wipe the glitter from your eyes—or don’t ✨🏳️🌈 With 20 more days left of Pride Month, we’ve rounded up some especially great events aimed at offering something to everyone—from bibliophiles to film lovers, party-goers to museum visitors, and, of course, music lovers. So turn the coffeepot on cause it’s time for part two of our Pride Guide.
Find more events at the link in our bio.
📸 Credits: Bobbi Rich, Harvey Robinson, Portraits courtesy of GMCW, Kumbia Queers courtesy of Songbyrd, Danielle Neu
“Blow Out is here to trick you,” writes critic Noah Gittell. “It pretends it has something deep and profound to say about America. Set on the weekend of the fictional Liberty Day Parade in Philadelphia, Blow Out revolves around a political assassination and cover-up, and concludes with a murder committed under fireworks and in front of an enormous American Flag. It’s the story of Jack Terry (John Travolta), a soundman for cheap B-movies, who accidentally records audio of a car crash that kills a presidential candidate and becomes determined to prove a conspiracy. There are echoes of the JFK assassination and Chappaquiddick, and Jack’s paranoid mind reflects the collective suspicions of an entire generation still processing the failures and tragedies of the ’60s nearly two decades later. But director Brian De Palma is not a political artist, and that’s for the best. He’s a filmmaker who is most fascinated with the art of cinema—or you could say, the act of looking.”
Read his review of the 1981 cult classic, screening at Alamo on July 3, at the link in our bio.
📸 courtesy of Alamo Drafthouse
Lavender Evolutions started in a Petworth group home where Madison Dalton and Leslie Tellería created gathering space for QTBIPOC friends and community members. After their lease ended in 2022, they decided to keep the community vibe alive. Two years in, the D.C. collective hosts everything from book clubs and dance parties to phone-banking and wheat-pasting events for local queer and trans people of color. With the continued goal to uplift, educate, and entertain its participants, Lavender Evolutions fosters joy for a community often under attack.
Read more about the collective’s origin story and what they’re up to today at the link in our bio.
📸 credits: Mariah Miranda, Mikayla Bryant
Councilmembers and Mayor Muriel Bowser have authored a total of four bills to address D.C.’s chronic absenteeism and truancy problem. The proposed bills aim to increase data transparency, expand valid excuses for absences, provide funding to address absenteeism, and designate priority zones for safety programs.
Chronic absenteeism reached alarming levels in the 2022-23 school year, with 43% of K-12 students affected. Significantly, 60% of high schoolers were considered chronically absent. “We know that there are a whole host of reasons for why students might miss class ranging from arriving late due to taking a sibling to the campus, lack of reliable public transit, … trouble in the home, or violence in the neighborhood,” Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen said at Wednesday’s hearing. “But here’s something I think we can all agree on. Students need to be in school.”
Tap the link in our bio to read more about the Council’s efforts to keep students in school.
Annie Baker’s debut film includes hallmarks from her plays: an interest in silence, and an oblique approach to character development. Janet Planet, a coming-of-age drama, revolves around Janet, a hippie acupuncturist, and her daughter Lacy, an awkward and precocious preteen who disarms adults with her persistent deadpan commentary. Throughout a languid, 1991 summer, Lacy observes Janet and the adults who drift into their lives with a mix of curiosity and gentle hostility.
Baker, who was Lacy’s age in 1991, includes such specific and tenderly observed details that critic Alan Zilberman suspects they are borrowed from her own formative years. Read Zilberman’s full review at the link in our bio.
📸 courtesy of A24
Following a mass shooting at Morgan State University last October, American University considered arming its 37 campus police officers, a move that has sparked opposition from students and faculty. Eight months later, AU has yet to finalize a decision. Research suggests that the presence of armed officers may increase the lethality of shootings, but supporters argue that armed officers are an essential part of an “integrated approach” for effectively responding to and deterring violent threats.
The tension at AU mirrors one felt on campuses across the nation as schools weigh student and faculty concerns about mass gun violence against the demands of an emergent movement, driven by college-age activists, to rein in police power and impunity.
Read more about what students, faculty, and experts are saying at the link in our bio.
📸 @darrow_m
This week, our theater critics review two local productions that explore complex sibling relationships. From twin sisters on a quest for vengeance to brothers wrestling with the emotional impact of their parents’ abandonment, both plays deliver unforgettable performances. Catch Constellation’s Is God Is at Source Theatre through July 14 and Topdog/Underdog at Round House Theatre through June 30.
Read the full reviews at the link in our bio.
📸 Topdog/Underdog: Credit: Margot Schulman Photography, Is God Is: Credit: DJ Corey Photography
Gay bars in D.C. have always been more than just places to grab a drink. They’ve been homes to a community, offering safety, solidarity, and a sense of belonging. Like all histories, these are complicated. Racism, sexism, and transphobia permeated many gay spaces, making these spots unsafe for certain members of the LGBTQIA community. Landlords in wealthy neighborhoods often refused to rent to gay bars, sending those spaces into out-of-the-way neighborhoods often deemed “unsafe.”
The landscape of queer nightlife in D.C. has changed over the years, but the impact of these historic bars remains.
WCP contributor Ella Feldman and Arts Editor Sarah Marloff sought to document a portion of the city’s shuttered gay bars and collect memories from the generations of queer, trans, and gay folks who’ve called the D.C. area home. Read our collection of oral histories at the link in our bio.
Photo credits:
1. Escandalo, a Latine gay bar in Dupont, 1996; Credit: Jose Gutierrez
2. The dance floor at Town; Courtesy of Ed Bailey
3. The DC Democratic Party’s cocktail event for Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale at the ClubHouse, circa late-’70s, early-’80s; Courtesy of Rainbow History Project
4. Inside the Eagle during its run on New York Ave. NW, circa 2013; Credit: Darrow Montgomery
5. Nob Hill, once the oldest and longest operating Black gay bars in the U.S.; courtesy of the Rainbow History Project
The more the public has learned about the investigations into John Falcicchio’s sexual harassment of women, the more inadequate those efforts appear. Wednesday’s Council hearing exposed failures by both the Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel and the independent investigators to thoroughly examine evidence. Among the most galling revelations: Falcicchio’s government-issued cellphone and laptop have been sitting in the offices of Bowser’s attorneys since he resigned and no one’s looked through them.
Now that more than a year has passed since his resignation, some of the best chances to seize crucial information from Falcicchio and other witnesses might have come and gone. For more on what councilmembers are saying about the investigation, head to the link in our bio.
📸 @darrow_m
Tenants in buildings managed by Scope Property Management are living in squalid and unsafe conditions, with fires, sewage leaks, rodent infestations, and neglect from management. Despite this, millions in housing subsidies continue to flow into these properties.
Over the past 10 months, City Paper contributor Suzie Amanuel has combed through public records and spoken to more than 60 current and former low-income tenants affected by these issues. For an in-depth look at their experiences, visit the link in our bio.
📸 @darrow_m
What happened to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival’s glory days when it spanned more than a week and delved into multiple themes each year? Due to limited funding, this year’s fest will return with just one theme and a smaller scope. Running from June 26 to July 1, the annual event will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the National Museum of the American Indian with chefs, storytellers, visual artists, athletes, musicians and more. From the all-women Indigenous skateboard crew—Imilla Skate—to Cherokee spoken-word performers and Tsimishian wood-carvers, the fest honors contemporary and traditional Indigenous cultural expression.
For more on the changes to this year’s festival and what’s in store, check out the link in our bio.
📸 Imilla Skate; courtesy of the Folklife Festival
