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Washington Post
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
The biggest moments in D.C. drag history
Why might Washington, a famously buttoned-up town where everyone cares about their reputation, have a particularly vibrant drag tradition? Mark Meinke, who spearheaded the creation of the Rainbow History Project, which collects, preserves and promotes Washington's LGBTQ+ history, has an answer. Also an expert on the area's drag legacy, Meinke says that because jobs in government or politics often attracted temporary residents, Washington became an environment where people felt free to experiment — including with drag — in a way they might not have back home. And the transience meant that 'people who would not normally have met each other did, and that proved a fertile ground for innovating,' he says. Drag is a rich field that invites questions about gender, sexuality, identity, political expression and more. Over the course of U.S. drag history, which has included the female impersonators of 19th-century minstrel shows and the popularity of Harlem drag balls in the 1920s and '30s, race and ethnicity have added fault lines. For a long time in Washington, 'African American performers usually performed with other African American performers, Caucasians with Caucasians, Hispanic with Hispanic, Asians with Asians,' says Meinke. 'And it wasn't until the '70s, when there was an out gay population, that a lot of crossing those lines occurred.' Local drag history will be in the spotlight — possibly amid effusions of feathers and rhinestones — when Blair Michaels hosts 'Drag Through the Decades' on June 8. The former Miss Capital Pride 1999 says the brunch event at Mr. Henry's will pay tribute to how the art form has flourished in the Washington area over the past 50 years. Local VIPs will perform, and the soundtrack will sample a half century's worth of tunes, from Diana Ross to Beyoncé. 'You have to go back to look forward. You have to learn from the past,' Michaels says. In honor of 'Drag Through the Decades' and WorldPride, here are a few milestones from local drag history. On April 13, 1888, The Washington Post reported on a police raid at a house on F Street NW where 13 Black men were dining in fashionable gowns and wigs 'decked out with ribbons in a style that was simply dazzling.' Resisting the police operation that night was a dinner attendee wearing 'a gorgeous dress of cream colored satin.' This was William Dorsey Swann, a formerly enslaved man who organized other cross-dressing events in this era, according to the research of journalist and scholar Channing Gerard Joseph. The Washington Critic referred to Swann as the 'queen' of the April 1888 'drag party.' In the 1920s and '30s, what is now called the 'Pansy Craze' (a reference to the historical use of the term 'pansy' for gay or effeminate men) gripped parts of the world, including the Washington-Baltimore area. Black female impersonators Alden Garrison and Louis Diggs became stars who received regular press coverage. In June 1935, the Washington Tribune reported that after being named Alexandria's 'queen' at an event at that town's Capitol Theatre, 'Mother' Diggs was so mobbed by fascinated spectators as to have trouble reaching a waiting car. In 1961, Liz Taylor, a.k.a. Alan Kress, founded a drag-focused social organization that ultimately became known (after a schism, a reboot and a moniker challenge from Hollywood's Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) as the Academy of Washington. The Academy organized award pageants and provided safe performance sites, mentoring and community. Affiliated with it were various drag 'houses' that also furnished mentorship in the Mid-Atlantic region. Before the institution closed in 2015, 'one thing that made D.C. special was having the Academy, because you could come here and learn how to do [drag] from people who knew what they were doing,' Meinke says, noting that the Academy welcomed people irrespective of race or sex. The Academy's HOOP Fund ('Helping Our Own People') ramped up during the AIDS crisis, tending to the sick, and more. 