CCM alumna Dylan Mulvaney returns to stage in Rainbow Room debut

CCM alumna Dylan Mulvaney (BFA Musical Theatre, '19) triumphantly returned to the stage on Monday, March 13, 2023, in her Rainbow Room debut. Starring in her original, one-night-only show Dylan Mulvaney’s Day 365 Live!, Mulvaney presented an 80-minute cabaret-style variety show celebration that has been lauded by industry giants such as PLAYBILL and Variety.

A sensational TikTok star, Mulvaney (she/they) started her career on Broadway immediately upon graduating from CCM, and played Elder White in The Book of Mormon until it closed due to the pandemic. In March of 2022, Mulvaney publicly came out as a trans woman, and started her wildly popular TikTok series “Days of Girlhood,” which has amassed over one billion views.

Celebrating her one-year anniversary of living authentically, Dylan Mulvaney’s Day 365 Live! provided a space not only to celebrate, but to also create visibility and offer support for LGBTQ+ youth. All proceeds from the event’s livestream tickets were donated to The Trevor Project, an organization that provides LGBTQ+ youth with resources and support. Rolling Stone magazine got backstage access before Dylan's Rainbow Room debut and shared a feature story about her; read more. 

During this past year, Dylan was invited to the White House for NowThis News' Presidential Forum with Joe Biden, walked in her first show at New York fashion week, made her Grammys red carpet debut, and has documented her life in multiple videos shared with her 10.8M TikTok followers. 

“When you come out as trans, there’s this expectation that you are an activist,” she told Rolling Stone. “And then especially when you grow a platform, it’s sort of necessary just because there are so few trans voices that are so mainstream that you have to deliver. But I think my activism looks different. I think just living your life authentically is a form of activism.”   

Speaking on her success earlier this year at The Queerties (where she was awarded the Groundbreaker award), Mulvaney emphasized the importance of visibility. “It’s all worth it,” she said in an interview with Variety, “even the hate, which I just respond to with trans joy. And maybe that’s what’s really groundbreaking is trans joy, and not in the way that it's new because trans joy always existed, but I think trans joy in the hellscape that is 2023 is groundbreaking.”

Dylan Mulvaney’s Day 365 Live! closed with Mulvaney emotionally thanking the many individuals who have supported her along her journey, including the family, friends and fellow queer icons present in the audience, as well as the countless viewers online. Ending in a final declaration of joy, Mulvaney looks forward to the future and all the exciting adventures it holds.

The LGBTQ Center supports the mission of the University of Cincinnati through a commitment to diversity, equity, leadership development, and intellectual inquiry with particular respect to sexual orientation and gender identity. The Center is an inclusive campus community that welcomes people of all sexual orientations and gender identities and provides support, resources and advocacy. The Center facilitates LGBTQ visibility by promoting and enhancing understanding, acceptance, and awareness regarding LGBTQ issues.

The LGBTQ Center enhances the campus community for LGBTQ students and their allies through intentional advocacy, providing a safe space, intersectional programming, and access to culturally relevant resources. Learn more on the UC LGBTQ Center website.

Featured image at the top: CCM alumna Dylan Mulvaney poses in front of a banner that celebrates her "Day 365" event. Photo/provided.