Sleigh bells ring, are you drinking?By Molly Freedenberg
Oh, it sure is party season. How do I know? The costumes and formalwear strewn across my floor, the open bottle of hangover-fighting Vitamin B on my nightstand, and the sense of anticipation I get just looking at the calendar. Now, I know San Francisco is a party town, and there's really no season that isn't chock full of events worth attending. So what makes this one special? Its my favorite party season. I love the rain and the cold. I love Christmas in all of the ways it's taken seriously (Dickens Fair) and not so seriously (Santacon).
All Santa wants for Christmas is a mashup party! Bootie SF on Dec. 13 is the official post-Santacon event again this year.
Now, I have friends who would argue that party season officially started with Burning Man. But as far as I'm concerned, it started last Friday night with a fete at the Ambassador hosted by Hendrick's gin (open bar! ouch.) and Nerve.com. Not only was this schizophrenically-themed 20s/30s/Edwardian/Victorian party was hosted in the perfect venue, and not only did almost every guest actually dress up (bonus points for the fact that I knew only a handful of the fedora-ed attendees), and not only were the cocktails so tasty that they pleased even this gin-skeptic, but the performances were fantastic.
Miss Kitten on the Keys, a regular at Hubba Hubba Revue, was the right combination of bubbly and bawdy. Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey took Acrobalancing and burlesque to a place that was both funny and sexy. The two stripping chanteuses dazzled with voices, costumes, and choreography. And I'm not sure what to say about the blonde bombshell who lost her clothes and gained a giant martini glass chair except that I've never seen such a professional burlesque dancer up close.
The lovely Trixxie Carr, pretty in purple (with some guy) at Bootie SF on Nov. 22, will make an apperance at the Lusty Lady Holidy Party on Dec.9. Photo by Tim Farris.
I barely sobered up in time to stop by the next night's Bootie SF, an always fabulous party (which my dance troupe, the Cheese Puffs, happened to perform at) that featured an all-request set by live mashup band Smashup Derby. I'd be hard pressed to find a more generous, fun-loving crowd than Bootie, or more impressive and lovable hosts than Adrian, Mysterious D, and Trixxie Carr. Next up was the Black Rock Arts Foundation fundraiser at the Bentley Reserve, where we managed to miss all the entertainment but not the gorgeous setting and even more gorgeous crowd (plus, beds? how can you go wrong?). And Sunday saw the burner beourgeoisie headed to Supperclub (beds again! The weekend’s theme?) for the Five & Diamond anniversary party, a beautiful and celebratory affair featuring pretty clothes and even prettier people.
It took nearly 'til Thanksgiving to recover from all that beauty (OK, and booze), but I think I'm ready for what's coming up in the next few weeks. If my health and hangover remedies cooperate, I'll be attending a good portion of the following:
THURSDAY, DEC. 4
Visual Vaudeville & Built Burlesque
6pm, free
Brava Theater
2789 24th St., SF
pandorastrunk.com
Brava Theater and Pandora’s Trunk (the art/fashion collective on Lower Haight co-founded by designer Miranda Caroligne) take over the enormous and gorgeous vaudeville theater to fill it with music, burlesque, a narrative fashion presentation, and an indie craft and design show. Featured designers include Bad Unkl Sista, Miss Velvet Cream, Medium Reality, and Ghetto Goldilocks. Sure to be a good time, helped along by Patz & Hall wine and Lagunitas beer.
Pirate Cat Radio Benefit Debacle!
9pm, $7 donation to Pirate Cat Radio
Fat City
314 11th St., SF
I don’t know much about Pirate Cat Radio, but I do know about Hubba Hubba Revue – and if those crazy burlesqueteers are involved (which they are!), you know you’re in for a good time. The evening features live burlesque and performances by The Yes Go’s, Stigma 13, and October Allied.
FRIDAY, DEC.5
Fluevog Holiday Event
3-8pm, free
John Fluevog Shoes
1697 Haight, SF
RSVP to sanfrancisco@fluevog.com
Fluevogs are my favorite shoes I don’t own. I can pretty much guarantee that if I’m coveting someone’s footwear, the boots or pumps in question were purchased from the Vancouver-based designer’s collection. So in an act of masochistic torture, I’m heading to the SF store’s holiday event, featuring refreshments, flue-nog, shoe signing, a celebration of Open Source Footwear winner Samantha Zaza, and a chance to drool on the shoes of Mr. Fluevog himself. And if I find a couple of hundred dollar bills on the sidewalk on my way there, I’m totally buying myself something from the new spring offerings.
Repeal Prohibition Parade
4pm, free
Justin Herman Plaza
1 Market, SF
twitter.com/21stamendment
Sobriety should be a choice, not a mandate. So said our government 75 years ago when it repealed prohibition. Revelers all over town will raise a drink (or 20) to that historic decision on Friday, with perhaps the most visible party starting at Justin Herman Plaza. Dress in your ‘30s best and follow the crowd to 21st Amendment Brewery.
