Gay Desert Guide Weekend: Apr. 26–28, 2019 - Gay Desert Guide Palm Springs

White Party 30th Anniversary and Stagecoach are two huge events, plus: Quiet No More: A Choral Celebration of Stonewall, Believe – the Music of Cher, Dedication of LGBTQ Veterans Memorial, The Hue Music & Arts Festival, and Pageant: The Musical opens. Plus HOT DEALS and Happy Hours!

Dining Out For Life is Thursday, April 25

Greater Palm Springs is making plans to eat breakfast, lunch and/or dinner at one of more than 80 restaurants participating in this year’s Dining Out For Life event. On Thursday, April 25, each participating restaurant will donate 33% or more of whatever is spent at their location that day supporting Desert AIDS Project’s mission to enhance and promote the health and well-being of our community. With so many choices you can join the BLD Club – Dine Out for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner! Reservations strongly suggested as this is a very popular day! More info

White Party 2019

Widely considered the largest gay dance music festival in the nation, White Party Palm Springs is celebrating 30 years of evolution this Friday through Sunday, April 26–28. Over the years, White Party has become a phenomenon which currently attracts more than 30,000 attendees from around the globe, with hot pool parties and even hotter dancing, culminating in the Circus T-Dance on Sunday with the return of White Party Legend Deborah Cox, a live performance by Shangela, and a choreographed fireworks display. We have a run-down of all the parties and performers (Splash Party, Military Ball, Muscle Pool Party, House of Gods, and more!) on our event page here: Get tickets

Stagecoach 2019

With the massive Coachella Music & Arts Festival all wrapped up, it’s time for Stagecoach to take over the same venue, this Friday through Sunday, April 26–28 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. The Stagecoach Festival is an outdoor country music festival featuring various artists, whether they be mainstream or relatively unknown, ranging from folk, mainstream country, bluegrass, roots rock, and alternative country. Headliners are Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt, and Jason Aldean. It is the highest-grossing festival centered on country music in the world. See our link to the full schedule and Get tickets

Quiet No More: A Choral Celebration of Stonewall

June 2019 will mark the 50th Anniversary of The Stonewall Uprising, and the Palm Springs Gay Men’s Chorus has joined with 20 choruses throughout the United States to commemorate this pivotal point in the LGBT movement by commissioning a major choral work to tell the story of the men and women who banded together for a common cause. Performances will be Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, April 26, 27, and 28 at the Palm Springs Art Museum Annenberg Theater. In addition to this commissioned work, PSGMC will perform songs which have inspired people to work for equality and freedom for all. “Quiet No More” will celebrate the bravery of suffragettes, the dedication of blue and grey collar workers, the work of Harriet Tubman, and the peaceful protests of Martin Luther King, Jr. These songs of joy and humor will describe the perseverance of the many men and women who continue to advocate for the full acceptance of LGBT people in society. Get Tickets

[the_ad_group id=”12644″]

Believe – The Music of Cher

Modern Men Coachella Valley Men’s Chorus will be singing the music of Cher for two performances this weekend: Saturday, April 27 at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 28 at 3:00 p.m. at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. They will cover all six decades of her music, from “The Beat Goes On” and the music of Sonny & Cher up to her recent album of Abba music, “Dancing Queen.” Get Tickets

Dedication Ceremony for LGBTQ Veterans Memorial

The dedication ceremony for the new California LGBTQ Veterans Memorial (the first state memorial like this in the nation) will be held on Saturday, April 27 from 9:00–10:30 a.m. at Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City. The dedication is also a memorial wreath–laying ceremony to honor our LGBTQ war dead and deceased veterans. A number of state and local dignitaries will be speaking, the Desert Winds Freedom Band will perform, as well as a release of doves. More info

ShortFest Passes and 6-Packs on Sale Now

Celebrating its 25th year, the seven-day Palm Springs International ShortFest will take place June 18–24. This competitive film festival screens approximately 325 films from over 100 countries and offers a little something for everyone – from comedies to horror, documentaries, family films and everything in between! Passes and 6-Packs are on sale now, and here’s a quick overview of the schedule:

