Diversionary Theatre Announces First Anniversary Celebration Of Its CLARK CABARET And October Lineup

Diversionary Theatre celebrates the first birthday of their newest space, the Clark Cabaret & Bar, with a special birthday event on October 30, culminating a month of special engagements and returning artists nightly. HalloQUEEN on October 30 at 7:00 PM celebrates the Clark Cabaret & Bar's one-year birthday with Halloween-themed activities and a full night of artists who have helped pioneer the queer-themed entertainment hosted by the cabaret six nights a week since October 2021.

The exterior of the Clark Cabaret & Bar at Diversionary Theatre. Photo by Peggy Ryan. San Diego, CA - Diversionary Theatre's Clark Cabaret & Bar turns one year old this October, and celebrates its birthday with a free special event, HalloQUEEN, on October 30, and continues its nightly free, queer-themed entertainment, Wednesday through Monday. The Clark Cabaret & Bar is an intimate space inside Diversionary Theatre in University Heights, San Diego, that includes a stage, a large patio, and a full bar.

October brings spooky, Halloween-themed entertainment, special events, and a new series of events designed for theatre artists and practitioners called Theatre Industry Mondays. On the first three Mondays of each month, the Clark Cabaret will host Musical Mondays with Rayme Sciaroni, Play Date with Kian Kline-Chilton, and Necessary Roughness with Nicole Le, all designed to offer theatre artists a chance to collaborate and share their work. Also in October, LoudFridge Theatre returns to Clark Cabaret with Children of the Slay: An All POC Burlesque Show playing October 6 - 8. Sultry Sounds with Farah and Friends returns for a second time on October 13, and Cocktails & Rhythm w/ The Sue Palmer Quartet is back again on October 21. Diversionary celebrates its iconic Managing Director, Jenny Case, on October 22, with a long anticipated, very special event called Diversionary's Got Talent, a talent show competition featuring Diversionary staff and judged by Jenny, to which the public are welcome and encouraged to attend. Finally, the Clark Cabaret's first birthday party called HalloQUEEN on October 30 will feature spooky pop-up performances, a costume contest, Halloween drink specials, and a DJ.

The Clark Cabaret & Bar also features a full roster of regular and repeating free events, with specific October dates referenced below in our events list, many of which will celebrate the season with a Halloween theme. Wednesdays at the Cabaret are Live Music Wednesdays with Aaron Turner, Kenny Ard, and Don LeMaster in rotation, followed by Karaoke hosted by Flamy Grant every Wednesday. Don LeMaster's October 5th performance will feature vocals by Kimberly Jackson. Sunday Funday featuring Ria Carey and Aaron Turner takes the stage on the second and fourth Sundays of each month. Our Queer Poetry Night falls on the final Monday of the month, and the Black Dream Experiment Live, a project established by Kelsey O. Daniels, on the third Sunday of the month. This October also includes the monthly movie night, Queer Iconic Film Series, in October featuring the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and the monthly Wide World of Women's Sports watch party on the first Satuday of the month. The DragVersionary drag event takes place on the last Friday of the month, this month with a Halloween theme, Hotel Diablo. Other monthly events include Big Queer Trivia Night, the Sassy Salon variety show hosted by Danielle Levsky, Just Tryna Make Friends variety show featuring Julie Roland on the last Saturday of the month, Nina Bel Vande's Top Shelf Tease, and Eliza Vedar's Slay Dreamers on the first Sunday of the month. Also monthly, the Queer Youth Karaoke event, held on the second Saturday, is done in partnership with the San Diego Queer Youth Chorus, San Diego Pride Youth Leadership Academy, Trans Family Support Services, and SDUSD.

"Black Dream Experiment Live" producer Kelsey O. Daniels performs at the Clark Cabaret & Bar. Photo by Peggy Ryan. The Clark Cabaret & Bar is a new space at the University Heights-based Diversionary Theatre that has been welcoming its community six nights a week to enjoy drinks and live entertainment in a piano bar atmosphere since opening in the fall of 2021. It presents performances by beloved local favorites, up-and-coming artists, and local theatre companies. It features a full bar and a permanent historical display created in partnership with LAMBDA Archives of San Diego commemorating the space in the tradition of the iconic "Gay Bar" where the LGBTQ+ community and movement coalesced. From drag kings and queens to stand-up comedy and hosted movie nights, Diversionary will be bursting at the seams in the coming months with an eclectic assortment of queer-themed entertainment with an emphasis on non-profit groups and diverse artists, as well as serving as a hub for organizing and meeting.

The Clark Cabaret is open Wednesday through Monday from 5:00 PM to close, with happy hour daily from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM. More information is available on the Clark Cabaret's website at https://www.diversionary.org/cabaret and by calling 619.220.6830.

The Clark Cabaret & Bar presents live entertainment and events six nights per week. Photo by Cassandra Henderson. Diversionary Theatre is the nation's third-oldest LGTBQ+ theatre dedicated to amplifying queer voices through the performing arts in a dynamic, inclusive, and provocative environment that celebrates and preserves their unique culture, while contributing to an environment of diversity and inclusion throughout the broader community. Since Diversionary's founding in 1986, it has continually provided an inspiring and thought-provoking theatrical platform to explore complex and diverse stories of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning communities in the form of live entertainment that can be enjoyed by all.

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