(Photo courtesy Simbu 123/Flickr/Wikicommons Images, cropped for space)
Looking for gay things to do in New York? Whether you’re looking for drag shows, parties talks & lectures, film screenings, theater, or art exhibits, Metrosource has got you covered. Our complete list of LGBT things to do is just a click away, but here are some upcoming queer events.
This week: An all-Madonna dance party, a gay comicon, the annual East Village Queer Cinema Festival and … a Butt-Con? Only in New York, and all on our list!
Murray Hill Paints a Scarf!
Friday, August 16
Join Mr. Showbiz himself, Murray Hill, at the Museum of Arts and Design for a tongue-firmly-in-cheek tour of Vera Paints a Scarf: The Art and Design of Vera Neumann. Hailed in the New York Times as the “reigning patriarch of downtown performance,” Murray Hill is a comedian, host, and a beloved New York legend who has performed around the world. For this intimate, after-hours tour of Vera, Murray will share his love of the designer’s exuberant textiles (and napkin-folding chops) while bringing his best ring-a-ding-ding to MAD!
Madonna Bar NYC
Friday, August 16
Hudson Terrace at 621 W 46th Street plays host to a Madonna birthday bash! Dance to non-stop Madge music all night long from the Material Girl ’80s to Madame X.
Arch
August 7 – September 1
Arch is a month-long exhibition celebrating the structures of support that queer collectives provide to the greater LGBTQ community. Each week a different artist or collective displays their unique creations through a gallery “takeover” with projects that range in style from Tripod Sweep, an interactive experience during which artist Savannah Knoop approaches spectators with a Jiu Jitsu-inspired movement (to explore the many qualities of human reaction), to Sin Sol / No Sun, an augmented reality game in which players get an inside look on the devastating impact of climate change on trans, disabled and immigrant communities. Visit the gallery every week in August for surprising new experiences.
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Open Flame at Union Hall
Friday, August 16
Peter Valenti, Sam Campbell, and Jess Henderson host Open Flame at Union Hall. It’s the hot queer happening where a comedy show meets an LGBTQ+ social. They’ll join New York’s funniest queer comedians devoted to entertaining you and your dearest loved ones in the name of pride, ok!?!?! The show features special guests Kate Sisk, Simone Leitner, Jes Tom and Andrés Govea.
Geeks OUT Presents: Flame Con Five
Saturday, August 17 and Sunday, August 18
If your endgame is to nerd out, then Flame Con is your home planet. The world’s largest queer comic convention returns to the Times Square Hotel for its fifth year, and it’s shaping up to be super. Be sure to bring your best geek-themed cosplay look, because also returning is Fire Ball – the official Flame Con after-party, which will featuring performances, including drag, burlesque, boylesque and much more.
Funny Hunnyz: Panty Party
Saturday, August 17
Funny Hunnyz turns 2 Years Old at Madame X! It’s Our Birthday! Our Brand is a terrible two! Causing problems all around the city and too hype to launch our “Pissing on the Patriarchy” Panties! If our Panty Launch and Birthday weren’t enough to celebrate, It’s our founder’s birthday, too! Funny Hunnyz was just an idea for our CEO, Vanetta Schoefield to Celebrate her birthday! She wanted to do a show with her friends, who were Hilarious Hotties, and decided to name it Funny Hunnyz!
2019 East Village Queer Film Festival
Monday, August 19 – Saturday, August 24
The Wild Project presents its annual East Village Queer Film Festival. The East Village Queer Film Festival (EVQ) celebrates Queer film in all its glorious diversity. We welcome filmmakers who entertain, explore and promote queer-themed issues. This year’s EVQ will showcase a variety of film and music video genres. The festival fosters a highly inclusive environment for all artists and seeks to build community through queer cinema and entertainment.
Our official selections for this year include award winning directors, producers and actors who have guest starred on major network TV shows highlighted by Laura Gomez, star of Netflix’s hit series Orange is the New Black.
All EVQ screenings occur at Wild Project, 195 E. 3rd St. NYC, between Ave. A & Ave. B in the East Village. Most of the EVQ screenings are at 7 PM and run for about 60 minutes.
Butt-Con: A ‘Holey’ Experience for the Like-Behinded
Wednesday, August 21
Got a butt? You should be at Butt-Con at The Venue. From porn stars and doctors to twerkers, belfie photo stations and butt facials, Butt-Con, presented by TUSHY — the millennial brand on a mission to make bidets mainstream in America — will be an immersive, interactive convention where like-behinded individuals gather to educate, gyrate and celebrate their greatest ass-et.
Join us on August 21 for captivating talks, uncommon experiences, classes and exhibits all about the derriere, featuring 10x NY Times best-selling author and gut health expert Dr. Mark Hyman, porn star with an award-winning a–hole Asa Akira, Lindsey “The Cake Sitter” Dye, rectal surgeon Dr. Evan Goldstein, TUSHY founder Miki Agrawal, and more.
