Jesse James Keitel

Nixon, Keitel added to roster for 43rd Black Tie Dinner

From STAFF WRITERS

Actors Cynthia Nixon and Jesse James Keitel have joined the list of those who will be honored on Saturday night, Oct. 28, at the 42nd annual Black Tie Dinner, BTD officials announced this week. The two join a line for the event — titled “Mirrorball” and taking place at Sheraton Dallas — that includes Dr. Eric Cervini, singer/songwriter Vincint, Dallas activist Portia Cantrell, HRC President Kelley Robinson and WFAA’s Megan Mitchell as emcee.

Cynthia Nixon

“We are delighted to have such a distinguished, award-winning actress and activist join the ranks of Black Tie Dinner award recipients,” Black Tie Dinner Senior Co-Chair Regina Lyn Pierce said of Nixon. Her activism, Pierce added, “is a testament to the power of one individual to drive change, igniting hope and progress for all.”

Cynthia Nixon

Nixon will receive the Media Award for increasing awareness of LGBTQ issues in the media in a positive way, Pierce said.

Nixon’s acting credits include both stage and screen. She won the 2004 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, the 2006 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play, the 2008 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, the 2009 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album and the 2017 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play.

Nixon ran for governor of New York in 2018, challenging Democratic incumbent Andrew Cuomo. She ran on a platform focused on addressing income inequality and renewable energy, establishing universal health care, stopping mass incarceration in the United States and protecting undocumented children from deportation.

Nixon has also been a visible and vocal advocate for LGBTQ equality, especially for marriage equality. She met her wife, education activist Christine Marinoni in 2004. The two announced their engagement in 2009 and were married in May 2012.

They have one son together. Nixon also has two children from her previous relationship with Danny Mozes, and, in 2018, Nixon revealed that her oldest child is transgender.

Jesse James Keitel

Black Tie Dinner Junior Co-Chair Dustin Vyers said the dinner is “excited to honor Jesse James Keitel for being her true self on and off screen, and the work she is doing to ensure the queer experience is represented truthfully in storytelling. We understand that representation matters and are making strides as an organization to become a platform for the voices of the entire LGBTQ community.”

Keitel, who will receive Black Tie’s Visibility Award, has “championed diversity, acceptance and empowerment through her work and activism as a transgender actor, writer and artist,” dinner officials said in a press release this week.

Keitel, who was involved in local theater as a child in their hometown of Manorville, N.Y., graduated with a bachelor’s degree in acting from Pace University in 2015 and has since performed in an award-winning student film as well as onstage and on TV.

Also after college, Keitel performed in drag in New York under the stage name Peroxide as part of the House of Femanon. They have appeared in a docu-series and in Sasha Velour’s New York Fashion Week collaboration with Opening Ceremony as Peroxide.

Keitel, who identifies as a transgender woman, was honored as one of OUT Magazine’s OUT100 in 2018 for her portrayal of queer characters in film and on TV.

Also under the Mirrorball

Cantrell, a retired nurse, community activist and co-creator of the Silver Pride Network will receive the Kuchling Humanitarian Award at Black Tie this year. Cervini, an Emmy-nominated producer, author and historian, will receive the Equality Award.

Vincint will provide this year’s entertainment.

The 2023 Black Tie Dinner Silent Auction is now live online and bidding is underway on exclusive packages at BlackTie.org. And raffle tickets are available for a 2023 all-electric Mercedes EQB to be given away at the dinner.

Black Tie Dinner’s presenting sponsor is, once again, PNC Bank, National Association, a member of The PNC Financial Services Group Inc. (NYSE: PNC). This year’s beneficiaries, in addition to HRC Foundation, are AIDS Services of Dallas, Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star, Black Trans Advocacy Coalition, Cathedral of Hope United Church of Christ, Coalition for Aging LGBT, Dallas Hope Charities, Equality Texas Foundation, HELP Center for LGBT Health and Wellness, Legacy Cares, Northaven United Methodist Church, Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas, Pride Frisco, Resource Center, Synergy Wesley Foundation, Texas Health Action, The Women’s Chorus of Dallas, Turtle Creek Chorale and Uptown Players Inc.