June is Pride month, a time to celebrate the accomplishments and obstacles faced by lesbians, gay men and bisexuals as well as transgender, queer and questioning people.
It’s a big tent by design, and Twin Cities Pride has traditionally drawn a large and diverse crowd that includes a substantial number of straight families, supporters and allies.
Here are five ways to celebrate Pride in the coming weeks.
‘Pee-wee as Himself’
This image released by HBO Max shows Paul Reubens in a scene from the documentary “Pee-Wee As Himself.” (HBO Max via AP)
As a student at the California Institute of the Arts in the early ’70s and a “Gong Show” regular and member of the improv group the Groundlings in the years that followed, Paul Reubens developed any number of zany characters. The one that stuck — a fun-loving man/child clad in a tight suit and red bow tie — made him a superstar.
Or, more accurately, Reubens made Pee-wee Herman a superstar and spent more than a decade living publicly in that persona, while pushing himself deep in the closet.
Still, it’s a surprise that the new HBO and Max documentary “Pee-wee as Himself” is the first time Reubens had ever spoken so extensively about his private and public lives. Director Matt Wolf captured more than 40 hours of interviews with Reubens, enough to make two compelling feature-length documentaries. Even more surprising is that until these films, Reubens had never publicly confirmed the fact that he was gay.
As such, “Pee-wee as Himself” delivers stunning revelation after stunning revelation for his longtime followers and abundant evidence of his sheer genius to newcomers. But it’s no hagiography and instead shows Reubens as human being who was both generous and greedy, hilarious and brooding. He radiated warmth and sincerity, but was also deeply wary and controlling. (In yet another shocking turn, Reubens died during filming on July 30, 2023. He had been diagnosed with cancer six years prior and kept it a secret from nearly everyone in his life, including the filmmaker.)
Reubens may have created Pee-wee Herman for adults, but as “Pee-wee as Himself” shows again and again, once the character caught the public’s imagination, he used Pee-wee to tell children — and by extent, everyone else — it’s not just OK to be different, it’s actually a super power. The same goes for kindness and acceptance. There’s a place for everyone in Pee-wee’s Playhouse.
“Pee-wee as Himself” is now streaming on Max.
Sandra Bernhard
Sandra Bernhard walks the runway with a rescue dog during the Susan Alexandra x Rachel Antonoff show on Sept. 2024 New York Fashion Week on Sept. 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images)
Actor, comedian and vocalist Sandra Bernhard also happens to be one of the most outspoken queer voices of her (boomer) generation.
She’s spending Pride month on the road, presenting her new show “Shapes and Forms” in some of her favorite cities, including a stop at Minneapolis’ Parkway Theater on June 12.
“When you find yourself back in the swing of things, you’ll arrive at my doorstep just in time to celebrate,” Bernhard said in a news release. “ ‘Shapes and Forms’ is going to turn your world upside down with stories of recent dinners out east to exotic adventures around the globe, interwoven with the songs you’ve come to expect from Sandy — Lana, Stevie, Cat, Lionel, Burt and a million surprises. Kick off your Manolos, shimmy out of your Dior and drop by. Don’t worry, you’ll find a cozy spot somewhere.”
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Bernhard made her name in stand-up comedy and has appeared in dozens of films and television shows, including a six-year stint on “Roseanne,” where she played one of the first openly lesbian recurring characters on American television. Her recent credits include “American Horror Story” and “Pose” (both streaming on Hulu) as well as Netflix’s “Survival of the Thickest” and “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” on Disney+. Later this year, she’ll share the big screen with Timothée Chalamet in the feature film “Marty Supreme.”
In a 2019 interview with the Pioneer Press, Bernhard talked about playing Minneapolis throughout her career: “It’s one of my major markets and I’ve been going there since the ’80s. I used to play First Avenue and was always wishing and dreaming Prince would show up and sing with me. It’s a great, groovy town that falls into the category of my favorite American cities, right up there with Chicago and San Francisco.”
Sandra Bernhard; 7:30 p.m. June 12; Parkway Theater, 4814 Chicago Ave. S., Minneapolis; $91-$141.92 via theparkwaytheater.com.
F1rst Wrestling
Openly gay Minneapolis wrestler Devon Monroe is a two-time Wrestlepalooza champion who will return to the event on June 22, 2025, at First Avenue in Minneapolis. (Courtesy of Jess Torres)
Arik Cannon fell in love with wrestling as a kid and, after high school, trained locally at Midwest Pro Wrestling. After spending several years establishing himself on the national circuit, he landed a gig on “Wrestling Society X,” MTV’s short-lived stab at the genre. But he used the money he earned from the show to start F1rst Wrestling in 2007.
“I felt like the product available in Minnesota was stale and old hat,” Cannon said in a 2019 interview. “It was boring, a bunch of weird old guys wrestling in a high school gym. I wanted to try to inject some new life into it — younger, faster, different types of wrestling. It was a slow, uphill battle.”
