Victoria Theatre Presents THE GOLDEN GIRLS: THE CHRISTMAS EPISODES, Now thru 12/21

Starring San Francisco's four top drag luminaries, Victoria Theatre presents THE GOLDEN GIRLS: THE CHRISTMAS EPISODES. The formula is reasonably straightforward. Take 4 talented drag performers, cast them in two classic Xmas episodes of the ground-breaking and uproarious TV show: THE GOLDEN GIRLS, and joviality will ensue.

The four drag stars are playing the characters the entire world has come to know and love are Heklina (Dorothy), Cookie Dough (Sophia), Matthew Martin (Blanche) and Pollo Del Mar (Rose). Directed by Matthew Martin. Opens tonight, Dec. 4 - 8:00 pm. Plays Thurs. Fri. & Sat. - 8:00pm / Sun. - 7:00 pm. Performance dates are: Dec. 4, 5, 6, 7 /11, 12, 13, 14 / 18, 19, 20, 21, 2014 Shows are at The Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St. (btwn. Mission & Capp Sts.) SF, CA 94103. Tickets are $25 available at http://goldengirlssf.eventbrite.com/.

When the night air brings a chill, when Barbra Streisand croons Silent Night in dep't. stores and when the Xmas sweaters are taken out of mothballs, it can only mean one thing. It's time for the annual appearance of The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes 2014, starring San Francisco's four top drag luminaries, as we ring in the Holiday with, hilarity and heart. The mise-en-scène is reasonably straightforward. Take 4 talented drag performers, cast them in two classic Xmas episodes of the ground-breaking and uproarious TV show: THE GOLDEN GIRLS, and frivolity will ensue. The four drag stars are playing the characters the entire world has come to know and love are Heklina (Dorothy), Cookie Dough (Sophia), Matthew Martin (Blanche) and Pollo Del Mar (Rose). Manuel Caneri, Peter Griggs, Tom Shaw and Jordan Wheeler also are featured in the cast. The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes 2014 is directed by Matthew Martin. Set Design by Hector Zavala, Lighting & Sound by Lady Bear, Costumes by Tria Connell.

There will be a different celebrity guest each night for the first week only. Dec. 4 - 6, 2014:

Thurs. Dec. 4, 2014 - 8:00 pm SF Grand Duchess Roxy-Cotten Candy

Fri. Dec. 5, 2014 - 8:00 pm Fernando & Greg - Radio Hosts - Morning Show 99.7 Now

Sat. Dec. 6, 2014 - 8:00 pm Peaches Christ

For Golden Girls fanatics and aficionados, the two ALL NEW episodes being presented are:

Episode 1 - FROM HERE TO THE PHARMACY

A man Blanche has no memory of returns from the Persian Gulf in hopes of fulfilling the promise she supposedly made to him before he left, that she will be his and only his. Meanwhile, Sophia enlists the help of Rose to write her will.

Episode 2 - JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF ATTENTION *

Blanche is upset when Dorothy becomes popular with the patrons at her favorite bar, the Rusty Anchor. Meanwhile, Sophia asks Rose to help with her wake so she can hear all the wonderful things her friends would say, except Rose forgets to inform everyone that Sophia is very much alive and well.

*(In an interview with TV Legends, Rue McClanahan listed this episode as her favorite.)

