The Rat Pack Comes To Napa

Well, ain't that a kick in the head?!

Here's an option for all you guys and dolls that want to experience the days of Frank, Deano, Sammy, Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas.

The River School is pulling out all the stops and holding a "50's Style Rat Pack" Monte Carlo evening.  Proceeds will benefit their Visual and Performing Arts Program.  It all takes place on Saturday, March 19 from 7 to 11 pm at the Lincoln Theater in Yountville.

Here's the gig:

• Sip and savor in the Martini Lounge
• Bet, mix and mingle at the gaming tables
• Throw the dice and bid on your favorite items in the silent auction
• Relive the days of the Rat Pack in your black tie or "swanky 50's style" fashion

Tickets are $75 if purchased by March 15 ($85 after and at the door) and include $50 in playing script, 2 wine tokens and delectable tasty bites.  All gifts and donations are fully tax-deductible as allowed by law.

You can purchase your tickets or make a donation by following THIS LINK 

All gifts and donations are fully tax-deductible as allowed by law.

Big Weekend!

UPDATE:  Thanks to everyone who attended our events this past weekend! 

• Between ticket sales and a collection from the audience at the end of the performance of Rent we raised $365.11 for the Napa Valley AIDS Walk.
• Thanks to the generosity of Rose and the entire crew at Panchas as well as those who "braved" the rain and attended the Beer Bust we raised another $524.99

Don't miss a minute of the two Napa Guerilla Gay Bar events this weekend!

First, join us for an evening of entertainment as we invade the Lincoln Theater in Yountville on Saturday evening, October 16 for a live performance of the rock musical, Rent.  If you buy your tickets from the Napa Guerilla Gay Bar organization, at least $10 per ticket will be donated to the Napa Valley AIDS Walk.  Look for the PayPal link at the top of the right-hand column of the our website (www.napagaybar.com).  The show starts at 8 pm with a VIP lounge especially for troops and friends of the Napa Guerilla Gay Bar before the perfomance and during intermission. 

UPDATE:  The VIP lounge will be on the southern end of the lobby, furthest from the entrance.

Then, cap off your weekend with A Good Old Fashioned Beer Bust.  It takes place from 3 to 9 pm on Sunday, October 17 at Pancha's (6764 Washington Street, Yountville).  You'll enjoy $10 "bottomless" beer cups, Rose's famous top-shelf margaritas, grilled hot dogs with all the fixins, pool, music and raffle prizes.  Again, net proceeds from this event will be donated to the 19th Annual Napa Valley AIDS Walk (which takes place on Saturday, October 30)

Hope to see everyone this weekend!

No Day But TODAY!

I LOVE the musical RENT!  I was absolutely blown away when I first saw it in the late 1990's on Broadway.

The musical is loosely based on Puccini's opera La Bohème and tells the story of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York's Lower East Side in the thriving days of Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS.

The most recognized song from Rent is "Seasons of Love".  Here's it is from the last performance on Broadway: 

Well, we're in luck!  Rent - the Tony and Pulitzer Prize winning musical is coming to the Lincoln Theater in Yountville on October 16 and 17.

I've managed to score a great deal on a block of 20 tickets for the Saturday evening, October 16 production.  The seats are smack-dab in the middle of rows F, G and H - absolutely great seats.

These tickets usually sell for $35 plus a $3 transaction fee.  I paid $20 plus the transaction fee for them.  Here's the deal - you buy them from me for $35 and the difference will be donated to Napa Valley AIDS Walk 2010.  That means you save the transaction fee AND $10 or more of your ticket price will be donated to the AIDS Walk!

It's a win/win deal.  You save $3 and get to see what I think is the best Broadway musical of all time.  The CARE Network at Queen of the Valley gets at least a $10 donation.

So, here's how you can buy your tickets AND help support HIV/AIDS services in the Napa Valley:

• Buy your tickets via PayPal using the button on the right hand column of the Napa Guerilla Gay Bar blog
• Use this PayPal link:  https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=ESDT8Z3NZJZW4
• Send a check made payable to "Napa Valley AIDS Walk" to:

Rent Tickets
c/o Napa Valley Unity League
PO Box 125
Napa, CA  94559-0125

• Give your cash or check to your Mission Commander at any Napa Guerilla Gay Bar or Napa Valley Unity League event

We'll save the PayPal fees if you pay with cash or check.  As a result, even more will go to the AIDS Walk.

Don't miss Rent!

UPDATE:  There will be a Napa Guerilla Gay Bar lounge (open to everyone, of course) on the Mezzanine prior to the performance and during intermission!