'If your family abandoned you and weren't going to bury you, HOOP would bury you,' Meinke says. Meinke says that Washington never had the legal prohibitions against public cross-dressing that Maryland and Virginia had. Still, the major hotels in the district banned drag until the impresario Ken White, an organizer of opportunities for Black drag artists, who was also known as Black Pearl, shattered precedent. White convinced the Washington Hilton to let him mount his awards gala there in February 1968. It was a formal-attire-only event that officially ran until 3 a.m. That landmark bash notwithstanding, local drag often flourished in bars and clubs. Because performers brought their own music and costumes and so were a cost-effective source of zing, 'for clubs in D.C., drag was a godsend,' Meinke says. On Halloween night 1986, a couple dozen none-too-sober pals bolted down a Dupont Circle street, kicking off what became Washington's annual High Heel Race. As recounted in a drag-history walking tour brochure that Meinke wrote, the inaugural contest careened from JR's Bar & Grill to nearby Annie's Paramount Steakhouse, where the racers dashed upstairs for a shot of schnapps before doubling back to JR's. These days, the race, with its costumes, stilettos and platforms, is a high-profile annual event. In 1996, Washington's first drag king competition took place at the Hung Jury bar. The winner, now known as Ken Vegas, went on to become a generative force for the local drag king scene, including the regular shows that ran at Chaos in the Dupont Circle area in the early 2000s. Historian Bonnie Morris, now at the University of California at Berkeley, attended the Chaos nights regularly when she lived in the area and remembers that 'the routines became very sophisticated,' tackling topics like gender roles in wartime. But playfulness also reigned. 'There would be an opener where all the kings would parade through and hand out lollipops.' The popularity of 'RuPaul's Drag Race' has elevated the form's visibility. But on-screen drag can be competition for in-person performers, observes Regina Jozet Adams, a local drag celebrity: 'Why bother going to the clubs when you can sit in your PJs, pop some popcorn and stream as much drag as you can tolerate?' Drag has also been in the political crosshairs of late. Still, says Dylan B. Dickherson White, Mx. Capital Pride 2024 — who will contribute an Elton John homage to 'Drag Through the Decades' — the art form is right for the current moment, offering catharsis to both performer and viewer. 'Acts that are completely exuberant and joyful — it's a defiance in itself,' they say. Mr. Henry's, 601 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. Date: June 8 (two seatings). Price: $25 admission includes unlimited mimosas and 'Blairtinis.'
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Movies with burlesque, Sandra Bernhard among Parkway's Pride events in June
The Parkway Theater is celebrating Pride throughout June with a series of events that includes live podcasts, book launches, stand-up comedy, and a trio of movies curated by Queenie von Curves that will be paired with burlesque/drag performances hosted by the curator. The Von Curves-curated movie series starts on June 10 with But I'm a Cheerleader (1999), where Megan (Natasha Lyonne) gets sent to a camp by her tightly-wound parents who suspect that she might be a lesbian. The film also stars Clea DuVall (Marjorie from Veep), Michelle Williams, and RuPaul. That's followed by the Robin Williams and Nathan Lane classic, The Birdcage (1996), a movie that is playing a surprising number of times throughout the summer at Twin Cities theaters. The series wraps up with the cult classic The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994), which stars Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, and Terence Stamp. That trio stars as two drag queens and a transgender woman who travel the Australian Outback en route to a casino where they'll perform a long run. But the trip there — aboard their bus, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert — is where the episodic movie takes place as they meet other travelers, are subjected to abuse, and find some friends. It's almost odd to call it a cult classic when it won Un Certain Regard at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival and an Oscar for Best Costume Design. As always, the Parkway offers a series pass for its monthly film programs. This one costs $36, gets you into all three movies, and lands you a bag of popcorn at each screening. The three-movie pass is available through Wednesday, June 10, at 9 a.m. Other Pride-themed events in June include a new live show from comedian Sandra Bernhard on June 12, a new performance from Jeff Hiller called "Jeff Hiller Is Basic" on June 28, a screening of Purple Rain on June 5, and the "So Gay For You Book Tour" with Kate Moenning and Leisha Hailey on June 7.
