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N.Y. Scene July 2011: NewFest, McQueen at The Met, Invasion of the Pines, Diva on the Shore and Pop Up Chapels in Central Park

N.Y. Scene is a monthly column that chronicles events of interest for lesbian and bi women in New York. Grace Chu has come out of lesbian scene retirement to navigate the vast and ever-evolving New York City scene, so you don’t have to.

Invasion of the Pines – Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines, NY – July 4th, 2011

Sometimes you accidentally end up on Fire Island. I must be accident prone, because over 4th of July weekend, I managed to make yet another unintentional trip to the gay friendly sandbar off the coast of Long Island. It happens. Again, I locked myself in my apartment to catch up on work when a friend announced on Facebook that she had an available bed on Fire Island, and ten minutes later, I was throwing clothes into a suitcase and racing off to Penn Station as if someone had announced that the zombie apocalypse* had arrived. I mean, the undead would never suspect that anyone would build a thriving community on a frakkin’ sandbar – it’s so inconspicuously tucked away that the rotting bastards wouldn’t even be alerted to its existence. Of course, nothing of the sort happened on 4th of July, but it is good to know that if zombies attack, the gays will survive.

And lo and behold! There was a legitimate event on the island this time around, so I didn’t even have to make an excuse to include the journey in this column. First, some history.

In 1976, a drag queen named Terry Warren sat down in a restaurant in the hoity toity gay village of Fire Island Pines and was denied service. The Pines was affluent and conservative. It was hip to be square, not to be a queen with mile high hair. Stung, Warren traveled back to the more welcoming village of Cherry Grove, located just a few minutes from The Pines.

There are two gay villages in Fire Island: Fire Island Pines and Cherry Grove. In 1976, the Grove was more working class, and more flamboyant, campier, kitschier, more diverse. In some ways, the divide still exists, though nowadays, there is more of a gender than a class divide, with the Grove attracting lesbians and the Pines attracting gay men. Back then, the more reserved denizens of The Pines considered The Grove to be lowbrow and declassé. Word spread in The Grove about Warren’s humiliating experience at The Pines, and on July 4th, a group of ten or so drag queens, led by Cherry Grove’s homecoming queen, Panzi (née Thom Hansen), boarded a water taxi to invade the restaurant that had so rudely voted her off the island.

The group was met with disbelief, shock, and then, surprisingly, fanfare. What started out as a spontaneous protest by a few outraged drag queens 35 years ago has grown into an annual celebration, with hundreds of drag queens boarding the multilevel Fire Island Ferry at The Grove to “invade” The Pines every 4th of July. Revelers lined the boardwalks and pier and cheered as the parade of drag queens sashayed by to board the ferry.

Herding drag queens, much like herding lesbians, is like herding cats. Quite a few of the drag queens broke rank, twirled into the crowd of spectators, and vogued for anyone and everyone with a camera. The original instigator of the Invasion, Panzi, was still the mistress of ceremonies, and as the clock ticked, she bellowed orders exasperatedly from a massive bullhorn. Focus! Focus! Eyes on the prize! The sooner you storm the Pines, the sooner you can have cocktails! Warfare is serious business, after all.

Eventually, all the ladies scrambled onto the Ferry and bid adieu to The Grove.

A few minutes later, the ferry pulled up to The Pines. Since I wasn’t able to be two places at once, here are some photos and a brief report of the Invasion, Pines side, from Jess of Autostraddle. Take it away, Jess!

While a normal summer day at the Grove is mostly comprised of lezzies and their sweet gay boyfriends, the Pines is a sweaty meat locker of Chelsea boys ready to dance in the tiniest, tightest thong they could afford. The atmosphere at the Pines on Fourth of July is no different, but pack in a few hundred gawkers and you get the picture. The perimeter of the pier was already lined with people by noon and waited patiently for another two and a half hours until the ferry full of queens arrived in all their glory.

We paid $20 a piece for a better view from the dance club upstairs and it was here that I learned of Lance Bass‘ presence in the special VIP area several few feet away. The ferry arrived at 3 p.m. sharp and what followed was one of the most hilarious displays of creativity I’ve seen in some time. One by one, each drag queen descended from the ferry and sashayed down the runway as they were introduced by Panzi. I eventually made my way downstairs to get a closer look at the action. Some of my favorite costumes included the Mona Lisa and Elphaba from Wicked (below). The ceremony lasted about an hour and the boys partied at the clubs well into the morning before retreating back to their natural Chelsea habitat.

* Yes, the link to the zombie apocalypse preparedness guide is from the official government website for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Even bureaucrats have a sense of humor.

Diva on the Shore – Asbury Park, NJ – July 15-17, 2011

Every summer, thousands of women descend upon the Jersey Shore to play a little bit of dodgeball and drink a lot more than a little bit of cocktails. Diva on the Shore — or as I like to call it, “Dinah Jersey Shore” — is held twice every summer in Asbury Park, which was recently revitalized into a gay friendly beach community just a little over an hour from New York City.

Each time, there is a beach bar kickoff on Friday, then a dodgeball tournament on Saturday, and then a post-tournament bash called the Glow Party. Twenty-four teams participated in the July Diva tournament, including teams sponsored by Olivia Cruises and The Stonewall Inn. While I would have loved to follow around every team in the event, I chose to follow the team with the best t-shirt design, Team Ilegal Mezcal.