March with the Guerillas!

It's that time of year again!

The 19th Annual Napa Valley AIDS Walk takes place on Saturday, October 30, 2010.  Once again it will have a Halloween theme and once again it will begin and end in the courtyard of the Lincoln Theater and wind through the lovely town of Yountville.

Last year, Team Guerilla raised over $6,000 . . . and we're shooting for even more this year.

Sign up to walk with us at www.active.com/donate/napagaybar.  There you'll be able to create your own fundraising web page (it's easy, really!) and use all the tools that active.com makes available - including posting to Facebook and allowing your friends and family to make donations using their credit cards.

Can't make it to the walk?  Just want to make a donation?  Well, you can do that at www.active.com/donate/napagaybar too!  Contribute at whatever level you can:

• General - $ 1,000
• Colonel - $ 500
• Major - $ 250
• Captain - $ 100
• Lieutenant - $ 50
• Sergeant - $ 25
• Corporal - $ 10
• Private First Class - $ 5

Every bit helps!  Once again, the beneficiary of the funds raised during the Napa Valley AIDS Walk is the CARE Network at Queen of the Valley Medical Center. This groundbreaking program serves low income, uninsured or underinsured individuals living with HIV/AIDS. Nurses and social workers from the CARE Network assist their clients to better manage their own health needs through case management, advocacy, resources, referrals and education.

And don't forget about our two other fundraisers:

• The "All-Day" Pizza Party at Mary's Pizza Shack on Wednesday, September 29
• The "Good Old Fashioned Beer Bust" at Pancha's on Sunday, October 17

Be The "Very Model of a Modern Major-General"

Musical theater, military costumes and cocktails . . . how appropriate!

The folks at the Lincoln Theater (100 California Drive on the grounds of the Veterans Home of California in Yountville) have reached out to the troops with the following deal:

• Troops from the Napa Guerilla Gay Bar discounted tickets tickets to the Lamplighters Music Theatre's production of The Pirates of Penzance at 8 p.m. on Saturday, August 7.  Just buy your tickets at https://www.choicesecure01.net/mainapp/EventSchedule.aspx?ClientID=lincolntheater&group=pirate&promo=2 and select the "Discount" ticket option after you've chosen your seats.  You'll receive a $10 discount per ticket!
• There will be a costume contest - just come appropriately dressed as a pirate or wench for a chance to win two tickets to see Charo (Cuchi, Cuchi!)
• There will be a no-host bar and they'll be reserving a special area on the mezzanine for us!

Following the performance, let's all head to Panchas!

Pirates of Penzance is Gilbert and Sullivan at its best. One of the most popular operas ever written, this swashbuckling classic tells the tale of the pirate apprentice Frederic, who has a few surprises in store as he turns 21!  It features tender-hearted pirates, bumbling policemen, an eccentric Major General and beautiful young maidens.

For a taste, view this video including George Rose, Kevin Kline, Rex Smith and Linda Ronstadt:

The Show Must Go On!

We're incredibly fortunate here in the Napa Valley.  We've got the Lincoln Theater in Yountville as well as the Uptown Theatre and Napa Valley Opera House in Napa.  And let's not forget the awesome Cameo Cinema in St. Helena.  In addition, with all the fairs and festivals that happen here we're blessed with some absolutely amazing entertainment options.

Well, let's take advantage of situation!  We're proud to announce the Napa Guerilla Gay Bar Arts & Entertainment program!

Here's the plan . . . we'll:

• Select a local concert, performance or show.
• Attempt to get a block of discounted tickets to the event and pass the savings on to you.  We'll also do what we can to avoid ticketing fees.
• Arrange a food and/or beverage "mission" before and/or after the event open to everyone, even those not attending the show.

Here are two events we're considering:

MARGARET CHO

Sunday, September 26 - 8 pm

Uptown Theatre, Napa

This fall, San Francisco native Margaret Cho will be hitting the road with a brand new national stand-up tour, "Cho Dependent".  Her new tour will feature new stand-up and a few live performances of songs on her forthcoming comedy music album of the same name.

RENT

Saturday, October 16 - 8 pm

Lincoln Theatre, Yountville

No Day But Today!  This Tony & Pulitzer Prize-winning musical chronicles the lives of eight friends living the Bohemian life, struggling to express themselves through their art and "measuring their lives in love".  Against the gritty backdrop of New York's East Village, these friends strive for success and acceptance while enduring the obstacles of poverty, illness and the AIDS epidemic.