Every year, San Francisco's Latina drag sensation -- Juanita More -- throws one of the most amazing parties in the city over Pride Weekend. In fact, it's consistently the best party I've ever been to -- each year just keeps getting better! This year's fiesta was *ridiculous*! Jackson, Mitchel, Danny, Kara, and two of Jackson's friends visiting from Boston arrived at the Hotel Phoenix around 2:45 PM. We didn't get in until 4:00 PM, but the party was WELL worth the wait.

The Phoenix is an 50s-style hotel, with two floors of rooms whose open-air entrances all face a courtyard in the middle with a large pool. By 5 o'clock, the place was packed with queers of all shapes and sizes. And that's what truly makes this party great -- no queer left unrepresented. There's trannies, hipsters, muscle queens, fags, lesbians, bears, drag queens -- you name a kind of queer, they were there. It's really pretty amazing, and it unfortunately almost never happens. It really feels almost mythical -- like something out a movie made about the lavish parties in 1950s Hollywood.

Usually Juanita books a few drag queens to perform poolside once the sun begins to set, but this year More booked a SPECTACULAR show featuring back-to-back performances from burlesque troops Harlem Shake (featuring Allota Boutté) and the Diamond Daggers. Fat burlesque has become quite a movement over the past decade or so, particularly here in San Francisco. Click here to watch a video on the topic produced by the National Sexuality Resource Center featuring my friend Cookie (pictured in the pool below) and Allota Boutté from Harlem Shake. I'll post a video I shot of Harlem Shake performing at the party soon -- it's taking forever to convert!

But what really blew the audience away was an AMAZING performance from the Cougar Cadet Corps from Alameda, CA. The Cougars -- from Chipman Middle School -- are "an after school program designed to teach respect and discipline through marching, drumbeats and dance/step routines." These youngsters turned it *out* and had the crowd going fucking nuts. I shot this video of a piece of their lengthy and wonderful performance. Apologies for the shaky camera work - but I was having trouble standing still without dancing! They were SO GOOD!

SF Cougar Cadet Corps @ Juanita More's Pride Party

Fuck they're amazing. If you have a chance to see them (they travel all over the place), definitely make it a point to do so!

Here are some more photos from the party! It was so much fun!

All the gang looking lovely!