SATURDAY, DEC. 6
SF Bay Bombers vs. Brooklyn Red Devils
8pm
Alameda High School Gym, Alameda
(510) 636-9300
www.arsdbombers.com
Roller derby rocks. And the Bombers have been doing it for the Bay Area for decades. Check out the 2007 World Champions (us!) as they face their longtime rivals. Plus, Santa will be there!
SATURDAY-SUNDAY, DEC.6-7
Mission Bazaar
Sat., 10am-6pm; Sun., 11am-6pm; $5
The Armory Community Center
333 14th St., SF
www.missionbazaar.com
Vibrant local artisans showing their wares and performers displaying their talents in the massive former training ground for the National Guard.
SUNDAY, DEC. 7
Winterfest 2008
6-10:30pm, $15-$40
SOMArts Cultural Center
934 Brannan, SF
(415) 431-2453
www.sfbike.org
I’ve never been, but my roommate swears this is her favorite holiday party and fundraiser of the year – and she’s awesome, so she must know. Join more than 1,000 participants, sponsors, artists, and fans for this rager thrown by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and lubricated by New Belgium Brewery’s finest beers. This year, I’m gonna make it. I swear.
TUESDAY, DEC. 9
Lusty Lady Holiday Party
8pm-3am, $7 general, $10 VIP.
DNA Lounge
375 11th St., SF
www.lustyladysf.com
What’s hotter than unionized strippers getting’ naked at a worker-owned co-op? The holiday party those progressive-minded darlings throw every year to fund fixing up that co-op. Princess Pandora (who also happens to be a beloved Guardian employee) hosts, Kingfish of Hubba Hubba Revue fame MCs, and all kinds of talented folks perform, including Cowboy Perverts, Horror X, Might Slim Pickins, Trixxie Carr, Kitten on the Keys, and the (almost) all Lusty band The Coin Slots. Plus plenty of debaucherous, lascivious fun and games.
FRIDAY, DEC, 12
Sex with No Hands at the SantaCon Pre-Party
9pm, $7
Rockit Room
406 Clement, SF
(415) 387-6343
I first saw Sex with No Hands at last year’s Santacon, where they covered Journey and Bon Jovi songs with polka pleasure. Now we all get to see a full set from the accordion-tastic party band as an official kickoff to the next day’s activites. Which leads me to …
SATURDAY, DEC. 13
Santacon
Free
Check santarchy.com or sanfranciscosantarchy.wordpress.com/2008 for details
Quite possibly my favorite party/event/flashmob in this city or any other, this Cacophony Society favorite features hundreds of people dressed as Santa Claus as they barhop, sing naughty carols, and generally defile the image of Santa for no apparent reason. (If you want to feel better about it, you can say it's to call attention to the commercialism and meaningless symbology of Christmas. But I say it's about drinking whiskey in public.) Just remember the 4 Fs: 1. Don't fuck with Kids. 2. Don't fuck with Cops. 3. Don't fuck with Security. 4. Don't fuck with Santa.
Bootie SF co-founder Adrian showing off this rounds' CD giveaway: A Very Bootie Christmas.
Bootie SF Holiday Party
9pm-late, $12; half price before 10pm
DNA Lounge
375 11th St., SF
www.bootiesf.com
If I’m still awake by then, I’m stumbling over from Santacon to DNA in my Santa suit to catch the special holiday set by Smash-up Derby, a performance of “Dick in a Box!” by Steven Satyricon and Fudgie Frottage, and an all-Christmas mashup DJ set by Adrian. It's the official Santacon after-party, so come catch all the drunk crazies even if you decide not to join 'em.
SATURDAY-SUNDAY, DEC. 13-14
Five&Diamond Holiday Bazaar
1-8pm, free
Five & Diamond Loft
2973 16th St., SF
www.fiveanddiamond.com
In the realm of things-I-love-that-I-can’t-afford (a la Fluevog shoes) is Five & Diamond, the Mission purveyor of all things gorgeous/circus/deconstructed leather/steampunk/badass. But wait! Maybe I can afford something after all! The owners and their collective of artists are hosting a holiday sale in their loft, featuring samples, one-of-a-kind pieces, special deals, DJs, wine, and food. Maybe I’ll save one of those bills I find on the way to the Fluevog party…
SUNDAY, DEC. 14
EcoHoliday SF
11:11am-8:08pm, free
Galleria SF Design Center
101 Henry Adams, SF
www.ecoholidaysf.com
It’s glorious! Shop local in a spectacular four-story atrium featuring 80 booths of green-leaning fashion, art, and more. The event also will feature live music and performances by Brass Menazeri, Shamanic Cheerleaders, DJ Neptune, and more.
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