Gizmodo
23-05-2025
- Science
- Gizmodo
How Spacecraft Brake in Space Using Nothing but Thin Air
When you put your hand out the window of a moving car, you feel a force pushing against you called drag. This force opposes a moving vehicle, and it's part of the reason why your car naturally slows to a stop if you take your foot off the gas pedal. But drag doesn't just slow down cars. Aerospace engineers are working on using the drag force in space to develop more fuel-efficient spacecraft and missions, deorbit spacecraft without creating as much space junk, and even place probes in orbit around other planets. Space is not a complete vacuum—at least not all of it. Earth's atmosphere gets thinner with altitude, but it has enough air to impart a force of drag on orbiting spacecraft, even up to about 620 miles (1,000 kilometers). As an aerospace engineering professor, I study how drag affects the movement of spacecraft in orbit. Aerobraking, as the name suggests, is a type of maneuver that uses the thin air in space to apply a drag force in the direction opposite to a spacecraft's motion, much like braking in a car. Changing an orbit In space, aerobraking can change the orbit of a spacecraft while minimizing the use of its propulsion system and fuel. Spacecraft that orbit around Earth do so in two types of orbits: circular and elliptical. In a circular orbit, the spacecraft is always at the same distance from the center of the Earth. As a result, it's always moving at the same speed. An elliptical orbit is stretched, so the distance from Earth− and the speed the craft moves at− changes as the spacecraft travels along the orbit. The closest point in an elliptical orbit around Earth, where the satellite or spacecraft is moving fastest, is called the perigee. The farthest point, where it's moving slowest, is called the apogee. The general idea behind aerobraking is to start in a large circular orbit and maneuver the spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit, so that the lowest point in the orbit− the perigree− lies in the denser part of the upper atmosphere. For Earth, that's between about 62 and 310 miles (100 and 500 kilometers), with the choice depending on time required to complete the orbit change. As the spacecraft passes through this lowest point, the air exerts a drag force on it, which reduces the stretch of the orbit over time. This force pulls the craft toward a circular orbit smaller than the original orbit. The first maneuver to put the spacecraft in an elliptical orbit so that drag can take effect does require using a propulsion system and some fuel. But once it's in the elliptical orbit, drag from the atmosphere slows the craft, and it doesn't need to use much, if any, fuel. Aerobraking brings a craft from a large orbit to a small orbit and is not reversible− it can't increase the size of an orbit. Increasing the size of an orbit or raising the spacecraft to a higher orbit requires propulsion and fuel. Aerobraking uses A common case where spacecraft controllers use aerobraking is when changing the craft's orbit from a geostationary orbit− GEO− to a low Earth orbit, LEO. A GEO orbit is a circular orbit with an altitude of roughly 22,236 miles (35,786 km). In GEO, the spacecraft makes one orbit around Earth in 24 hours, so the spacecraft always stays above the same point on Earth's surface. Before aerobraking, the spacecraft's onboard propulsion system thrusts in the opposite direction of the GEO orbit's motion. This thrust puts it into an elliptical orbit. The craft passes through the atmosphere multiple times, which eventually circularizes the orbit. Once it makes it to LEO, the spacecraft may need to use a little bit of fuel to propel itself up into its target orbit. Usually, the lowest point of the original elliptical orbit is lower than the final target circular orbit. This process is conceptually similar to how the U.S. Space Force's X-37B used aerobraking in early 2025. The U.S. Space Force reported that its unmanned spaceplane, X-37B, used aerobraking. This test demonstrated the craft's agility and maneuverability. Another application for aerobraking is to make a spacecraft deorbit− or reenter the atmosphere− after it has stopped working. This way, the company or agency can dispose of the spacecraft and avoid creating space junk, since it will burn up in the lower atmosphere. Aerobraking for interplanetary missions A few Mars missions, including the Mars reconnaissance orbiter and the Mars Odyssey orbiter, have used aerobraking to reach their target orbits around the red planet. For interplanetary missions like these, scientists use aerobraking in conjunction with the craft's onboard propulsion system. When a spacecraft arrives at Mars, it does so in a hyperbolic orbit. Unlike a circular or an elliptical orbit, the spacecraft's path in hyperbolic orbit won't keep it orbiting around Mars. Instead, it would fly through and depart Mars− unless it uses thrust from its propulsion system to get 'captured' into a closed elliptical orbit. As the spacecraft arrives at Mars, the onboard propulsion system fires to provide the force necessary to capture the spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit around Mars. Once captured, scientists use aerobraking over several orbital passes through the atmosphere to achieve the final orbit, generally a circular one. Aerobraking maneuvers can result in significant fuel savings. As humans get closer to landing on the surface of the red planet, the fuel savings enabled by aerobraking could save mass and allow each spacecraft headed to Mars to take more supplies. In the grand arc of space exploration, aerobraking is not just a maneuver. It has a crucial role to play in the future of space operations and planetary missions and colonization. Piyush Mehta, Associate Professor of Space Systems, West Virginia University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
