Alex Newell Will Spill the Tea at Arsht Center for Pride Month

It's Pride Month, and it's only fitting that tea be spilt.

The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts will celebrate the occasion with its seventh annual CommuniTea Dance on Sunday, June 9. The event will feature dancing (duh!), drag queens (double duh!), and an iconic headliner. Tony Award-winning actor Alex Newell will grace Miami with their presence and a day full of fun and, well, pride.

"I am looking forward to celebrating Pride in Miami this weekend with my fellow Arsht Center CommuniTea folks," Newell tells New Times over email. "The Miami LGBTQ+ community always offers such a positive buzz and a spirit of life that it is electric."

They go on to mention a list of their Miami travel essentials: heels, a swimsuit, sunglasses, and a microphone — because Miami.

"I am just really honored to be part of this weekend's CommuniTea celebration. This will have the electric atmosphere of our LGBTQ+ community with an event chock-full of good vibes, exciting energy, and, of course, great music. I, for one, am looking forward to hanging out with other folks in my tribe and getting down."

In addition to Newell's performance, event-goers will be treated to a drag show starring Palace regulars Melissa Plastic Hilton and Ebonee Excell.

Immediately following Newell's sure-to-be-magnificent set, DJ Musicat will take center stage for the glow-in-the-dark dance party portion of the day. Throughout the event, guests can also shop at the Pride marketplace, which highlights local LGBTQ artisans and small businesses.

"Pride is community," Newell adds. "And in this day and age, we need that community for support, love, and strength."

Newell got their start on Glee after appearing on that short-lived reality competition series The Glee Project and later took their talents to Broadway. In 2023, they won a Tony Award for "Best Featured Actor in a Musical" and made history as the first openly nonbinary actor to win a Tony.

"It's taken a lot of hard work and some change in between — from Glee to Broadway and beyond," Newell says. "One of the biggest lessons that I learned is to be authentic and true to myself and to try and use my platforms to lift people up."

Speaking on their experience in the industry, they reference a quote from a recent acceptance speech that conveys the appropriate sentiment. "When I got the Outer Critics Award, I said, 'For someone like me being plus size, queer, nonbinary, and Black, I wasn't supposed to be here. I was not supposed to stand in front of you all and accept any award. I wasn't supposed to be in the position that I'm in right now because I'm in an industry where the "different" makes me so wildly un-castable that I had to prove myself and literally scream my way into my position that I have now.'"

Despite every possible obstacle, Newell has accomplished a great deal and continues to work toward greatness. Their success is due in part to their ambition and internal drive. Newell is always unapologetically themselves, and their Pride message reflects that.

"My Pride message to the Miami community is loud and clear: Don't be afraid, be loud, be yourself, and be proud of who you are," Newell says.

CommuniTea Dance. 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday, June 9, at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-949-6722; arshtcenter.org. Admission is free with RSVP.