Tuesday, June 18 | Opening Night
Tuesday, June 18-Sunday June 23 | Film Screenings
Sunday, June 23 | Closing Night
Monday, June 24 | Best of Fest

*Full Schedule with descriptions will be available online on May 28th

The Hue Music and Arts Festival

It’s music festival season in the desert, and on Saturday, April 27 from 2:00–9:00 p.m. at Mecca Community Park, the Hue Music and Arts Festival is giving the Coachella Valley its best opportunity to see local musicians and artists perform live. The Hue, the annual youth-led and authentically Coachella Valley music and arts festival, will present a seven-hour lineup that includes rock, hip-hop, DJ artists and acoustic musicians. The event is the culmination of months of hard work by members of Alianza’s Youth Organizing Council (Y0-C!), a program helping area young people gain leadership and community organizing experience. More info

JUST ADDED: Christine Andreas at The Purple Room

The Purple Room presents Christine Andreas performing live on Saturday, April 7 at 6:00 p.m. On Broadway, she starred in the recent revival of La Cage aux Folles with Kelsey Grammer, and created the role of Marguerite St. Just in The Scarlet Pimpernel. She captured theatergoers hearts as Eliza Doolittle in the 20th anniversary production of My Fair Lady (Theatre World Award), Oklahoma! (Tony Nomination) and On Your Toes (Tony Nomination). National audiences remember her portrayal of Margaret Johnson in a much-acclaimed national tour of I. Get Tickets

WEEKEND THEATRE

Pageant: The Musical

The Desert Rose Playhouse presents Pageant: The Musical, with performances continuing through May 12. This side-splitting look at a beauty pageant in drag is a funny, wacky and ultimately endearing musical about the trials and tribulations of six contestants vying for the title of Miss Glamouresse. You’ll laugh and cheer as Miss West Coast, Miss Great Plains, Miss Industrial Northeast, Miss Bible Belt, Miss Texas and Miss Deep South (all in drag, of course) do their best to sing, dance and claw their way to the tiara. And every show has a unique twist, as actual audience members decide who wins. Get Tickets

The Diary of Anne Frank

Palm Canyon Theatre presents The Diary of Anne Frank from April 25–28. Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett’s play is based on the true story of a young Jewish girl who kept a diary of her time hiding from the Nazis in an attic of her father’s office during World War II. Get tickets

At Studio One 11 in Cathedral City, Happy Hour is every day from 2:00–8:00 p.m. This welcoming cocktail lounge with a warm relaxed atmosphere is recently under new management and they have something going on every night of the week, from cabaret performances, to Karaoke, to their famously free fried chicken Wednesdays. On Fridays, come for the songs, energy, lights, and excitement of Bill Ramirez as he entertains you with pop and disco hits. Dancing encouraged!
Get Happy at Studio One 11

The RetroRoom Lounge is Palm Springs’ fun gay bar featuring an intimate atmosphere of a bygone era reminiscent of the rat pack days. Happy Hour is daily ’til 7:00 p.m. with classic handcrafted cocktails prepared the way Dean Martin would have preferred. This fun karaoke bar features a Saturday night drag show as well, and come from 3:30–6:30 p.m. on Saturdays for Big Bitch Bingo with Diva, presenting her hilarious version of drag queen Bingo!
Get Happy at RetroRoom

Mary Pickford Theatre – D’Place Entertainment in Cathedral City is a State-of-the-art theater offering stadium or luxury VIP seating for the hottest first-run films. Offering the D-BOX Motion Chair Experience, Beer, Wine and good eats at their Cinema Cafe and more! With this HOT DEAL, enjoy $15 in Entertainment Dollars redeemable toward admission or refreshments for only $10! Get Your Deal

The original flavors created at Thai Smile provide a personal touch to every classic Thai dish. Whether you’re in the mood for salad, rice noodles, curry flavors, a vegetarian plate, or a specialty entrée, the options are infinite — there’s even a “create your own” section of the menu.. With this HOT DEAL, get 30% off by purchasing a $25 gift certificate for just $17.50! Get Your Deal