[Pink Scene] O Bar 11th Anniversary Event on December 17

It's kind of crazy to consider that O Bar has been around or 11 years this month. As usual they're celebrating their anniversary in a grand manner with a big anniversary concert night with fabulous drag queen production numbers and fashion pieces from various notable designers. And DJ Apolo and the boyfriend DJs Boys Can Trance will be spinning that night so you can expect the music to be fun. Needless to say we're really looking forward to the night!

Door entrance fee is still the standard P500 for Saturday nights which gives you stubs for 3 local beers, which is more than enough to get you started for the night. Expect the place to be pretty packed because (1) O Bar is always crazy full on Saturday nights and (2) so many of us love the bar and have practically grown up with it over the past decade.

If you see me and Tobie there, be sure to say hello!

[Pink Scene] The 5 Days of O Bar

Metro Manila's LGBT scene is largely represented by O Bar these days. It's not necessarily a spot that they aimed for - it just sort of happened as a lot of the other bars just closed down in recent years. But given how O Bar is open to everyone and not just the LGBT community, O Bar is always more than just a "gay bar" - if you can even call it that. It's a place where one can celebrate the miracle of drag, which remains to be the main feature of the bar.

So for those of you who are uncertain when to finally visit O Bar with your friends, maybe this little guide will help you. Here's my quick guide to the different days of O Bar.

[Technicolor Musings] O Bar's Theater of Drag

The ever fabulous O Bar celebrated its 10th anniversary last Friday and it was quite the phenomenal night indeed. They put on a rather massive show featuring all of their talents - the Alab Poi Dancers, the O Gogo Boys and of course the O Divas in what was pretty much close to 3 hours of entertainment divided into two sets.

While watching the show and being continually amazed by every new performance, I got to thinking in my head how O Bar has really done something different here. Sure, a lot of bars have drag queens performing and past bars have had ledge dancers and all that good stuff. But the sum of what O Bar has created goes beyond this individual pieces and you have a unique entertainment experience that is hard to describe. I guess the discipline and training that go into the preparations and rehearsals have really paid off to hone the team into something quite phenomenal.

Tobie and I have often joked that O Bar is the closest that we can get to having a dinner theater experience here in Manila. But maybe that's not entirely incorrect. If we look at O Bar now versus maybe five years ago, we now have a true entertainment experience that has elements taken from the likes of theater and even ballet. We have large group numbers, precise choreography and quite complex lighting. We have elaborate costumes and well thought-out set lists. We have theme nights and performances that truly celebrate the theme in a remarkable way. We have all this and more - and even the Go Go Boys have the occasional choreographed number that's a part of the overall experience! It's seems too crazy to believe, but it's all very true and the team kills it every single night.

I'm very proud to be a loyal patron of O Bar and quite a devotee of the all the performers who call the bar home. And when people ask me what it's like to go to O Bar since they've "never been to a gay bar before," I think I'm better off telling them that O Bar isn't a gay bar. O Bar is a unique gender-bending entertainment experience. O Bar is where drag has been elevated into a different sort of performance art form. O Bar is the Theater of Drag and the higher entrance fees are worth every Peso since what you're actually paying for is the privilege of watching one of the best entertainment experiences in the world.

[Pink Scene] Loco Over Retro Night at O Bar

O BAR is having another night dedicated to the joys of disco on November 20, 2016 starting at 09:00pm. Given the success of the first O'Coco Night back in September, the tables are going to part once more in order to create a grand dance space for those who still love to boogie and all that good stuff. It just goes to show how much O Bar tries to be a space open to everyone regardless of gender or even age. And that's just another thing that we love about O Bar.

The call time is pretty serious so it pays to go earlier than later. Expect the O Diva drag performances to start earlier as well so arriving after midnight just won't cut it! Take my advice - you're going to miss out on all the best stuff if you saunter in past 02:00am like you normally do.

[Technicolor Musings] Happy Halloween Freaks!

Happy Halloween everyone! Hope you all had a fun night of trick-or-treating and wearing inappropriately sex costumes!

We're still a little hungover from O Bar's Liberation Pary 2015 and so I'll just leave you with this classic song from Hocus Pocus. One of the O Diva performances last reminded me of how much I want to re-watch this movie.

[Pink Scene] O Bar Liberation Pride Party 2015

O BAR will be having its LIBERATION Pride Party this Saturday, October 31, 2015. In old Malate the last Saturday of October was reserved for the Black Party in celebration of Halloween. O Bar continues this tradition in a way with its various Pride Parties throughout the year.

This isn't a theme event or something with a strict dress code. It's a night that's open to everyone and is sure to feature all the things that we've come to love about the place including fabulous drag queen performances, dazzling poi numbers and of course those hunky ledge dancers.

See you there!

[Pink Scene] O'Coco Night at O Bar

This Friday, September 25, is going to be O'Coco Night at O Bar. It's a special event in celebration of the Disco era and the fabulous Coco Banana that was sort of the Manila equivalent of Studio 54. It's going to be a fun night of classic disco music with matching performances by the O Divas and the Lola Divas as well!

The event is also for the benefit of the Take the Test Project and Klinika Bernardo.

So put on your most stylish dancing outfits and see you at O Bar on Friday!

[Technicolor Musings] Thanks For Being Awesome, O Bar!

So I celebrated my birthday at O Bar last Friday night and it was AMAZING. Where else would I be dragged up on stage to lip-sync Kylie Minogue's Especially For You together with Tobie and l get dragged up for the Katy Perry Birthday performance? Complete with well-wishes from the drag queens, the poi dancers and pretty most all the ledge dancers and staff at the bar?

