A & E

5 THINGS TO KNOW

“Cake Boy” heading to the Great British Bake Off.

August 22, 2017 compassq Comments Off on “Cake Boy” heading to the Great British Bake Off.

The Bake Off’s youngest baker – known as ‘Cake Boy’ – is aiming the win the TV title but he wasn’t even the best in his class after losing his school’s LGBT competition. Liam Charles, 19, was runner up in the inaugural Great Rainbow Bake Off at Stoke Newington School in north London in 2015. Students were asked to create a baked treat celebrating Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender history month but Liam’s wasn’t considered the best.  

A & E

La Cage aux Folles – a look back.

August 22, 2017 compassq Comments Off on La Cage aux Folles – a look back.

Digging into the archives, we unearth the original articles printed in the Playbills of yesteryear. The original Broadway production of Jerry Herman’s Tony Award-winning musical La Cage aux Folles opened on Broadway August 21, 1983. The production would go on to win six 1984 Tony Awards, including Best Score (Herman), Best Book (Harvey Fierstein), Best Direction (Laurents), and Best Musical. In the following interview, George Hearn and Gene Barry, who starred in the central roles of Albin (Zsa Zsa) and Georges—a middle-aged gay couple whose love story was the heart of this unconventional new musical—discuss the decision to take on the roles in an era when playing gay characters on stage was still a risky move.

A & E

Rupert Everett and life as a gay man in the 80s.

August 22, 2017 compassq Comments Off on Rupert Everett and life as a gay man in the 80s.

British actor Rupert Everett recounted the “basic terror” of the HIV/AIDS crisis as a gay man in London during the ’80s in an interview with The Guardian. Everett, known for his roles in “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children,” says he became free in his sexuality around the same time HIV/AIDS became prominent.

A & E

Trevor, aiming for Broadway, gets first look in Illinois.

August 21, 2017 compassq Comments Off on Trevor, aiming for Broadway, gets first look in Illinois.

Trevor, a musical based on the Oscar-winning 1994 short film of the same name, is now aiming for Broadway. Produced in association with U Rock Theatricals, the world premiere musical is currently playing a limited engagement at the Writers Theatre in Glencoe, Illinois.

5 THINGS TO KNOW

Madonna sued in Russia for being offensive.

August 20, 2017 compassq Comments Off on Madonna sued in Russia for being offensive.

Some Russian activists have sued Madonna for millions of dollars, claiming they were offended by her support for gay rights during a recent concert in St. Petersburg. Anti-gay sentiment is strong in Russia. In St. Petersburg, a law passed in February makes it illegal to depict homosexuality in a positive way to minors, and the author of that law has pointed to the presence of children as young as 12 at Madonna’s concert on Aug. 9.

ENTERTAINMENT

Richard Simmons holding National Enquirer accountable.

August 20, 2017 compassq Comments Off on Richard Simmons holding National Enquirer accountable.

Richard Simmons says he is not transgender and gives a pointed list of reasons why in an ongoing explosive lawsuit with a magazine company who printed otherwise. The fitness guru, 68, who has been living as a recluse for years, is in the middle of a contentious legal battle with National Enquirer magazine’s parent company- American Media. Simmons is suing the company for defamation after they reported he was transitioning into a woman.  

5 THINGS TO KNOW

Internet dads are the first LGBT family to rep a high-fashion clothing line.

August 20, 2017 compassq Comments Off on Internet dads are the first LGBT family to rep a high-fashion clothing line.

You may find many parents playing in the park or taking a dunk in the pool with their kids. But one Atlanta couple has a slightly different agenda. They’re modeling with their little ones, and they’ve just made history as the first black LGBT family to represent a high-fashion European clothing line. Kordale Lewis and Kaleb Anthony first entered the spotlight in 2014 when they posted a photo on Instagram of themselves and their daughters getting ready for school. The pic went viral, garnering more than 50,000 likes.