July – Sept 2009 Events…Only in San Francisco

International Queer Tango Festival – July 1-5: This first ever event in the U.S. includes performances, classes, outings and parties, all exploring the beauty of the tango as danced by same sex partners. Started in Hamburg, Germany and continuing in Buenos Aires, Argentina, this is the first time this festival has reached the United States. www.queertango.us

Dancing with the Drag Stars! continues on Saturday, July 11: If you missed the first installment of this creative take-off of the hit television series Dancing with the Stars, never fear! Cheryl Burke Dance Studio at 1830 17th St. hosts the second competition between four couples, each consisting of a professional male dancer and a local drag personality. Celebrity judges are Sherri Burke, sister of Cheryl Burke; Sister Roma of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, and local movie expert and media personality Jan Wahl. The evening includes entertainment by San Francisco nightlife dragstar Bebe Sweetbriar and North American Same Sex Ballroom Champions Zoe Balfour and Citabria Philips. The two couples with the highest scores will continue to the finals on Saturday, Aug. 8, to compete against the two winners from June for the coveted mirrored ball trophy. www.ticketweb.com

Carol Channing and Friends – Saturday, July 18: The beloved performer returns to the stage with legendary Carole Cook, chanteuse Joyce Aimee, and magician Walt Anthony for an unforgettable night at McKenna Theatre at San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave. Expect memorable music, hilarious story-telling, and lots of surprises at this benefit for the Carol Channing / Harry Kullijian Foundation for the Arts, committed to returning arts education to California schools. www.cityboxoffice.com

AIDSWalk San Francisco- Sunday, July 19: Since 1987, hundreds, then thousands of individuals and teams have joined together for this walk through Golden Gate Park to raise money for the SF AIDS Foundation and other service organizations. As with similar fundraising efforts across the country, the participants started as largely members of the LGBT Community, but have grown to include a broad spectrum of the larger population determined to remember those lost to disease and committed to ending the stigma and suffering. www.aidswalk.net

Up Your Alley Street Fair, Sunday, July 26: Considered a warm-up for the Folsom Street Fair on Sept. 27, this annual South of Market street fair is not for the faint of heart, welcoming the Leather, BDSM, and fetish community with stages, demos, merchandise and information booths. Dances and other parties round out the weekend. www.folsomstreetfair.org

Cruisin’ the Castro Tours: These delightful historic and cultural walking tours were begun by Trevor Hailey and have continued for 20 years, now led by Kathy Amendola. In addition to these guided walks through this diverse and beautiful neighborhood, Kathy has recently added a Harvey Milk Tour with special emphasis on all the places that marked his incredible career as the first openly gay man elected to public office. www.cruisinthecastro.com

Hayes Valley Follies: Speaking of gay history, head to Marlena’s in Hayes Valley every Saturday night for an old fashioned drag show led by Galilea, including elaborate costuming, professional performances, and a lively bar scene. With the popularity of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the reminders of the actions of drag queens in the Stonewall Riots over 40 years ago, maybe it’s time you saw what drag is all about! www.marlenasbarsf.com

Gus Presents Sundance, Aug. 21-23 at the Russian River: Come to San Francisco and spend a couple of days up north as this incredible weekend party returns after an absence of several years. From pool parties to sunset dances, from headlining entertainers to internationally known DJs, and from world class sound systems to dazzling special effects, this weekend promises to give your summer a lift. www.guspresents.com

Beach Blanket Babylon, Sept. 4. Gay Night: As part of their 35th year anniversary, BBB hosts a special night for our community. This is the longest running musical revue in theatrical history and features zany comedy, elaborate costumes and outrageous hats. www.beachblanketbabylon.com

Desperate Divas Calendar Competition, Saturday, Sept. 25: For the third year, the AIDS Housing Alliance is sponsoring a calendar featuring fierce drag personalities, professionally photographed in eye-popping poses. Individual monthly winners have been selected during the year, but the winner of this night’s competition appears on the cover. Location TBD. www.ahasf.org

Folsom Street Fair, Sunday, Sept. 27: This is the largest street fair in the world of its kind, encompassing 13 city blocks and including more than 400,000 people. While it welcomes the broad spectrum of South of Market lifestyles, including leather, BDSM, uniforms, fetish, and other alternatives, Folsom Street Fair also raises money for a variety of local charitable organizations. This year’s fair features two live stages, 250 booths, hot food, cold drinks, artists and more. www.folsomstreetfair.org

And as if that wasn’t enough, round out your summer with a San Francisco Giants game at AT&T Park as Donna Sachet sings the national anthem on Tuesday, Sept. 29. In 1994 the SF Giants were the first-ever professional sports team to host an AIDS benefit game with Until There’s a Cure Day. Now, they may well be the first to invite a drag queen to sing our nation’s song at the start of the game. Indeed, only in San Francisco!

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The San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau continues its LGBT tourism efforts in concert with title sponsor gay.com; and official sponsors American Express; Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants; Starwood Hotels; the musical Wicked; and the Golden Gate Business Association (GGBA), the country’s first LGBT Chamber of Commerce.

Travel packages, including hotel stays, may be booked through the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau at www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com or by calling 800-637-5196. A link from the SFCVB home page takes visitors to the gay travel section.

The San Francisco Visitors Planning Guide is available at the Visitor Information Center, 900 Market St., at the corner of Powell and Market streets, lower level, Hallidie Plaza. A visitor’s kit may also be ordered online at www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com, by phone at 415-391-2000, by written request to the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau, 900 Market St., San Francisco, CA 94102, or via email to vic1@sanfrancisco.travel. Domestic and international shipping charges apply.

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) offers non-stop links with more than 30 international points on 25 international carriers. The Bay Area’s largest airport connects non-stop with more than 65 cities in the U.S. on 20 domestic airlines. For up-to-the-minute departure and arrival information, airport maps and details on shopping, dining, cultural exhibitions, ground transportation and more, visit www.flysfo.com.
Note to editors: To access and download images from the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau’s online photo gallery, click on the link http://www.sfcvb.org/travel_media/photolibrary.asp.

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