In the years since, Cannon has remained committed to the idea wrestling is for everyone, regardless of color, religion, age, gender or sexual orientation. To drive home the point, F1rst Wrestling sells a T-shirt with a rainbow-flag colored wrestling ring and the slogan “F1rst Wrestling Is For Everyone.” All proceeds go to the LGBTQ+ nonprofit OutFront Minnesota.
“Pro wrestling has so many negative connotations about it,” Cannon said. “I thought it was time to support a cause we genuinely believe in and want to be known for. It’s not just for likes and clicks, it’s a real thing we believe and stand firm on. And not only do I want everyone to know it’s OK to come to our shows, I want people to know we have all kinds of people in our shows. We want everybody, whoever you are, to come and enjoy this crazy wrestling thing we do.”
Wrestlepalooza, featuring burlesque by Sweetpea and Co. and music by the Denim Boys and Cheap Bouquet; 7 p.m. June 22; First Avenue, 701 First Ave. N., Mpls.; $45.90; axs.com.
BLB Pride Block Party, featuring F1rst Wrestling; 2-5 p.m. June 28; Bryant Lake Bowl and Theater, 810 Lake St. W., Mpls.; $12; bryantlakebowl.com.
Drag shows
There is no stage for Flip Phone’s drag brunches, so performers like Vincent the Destroyer (Adonia Kyle) spend their time dancing their way through the crowd. (Courtesy of Jason Bucklin)
Men dressing as women is as old as the stage itself, but drag in the modern sense began in the late 1800s, when female impersonators became common characters in European stage shows. Drag flourished during the vaudeville era in the U.S., although it was straight men playing women for laughs, with no hint of homosexuality to be seen.
In the middle of the last century, drag moved underground and played to crowds in dingy, hidden gay bars where both the performers and audience members feared arrest. Drag queens played a vital role in the Stonewall riots in 1969, which pushed the burgeoning gay rights movement into the public’s view.
Drag went mainstream in the early ’90s after drag performer RuPaul scored a surprise hit with the dance song “Supermodel (You Better Work)” at the height of the grunge era. Straight people — bachelorette parties in particular — began flooding gay bars to experience drag shows in person. The newfound exposure and acceptance allowed many drag queens to take their show into new venues, from nightclubs to cruises to cable television. (Former local Miss Richfield 1981, aka Russ King, began performing in 1996 and went full-time five years later.)
Once again, it was RuPaul who pushed drag even further into the mainstream with the premiere of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” in 2009. In the years since, the show has enjoyed immense success, earning 39 Emmy Awards and two dozen wins. It’s also spawned an industry of sorts through countless spin-off shows and international editions.
The Twin Cities have long been a hotbed of drag and not just during the month of June.
Local promoters Flip Phone Events began offering drag brunches in 2015 and have since expanded into 19 other states and Washington, D.C. During June, Flip Phone has 20 drag events planned, including themed brunches (Prince, Bad Bunny, the Muppets), a disco block party and a one woman show from “RuPaul’s Drag Race” vet Suzie Toot on June 24 at Amsterdam Bar and Hall in St. Paul. For the full schedule and tickets, see flipphoneevents.com.
Other venues that regularly host drag shows include:
The Black Hart of Saint Paul, 1415 University Ave. W.; blackhartstp.com.
Lush Lounge and Theater, 990 Central Ave. N.E., Mpls.; lushmpls.com.
Roxy’s Cabaret, 1333 Nicollet Mall, Mpls.; roxyscabaret.com.
Gay 90s, 408 Hennepin Ave., Mpls.; gay90s.com.
The Saloon, 830 Hennepin Ave., Mpls.; saloonmn.com.
Twin Cities Pride Festival
While the entire month of June is dedicated to LGBTQ Pride, the official Twin Cities Pride Festival is the big one. Expect to see hundreds of exhibitor booths, dozens of food vendors and three free stages with music and other performances in and around Loring Park in downtown Minneapolis. The Hennepin Avenue parade takes place at 11 a.m. June 29. Other hours include 4-8 p.m. June 27, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. June 28 and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. June 29. For the full schedule, see tcpride.org.
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Other Pride celebrations in the region include:
Anoka Pride Day; 10 a.m.-3 p.m. June 7; Third Avenue and Main Street, Anoka; anokaprideday.org.
Red Wing Pride; 1-5 p.m. June 7; Bush Street between Third and Fourth avenues, Red Wing; riseuppartnership.org/pride.
STP Pride; noon-8 p.m. June 14-15; Dual Citizen Brewery, 725 Raymond Ave., St. Paul; stppride.org.
WSP Pride; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. July 11-12; West St. Paul Sports Complex, 1650 Oakdale Ave., West St. Paul; wsppride.com.
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