Silver Anniversary of Dance 208

On Saturday 1/24, NYC celebrated the Silver Anniversary of The Center Dance (now known as Dance:208). It was 25 years of NYC Gay history...and twirling...and spinning...and fierce Drag... Manager & host Joe Fiore welcomed us as we listened to the three legendary DJs Bobby Viteritti, Carlos Sanchez & Ted Snowdon. It was an incredibly diverse crowd of over 300 dancers. Joe calls it, The Center's house party ("...and you're all invited!"). Two veteran volunteers (who still help out!) were honored: Robert Brightman with 25 years and Emily Verna with 19 years of service. Members of the Imperial Court of NY made announcements along with Center honchos Robert Woodworth, Orie Urami, Julia Noel Goldman and others. As the former & current dance committee chairs (including the first from 1984 Tom Verley) and volunteers, made it to the stage and blew out the candles on the anniversary cake to great applause...there was not a dry eye in the house. Over the year Dance:208 has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Center, and has always been a volunteer-run organization supported by the Center...so in the current atmosphere of community activism, this was a true milestone. The interviews were filmed for Out at The Center, seen on cable TV. SEEN: Joe Fiore, Rollerena, Lovari, David Aviles, Ector Simpson, Danny Brook, Rocco, DJ Reed McGowan, DJ Jerel Black, Jeff Eason, Pete Lau, Dustin Fitzharris, Krishna Stone, Phil Ventura, DJ Lenny Fontana, Brent Nicholson Earle, Dan Estella, Joe Mattera and others.

[Photos: Clover Honey with Lovari / with Rocco / posing / with Rollerina]

BINGO Between Love & Goodbye

It was time for another monthly Center BINGO, the most exciting and fabulous BINGO game in New York City. I enjoy being the hostess and number-caller and this month my guest host was Casper Andreas and two actors from his latest hit film, Between Love & Goodbye. I am also thrilled to have a small part in the film, and as a MAN! Yes, it was a stretch, and I always said you shouldn't limit yourself to one Gender! Actress Jane Elliott made an appearance and actor Justin Tensen, one of the two leads in the Gay dramatic love story. Justin is Hetero but I asked him about how he plays Gay characters in and Between Love & GoodbyeQueer As Folk. "Just my good-looks and charm gets me cast as Gay!" he said. I then announced that he was the first Straight guy to ever handle my balls! My - BINGO balls, that is!

[Photos: Clover Honey with Casper Andreas / Clover Honey with go-go models Mel and Tass]

Nextworks at Club H

There was a fun networking party called Next Works hosted by Next Magazine and The Men Event on Thursday, January 22 at the first class health club Club H Fitness. The party featured gift bags and an open bar sponsored by V2 Vodka, one of the smoothest Vodkas I ever had! I also loved the gorgeous bartenders! I had a marvelous time with then and the gorgeous and talented Recoding Artist Lovari, Next Magazine Editor Brian Moylan, Hugh Hysell of Men Event and Broadway Insider, Brandon Phillips from DishMiss, Anu, my girlfriend Cleo, and many others.

HX Mixer

You gotta Work it! It's all about connections and what better way to make them than at HX Mixers! We had a great time at January HX mixer at Barrage on January 29. The place was hopping with, as they said, hundreds of Polished professionals and the upwardly mobile all clamoring for connections. The DJ was David Serrano and the event was hosted by Derrik Todd. We had a blast with all our friends at HX including editor John Russell, Stephen Schulman, Gary Lacinski, Cat Hecht, recording artist Lovari and many others!

[Photos: HX editor John Russell snuggling abreast Clover Honey / Lovari and Clover Honey.]

Fresh Fruit PlayHouse

The Fresh Fruit Festival held its monthly showcase of unusually fruity acts called the Fresh Fruit PlayHouse at the famous East-Village hot-spot, the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, renowned for its Poetry Slams. It took place on January 14 and was a mix of Gay, Straight, Lesbian, Drag Queen, Drag King performers. The show hosted by yours truly included Drag Diva Appolonia Cruz, Drag King Stefan Royce, Sean and the Urban Spiritual band, Jasmine of Animus, Barnacle Bill, J. Michael Reeds and many others! Downtown has really rocked in the fruit juice that night!!