CBS News
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Oaklash Festivals returns to Oakland to celebrate LGBTQ community
The Oaklash Festival was back in Oakland this weekend and it's a three-day celebration of drag and the LGBTQ community. Organizers said they have managed to avoid the struggles some other LGBTQ organizations are experiencing because of the elimination of government grants. Sunday was their Oaklash Kick Back event at Panther Skate Plaza. Executive Director Mama Celeste says it's a culmination of months of work, but every second was worth it. "We're just here having a good time, out in the sun, just getting together and being queer and living our dream," Celeste said. Celeste moved to the Bay Area in 2015 and, for the first time in their life, felt at ease. "I love this community and I think everything that I do is an effort to give back to that feeling that I got of feeling welcomed and feeling like I belonged," Celeste said. Queer spaces like this continue to be needed. Celeste acknowledges that the Trump administration's policies and actions have rolled back protections and reinforced discrimination against the LGBTQ community. But they say it's not the first time this has happened to their community. "Queer and trans people have always been the subjects of violence in this country and what we're going through now is no different than what generations have had to experience," explained Celeste. Celeste says they've learned from the generations that came before them, and they continue to organize and fight back. But they're trying to do it in a sustainable way. Instead of relying on corporate sponsors and government grants, many of which have been eliminated, they're relying on the community that continues to show up year after year. They have fundraisers and receive donations at festival events. "We really just rely on the people who come to this event wanting to see it year and year and every $20 that people give at the door makes this possible and helps us keep this going and that's what we need to be doing right now, surviving," Celeste said. There were also resources at the event, like health vendors to help people get gender affirming care and mental health care. Oaklash is no longer focused on trying to scale up their non-profit, but instead maintaining what they have already built. Brandy Hyatt has been attending the event for years and she's grateful for spaces like this one. "It solidifies what's going on a national level is not what's happening locally," said Hyatt regarding seeing so many people come out to support the event. "People care about each other in the community. It doesn't matter about who you love, or the color of your skin, your religion, any of those things." The non-profit tries to be welcoming to everyone. Ryana Wilkin is deaf and she is working with Oaklash to try and connect that community with more LGBTQ resources. "Deaf people need to come on, don't be shy," Wilkin said while signing. "Come out now." Celeste said no matter what happens politically, Oaklash will keep fighting for the LGBTQ community. "Creating these safe spaces and giving people the opportunity to feel liberated, even for a moment, is the most important thing that we can do and it's also the only thing we can do," Celeste said. While the festival is Oaklash's biggest event, they do put on other drag and queer performances throughout the year.
The Guardian
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Philadelphia drag troupe offers ‘10,000lbs of glitter' for return of beloved Beardmobile
Philadelphia's LGBTQ+ community is rallying around an unusual cause: the search for the missing Beardmobile, described as a 'big, gay mobile performance unit, glitterfully outfitted for socially distanced performances and political actions'. The Beardmobile, a 14,000lb, custom-built performance truck famously decked out with a stage, sound system and pink eyelashes, was stolen from the parking lot of the Allens Lane Art Center in Mount Airy last month, Axios Philadelphia reported. The disappearance of the beloved vehicle, a centerpiece of Philly Pride parades and LGBTQ+ events, has left the city's drag troupe, the Bearded Ladies Cabaret, devastated but determined to track it down. 'My hope is we do find her,' said John Jarboe, the troupe's artistic founder, in an interview with Axios. 'It's got a whole lot of love and a lot of history.' The Bearded Ladies Cabaret, described as a 'queer arts organization that sits on your lap and sings you a story' on its website, only discovered that the vehicle was stolen about a week after it happened, when members went to check on the Beardmobile ahead of upcoming performances. According to Jarboe, police believe the perpetrator or perpetrators disabled a motion-sensor camera before taking off with the truck. In response, the Bearded Ladies have plastered the city with missing posters describing the vehicle as a 'box truck in drag'. But while the loss might be devastating, the troupe is keeping its trademark humor intact. They're offering a reward of '10,000lbs of glitter' for the Beardmobile's return. Despite the heartbreak, the group has no plans to replace the truck. 'I'm still in the grieving process,' Jarboe told Axios. The Beardmobile, a 2009 Isuzu truck turned rolling stage, had become more than a vehicle. It served as a symbol of LGBTQ+ visibility, protest and joy in Philadelphia. Jarboe described it as an emblem of the community's 'loud and proud' resistance to intolerance and hate. The Bearded Ladies say they won't press charges against whoever stole the truck.
