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Hot Sheet: Once Upon a Drag Race

Hot Sheet: Once Upon a Drag Race

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Our top 10 entertainment and events highlights this week include RuPaul's Drag Race, Once Upon a Time, Jack Andraka, Kelly Clarkson, and Julianne Moore's new film, Maps to the Stars.


Hs150227-010_010. MUSIC: "I'm a Ruin,"Marina and the Diamonds
We're loving this return to form from the idiosyncratic British singer. "I'm a Ruin," the first single off Marina's third album, Froot, harkens back to her unforgettable song "I Am Not a Robot." Sad and uplifting at the same time, "I'm a Ruin" highlights Marina's distinctive, crystalline voice. Marina performs at Coachella in April, while Froot drops April 6. -- Neal Broverman


Hs150227-009_09. EVENT: Heartstrings, featuring Tyler's Suite
The Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles will pay tribute to Tyler Clementi, the gay college student lost to suicide after cyberbullying in 2010, Saturday by performing Tyler's Suite, an eight-movement choral piece, as part of its Heartstrings concert. The all-male string quartet Well-Strung (pictured) will be the chorus's guest for this performance, set for 8 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, the first stop on the Tyler's Suite tour. The suite, composed under the direction and with the participation of Broadway composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz, premiered last year in San Francisco and will be performed in Chicago, Seattle, San Diego, Dallas, and New York after the L.A. date. Click here to read more about the suite, including an interview with Tyler's mother, Jane Clementi. Order tickets for the L.A. performance here and find other dates at the Tyler Clementi Foundation's website. -- Trudy Ring

Hs150227-008_08. FILM: Eastern Boys
The much-anticipated French drama Eastern Boys, which hits U.S. theaters this weekend, stars Olivier Rabourdin as a middle-aged man looking for a good time with a younger street boy who catches his eye. Unfortunately for him, when he invites his special boy toy over to his place, he gets a lot more trouble -- and men -- than he could have ever expected. Watch the trailer below. -- Raffy Ermac


Hs150227-007_07. TV: Once Upon a Time
We don't know much about Once Upon a Time, but we do know this: the series features live-action versions of some of the fiercest Disney villainesses of all time. Maleficent (Kristen Bauer van Straten (Pam from True Blood!)), Cruella de Vil (Victoria Smurfit), and Ursula (Merrin Dungey) have reportedly joined forces as a fabulous trifecta known as the Queens of Darkness. They were summoned together by Rumplestiltskin, who among other diabolic duties was tasked with into spinning straw into gold for ABC. Tune in to the premiere Sunday at 8 p.m. Eastern on ABC to see them wreak amazing chaos together. -- Daniel Reynolds

Hs150227-006_06. BOOK: Breakthrough, Jack Andraka
At age 15, Jack Andraka had already made an amazing scientific discovery that stands to change the future of medicine: He found a simple way to detect pancreatic, ovarian, and lung cancer using a four-cent strip of paper. After losing a family friend to pancreatic cancer, he was inspired to find alternative ways to detect cancer. His method is 400 times more effective than the previous detection method used by medical professionals. For this achievement, he's won a 2014 Jefferson Award, the nation's most prestigious public service award. His new book, Breakthrough: How One Teen Innovator is Changing the World, tells the story of how he overcame homophobic bullying and depression to come out of the closet and inspire others. -- Yezmin Villarreal

Hs150227-005_05. THEATER: The Book of Merman
After a sold-out world premiere run earlier this year at Mary's Attic in Chicago, Pride Films and Plays' The Book of Merman moves to the Apollo Theater Studio for six more weeks of performances in the Windy City. Leo Schwartz's play envisions two Mormon missionaries ringing the doorbell of a certain E.M. in a small town and coming face-to-face with the legendary Broadway diva Ethel Merman. The show abounds in song parodies, drawing on The Book of Mormon and many shows associated with Merman, and carries a message of self-acceptance. "This meeting of squeaky-clean, fresh-faced, sexually-stunted Utah goody goodies with the brassy, bumptious, leather-lunged Queen of Broadway yields a very pleasant parody-tribute, a transformative romp that fully earns its delicious title," says critic Lawrence Bommer on the website Stage and Cinema. The Apollo run opened last night and goes through April 5; get tickets and info here. -- Trudy Ring

Hs150227-004_04. EVENT: Outfest Fusion
The annual Outfest Fusion LGBT People of Color Film Festival, presented by HBO, is coming up March 13-14. Legendary LGBT films such as Paris Is Burning will be screened in a new digital restoration, and the critically acclaimed film Dear White People will be presented with a Q&A led by Justin Simien, the queer black director of the hit film. The documentary shorts program at the festival will showcase emerging filmmakers in films depicting queer figures such as the writer Stacyann Chin in Truth. Be. Told. and Nancy Valverde, who faced discrimination while growing up as a Chicana lesbian in East L.A. during the mid-20th century in Nancy From East Side Clover. There will be a broad range of other films and discussions at the festival; see the full lineup here. -- Yezmin Villarreal


Hs150227-003_03. MUSIC: Piece by Piece,Kelly Clarkson
Clarkson's seventh album, Piece by Piece, is out now. You may have already seen the video for lead single "Heartbeat Song," which features a gay couple (who got engaged in real life on the set of the video). If that wasn't enough to pique your interest, how about songs cowritten by Sia, like "Invincible" and "Let Your Tears Fall"? We're especially diggin' on "Run Run Run," a beautiful collaboration with John Legend that brings to mind the Pink-Nate Ruess duet "Just Give Me a Reason." -- Neal Broverman


Hs150227-002_02. FILM: Maps to the Stars
Fresh off her Best Actress Oscar win, Julianne Moore stars alongside brooding Twilight hottie Robert Pattinson in the recently released film Maps to the Stars. Moore plays Havana, a once-famous Hollywood actress who is not only struggling to keep up in an increasingly younger film industry but also coping with the years of abuse she faced at the hands of her now-deceased mother, who was also an acting legend. -- Raffy Ermac


Hs150227-001_01. TV: RuPaul's Drag Race Season 7
Has it really been seven seasons since RuPaul, Santino Rice, and Merle Ginsberg first entered the judges' booth to assess the charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent of drag contestants like Ongina, Tammie Brown, Nina Flowers, and that shady, shady queen Rebecca Glasscock? Next Monday, none of those people will be on RuPaul's Drag Race except RuPaul, but a host of fresh-faced new judges and drag queens will be seeking fame and glory on channel 1272 of DirecTV. An A-list panel of celebrity guest judges, including Jessica Alba, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, and Rebecca Romijn, is just the icing on the cake and is testament to the power of the gays, which grows daily. RuPaul's Drag Race premieres Monday at 9 p.m. Eastern on Logo TV. Watch the teaser below. -- Daniel Reynolds

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