Heklina (Dorothy) gained fame as the creator, promoter, and hostess of the legendary Trannyshack! She is a premier hostess and DJ for hire around San Francisco, and has graced the Folsom St. Fair, Castro St. Fair, Gay Pride Main Stage, Castro Theater, and Halloween Main Stage, in addition to hosting numerous fundraisers for, among others, PAWS, Project Open Hand, AIDS Housing Alliance, Haight Ashbury Free Medical Clinic, Bay Positives, Lyric, the AIDS Emergency Fund, the UCSF Positive Health Project, Community United Against Violence, and Marriage Equality. She has been seen on the E! Entertainment Network, NBC's" Trauma" "The Cho Show", VH1, "Playing it Straight", Comedy Central's "The Daily Show", BBC Television's "Around the World in 80 Raves", the Scissor Sister's "Filthy Gorgeous" video, and as a guest on the Jerry Springer and Ricki Lake shows. In 2011 she introduced Britney Spears for Good Morning America. Her film credits include Baby Jane? and All About Evil. Theater credits include a starring role in the 2006 Theater Rhino production TROG!, producer and featured actor (in the role of Dorothy Zbornak) in the popular San Francisco Golden Girls plays, and producer and featured actor in Velvet Rage Productions (Sex And The City Live!, Roseanne, Friends Live!) . She was voted Community Grand Marshal of the 2004 SF GLBTQ Pride Parade, and was the subject of two documentaries in the 2005 SF Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. In 2009 she won the Pride Creativity Award for outstanding artistic contribution to the LGBT Community. Check her out at trannyshack.com

Matthew Martin (Blanche), a native San Franciscan, has been conjuring Bette Davis for many years in SF, NYC LA, and London stage productions including Awe About Eve, Hush Up, Sweet Charlotte, Whatever Happened to B.B. Jane?, and The Star. He starred the film parody Baby Jane?, starring as Baby Jane Hudson which premiered in SF's Frameline Film Festival and was also recently featured in the documentary Queer Icon: The Cult of Bette Davis. He has starred in countless stage productions in SF including Theatre Rhino and multiple productions in town. An actor, singer, dancer, director, choreographer and man of many faces and voices, Matthew has also incarnated Joan Crawford in a stage parody of her last film Trog, Katharine Hepburn, Judy Garland, Ann Miller, Jane Russell, Susan Hayward, Peggy Lee, Eartha Kitt, Mitzi Gaynor and many other stars of the Silver Screen. MM Has also appeared at many Marc Huestis' extravaganzas at the Castro Theater. Martin is keeping Hollywood legends alive and well embodying their essences on many stages. He most recently appeared at the Rrazz Room with his solo show All Singing, All Dancing, All Dead. As Blanche Devereaux, he has loved of working with his good friends in The Golden Girls since 2007.

Pollo Del Mar (Rose) is indispensable in San Francisco's LGBT community, and has acquired the sobriquet "The Queen of San Francisco Media," An award-winning San Francisco drag performer, personality, emcee, magazine cover girl, activist and celebrity journalist, she has shared the stage with gay icons from Lady Gaga to Katy Perry and Cyndi Lauper This is her fifth year portraying the world's favorite St. Olaf native Rose Nylund in The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes. When not onstage, Pollo's interviews with Hollywood's A-List frequently appear on the cover of GLOSS Magazine. Her column "The Glamazon Diaries" prints in The SF Bay Times and her work now publishes around the world via Australia's GuideToGay.com. Find Pollo weekly at The Cafe, where she hosts The Castro's popular weekend drag show The GlamaZONE with Pollo Del Mar. Show time Sun. nights, 9:30 pm. Cookie Dough (Sophia) has become a fixture in the SF Drag Community for over 12 years. In the Spring of 2002, the ambitious entertainer launched "Cookie...After Dark." a cabaret style drag show at Martuni's lounge in SF. In August 2004, "The Monster Show with Cookie Dough & DJ MC2" was launched in the heart of the Castro at Harvey's Bar & Restaurant, winning Best Drag Act for SF Bay Guardian - Best of the Bay 2006. Currently the weekly Drag Show can be found on Thursday's at the newly remodeled Edge Bar. It is the Longest Running Drag Show in the Castro. Cookie is co-producer of The Golden Girls, entertaining sold-out audiences for the past eight years, playing the amusingly, sharp-tongued character Sophia Petrillo. In 2010, Cookie was elected Grand Duchess of San Francisco. This 40 year old Fundraising Organization fits in with Cookie's kind and giving spirit. Whether it is fundraisers for a wide array of local organizations or nonstop professional gigs, Cookie plans to remain on the stage for a long time to come.

For more information, visit http://www.trannyshack.com/goldengirls/

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