This article is adapted from a feature originally published in the San Antonio Current. Additional reporting by James Courtney. The San Antonio Book Festival, put on by the San Antonio Public Library Foundation and a host of sponsors, is now in its sixth year. The one-day literary onslaught, scheduled this year on April 7, boasts…
Allies United: Thank You for Being a Friend
Updated October 12, 2017. In our efforts to champion each aspect of the ever-broadening LGBTQIA* umbrella, we’ve trained our focus on the letter “A.” Since the LGBTQIA* acronym has expanded and shifted over decades (and was not created by one sole entity), it’s important to note that different letters mean different things to different people:…
‘Drag Race’ Stars to Share the Fiesta Texas Stage with Local Queens at Out in the Park
Based on the success of the first two years of Out in the Park, nightlife empresario Rey Lopez has struck a local chord with his wild and wonderful combination of thrill rides and drag queens. Serving up something in the vein of Orlando’s Gay Days at Walt Disney World (which annually attracts an estimated 50,000…
Dixie Longate Brings Her Comic Tupperware Party to Tobin Stage
Since her early days entertaining “straight Republican white women” in Orange County living rooms, wayward Southern belle Dixie Longate—an over-the-top drag character created by writer-actor Kris Andersson—has earned comparisons to Dame Edna and emerged as an unlikely ambassador for Orlando-based Tupperware Brands Corp. Putting an unapologetically trashy spin on the Tupperware-party format, Andersson’s signature show…
Chameleonic Queen Nina Bo’Nina Brown Brings Her Wild Drag Stylings to Heat
Not that it hasn’t always been there in some way, shape or form, but exaggerated, outlandish costumes and makeup concepts have flourished in recent seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race — exemplified by the likes of deranged living doll Trixie Mattel (season seven), “7-foot-tall, live-action anime character” Kim Chi (season eight) and Atlanta-based transformation specialist Nina…
Villain or Vixen? Sin City Drag Star Kimora Blac Brings Her Sexy Show to Heat
Even though her claws didn’t entirely come out on RuPaul’s Drag Race, Las Vegas showgirl Kimora Blac still got pegged as one of the villains of season nine — a designation some attribute to a reality TV pitfall tellingly dubbed the “villain edit.” Sure, Blac bitched about challenges involving sewing . . . and bedazzling…
Overtime Theater Presents World Premiere of ‘The Last Days of Oscar Wilde’
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. From its early days in the Blue Star Arts Complex to its stint in the shadow of the Pearl, The Overtime Theater has consistently captured our attention with truly unusual (even absurd) programming that’s taken shape in nearly 100 original works since its inception back in 2007. Having…
Amy Stone Sheds Light on the Bizarre History of Cornyation
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. For many San Antonians, Fiesta is simply something that “happens” each year — a sprawling, expensive, messy celebration that lures tourists into downtown, dumps confetti all over the place and inspires folks to get dolled up in candy-colored garb to gawk at bedazzled “royalty” passing by on parade…
Get Ready to Rumble with the LGBT Smackdown ‘Wrestle Empire’
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. Possibly the most unusual aspect of San Antonio’s annual Pride Bigger Than Texas Parade and Festival (taking place July 1 in Crockett Park), Pride Championship Wrestling (PCW) bills itself as “the first LGBT wrestling organization in San Antonio and the United States.” Presented in partnership with The Royal,…
Out in the Park Mixes Drag Queens and Roller Coasters with Fabulous Results
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. Not unlike Orlando’s Gay Days at Walt Disney World — which annually attracts an estimated 50,000 color-coordinated attendees — Rey Lopez’s slightly smaller (he’s hoping for 5,000) fall signature Out in the Park functions as an over-the-top LGBT theme-park takeover. An instant hit built around the winning combination…