Ilegal Mezcal is a small batch artisanal mezcal distilled in Oaxaca, Mexico. Mezcal is similar to the more well-known agave based liquor, tequila, but whereas tequila distillers generally steam the agave before fermentation, mezcal distillers slow-roast the agave in oven-like pits lined with hot rocks. This process gives the spirit its signature earthy and smoky flavor. The result is a smoother, less acrid and less tinny liquor that warms rather than burns. Basically, you can drink it straight from the bottle, and you don’t even need a chaser.

Why the humping bunnies? Said Public Relations and Marketing guru at Ilegal Mezcal, Kaylan Rexer, “In Aztec times total drunkenness was known as ‘400 rabbits,’ and people dont f— like, say, goats. They f— like rabbits.” After hearing this explanation, I demanded a t-shirt immediately.

Here are a few of the 400 rabbits affiliated with team Ilegal, including the team mascot, Judy. Team Ilegal was comprised of two teams assembled by team captain Lynn Dukette. As she explained, the two teams were as follows: the dodgeball team and the cheerleading squad/drinking team.

Before the tournament, the national anthem started blaring over the loudspeakers, but unfortunately, Britney Spears was too busy to make it down to Diva to regale us. Never fear – Kiri grabbed a bullhorn and did the job better than Ms. Spears ever could – and without autotune! Team Ilegal not only had the best t-shirts, they were also the most patriotic and least tone deaf.

Next came the actual game.

Unfortunately, Team Mezcal was thumped by a team with airbrushed t-shirts. Not even a sweet t-shirt design, perfect pitch, and a love of America could save them, and they were eliminated in the first round.

Losing the in the first round was a blessing in disguise, because Team Mezcal was first to arrive at the swimming pool, and much like the Pilgrims arriving at Plymouth Rock, they claimed the territory as their own. And of course, what is the first thing you do when you conquer a new land? Pass along the traditions from the Old Country — or in this case, the Asbury Park beach just a few minutes ago. And since tossing balls around was the national sport of the motherland, Team Mezcal continued to throw more balls at each other.

Then it was time for the Glow Party.

Ahoy. Look at these ladies in the moonlight. The one on the right is Yi Zhang of Geoff Merritt Salon, out Manhattan-based hairstylist. If you are in NYC, get your hair did by her immediately! She’ll listen to all of your lesbian drama without rolling her eyes and give you a fabulous do without breaking the bank.

The next Diva on the Shore will be held the last weekend of August. Gird your loins, your biceps and your livers, and click here for more details.

Savage Beauty Exhibit / Alexander McQueen at the Met, Post NYC Pride Party, July 20, 2011

Functionally impossible, flamboyant and often grotesque, Alexander McQueen‘s creations never fail to make a spectacle. From May 4th to August 7th, The Metropolitan Museum of Art hosted an exhibition of the late designer’s works, from his Central Saint Martins postgraduate collection of 1992 to his final collection, unveiled posthumously in Paris in March of 2010. While the line to the exhibit normally moved slower than the drive to the Fire Island ferry on Friday evenings, on July 20th The Met invited a few select LGBT organizations to a post Pride private viewing of the exhibit. As the wine flowed, so did the traffic to view the 100 or so exquisite pieces upstairs.

One of the organizations which were invited to the private viewing was OP.Prime, Out Professionals’ group for young professionals, which holds regular networking and cultural events in the city. One of the more recognizable collections in the exhibit was McQueen’s Plato’s Atlantis line, which was unveiled in Paris in Fall of 2009. Lady Gaga debuted her single “Bad Romance” during the runway show, and her wardrobe in the “Bad Romance” music video consisted of pieces from the collection, including the ridiculously high armadillo head stilettos seen below.

While the exhibit is over, you can still see some of the breathtaking pieces on The Met’s website.

Wish Me Away @ Newfest, NYC’s LGBT Film Festival, July 21-28th, 2011

On July 22, Wish Me Away, a documentary about singer Chely Wright‘s struggle to come to terms with her sexuality in the country music world (an industry that is generally unwelcome to artists who do not adhere to the values of the Bible Belt, at least publicly) debuted at Newfest. If the Dixie Chicks were boycotted for a brief side comment that painted Dubya in a negative light, how could a best selling country singer come out as — gasp — a lesbian and hold onto her friends, associates, and career?

The film follows, among other things, her meticulously coordinated public coming out. Her team of supporters include her spiritual advisor, who warned her, “There’s nobody quite as mean as people being mean for Jesus.” Even working with avowed liberals in New York was no walk in the park. Her book editor, Victoria Wilson, an old school feminist, chastised her for wearing revealing clothes in her promotional materials, accusing her of playing to a straight male audience. Tearing up and cursing up a storm in her video diary, Wright insisted that being gay does not mean one cannot be feminine and mainstream-sexy. No offense Victoria, but Ms. Wright was clearly in the right.

Wish Me Away premiered to a packed house, and a lively question and answer session followed, in which Wright relayed the hardships she experienced post-coming out. Even country stars who went on record stating they loved their gays fans gave her the cold shoulder. She mentioned Mary Chapin Carpenter as one of the few artists who gave her support and encouragement.

For more information about the film, including upcoming screenings, check out the official site at www.wishmeawaydoc.com.

Pop Up Chapel, July 30, 2011 – Central Park

On July 30, two temporary chapels were built in Central Park near Columbus Circle. Twenty-four same-sex couples were married free of charge to commemorate the passage of marriage equality in New York, including this totally adorbs couple below.

Check out the full gallery in Time Out New York.

July was a busy month, and in August, there will be more reports from the city as well as the Jersey Shore, because we keep it classy on AfterEllen.com.

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