December 11, 2019

Gay Desert Guide Weekend: Mar 8–10, 2019

by Jonathan Dooley

Let us be your Gay Desert Guide to the Weekend!

March 8–10, 2019

This weekend in #ILoveGayPalmSprings: The BNP Paribas Open is in full swing (get it?) and if you’re feeling more artistic than sporty, we have two big festivals running through the weekend: Palm Springs Dance Festival and the La Quinta Arts Festival! The very popular and sold-out Red Dress/Dress Red party takes place to benefit The Center, and we have great theatre options this week: The View UpStairs, Hairspray, White Guy on the Bus, and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Plus, check out our Happy Hour highlights and HOT DEALS!

BNP Paribas Open

The BNP Paribas Open is the largest international tennis tournament outside of the four Grand Slams, and it kicks off this week at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. It runs from Monday, March 4 through Sunday March 17 and fans from far and wide are here to take in the top-notch tennis. Enjoy the show in Stadiums 2-9 with a Grounds Pass for as little as $20 or watch some of the best athletes in the world up close from a Box Seat in Stadium 1. Treat yourself to the full Tennis Paradise experience with a Daily Double ticket and stay into the evening. Get tickets

La Quinta Arts Festival

Ranked #1 Fine Art & Craft Festival in the Nation in 2018, the 37th La Quinta Arts Festival will be held Thursday, March 7 through Sunday, March 10 on the spectacular grounds of the La Quinta Civic Center Campus, The mountain backdrop, lush green lawns, and fountain lakes create a magnificent outdoor gallery extolled by Art Fair Sourcebook as, “The most stunning festival site in the country.” Hosting 220 of the foremost contemporary artists in the nation, this four-day event is a cultural experience with amenities that include daily music, performance art, and trendy food, wine and beer concessions. More info

Palm Springs Dance Festival

Now in its 3rd year, The Palm Springs Dance Festival will take place Thursday, March 7, through Sunday March 10. The Festival uses the talents and diverse styles of both US-based and international professional dance companies in residence during the Festival the professional Gala Night performance on Saturday, March 9. Festival programming also includes a master class series, a 2-day dance intensive training workshop, free public performances, “Dance on Film”, a mini film series held at the Palm Springs Cultural Center, and two different social events to mix and mingle with the dance community. Get Tickets

Red Dress/Dress Red Party This Weekend

The LGBT Center of the Desert presents their annual Red Dress/Dress Red Party on Saturday, March 9 at the Palm Springs Air Museum. These hot tickets sold out as soon as they were available, but we were happy to give away a free pair of tickets to one lucky winner who entered to win after following us on Facebook! Tickets required for entry, please be sure to download or print your tickets. We will have fun pics from the event to share with you soon!

 

Theatre Roundup

This weekend is your last chance to see the musical comedy The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, and the provocative White Guy on the Bus, and we have we two new shows opening: Hairspray and The View UpStairs. Get tickets now!

The Desert Rose Playhouse presents The View UpStairs by Max Vernon from Friday, March 8 through Sunday March 31. This poignant new musical pulls you inside the UpStairs Lounge, a vibrant ’70s gay bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans. This forgotten community comes to life in all its gritty, glam rock glory when a young fashion designer from 2017 buys the abandoned space, setting off an exhilarating journey of seduction and self-exploration that spans two generations of queer history. Get Tickets

 

Desert Theatreworks presents Hairspray the Big Fat Broadway Musical, from Friday, March 8 through Sunday March 24 at the Indio Performing Arts Center. Set in 1960s Baltimore, this Broadway smash musical tells the story of lovable plus-sized teen Tracy Turnblad, a misfit who becomes a local celebrity by dancing on TV’s Corny Collins Show, and whose passion for justice transforms her into an unlikely heroine, triumphing over both snotty teen queens and racial segregation. Get tickets

 

Dezart Performs presents White Guy on the Bus, a new drama by Bruce Graham at the Pearl McManus Theater, opening Friday March 1 and running through Sunday March 10. — Week after week, a wealthy white businessman rides the same bus, befriending a single black mom. As they get to know one another, their pasts unfold and tensions rise, igniting a disturbing and crucial exploration of race. Get tickets

Our theatre reviewer Stephen Radosh calls White Guy on the Bus “Provocative theater at its best.” Read on to discover which scene sent shivers down his spine! >>>

 

Palm Canyon Theatre presents The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, running through Sunday, March 10. This hit musical comedy features Miss Mona, in charge of The Chicken Ranch, a brothel located just outside the fictional town of Gilbert, Texas. Miss Mona and the local sheriff, Ed Earl Dodd, have a mutual agreement to co-exist, and things are pretty much as they have been for 58 years – until Melvin P. Thorpe, a Houston TV reporter and do-gooder, sets out to spoil everybody’s fun. Get tickets

 

 

NEXT WEEK

CVRep presents CHESS as the very first production in their newly-renovated home in Cathedral City (learn more), running from Wednesday, March 13 through Sunday March 31. This complex rock opera uses chess as a metaphor for romantic rivalries, competitive gamesmanship, super-power politics, and international intrigues. The pawns in this drama form a love triangle: the loutish American chess star, the earnest Russian champion, and a Hungarian American female assistant who arrives at the international chess match in Bangkok with the American, but falls for the Russian. Featuring a monumental rock score that includes “One Night in Bangkok” and “Heaven Help My Heart.” Get Tickets

Studio One 11, right at the border between Palm Springs and Cathedral City, prides itself on creating a relaxing and welcoming environment to meet friends for conversation, free popcorn, and a daily Happy Hour from 2:00–8:00 p.m.! This Sunday, March 10 join them for Sisters Bingo with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, or try Karaoke on Thursday and Saturday nights, or get this–free fried chicken on for their Chicken Mixer! Get Happy at Studio One 11

 

Blackbook Bar is a 2019 Desert Sun Best of the Valley winner for “Best Classic Cocktails,” and you can enjoy those classic cocktails at Happy Hour prices during their Cocktail Hour every day from 4:00–6:00 p.m. During these times you can enjoy specials such as $5 pint glass well drinks, $1 off all bottle and draft beer, and $2 off all wines by the glass! Get Happy at Blackbook

If gourmet ice cream is your thing, we’ve got you covered with this HOT DEAL: You get $20 of frozen treats for just $10 at Lappert’s Premium Gourmet Ice Cream, good at two locations: Downtown Palm Springs or off the Washington Street I-10 exit in Palm Desert! Lappert’s is not only the place for premium gourmet ice cream, you can also get a refreshing Dole Whip, or the always popular award-winning ‘date shake,’ plus shaved ice, smoothies, floats, sundaes, splits, and more!  Get Your Deal

 

At Boralis Skin Care, their goal is to ensure every client receives outstanding customer service, product education and superb treatments customized for your individual skin needs. Their complimentary Face Mapping skin analysis will address your skin concerns and a Professional Skin Therapist can prescribe the perfect product regimen just for you. With this HOT DEAL you get an hour massage ($100.00 value) OR the Boralis Skin Treatment ($85.00 value) for only $60.00!  Get Your Deal

 

Jonathan Dooley
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