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March 20, 2006
San Fransisters!
The 25th Anniversary Tour picked up some left hearts in San Fransisters. For four nights of fun, I played the Empire Plush Room at the York Hotel. There was still a little Kitty Carlisle Hart dust on the stage from when she entertained there. Rory Paull and Rob Kotonly, indefatigable bicoastal producers who also produce shows in New York and Philly, have taken over the Plush Room, a beloved SF speakeasy that was about to be closed. They've refurbished it beautifully and gotten it back to working order. They both love to give tours of the secret tunnels that flappers and those in the know navigated to get to the club. Rumor has it that a ghost of a former piano player roams the hotel at night. I think it's a queen whacked out on ambien trying to find the kitchen.
After thirty "straight" days of rain, the weather was sunny and lovely and the people were happy. I rode over to Berkeley and did an interview with Andrea Lewis, host of the Morning Show on good old KPFA. Andrea is one of the smoothest, most professional interviewers I've had the pleasure to talk with - she gets all the info in absolutely effortlessly. KRON's morning show with the much beloved reviewer and raconteur, Jan Wahl, was too short. I wanted to interview her. She promised to come to the big NCLR Women's Dinner at the Moscone Center on April 22. I told her it's three acres of lesbians in fabulous outfits and she said she'd be there with her hat on! Sedge Thompson's live radio show, West Coast Live, was another pleasure, Prairie Home Companion without the heavy breathing.
On Sunday afternoon, my dear sponsors, NCLR hosted a meet and greet at Sauce Restaurant for all their major supporters. The food was great - the folks in San Francisco do good food and that includes Hans Food, the little hole in the wall Michele and I found for breakfast. It was wonderful to meet so many local,loyal NCLR supporters. Kate Kendall had just returned from a trip to Minneapolis and fired up the crowd with tales of the cases they are involved in there.
So now I can add the Plush Room to the venues I have known in San Fransisters: The Great American Music Hall, The JCC of Marin, the Herbst Theater, The Palace of Fine Arts, the Brava Theater, The Greek Theater, the Calvin Simmons Theater [where I played during an earthquake!] to name a few.
Happy Spring. Sadly war. Three years now and the Support the Troops ribbons are faded and have started to resemble infinity signs. It truly is March Madness. I'm chilling for a couple days in Corte Madera with my dear old friends Jeanne Rizzo and Pali Cooper before heading up to Seattle, Vancouver and Victoria. While some might say it's time to move to Canada, I'm just going to visit. In San Franscisco, ten thousand people protested the war on the third anniversary. I like to protest it every day. I'm specifying my taxes should go to education. Risk an audit for peace.
March 14, 2006
Hot Topics: Kate Clinton Reveals all in the new issue of On Our Backs!
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March 07, 2006
If I go to heaven, it'll be through Atlanta
My ten day swing through Florida was orange fruitful. I did some gloating when I talked to Michele back home in New York and she'd tell me, "It's 20 degrees here and the sky has been cloudy all day." Oops, Brokeback residue.
In Tampa, I played to a packed crowd in the MCC Church. I think they may have offered indulgences with each ticket. The church is the heart and soul of the gay Tampa area - vibrant, expanding, hopeful and politically engaged. Renee and Kathie, the show producers, smoothly oversaw all the show details and then the next morning were up at 8am to prepare the sound stage for their Winter Gay Pride. At the post-show reception with NCLR, I saw lots of snow birds from my dear Ptown. And I think I only referred to Tampans as Tampons once. Restraint is so adult.
In case you don't know, Jacksonville is way too close to Georgia. It's one of the loops for the Bible Belt. The Baptists own eight blocks of downtown, with a huge megachurch and three parking garages. Remember when they used to raise money with collection envelopes? But the show at the North Florida performance hall was a total pleasure. And the crowd was hungry. Jim Wagner, who has an amazing commitment to lesbian gatherings and a fabulous energy, brought me to Jacksonville. He is the fastest Southern talker I have ever heard - his whole day is spent just trying to keep up with his great ideas. At the reception after he presented a check for $1200 to NCLR for all their wonderful work.
The last stop on my weekend trifecta was the Carefree Resort just outside Ft. Myers. I stayed with Jane and Shar, friends retired from Lady Jane's Inn in Ptown, who hosted me and hosted a small lunch with The Gerbornes, friends from the early 1980s in upstate New York. Shar's homecooking was a lovely respite from Delta airline pretznuts.
Again it was great to see so many friends from around the country, all nestled in this little paradise. The Club House as performing space is a delight with great sound and lights. In my later performing years, I hope to play a retired lesbian community circuit. They are retired from work, not from being lesbians. They have jam-packed, fun-filled days and I was happy to be there.
A few days later I performed at the gorgeous old Manuel Artime Theater in Little Havana in a benefit for The National Lesbian and Gay Task Force for their Winter Party. It was a pleasure to appear on the bill with lots of local Miami talent and Billy Porter from New York City. His singing brought down the house.
After three days being the comedy concierge for the Gill Foundation Political Outgiving Conference, I made my way back to New York just in time to perform at Nothing Like a Dame - The Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS fundraiser, this year at the Imperial Theater. It's a Dame Dim Sum of some of the finest women on Broadway, all donating their one night off a week for this great cause. Cynthia Nixon, Tyne Daly, the Jersey Girls - I am talking major damedom. And me - grinning ear to ear - getting my picture taken with some excellent leggy young lovelies. I raised 20K auctioning off a Harry Winston watch - all the Catholic shaming finally came in handy when I was pushing the bling.
Cheers and shout outs to all the courageous, politically active lesbian and gay people in the Sunshine State. I was inspired throughout by your lives.
Happy International Women's Day! Go kiss Martina! I know she's a US citizen now, but do you need a reason?
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