On the face of it, Jade Esteban Estrada's current tour seems about as likely as a

high school production of "Angels In America" or an appearance by the Indigo Girls on "The 700 Club."

     Sure, Estrada has plenty of entertainment credentials.

     He's danced with Charo, sung with the Backstreet Boys and appears regularly on Comedy Central's "The Graham Norton Effect," and his brand of Latin pop music can be heard on FX's "The Shield."

     But can a man who has been dubbed "the first gay Latin star," whose one-man show is called "ICONS: The Lesbian and Gay History of the World," find an audience deep in the heart of the red states?

     Apparently he can. From now through October, Estrada is taking "ICONS" volumes 1 and 2 to a slew of red state venues, including Louisville, where he's stopping over for two nights.

     "Volume 1," which he performs tonight, is a repeat of a performance he gave here last winter that includes Estrada's takes on Sappho, Michelangelo, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Rivera and Ellen DeGeneres.

     Tomorrow night, he performs the local premiere of "Volume 2," which covers Alexander the Great, Queen Christina of Sweden, Susan B. Anthony, Billie Jean King, Harvey Milk and 9/11 hero Mark Bingham.

©2005 Louisville Courier-Journal