Photos: Appolonia Cruz and Clover Honey; Clove Honey and Lovari; Clover Honey and Jose from Bravo TV's America's Top Chef; Barnacle Bill, Clover Honey, Sean, Appolonia Cruz, Stefan Royce, Amy, Jasmine

Sexahol Review

It was time for another installment of the monthly cabaret series that celebrates sex, alcohol, and the earthly pleasures of life, Evan Laurence's Sexahol Review. Evan rounded up a superb cast or crazy cabaret, burlesque and drag performers and comedians and I was thrilled to be included. The decadent event took place on January 21 at the legendary Cabaret Showroom at Don't Tell Mama on restaurant row in Manhattan's theater district.

Center Bingo and Holiday Snow

It was time again for Center BINGO on December 19! I donned me now my Gay apparel and wore a sexy Santa's helper red mini dress with white fishnet stockings! My guest host and number-caller was my dear friend and Billboard Recording Artist Lovari. Lovari told everyone about his latest song, which is a collaboration with other artists promoting hate-crime and anti-Proposition 8 awareness called Free To Love. DJ and Filmmaker Wolfgang Busch played the song and other tracts written by Lovari including his smash hit I Feel You, which has been burning up the Radio airwaves and the trendiest nightclub dance-floors! The regular cast of Bingo supporters were also there, braving this season's first snow storm, including Church Lady, Bobbi, Danny, Rob, Mike, Bob and others! With the weather outside being frightful, I just borrowed the line from Cabaret and said "Outside it is Winter, but in here it is so hot, that we have to battle to keep the men from taking off all their clothes. So don't go away - tonight we may lose the battle!" After BINGO, me and Lovari went over to VLADA nightclub for the special Birthday party for Bravo network Project Runway designer Suede! I gave him his birthday spanking and he blew out all his candles. The DJ also played Free To Love and more of Lovari's popular music.

David Letterman Music at Birdland

December 15, was time for Jim Caruso's Cast Party! It was so much fun to add a little of my special kind of glitz and glamour to the famous party held at the legendary Birdland Jazz Nighclub! I loved meeting Paul Shaffer, the band leader from Late Night with David Letterman! Paul is also a songwriter and he treated us to hit song he wrote, It's Raining Men, recorded by the Weather Girls! I also love meeting the cast members from Altar Boys, Off-Broadway Musical hit again! Jim Caruso's Cast Party is a wildly popular weekly soiree that brings a sprinkling of Broadway glitz and urbane wit to the legendary Birdland in New York City every Monday night. It's a cool cabaret night-out enlivened by a hilariously impromptu variety show. Showbiz superstars hit the stage alongside up-and-comers, serving up jaw-dropping music and general razzle-dazzle.

Stonewall Democrats Holiday

This Holiday, we were dreaming of Equal Rights and Legal Same-Gender Marriage along with the traditional White Christmas! On Thursday, December 11 I made a special appearance at the annual Holiday Party held by the Stonewall Democrats NYC. Hundreds of supporters, Elected Officials and Political activists gathered in a large lofty room at The LGBT Community Center of NYC to spread Holiday cheer while we had some cocktails and indulged on the scrumptious dessert buffet. I reminded everyone that working for Equal Rights was a perfect way to burn off calories while we had our satisfied our sweet cravings. I can't think of a better way to celebrate the season than having a chocolate canolie while chatting with a Congressman! The mission of SDNYC is to advocate for legislation that guarantees equality and fairness for the LGBT community in New York City, and to support openly LGBT and Gay-friendly candidates for greater representation in the political process. Attending were Congress Member Carolyn Maloney, NYC Comptroller Bill Thompson, NY City Council Members Alan Gersan, Bill DeBlasio, NY State Assembly members Danny O’Donnell and Mika Kellner, Queens District leader Danny Dromm, Stonewall President Matt Carlin, Chamber of Commerce President Dirk McCall, Billboard Recording Artist Lovari, NYAGRA Chair Pauline Park, PFLAG NYC Executive Director Drew Tagliabue, PFLAG President Phyllis Steinberg, Judicial Delegate Melissa Sklarz and many others.

