| — Philadelphia Gay News |
| Jun 11, 2010 — On July 4, 1965, Frank Kameny, Randy Wicker and several dozen LGBT activists rallied outside Independence Hall calling for LGBT rights. Now, 45 years later, Kameny and Wicker will again be outside of Independence Hall on July 4. But this year instead of waving protest signs, they will be waving to the thousands of spectators along the route for the city’s annual parade. While PGN publisher Mark Segal’s participation in the Fourth of July event in 2005 marked the first time the LGBT community was represented, this year’s Wawa’s Welcome America Parade will feature the largest LGBT contingent ever.
Kameny, Wicker and Segal will all ride the route in vehicles — provided by the Lambda Car Club in New Hope — that will be preceded by a float carrying LGBT dance troupe the D.C. Cowboys and followed by the Philadelphia Freedom Band, the city’s LGBT concert and marching band. |
| — BYT - Brightest Young Things |
| Jun 09, 2010 — Once upon a time I walked into a magical place called Remmington’s, the premiere gay country western bar in the Mid-Atlantic. The drinks were stiff and the floor was wooden and slick- the ingredients for a perfect night of line dancing. As I approached the bar after my first round of bar mitzvah choreography rediscovery, something caught my eye: a calendar filled with men aglow- light bouncing from their rhinestone western wear and well-oiled hairless chests. It was the D.C. Cowboys- an all-male dance troupe for gay men. The D.C. Cowboys aren’t just a group of tarts dressed in glittery checkerboard plaid camping and vamping on stage. The Cowboys are a highly skilled, disciplined, international acclaimed group with a long history. Since 1994, the Cowboys have had a consistent presence in a city known for its transient population and ever changing gay community. Under the leadership of founder Kevin Platte, the Cowboys have gained a reputation for crowd pleasing that has taken them to the sound studios of America’s Got Talent and the town squares Eastern Europe. |
| — Loud and Queer |
| Jun 04, 2010 — Internationally acclaimed DC Cowboys Dance Company from “America’s Got Talent” will appear as one of the headliners of the Wawa Welcome America! Philadelphia Independence Day Parade on July 4, 2010. The company’s participation marks the first time these gay, gay, GAY DC Cowboys have been invited to participate in a mainstream parade.
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| — Q Salt Lake |
| May 28, 2010 — Though the DC Cowboys website, dccowboys.org, contains a plethora of pertinent information and some fun facts about the dancers, Platte was kind enough to chat with QSaltLake about the conception of the Cowboys and his great pride for what the company has accomplished over the years, as well as its future endeavors.
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| — Fab Magazine - Toronto |
| Nov 12, 2009 — The Brokeback Hoedown on Sat Nov 14 will feature a performance by the hugely popular male dance company The DC Cowboys. This troupe of Chippendale-like cowboys tour the gay circuit with high energy western-themed Broadway-style routines. The company is composed of trained and untrained amateur dancers, who execute competition style choreography is infused with tumbling, jazz and ballet.
Artistic director Kevin Platte describes his showbiz formula as, “entertaining choreography with sexy men in tight jeans.” The DC Cowboys have been raising more than attention through their nude calendars and a national appearance on America’s Got Talent. Platte welcomes his company’s success. “America’s Got Talent opened up an entire new market for us,” he says “Just like Kathy Griffin, straight women and gay men are our new target audience. Now we actually do gigs where it’s straight America out there.”
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| — The Frederick News Post |
| Oct 08, 2009 — Call them "'Brokeback' meets Broadway," "high-energy with a campy repertoire" or "a high-steppin' fancy dancin' group," but don't call them line dancers.
"We don't two-step or line dance. That's not our schtick," said Kevin Platte, artistic and executive director of the all-male DC Cowboys dance company. He founded the group 15 years ago as a performing arts organization for gay men in the Washington, D.C.-metro area.
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| — Attribute Magazine |
| Oct 02, 2009 — Since first bursting out into the entertainment scene in September of 1994, the DC Cowboys, an all-male, gay, dance group, have continued to capture the attention of audiences in America and raise money for HIV/AIDS charities with their high energy, boot scooting routines. And, according to the founder, Kevin Platte, they will continue to do so just as long as people want to see them perform. |
| — Washington Post Express |
| Sep 14, 2009 — The Metro Dance DC Awards features performances from lots of local talent, including DC Cowboys, Maryland Youth Ballet and Urban Impact. And it's hosted by a Martha Graham impersonator — in drag. Awards show at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater, 2700 F St. NW; Mon., Sept. 14, 7:30 p.m., $30; 202-778-1190.
