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N.Y. Scene Nov. 2010: “Real L Word” cast at Stonewall, Emery Awards, Stonewall vet Storme DeLarverie update and more!

N.Y. Scene is a monthly column that chronicles lesbian nightlife and events of interest 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.

Emery Awards Red Carpet and Apres Party, November 9th, Cipriani Wall Street, 11.9.10

The Hetrick Martin Institute, a non profit that serves the needs of LGBT youth, held its annual Emery Awards fundraiser at Cipriani Wall Street on Tuesday, Nov. 9. Hetrick Martin is home of the Harvey Milk School and provides after school programs and other support services to LGBT youth.

Here are a few of the celebs who strolled down the red carpet.

As with most fundraisers, the dinner and awards portion of the night was noticeably lesbian-sparse. It looked like a bourgeois penguin convention, but the ladies arrived fashionably late to the after party held on the mezzanine of Cipriani.

Lookin’ good, ladies.

Comedy Night @ The Stonewall Inn featuring Rose and Stamie from The Real L Word, 11.13.10

On Saturday, Nov. 13, Rose Garcia and Stamie Karakasidis of The Real L Word hosted a sold out comedy show at The Stonewall Inn. The venue was at capacity. It was as if someone had run into Barnard College with a bullhorn and screamed “FREE BEER AND FOUR LOKOS!” and then bused everyone down the West Side Highway to 53 Christopher Street.

You think Barnard in Morningside Heights is far from the West Village? Ticket sales revealed that people had traveled to the show from as far away as Indiana and North Carolina.

Local comics Poppi Kramer, Jessie Richardson and Claudia Cogan also performed for the raucous crowd. Rose and Stamie are planning to come back to New York City, along with a few more cast members of the Real L Word crew in a few months. Stay tuned.

For more, read the recap on Autostraddle.

Happy Hour @ the Union Square Lounge, 11.17.10

There is a new happy hour for ladies on Wednesday evenings. From 7:30 to 10:00pm, one can sip $4 proseccos in the Union Square Lounge before Maggie C‘s Crème de la Femme, otherwise known as Eden 2.0.

If a girl goes to happy hour before Crème de la Femme, it means one of two things. It could mean that she is gainfully employed; instead of staying up late, she is opting for an early drink so she can make it to work looking and feeling fresh. Then again, it could also mean that she doesn’t have a job, so she is taking advantage of the happy hour drink deal to drink away her sorrows before the full price drinks kick in at 10 p.m.

So, basically, she’s either employed or unemployed. Life’s a crapshoot, but the $4 proseccos — and Voli Vodka specials – from 7:30 to 10:00pm at the Union Square Lounge are certain, so drink up!

Proposition’s Goldstar @ Gstaad Lounge, 11.18.10

Proposition may be on hiatus until January, but the ladies of Prop resurrected their Thursday night party Goldstar for one night at a snazzy new venue, Gstaad Lounge in Chelsea.

DJ Mel spun energetic tracks all night. Lesbians are particularly skilled in finding things to complain about, and at any lesbian lounge or dance night, someone inevitably complains about the music, because complaining about the music is a little known but essential part of lesbian culture. For once, though, the crowd forgot that they were lesbians and decided that the music actually kind of rocked. Good job, DJ Mel. Cheers!

What’s next for Prop? On December 18th, Prop and L.A.’s Fuse Events will join forces again and inflict another round of Truck Stop madness on our fair city. Lap dance, anyone? Better invest in a hazmat suit.

Storme DeLarverie Tribute and Benefit @ Henrietta Hudson, 11.21.10

In July, I interviewed lesbian Stonewall veteran Storme DeLarverie, who had been placed in a greying nursing home in Brooklyn after being diagnosed with dementia. Since then, Henrietta Hudson owner Lisa Cannistraci has successfully petitioned for legal guardianship of DeLarverie and moved her to nicer digs. DeLarverie now resides at the Cabs Nursing Home at 270 Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn. A much more modern facility than the previous nursing home, Cabs is also home to an old friend of DeLarverie’s and allows her to leave and engage with the outside world.

Now 89, DeLarverie worked the door at Henrietta Hudson until she was 85 years old, so the venue was a fitting place to hold a benefit and tribute in her honor. DeLarverie sat on stage as drag performances took place next to her and a crowd of ladies mingled in the main room and back room. She appears to be in better spirits than when I saw her in July.

Women of all ages were present, including 20 and 30 somethings, which gives me hope that the actions of this remarkable woman will continue to be recognized in the LGBT community for a long time to come.

Fourth Annual Thanksgiving Eve Bash @ Union Square Ballroom, 11.24.10

What’s the best way to prepare for a weekend of gluttony? Pride and lust, of course.

Union Square was mobbed by throngs of women twice Thanksgiving weekend – first for Maggie C‘s annual Thanksgiving Eve bash and then for Black Friday, but judging from the photos, it looks like more women descended upon the Union Square Ballroom for the Thanksgiving Eve bash than Black Friday at DSW. An impressive feat indeed.

According to my Facebook news feed, which is the source of all things lesbian scene related, the party was epic.

Poppi, why so elated? Did you get some nookie?

But wait, there’s more:

  • DJ Whitney Day played her last gig at Stiletto this past weekend before leaving for South America, where she will be deejaying around the continent for six months. A staple in both the lesbian party scene and the gay party scene in New York and Boston, she will be missed. Check out her exclusive mix for No Labelz Magazine.
  • There was a confirmed Evan Rachel Wood sighting at Tuesday night girl party Snapshot on November 9th. Don’t get your hopes up, ladies. She was there “for other reasons,” but she sure plays one hell of a hot lesbian vampire on television.
  • Ok everyone, stop what you’re doing. Stop Googling for photos of Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis making out. Stop refreshing your Facebook page to see whether the girl you have a crush on wrote on your wall. Stop scouring the Food Network website for holiday recipes by Cat Cora. Stop breathing. Just stop. Now, pay attention. Maggie C, Miami-based Pandora Events, and GO Magazine have released more details about the women’s week to be held at the W retreat and Spa on Vieques Island in Puerto Rico next year. First, the retreat now has a name: Valhalla. Said Maggie C to AfterEllen, Valhalla is “a place where heroes go to die when fighting for an ideal. [The name of the event was] also inspired by a lesbian themed novel from the 1930’s called Torchlight to Valhalla.” The retreat will take place from October 19 to 23 in 2011. Worried about the cost? “The rates at the W will be extremely reasonable,” said Maggie C. “We’ll be offering various packages to fit budges of all ranges.” Plus, Puerto Rico is only a three and a half hour plane ride from NYC. To put things in perspective, it is a six hour drive to Provincetown, and Provincetown doesn’t look like this:

So who’s amped for Puerto Rico?

Until next month! Be good. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.

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