Arts & Entertainment
Shirtless Violinist gays up ‘Beauty and the Beast’ with drag Belle
male ‘Bello’ takes on the romantic lead role
Matthew Olson, known as the Shirtless Violinist, is back again with a cover of the “Beauty and the Beast” theme song. This time his boyfriend Paul Castle, also the video’s director, joins him for a gay reimagining of the classic Disney tale.
In the video, Olson is seen performing in an empty room when he catches the attention of Bello (Castle). Bello hatches a plan to dress in drag as “Belle” to get the interest of Olson. After fleeing the room, Bello returns as himself in hopes that Olson will still have feelings for him. To his surprise, Olson is perfectly happy with Bello as himself.
“When I first had the idea to cover ‘Beauty and the Beast’, I wanted to keep the video fairly simple. I envisioned myself (transformed as the Beast) with a beautiful dancer floating around me in a ballroom,” Olson writes in the video description. “No frills, no story, just a pretty song and some sweeping camera movements. But when the “gay controversy” erupted over the new live action version of the film, it sparked another idea: What if, instead of a ballroom dancer, I asked a drag queen to perform with me?”
The 2024 New York City Pride Parade wound through the streets of Manhattan and past the historic Stonewall Inn on Sunday, June 30.
(Washington Blade photos by Daniel Truitt)
The fourth annual Fredericksburg Pride march and festival was held at Riverfront Park in Fredericksburg, Va. on Saturday, June 29. The event began with a march around downtown Fredericksburg beginning and ending in the park.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Covering Fredericksburg Pride for @WashBlade . City Council member @WillMackintosh speaking: pic.twitter.com/tDdVD2IVsM
— Michael Patrick Key (@MichaelKeyWB) June 29, 2024
Photos
PHOTOS: Goodwin Living Pride
Senior living and healthcare organization holds fourth annual march at Falls Church campus
The senior living and healthcare organization Goodwin Living held its fourth annual community Pride march around its Bailey’s Crossroads campus in Falls Church, Va. with residents, friends and supporters on Tuesday, June 25. Following the march, a drag brunch was held with performances by drag artists of SADBrunch: Crimsyn, Sapphire Dupree and Evon Dior Michelle.
(Photos courtesy of Goodwin Living)
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