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| — Washington Blade |
| Aug 28, 2009 — Several gay Washington entertainers had encounters with the big time this month — a group of local drag queens known as the Diva League appeared on “America’s Got Talent” and the D.C. Cowboys, who appeared on that show last year, were in Budapest, Hungary, for a weeklong engagement at the Sziget Festival, which bills itself as the largest music and arts festival in the world.
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| — Metro Weekly |
| Jun 14, 2009 — The DC Cowboys have been hot in Washington since forming in 1994, long before they appeared on the third season of America's Got Talent in the summer of 2008. Of course, performing for millions of people nationally on NBC -- and making it to the show's semi-final rounds in Hollywood -- hasn't hurt the all-gay dance troupe's popularity either. Those exciting opportunities include an invitation to perform at the upcoming Sziget Festival in Budapest, Hungary. The weeklong summer music festival, Aug. 12 to 17, features artists such as the Prodigy, the Offspring and Lily Allen. |
| — Washington Blade |
| Sep 26, 2008 — Few American archetypes are as iconic as the cowboy.
That goes double in the gay community. The combination of rugged masculinity and revealing leather and denim has made the Western man a mainstay of gay pinups and porn alike. The D.C. Cowboys, Washington’s gay all-male dance troupe, took that look national with several appearances this fall on NBC’s reality competition show, “America’s Got Talent.”
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| — The Washingtonian |
| Sep 10, 2008 — What does an America’s Got Talent contestant do when he’s sent home packing? Pitch a reality show, of course.
That’s exactly what Kevin Platte is doing. He’s the founder and executive and artistic director of the gay, all-volunteer dance company DC Cowboys, which recently returned from ten days in Hollywood competing on the glitzy NBC talent show. Their jazz-meets-country western dance style earned them a seat among the top 40 contenders, out of thousands who auditioned. |
| — Metro Weekly |
| Aug 21, 2008 — DC Cowboys get colorful, tropical and nude with charitable calendar for 2009. Washingtonians have known about the DC Cowboys long before they earned a spot among the top 40 contestants on the third season of NBC's America's Got Talent, on which they are still competing. But regardless of any past familiarity with the Cowboys, the local gay dance troupe recently made themselves more accessible than ever, thanks to the group's newly released 2009 calendar and DVD combo, Wet & Wild. |
| — Washington Post Express |
| Jul 15, 2008 — ONCE UPON A TIME, D.C.'s dance scene was limited to waltzing wonks at inaugural balls. But it seems our city is turning into the nation's capital of busting a move. How else do you explain the presence of two Beltway-based dance troupes competing on TV this summer?
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| — Washington Blade |
| Jun 27, 2008 — The Cowboys wowed the judges of NBC's America's Got Talent on an episode that aired Tuesday. Judges Sharon Osbourne, David Hasselhoff and Piers Morgan all gave the Cowboys green lights to proceed to the next round of competition in Las Vegas. Shimmying suggestively in a choreographed routine to the music of Big & Rich's "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)," the local dancers especially impressed Osbourne who gushed that their appearance had "made my day." |
| — Metro Weekly |
| Dec 13, 2007 — In 2007, with proceeds from the group's sold-out calendar, the D.C. Cowboys donated $11,000 to Whitman-Walker Clinic. Now, the local dance troupe is getting ready to help another health organization -- the Northern Virginia AIDS Ministry, an organization that works to educate the public about HIV/AIDS and serve those living with HIV/AIDS in Virginia.
''We usually perform for NOVAM's annual fundraising event in April, called 'Imagine,''' says Chad Townsend, communications director of the D.C. Cowboys. ''Based on our relationship with NOVAM, we chose them as our beneficiary. They've always been very supportive of us, and we just wanted to return the favor.'' |
| — Bourgeon Online |
| Nov 07, 2007 — We truly are a unique dance company in that we are gay men, dance in cowboy boots and volunteer our time while working full time day jobs. The dancers’ experience levels range from professional to some formal training to no training at all. The dancers, aged 24–44, rehearse once a week for two hours in the fellowship hall of a local church. We maintain a repertoire of about eight songs from the pop, country and Broadway genres.
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| — Florida Times-Union |
| Aug 01, 2007 — The D.C. Cowboys, a 20-member dance company, will also be at "Meet the Stars" and will have two performances Saturday on the main stage. Based in Washington, D.C., this all-volunteer dance troupe is internationally acclaimed and specializes in high-energy dance numbers that include musical theater and contemporary country. This is the group's first trip to Jacksonville.
