After 49 years, the City of New Orleans is finally recognizing the 32 victims of the Up Stairs Lounge arson. On Thursday, June 23, the City Council will hear a presentation about the fire and pass a resolution acknowledging and honoring the victims. If your schedule allows, please be at the City Council chamber on Thursday at 10:00am. In 1973, the tragedy was ignored by … Continue Reading Article about City of New Orleans will recognize the 32 victims of the Up Stairs Lounge arson
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Trodding the Boards June 14, 2022
By Brian Sands
As You Like It at Tulane’s Lupin Theater through June 25 If you’ve never seen As You Like It before, the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival’s current production (running thru June 25 at Tulane's Lupin Theater) will serve as a good introduction to this pastoral comedy by the Bard. Directors Jon Greene & Torey Hayward have served up a straightforward rendering of it that … Continue Reading Article about Trodding the Boards June 14, 2022

Mamou Louisiana to host first-ever PRIDE Festival on June 17 & 18
The Hotel Cazan is delighted to announce that it will host Mamou, Louisiana’s first-ever PRIDE festival on June 17 & 18. The event will kick off with a media-only mixer from 3:30--5:30 at Cazan’s inside the hotel where attendees will have the opportunity to meet with and interview festival participants, including: Players and coaches from Bayou Storm Surge, the women’s … Continue Reading Article about Mamou Louisiana to host first-ever PRIDE Festival on June 17 & 18

The Pride Conundrum
By Frank Perez
How a person feels about Pride month says a lot about that person. I’m not talking about the people that hate it. The religious fascists will always be with us. I’m talking about members of the queer community. Theoretically, it’s fair to say we all like the idea of having a Pride month. But why? Maybe you’ve just come out of the closet and feel … Continue Reading Article about The Pride Conundrum

Drag Queen Profiles
Ambush Magazine runs regular column called Drag Queen Profiles. The column appears monthly. Active drag queens currently performing in the Gulf South are welcome to submit profiles. To be featured, please contact Frank Perez at frankearlperez@gmail.com. Submissions will include a brief questionnaire and a picture (along with photo credit). … Continue Reading Article about Drag Queen Profiles

Obituary: Wayne Self
Playwright and composer Wayne Self died of colon cancer on June 2. He was best known for his work, Upstairs: A Musical Eulogy, which told the story of the 1973 fire at the UpStairs Lounge. Wayne grew up in a remote, rural community near Black Lake in Natchitoches Parish. An intelligent, artistic child, Wayne had limited educational opportunities near his home until a … Continue Reading Article about Obituary: Wayne Self

Trodding the Boards May 31, 2022
By Brian Sands
Porcupine at Bywater Wonderland through June 5 Michael Merino is a brave playwright. Inspired by an article in Cabinet Magazine, Merino wrote Porcupine in 2009 to commemorate the centenary of psychoanalysis’ arrival in America, via Sigmund Freud’s lectures at Clark University in Massachusetts. Author George Prochnick’s article explained why Freud had a bronze porcupine on … Continue Reading Article about Trodding the Boards May 31, 2022

Under the Gaydar (June 2022 Event Calendar)
By Tony Leggio
It’s summertime in New Orleans, so get ready for some hot days and even hotter nights as there are so many things going on this Pride month. Here are just some of the hot happenings in June to put on your “Gaydar.” If you want your event listed, send me an email at ledgemgp@gmail.com. Weekly Events Monday: * NOAGE New Orleans Walking Group; Audubon Park; … Continue Reading Article about Under the Gaydar (June 2022 Event Calendar)