Love her, hate her, or fear her, Bianca Del Rio has skyrocketed to fame and established herself as a preeminent figure of drag and stand-up comedy in the United States and across the world. Early Career Though most people know her as the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season Six, Bianca Del Rio is a more familiar character to many in New Orleans, where her drag career … [Read more...] about From New Orleans with Hate, Bianca Del Rio on Her Career
Arts & Culture
Champion Terence Blanchard
Google “Movies about boxers” and dozens of titles come up. Google “Operas about boxers” and one title appears. Google “Movies about gay boxers” and there are still a half-dozen titles. Google “Operas about gay boxers” and the same title that popped up before reappears. That opera is Champion by New Orleans native and multiple Grammy Award winner Terence Blanchard which New … [Read more...] about Champion Terence Blanchard
Under The Gaydar
Ambush on the Road: Discovering Natchez I cannot believe that I have lived in the South all my life and never been to Natchez, Mississippi. It was one of the places on my bucket list and now that I have been there, I plan on traveling there much more. Less than three hours form NOLA, this picturesque city on the bluff just celebrated its tricentennial last year. I spent a … [Read more...] about Under The Gaydar
Cityscapes of New Orleans
Cityscapes of New Orleans. Richard Campanella. LSU Press, 2017. ISBN: 978-0-8071-6833-2. 400 pages. Local Tulane Professor Richard Campanella’s latest offering is especially appropriate given the city of New Orleans is celebrating its 300th birthday. Cityscapes of New Orleans is a collection of 77 previous published articles on a variety of topics ranging from vice … [Read more...] about Cityscapes of New Orleans
Under the Gaydar
Party Down This was another Mardi Gras for the memory book. From the streets to the ballrooms, the city came alive with beads, boas and sequins. It was a gay dream come true. The week prior to Mardi Gras I spent either working or getting ready for the Krewe of Armeinius’ ball on Saturday night. Many reasons made this year special starting with the fact that it was moved … [Read more...] about Under the Gaydar
20 Years of HIV/AIDS Headlines
The LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana recently hosted a panel discussion on the history of HIV / AIDS in New Orleans. In preparation for the event, Archives Project intern Philip Ross, a student at Tulane University, compiled the following bibliography of early newspaper coverage of the crisis in New Orleans. Mulvhill, Kathleen A. “AIDS: Mystery Disorder” The … [Read more...] about 20 Years of HIV/AIDS Headlines
The Inheritance of Shame by Peter Gajdics.
The Inheritance of Shame. Peter Gajdics. Brown Paper Press, 2017. ISBN: 978-1-941932-08-7. 355 pages. $17.99. Unfortunately, a book about surviving conversion therapy is still necessary. Author Peter Gajdics spent six years in a bizarre form of conversion therapy that attempted to “cure” him of his homosexuality. Kept with other patients in a cult-like home in British … [Read more...] about The Inheritance of Shame by Peter Gajdics.
Trodding the Boards
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra through May 19 I had missed the first Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) Holiday Spectacular featuring the 610 Stompers in 2015 and resolved to see last year’s edition which turned out to be fabulous. Could they top themselves this year? Indeed they did. Whereas last year’s Spectacular had a “round the world” theme and included a diverse … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards
Under the Gaydar
Party Down December is such a fabulous month filled with lots of holiday cheer, parties and there is always something exciting going on here. Most of my last two weeks were spent out of town in Chicago and Scottsdale which you will read about in the other articles, but I did manage to have a little fun in NOLA so let’s get this party started. I normally hit up all the tree … [Read more...] about Under the Gaydar
Upstairs Inferno is Now Available on DVD and Blu- Ray
In 2013, during the 40th Anniversary of the deadly Up Stairs Lounge Arson (one of the most significant, yet often overlooked events in LGBT history), Camina Entertainment publicly announced the production of Upstairs Inferno, a comprehensive and compassionate documentary recounting (what was) the “Largest Gay Mass Murder in U.S. History”. Today, Camina Entertainment proudly … [Read more...] about Upstairs Inferno is Now Available on DVD and Blu- Ray
