Category Archives: Dazzler of the Day

He recently made a super-splash in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s take on Jonathan Larson’s ‘tick, tick… Boom!’ but most gay men of a certain age, myself included, have Robin De Jesus imprinted in our hearts from his moving performance in the musical love-letter ‘Camp’. For those acts alone De Jesus could easily have earned this Dazzler of the Day honor, but I fell in love all over again when he injected the most infectious exuberance into his part in ‘The Boys in the Band’ which I had the privilege of seeing live on Broadway. De Jesus lifted the production whenever he was in a scene – not easy to do with all the talent that was on stage at the same time. He remains a Dazzler in everything he does. 

Renaissance man Bradford Shellhammer earns his first Dazzler of the Day thanks to a lifetime of bold and colorful moves, starting with his co-founding of Fab and Bezar, his founding of ‘Queerty’, and leading to his recent stint at eBay as their chief curation and merchandising officer. He’s moving onto other exciting shores ~ good morning, Baltimore! ~ and Bradford in motion is always something inspiring to watch. Visit his website, because, as with most artists, his way with words is impressive and delightful. 

With a name like Stallion Fabio, he was pre-destined to be a Dazzler of the Day. Add in the fact that he’s a winner of something called a Grabby Award, and that cements the honor. Gay porn stars don’t get a lot of credit in the world, but this is a safe space to honor and respect any profession where a person works their ass off to make a living. Respect to Stallion Fabio, and congrats to him on this not-so-Grabby Award. 

She was the absolute best reason to see the original Broadway run of ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ in the late 90’s, and ever since witnessing her slay as Lucy in that show I’ve been a die-hard Linda Eder fan. Throughout a career of impeccable studio albums and incendiary live performances, her talent has led to one success after another. I still recall a Valentine’s Day show she did at Proctor’s – she practically raised the roof with her stellar belt and breath control. A force of nature, capable of piercing ferocity or dove-like coos, she tells stories through her delivery – stories that shimmer and sparkle in the expert way she flexes her vocal skills. She easily earns this Dazzler of the Day, and I’m going to catch her on one of her upcoming tour dates. Check it all out at her website here. 

One letter away from being an EGOT recipient, Cynthia Erivo has already earned an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Tony Award. She will appear as complex heroine Elphaba in the double-film version of ‘Wicked’ (next to Ariana Grande’s Galinda), and I can’t wait to see her fly. This marks a long overdue crowning as Dazzler of the Day, which egregiously isn’t considered part of the EGOT quartet.