The tidal wave known as SF Pride drops this week. A bunch of insanity is about to unfold, so get ready to enjoy it all to the fullest with our 2010 Best of Pride picks.
Thursday, June 24
Good Vibrations always knows how to get people buzzing, and their Pride art show this year is no exception. The art opening and reception for "Sybaritic Cougars with Ecosexual Tendencies" by artistsAnnie Sprinkle and Beth Stephens is a retrospective of multimedia artworks at their Polk Street Gallery. The collection spans three decades of exploration and sex- positive feminist activism, so come ready to enjoy refreshments and the artists themselves.
Friday, June 25
Join the Academy of Friends at the second annual T-Dance Under the Dome at Westfield San Francisco Centre. Cocktails, nibbles and more Gaga than you can shake a glow stick at, thanks to sponsors ClearChannel and yours truly (7x7).
Hosted by the professional movers and shakers of dot429 , this is Pride weekend's most sophisticated grown-up affair. Mingle with the smart people at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
Ladies, dress to impress at Tease, a twofer all-girl fête at Suite 181, produced in conjunction with the party people who bring you Flourish. It’s the women’s Pride event, with six DJs and “celesbian” guests.
Saturday, June 26
Whether high femme, stone butch, baby dyke or boi, lesbians of all stripes hit the Dyke March, which kicks off with a rally at Dolores Park at 3 p.m. Now 17 years old, it draws crowds 50,000 strong to DP. Dykes on Bikes ride at 7 p.m. Come nightfall, it all retreats indoors to the Rickshaw Stop for COCKBLOCK's Dyke March Afterparty, where you can shake it to 90s, hip hop, 80s and soul while ogling beautiful go-go girls galore.
Celebrate “Pink Saturday” at Trigger’s Cirque du So Pink, a cabaret-style spectacular featuring showgirls, go-go boys and acrobats spinning to beats by DJ CLAKSAARB. Wear pink or perish from lameness.
Sunday, June 27
Get ready to scream when the reunited Backstreet Boys (minus Kevin, sob!) take the mainstage in front of City Hall for a delicious set of boy band-a-riffic hits. The rest of the day's lineup, spanning four decades of music, includes Rose Royce (of "Car Wash" fame), Martha Davis and the Motels, and Andy Bell from Erasure. What a way to celebrate being 40 and fabulous.
It wouldn’t be Pride without the Parade, which rolls down Market Street from Beale to Eighth streets starting at 10:30 a.m. The 40th anniversary extravaganza will feature community grand marshals from decades past.
Live it up at Juanita MORE's annual anyone-welcome, anything goes, must-go-once-in-a-lifetime Pride par-tay, celebrating its first year at Kelly's Mission Rock Cafe. Benefits BAY Positives, for youth with HIV.
Tuesday, June 29
After things have quieted down a bit, KQED is honoring local advocates in the LGBT community at their LGBT Local Hero Awards Ceremony at Castro Theatre. After the awards, catch a free screening of KQED's award-winning documentary The Castro, which chronicles how a quiet corner in the heart of San Francisco became an international symbol for the gay rights movement.
