I wrote a piece for The Toronto Star on a beloved figure within the city’s 2SLGBTQ+ community, Patricia Wilson. A recent institutional review at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre has led to staffing changes at the queer institution — a restructuring that has not come without controversy. Beyond measured statements from both parties, there are few…
Category: Journalism
NOW Magazine: DaBaby, Matt Damon and “Cancel Culture.”
This week, I had the chance to stop by NOW Magazine‘s NOW WHAT podcast, and chat with senior film critic Norm Wilner about some pretty high profile news stories – the whole DaBaby controversy, Matt Damon’s “f-slur,” and the perils of internet “cancel culture.” Some thorny topics, and we only just scrape the surface. Still,…
This Magazine: “True Crime as a Love Language.”
Think about the “Unsolved Mysteries” theme. Not the reboot, the original — those creepy synths on top of those flickering, low-def images of crime and the paranormal. Well, I live for that stuff, and basically grew up on it. (I suppose that isn’t a surprise to anyone who knows me, or has read any of my…
Spacing: “Missing from the Village: Review.”
Pick up the newest issue of Spacing to find my review of Justin Ling’s book Missing from the Village: The Story of Serial Killer Bruce McArthur, the Search for Justice, and the System That Failed Toronto’s Queer Community. A thought-provoking analysis of a tragedy that exposed the fissures in the already difficult relationship between the…
Toronto Star: “On Nina Arsenault.”
I wrote a piece for The Star on playwright, performance artist, journalist, and local LGBTQ+ legend Nina Arsenault — and how she is transforming the recent social media rumours of her death into art. “Artist Nina Arsenault says she learned of her own death second hand. “Oh, I heard it was a beautiful funeral,” she laughs….
Flare: “A World Without Systemic Injustice.”
I wrote a fun little piece for Flare, rounding up 2020’s biggest television hits and discussing how each grapples with identity and representation — in a year when both subjects have been at the forefront of everyone’s mind. And while some series were more content to take an idealistic approach, others dug in their heels…
Toronto Star: “Alone in the Crowd.”
One of the chief pleasures of pre-pandemic life was the ability to move through urban space — freely and with a certain degree of anonymity. Oh, to go into any old dive bar, take a seat at a table, and just watch the rhythms of life occur around you. It was a simple thing, but one…
The Walrus: “The Evolving Depiction of Sexual Assault on Television”
This was a difficult piece, but I felt compelled to write it after being so thoroughly moved by Michaela Coel’s masterful HBO series I May Destroy You. The way in which Coel grapples with memory and trauma is unlike anything I’d ever seen before on television, and it helped me reframe and understand my own…
Toronto Star: “On Losing Queer Spaces.”
Losing The Beaver has been hard for so many of us in Toronto’s LGBTQ+ community, as it was a space that really helped redefine what it means to be queer in the city beyond any one specific neighbourhood. I have countless memories of sweaty nights, dancing on the cramped dance floor, and meeting new friends…
Toronto Star: “Pride and the Impact of COVID-19.”
I wrote a piece for today’s Toronto Star on the annual Pride celebrations and the impact of COVID-19 on the city’s LGBTQ+ community. I appreciate Dean Odorico (of popular bar Woody’s) and Jaymie Sampa of The 519 taking the time to discuss the Church-Wellesley community, the challenges the neighbourhood is currently navigating, and some of…
JP Larocque 