7 Things That Are Everything This Week

The trailer looked a bit hackneyed, but reviewers are loving Hello, My Name Is Doris and especially Sally Field's performance, which is being described as Oscar-worthy. The LGBT-supportive star of Steel Magnolias, Soapdish, and Norma Rae portrays Doris, a vibrant but lonely packrat whiling away her days in a Manhattan cubicle. When a handsome, 30-something coworker (Max Greenfield) becomes her friend and romantic interest, Doris experiences an amazing reawakening.

Not surprisingly, this is Field's first cinematic starring role in nearly a decade, which speaks to the dearth of roles for women north of 50. Hello, My Name Is Doris is out now; check out the trailer below.

As we noted last week, the South by Southwest festival and conference begins today in Austin, and there is no shortage of LGBT events. One event we're really excited about is the “Queer Style: Visual Activism & Fashion’s Frontier” panel, sponsored by the dapperQ label. Four style experts — including Anita Dolce Vita of dapperQ, Sonny Oram of Qwear, Leon Wu of Sharpe Suiting, and Aja Aguirre of Fit for a Femme — will discuss not only sartorial choices but how clothes and presentation can play a part in equality. There's also an evening mixer for attendees. Get more info here.

A collaboration album between k.d. lang, Neko Case, and Laura Veirs? Sign us up! The three artists have long had a respect and affection for each other, but it took lang sending an email for the women to agree to make an album together. Their handiwork — appropriately called case/lang/veirs — is out June 17. The three musicians recently released their first single, "Atomic Number," and it's as lush and soulful as you'd expect. Listen below.

MTV has a proud history of bringing diversity to television, and three of its tentpole shows return next week: Awkward (Tuesday), Faking It (Tuesday), and Real World: Go Big or Go Home (Thursday). Be it a coming-of-age tale of a teenage girl, a high school filled with LGBTQI characters, or one of the longest-running social experiments in bringing people of different backgrounds together, there’s a diverse taste for everyone next week on MTV. 

Few things are more gay-beloved than Broadway musicals, so Jack Viertel’s new book, The Secret Life of the American Musical: How Broadway Shows Are Built, will be a must-read for many of us. Viertel, who has been a dramaturg, critic, teacher, and producer, analyzes successful shows to find what makes them “work” onstage. Encompassing time-tested musicals like My Fair Lady and Guys and Dolls as well as more recent hits like Hairspray and The Book of Mormon, the book “is both revelatory and entertaining,” Robin Pogrebin writes in The New York Times. “Viertel combines a scholarly approach with a light touch that enables us to see anew familiar songs and musical theater moments we’d long taken for granted.” Order here or visit your local bookstore.   

Fans of television, rejoice! PaleyFest Los Angeles kicks off its 33rd festival today at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, and it continues through March 20. See the casts and creators of Empire, Better Call Saul, Scream Queens, Black-ish, Supergirl, Scandal, The Big Bang Theory, Fear the Walking Dead, Law & Order: SVU, Chicago Fire, Power, American Horror Story: Hotel, and more on panels offering exclusive news from their shows. Learn more at PaleyFest.org.

The Family Equality Council demonstrates that LGBT people do indeed have family values. So celebrate LGBT families and support the council’s work and its star-studded West Coast Impact Awards ceremony Saturday at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills. This year’s honorees are writer-director-producer Greg Berlanti, actress and talk-show host Sara Gilbert, and her wife, singer-songwriter Linda Perry. Caroline Rhea will emcee and Perry will perform; there will also be performances by Jeremy Jordan and Levi Kreis. Other celebs scheduled to appear include Calista Flockhart, Sharon Osbourne, Alec Mapa, Carly Lehwald, and Tuc Watkins. The festivities get under way at 7 p.m.; reserve your tickets here.

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