by thom senzee
“THE DINAH”That’s all one needs say to conjure images of bikini-clad women partying
poolside in Palm Springs. But, says Mariah Hanson, founder and producer of the event, the world’s largest gathering of lesbians is about much more than scantily clad ladies enjoying the company of other scantily clad ladies. “Club Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend (popularly known as The Dinah) is the largest lesbian event in the world,” Hanson told The Rage Monthly. “Held annually in Palm Springs, The Dinah is a five-day weekend packed with not only non-stop activities, spectacular comedy shows, live concerts, activism, social networking opportunities and legendary pool parties, but also premier talent in music, film and television.” As the clock ticks louder and louder counting
down the days and hours until 2014’s rendition of The Dinah, Hanson isn’t the only one eagerly anticipating and gearing up for the extended weekend. Sara Quin is too. “We’ve been hearing about The Dinah from our friends for years,” said Quin, who is the Sara of superstar indie duo Tegan & Sara. “But we’ve never been. I know we’re both looking forward to it.” Both Tegan and Sara Quin—Canadian twins—
are very open about being gay women, the latter toldTheRage Monthly during a recent phone inter- view. “We always have been,” she said. “Our band came into existent at a time when being out didn’t mean you were marginalized.” But having arrived on the independent-label or “indie” music scene in the late 1990s, Quin says the band saw some rem- nants of a legacy of “closeted-or-cultified” gays in the music industry. “Fortunately, for us that wasn’t our experience.” Although being lesbians has for the most part
Palm Springs
been incidental for Tegan & Sara as musicians, they’ve still been free and open about their sexual orientation in interviews and in their songwriting. But that has done anything but hold them back. Indeed, the band has become a top-selling act both in sales of their music and in ticket sales for live performances. “I don’t think being open has held us back at all,” Quin says adding that now, as a successful band with access to more resources, they can really put on live shows the way they like to do them. “We’re really excited about The Dinah,” she said. “We can do more in the way of set changes and staging based on the crowd and the feel of the moment. The significant change in our career is just resources. I think a few years ago we would have been afraid to take some of the chances on stage we can take now.”
42 RAGE monthly | MARCH 2014 | MARCH 2014
The Dinah will be about one thing: “In past years, we wouldn’t have been able to turn up the fun the way we will at The Dinah. We love Palm Springs and love being a part of the gay community.” For her part as the event’s producer, Mariah Hanson says The Dinah is a complex, multi-faceted and quite massive crowd-control ballet, where fun and safety have to be coequal. Perhaps surpris- ingly to some, safety and security has historically been pretty smooth through the existence of The Dinah Shore Weekend. “It has rarely happened,” says Hanson when asked about over-enthusiastic straight men crashing the party. “We have a tight security team that knows how to diplomatically and efficiently handle any crisis. But again we don’t
BIGGER, BETTER DINAH:
But, says Quin, Tegan and Sara’s performance at
TEGAN & SARA HEADLINE
really have issues with men in general and as a matter of fact we’ve had a few straight couples who attended the event and had a blast.” The rare specter of exploitive party-crashers notwithstand- ing, Hanson says everyone—gay or straight—is welcome at The Dinah. “We embrace and welcome everyone,” Hanson says. According to her, with some 15,000-plus women from all over the world making the pilgrimage each year for a life- changing experience, The Dinah Shore Weekend is a one-of-a-kind destination where women of all ages, interests, ability, relationship status, cultural backgrounds and professions come together for “one big giant celebration of the community.” “What The Dinah offers is the opportunity for lesbians to express themselves, to be who they
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80