I got a brief respite in August from the extreme heat of our New Orleans summer when I made a trip across the pond to Merrie Olde England. It was an amazing experience filled with adventure, parades, festivals, hurricanes, and a lot of gaiety! I hope you enjoy my “Tale of Two Gay Cities” except in this story, it will be Brighton and London, not Paris and … [Read more...] about Ambush Across the Pond, Part 1
Articles
Trodding the Boards October 31, 2023
I Wrote a Song at The AllWays Lounge I Wrote A Song, Trey Ming’s 2018 musical, recently returned to The AllWays Lounge. Based on countless true stories, it’s just your average boy-meets-girl, boy-gets-married, boy-looks-at-gay-porn-becomes-a-Baptist-preacher-sneaks-off-to-bathhouses-gets-outed-in-disgrace-tries-a-conversion-camp-comes-out-anyway story. Set to music. I had … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards October 31, 2023
Under the Gaydar (November 2023 Event Calendar)
One of the major things I give thanks for every year is living in a city that has so many fun things happening. November has so many wonderful things to see and do as a primer for the holiday season. Here are just some of the hot happenings in November to put on your “Gaydar.” If you want your event listed, send me an email at ledgemgp@gmail.com. Weekly … [Read more...] about Under the Gaydar (November 2023 Event Calendar)
LOOPED Directed by Janet Shea Opens at Westwego Cultural Center on Thursday, November 9, 2023
LOOPED Directed by Janet Shea Opens at Westwego Cultural Center on Thursday, November 9, 2023 Featuring Big Easy Award Winner Leslie Castay as Tallulah Bankhead "I'm the foe of moderation, the champion of excess."-Tallulah Bankhead "Only good girls keep diaries. Bad girls don't have time."-Tallulah Bankhead "Nobody can be exactly like me. Sometimes even I have … [Read more...] about LOOPED Directed by Janet Shea Opens at Westwego Cultural Center on Thursday, November 9, 2023
Access Health Louisiana Celebrates LGBTQ+ History Month
October is LGBTQ+ History Month and to celebrate, we at Access Health Louisiana want to highlight some of the history of LGBTQ+ healthcare in the United States. The relationship between the LGBTQ+ community and the healthcare system has been a contentious one. In the 19th century, the terms homosexual and homosexuality began to appear as scientists began to research same-sex … [Read more...] about Access Health Louisiana Celebrates LGBTQ+ History Month
Trodding the Boards October 17, 2023
Varla Jean Merman's Stand By Your Drag at Cafe Istanbul In July, I went to a Comedy Festival at the New Orleans Arena. Other than Tiffany Haddish, who was very funny, I laughed more at Varla Jean Merman's Stand By Your Drag than all the other comics combined. Why hasn’t Ms. Merman yet gotten her own sitcom? Stand By Your Drag, Varla’s (she really needs only one name) … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards October 17, 2023
A Brief History of New Orleans Bar Rags
Gay journalism traces its roots to the 1960s and originally manifested itself in the form of bar bulletins and organizational newsletters. In those pre-internet, pre-Stonewall, highly homophobic years, the notion of a gay media was an alien concept because gay communities, if we can even call them that (perhaps gay subcultures is a better description) were essentially … [Read more...] about A Brief History of New Orleans Bar Rags
Halloween New Orleans (HNO) Celebrates 40 Years
The spooky season is upon us and you know what that means – Halloween New Orleans is back for its 40th year. The largest gay Halloween event of its kind makes a huge return with a sly reference to the Roman numeral for 40 as HNO’s theme for this year is XL. Ticketholders for the always highly anticipated extravaganza can expect to see bigger events than ever! Halloween New … [Read more...] about Halloween New Orleans (HNO) Celebrates 40 Years
Bartender Spotlight – October 2023
Southern Decadence is always a crazy time in NOLA and this year brought bigger crowds than ever before. Bars were packed with people celebrating the largest gay holiday in the city. But through the chaos and my drunken revelry, I discovered my Bartender-of-the-Month for October. Brian-Eric Lugo, or Pony as he is affectionately known, works at the … [Read more...] about Bartender Spotlight – October 2023
Trodding the Boards October 3, 2023
Carrie: Blood in the Water at the Drifter Hotel through October 7 Aqua Mob’s Water Ballerinas and Ballerinos may not be quite ready yet for the Olympics, but do any of those athletes who “go for the gold” perform their synchronized swimming routines wearing high-heeled shoes as Daisy Konfused does in Carrie: Blood in the Water? I think not. I’ve been attending Aqua Mob’s … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards October 3, 2023