Liberal Democratic "Wedding"

One of the most highly-anticipated and best attended Holiday season parties in New York City is Alan Roskoff‘s annual Yuletide bash. Alan is a civil rights advocate and is president of the Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club. This year, his soiree took place at a Chelsea NYC party loft and wound up turning into a hilarious parody of My Big Fat Gay Wedding! In a satirical performance, nuptial vows were exchanged by impersonations of same sex “lovebirds” – openly Lesbian City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Mayor Michael Bloomberg — who were both dressed in Drag. Each wore lace and flowing wedding gowns as our host Roskoff presided over the ceremony in sacred bishop’s garb. “Quinn” vowed to continue to “love, cherish and obey” the “Mayor.” The performance was held to underscore the massive disappointment in Quinn’s support of Bloomberg’s altering of term-limit laws that have been approved twice by voters, an action that has been criticized as un-democratic and disrespectful of the voting citizenry. Roskoff sent a serious message but presided over a festive ceremony nonetheless!! There was a three-tier wedding cake and, in the faux wedding, I was a bride’s maid and entrepreneur Scott Talbolt was best man. “Cher” (Howie V) even made a celebrity appearance singing “I Got You Babe” — since the Mayor clearly has got Quinn’s undivided devotion.

Attendees of the very A-List soiree included Gossip Girl star Chace Crawford, Paul Dawson and PJ DeBoy of Shortbus, WOR radio’s Joey Reynolds, Tony Sawicki and Stephanie Butler of Under the Pink Carpet, Andy Humm of Gay USA, Recording Artist Lovari, Congress Members Anthony Weiner and Carolyn Maloney, former Public Advocate Mark Green, NY Senators Eric Schneiderm and Eric Adams, Assembly Member Jonathan Bing, City Council Members John Liu and Bill DeBlasio, Judges Paul Feinman, Lucy Billings and Sara Lee Evans, Attorneys Norman Siegel, Maria Passanante Derr, Tom Shanahan and Yetta Kurland, Executive Director of ESPA Alan Van Capelle, activists Ethan Geto, Michael Colosi, Alan Fleishman, Corey Johnson, Charles O’Byrne, Mark Schulte and many others!

Our Youth AIDS Day concert

I was thrilled and honored to be a performer in another special concert performance in recognition of World AIDS Day benefiting the Our Youth organization, serving LGBTQ youth in Jersey City. Drag and Recording artists gave a wonderful performance to raise funds and to send the recognize the concerns and problems faced by Queer youth. I was honored to be included in a show with other Drag Queen performers like Lartiza Dumont, Britney Houston, Sugga Pie Koko, Tiana Sheridan, Vanessa Valtre and Recording Artists like Lovari, Bry'nt, Lori Michaels and many others.

The event, called "AIDS is a Drag, Wrap it Up!" took place on December 6 at Our Youth Center in Jersey City and included a delicious dinner in addition to the show!

World AIDS Day Concert

The Empire State Building was illuminated in red on December 1, 2008 to observe the 20th Anniversary of World AIDS Day. World AIDS Day was established by The World Health Organization in 1988 to provide awareness and focus attention on the global AIDS epidemic and to serve as a remembrance of our personal losses. Memorial services were held around the world. In New York City these included The LGBT Center along with the OUTMusic organization holding a commemorative concert with a poster that honored the art of Keith Harring. I was proud to be a part of the event that was filled to the rafters with a huge, appreciative crowd. Other local artists who also performed at the successful event paying tribute including host Jed Ryan, Billboard recording artists Deepa Soul and Robert German, rockers Matt Gerber, Sunday Boy and Barnacle Bill,Cabaret legend Jay Michael Reed and Pedro Angle Serrano from Out FM Radio.

[Photos: Keith Harring Poster / Empire State Building in red / Lady Clover Honey / LCH with Sunday Boy / Lady Clover Honey / Lady Clover Honey with Pedro Angel Serrano / Jed Ryan, LCH and Pedro Angel Serrano]