This weekend was my second PrideFest in Colorado Springs. Performing down there reminded me once again how happy people are to celebrate their uniqueness in a city known for its loud and conservative organizations. With a show at The Underground Saturday night and a show on the main stage Sunday, we decided to turn the weekend into a mini-vacation and spend the night in a cheap hotel.
The Underground is a fun venue that I wish we had here in Denver: it has so many rooms and stairs and passageways that you can have many events going on at once without one intruding on the others. The dance floor is two floors down from street level and it’s a smaller space with a catwalk above. Instead of taking over the whole area when showtime hit, we decided to just start the music and keep the party going by pulling more people in to dance. It was our mini-dance party and it was a blast – thanks to everyone who was there that night who had the guts to come join me on stage!
We hung out afterwards and made some new friends before indulging in the messy experience that is Taco Express. I guess any food at 3am is a Godsend, but it would be nice if they got our order right. Hm.
Sunday morning we packed our bags and headed for Acacia park. It was already incredibly hot by noon and I was downing as much water as I could get my hands on. We met up with some friends & fans who also drove down from Denver to catch the show and the general energy in the park was amazing. Kids were playing in the fountain and families were meandering around the booths. People wore what they wanted to make a statement and show their individuality.
I heard there were protesters at one end of the park, but for the many hours we were there, I saw none. It was only first thing that morning that I saw a very well-dressed man walking around the park with a Bible in his hand, looking at the booths and reading the posters. The scowl on his face revealed his inner thoughts – he wasn’t at the park to celebrate – but I never saw him again. I’d like to think that he left the park early to enjoy the weather and spend the rest of the weekend with his loved ones. We can only hope.
