Kim Petras, left, Matt Bomer, right
From Staff Reports
Black Tie Co-Chairs Nathan Robbins and David Gifford-Robbins this week announced two additional headliners for the 37th annual fundraising gala on Nov. 3: award-winning actor/producer/director Matt Bomer and transgender pop star Kim Petras.
The two join other recently announced honorees Madame Secretary star and Black Tie’s Media Award winner Erich Bergen, TV personality and Black Tie’s Ally Award winner Jessi Cruickshank, and local LGBT activist and Kuchling Humanitarian Award winner Kay Wilkinson.
Bomer is “not only amazing actor, he has also become a trusted voice for the LGBTQ dinner, and we are excited that he is bringing that commitment to Black Tie Dinner,” Robbins said. “He is a strong advocate and role model for the LGBTQ dinner, and we are honored to bring his story to our dinner this year.”
Bomer, who starred in the TV series White Collar and with Tatum Channing in the movie Magic Mike, has earned a long list of awards and honors, including a 2015 Golden Globe Award, a 2014 Critics’ Choice Television Award, a 2014 Golden Derby Award, three 2015 CinEuphoria Awards, two 2014 Online Film and Television Association Awards and a 2014 TVLine Award, all for his work in the 2014 TV drama The Normal Heart, based on Larry Kramer’s 1985 play about gay men in New York during the birth of AIDS activism.
He has also been honored by GLSEN, JAKKS Pacific’s Norma Jean Gala, the Savannah Film Festival, the Desert AIDS Projects Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards and TAG’s Research in Action Awards.
Gifford-Robinson described Petras’ music as “an inspiration [that] showcases her bravery in being visible.”
Petras’ music gives a nod to influences as diverse as Britney Spears, Baltimora and the “Brat Pack,” sharing intimate storylines over explosive production. Petras, who opened recently for gay singer Troye Sivan in Dallas, is known for breaking boundaries in the LGBT community and making headlines in 2009, at age 16, for being the youngest person to undergo gender-reassignment surgery.
Black Tie Dinner has, since its inception in 1982, raised more than $22 million for local organizations supporting the LGBT and HIV/AIDS communities and for the
Human Rights Campaign Foundation. This year’s event takes place Nov. 3 at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel. For tickets and more information visit BlackTie.org.