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| — Washington Post |
| Mar 30, 2007 — Expect the unexpected this weekend when dancing cowboys and Indians (from the subcontinent, not the American West) and a 20th-century classic modern work share the stage.
In one of the region's more unusual dance programs, the DC Cowboys Dance Company joins the Washington-based troupe Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh & Company in its spring concert at American University's Greenberg Theatre. Dakshina links bharata natyam, the classical South Indian dance form, and modern dance, reflecting Singh's diverse dance background. And the DC Cowboys? Well, they're broncos meet Broadway. |
| — Metro Weekly |
| Feb 22, 2007 — The DC Cowboys donated a portion of its 2007 calendar proceeds ($11,000) to the Whitman-Walker Clinic (Disease Prevention Program) last Friday, Feb. 16, 2007 during its monthly hoedown party at Remington's. |
| — Metro Weekly |
| Aug 17, 2006 — The rush for purchasing calendars usually hits during the winter holidays, but heed this fair warning: One of the hottest 2007 calendars -- at least where D.C.'s gay community is concerned -- may be sold out by then.
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| — Chicago Sun-Times |
| Jul 23, 2006 — Moments later, the crowd got rowdy again and screamed when two men in western gear passionately kissed to the musical theme of "Brokeback Mountain" before the DC Cowboys dancers kicked up their heels.
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| — Chicago Pride |
| Jul 22, 2006 — Thousands of spectators filled Wrigley Field as Chicago said an emotional goodbye to the seventh Gay Games. Mayor Richard Daley officially closed the Games with the ceremonial transfer of the Gay Games flag to the deputy mayor of Cologne, Germany, the 2010 host city. The colorful closing included more celebrity and less politics.
The crowd rose to their feet for the DC Cowboys dance company. |
| — Washington Post |
| Jul 21, 2006 — The theme from "Brokeback Mountain" is slow and -- face it -- kinda sad. But the remix . . . Washington's own DC Cowboys , an all-male dance group , will kick the song into high gear at tomorrow's closing ceremony of the Gay Games , the quadrennial sports and culture festival. The 18-member group is the only dance troupe invited to perform along with Cyndi Lauper at Chicago's Wrigley Field.
"We're really excited," said Kevin Platte , who founded the all-volunteer company 12 years ago. His "Brokeback Meets Broadway" guys (Washington professionals by day, dancers on weekends) perform all over the country -- free for HIV/AIDS charities -- but this is their first big stadium gig. Wearing bluejeans, cowboy hats, boots, bandannas and shirts, the group will open its act with a high-energy take on "Brokeback's" theme, followed by Josh Gracin's "Nothin' to Lose" and Big & Rich's "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)." Yee haw!
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| — Baltimore Outloud |
| Jun 23, 2006 — After the success of its 2000 and 2004 calendars, the Washington D.C.-based, all-male, gay dance company, the DC Cowboys, has released its all-new 2007 calendar. This third edition shows another side of the DC Cowboys by featuring a lot more nudity. It also includes a Making of the Calendar DVD which documents all the behind-the-scenes action during the three-day photo shoot. |
| — Washington Blade |
| Jun 16, 2006 — Kevin Platte, the founder and executive director of the local dance troupe D.C. Cowboys, found that fans had an odd request the past two times the group sold calendars as a fundraiser.
“Every time, our fans keep asking for more nudity,” says Platte. |
| — Gay.com |
| Dec 20, 2005 — With calf roping, chute dogging, goat dressing and bronc riding, as well as the hot DC Cowboys dance company, there's always a stampede for tickets. |
| — Metro Weekly |
| Sep 09, 2004 — With a decade under their belts, the DC Cowboys are riding high
(Feature article about the DC Cowboys’ 10th Anniversary) |
| — HRC Newsletter |
| Oct 11, 2003 — (Reference to DC Cowboys’ performance and raffle aid at Annual National Dinner) |
| — Gay World Media |
| Sep 13, 2003 — (Feature article about the release of the 2004 Calendar) |
| — Washington Blade |
| Jul 11, 2003 — The D.C. Cowboys are showing some skin in their new calendar to raise money for the group
(Feature article about the release of the 2004 Calendar) |
| — NGRA Website |
| Jun 13, 2003 — If you saw the DC Cowboys perform at our rodeo this past April, you'll definitely want to make sure to get their new calendar. |
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