Celebration: Happy Birthday, Marsha!
Thursday August 22
Beaux-Arts Court and Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium celebrate the life and legacy of activist Marsha P. Johnson with screenings of Happy Birthday, Marsha! (Sasha Wortzel and Tourmaline, 2018, 14 min.) and Pay It No Mind: The Life and Times of Marsha P. Johnson (Michael Kasino, 2012, 54 min.). Afterward, join us for a champagne toast and cake to commemorate her 73rd birthday, as well as music by Roze Royze, a Brooklyn DJ who throws the monthly queer hip-hop party SET IT OFF. Thirty percent of proceeds from this event benefit the new Marsha P. Johnson Institute.
Never A Boy
Thursday, August 22
Chloe Koser invites you into her life as a trans comedian in a one-woman show at UCBN Theatre that is equal parts emotionally raw and incredibly lewd. There’s boners, a whale, tampons, semen and Chloe crying at least once in every performance. CONTENT WARNING: Gender Dysphoria, Bottom Dysphoria, Fertility Dysphoria, Suicidal Ideation.
Implicit Tensions: Mapplethorpe Now
Through January 5, 2020
Implicit Tensions: Mapplethorpe Now will show the groundbreaking work of gay photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. The prolific artist captured the images of famous folks like his friend Patti Smith, as well as striking self-portraits and images of the S&M scene that drew controversy during Mapplethorpe’s lifetime. This exhibition will also showcase artists who succeeded Robert Mapplethorpe, portraying self and/or the body with similar frankness and beauty. These artists will include Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Lyle Ashton Harris, Glenn Ligon, Catherine Opie, and Paul Mpagi Sepuya. This exhibition runs January 25-July 24, 2019, closes briefly, and reopens July 24, 2019-January 5, 2020 at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
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Barry Manilow Returns to Broadway
Friday, July 26 – August 17
Barry Manilow returns to Broadway this summer for an exclusive limited engagement at the Nederlander’s Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Live Nation, The Araca Group and EBG (Entertainment Benefits Group), are pleased to announce that Grammy, Tony and Emmy Award winning singer-songwriter, arranger, producer and musician BARRY MANILOW will take the stage on July 26 through August 17 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre (205 West 46th Street).
Manilow promises an evening of nonstop Top 40 Hits and surprises from his extensive catalog of music ranging from pop, to Broadway, jazz and adult contemporary.
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Spilling Over: Painting Color in the 1960s
Ongoing through September 22
The notion of color is tied to countless constructs, from race to gender to politics. Spilling Over: Painting Color in the 1960s is an exhibition which draws from The Whitney’s existing collection and features an array of artists who also served as activists during the Civil Rights and Women’s Rights movements. Their work reveals just how powerful these varying tones can be. A mostly abstract presentation invites viewers to draw their own conclusions regarding perception and presence, shades and shapes.
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Oscar at the Crown
Ongoing
It’s a musical. It’s a queer dance party. It’s a show with original music that’s immersive — meaning you get to take part as well. Oscar at the Crown posits that the apocalypse has come and gone, and here we all are in a bunker where all that’s survived is reality TV and a decidedly unorthodox master of ceremonies — the ever youthful and irreverent Oscar Wilde. Get your gear and glitter on. It’s time for a Wilde ride at 3 Dollar Bill
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Camp: Notes on Fashion
Ongoing through September 8
The Costume Institute’s spring 2019 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art explores the origins of the camp aesthetic, and how it has evolved from a place of marginality to become an important influence on mainstream culture. Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay “Notes on ‘Camp’” provides the framework for the exhibition, which will examine how fashion designers have used their métier as a vehicle to engage with camp in a myriad of compelling, humorous, and sometimes incongruous ways.
Camp is defined as being “deliberately exaggerated and theatrical in style, typically for humorous effect.” It’s long been a term applied to a number of LGBTQ-related aesthetics — on stage, on screen, and off. This year, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is celebrating and exploring the influence of camp on fashion with the exhibition Camp: Notes on Fashion.
If that alone were not enough to tempt you, it was also the theme of the May 6 Met Gala, co-chaired by fashion forces Lady Gaga, Alessandro Michele, Harry Styles, Serena Williams and Anna Wintour. According to the Met, “The Costume Institute’s spring 2019 exhibition will explore the origins of the camp aesthetic and how it has evolved from a place of marginality to become an important influence on mainstream culture.”
Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay Notes on ‘Camp’ provides a framework for the exhibition, which examines how fashion designers have used their métier as a vehicle to engage with camp in a myriad of compelling, humorous and sometimes incongruous ways.” Even if you can’t score a ticket to the gala, you’ll be able to take in the fabulous fashions on display starting May 9.
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(Superman cosplay photo courtesy Simbu 123/Flickr/Wikicommons Images. Cropped for size. Original license here.)
Last modified: August 16, 2019