But hey, I know this is also because of years of patronage and thousands upon thousands of photos I've taken to help them promote their performances and also document the many amazing, creative, wonderful numbers they've staged over the years. The love you send out to the universe will always come back to you.

So thank you so much O Bar for making my birthday feel extra special and just being awesome every weekend. My O Bar friends will always feel like family to me and I don't think that will ever change.

[Pink Scene] Celebrating LGBT Pride with Manila Luzon

So when In the Dark Events first partnered with O Bar to stage events for various queens from RuPaul's Drag Race starting with Adore Delano, the drag racer that people were most hoping for was Manila Luzon. And you can't really blame people for feeling that way since this Season 3 queen was fabulous all throughout the show and proud to be part Filipino to boot! And so it goes without saying that people went crazy over the news that Manila Luzon was finally coming to Manila this month for her first-ever performance in the Philippines. Not only that, but it was part of O Bar's Pride Party event for this year, which made things all the more epic.

Last night's Pride Party called Lagalas de Pilipinas, a tribute to Philippine drag queens, was such a great night. It was already cool that the VIP-only part of the event didn't just include a professional photo with Manila but also the option to take your own selfies with her, but performances that followed totally took the house down! And Manila is such a dazzling, engaging and endearing personality that it's easy to see why she's been such a fan favorite around the world.

Beyond Manila's celebrity presence, the fabulous performance numbers by the Oh Divas, poi artists and ledge dancers, the event also include a special number from the Lola Divas, a set of older queens that still perform until today. This Pride Party was meant as a tribute to Philippine drag queens after all, and it was important to pay homage to those who have helped shaped the local drag culture. It was quite a treat to see them rock that stage like their much younger sisters and still get the whole crowd cheering and shouting.

But no Pride Party is complete without friends, and we certainly saw a good number of them at the bar last night. Tobie and I had charge of a table for other O Bar regulars and friends and we did our best to make sure everyone had a home for the night. I'm pretty sure I had way too many drinks that night and I took a ridiculous number of photos with my alcohol-impaired trigger finger. And as I say a lot on this and my other blogs, it's the presence of friends that really defines the O Bar experience for me. The bar in itself is a great venue with amazing performers that make a lot of fun possible. But it's your friends that go with you that really make all the difference and help shift a night nursing a drink into a wild event partying with your hands in the air.

Thank you O Bar. Thank you In the Dark Events. Thank you Manila Luzon. A most happy Pride indeed.

[Pink Scene] Manila Luzon in Manila for Pride 2015!

It's official! After Adore Delano and the pair of Alyssa Edwards and Laganja Estranja, Manila Luzon herself is coming to the Philippines! Not only that, but she'll be here just in time to kick off O Bar's Pride festivities on June 20, 2015. This is her first official show in Manila - so you know this is an event you can't afford to miss!

In addition to Manila Luzon, you'll have the joy of watching other performances:

• The O DIVAS (The countries most phenomenal drag performing group)
• The LOLA DIVAS (The Philippines pioneer drag queen group)
• FIRE & LED Dancers and soo much more!

VIP tickets have been on sale since Wednesday, but you might still have a chance to get one of 100 exclusive tickets that grant:

• Quick Entry to the event
• Meet & Greet with Manila Luzon
• Professional Photograph with Manila Luzon

Tickets retail for PHP1,800.00 and can be purchased online at the In the Dark Asia website or at the gate. General admission tickets will also be sold at the at door on the night itself including O Bar admission.

[Pink Scene] Sizzling Summer Scene

A lot of exciting stuff coming your way as summer heats up1

First, O Bar is having its summer kick-off party this Saturday on March 28, 2015. Doors open at 10:00pm and if you want any chance of securing a table, it helps to go early. But even if you go later at the "usual" time for most queer bar-goers in Metro Manila, you're still up for a major treat in the form of fabulous shows by the O Divas, poi performers and a whole lot more!


For those of you heading to Songkran in Thailand this year, you can actually catch some of the O Divas at Irotika's Apocalypse Party on April 13, 2015 at HEAVEN at CentralWorld. They've gathered some of the best talent in Asia and have included Bernie and Katkat along with rising gay icon Whyan Chen from “So You Think You Can Dance” and Kittdanai from Jupiter (Bangkok)!

And the summer season is just beginning! Who knows what else events maybe coming along in the weeks to come?

[Pink Scene] Alyssa Edwards & Laganja Estranja in Manila!

After the success of Adore Delano's one-night event at O Bar last February, In the Dark Asia is now bringing in more RuPaul's Drag Race royalty - this time the mother and daughter team of Alyssa Edwards and Laganja Estranja!

You can get your tickets at the In the Dark page - they come in two tiers:
General Admission (PHP 600.00)
 - Great viewing areas
 - Closest to the bar
 - Free entry to after party

VIP Meet & Greet (PHP 1,800.00)
 - Quick expedited entry
 - Premium dedicated viewing areas
 - Professional photo with Alyssa & Laganja
 - Signed tour photo with Alyssa & Laganja
 - Free entry to after party




So we'll catch you all at O Bar on April 15, 2015! Doors open at 07:00pm, so don't be late!

[Pink Scene] Adore Delano in Manila!

In case you haven't already heard, Adore Delano of RuPaul's Drag Race fame is coming to Manila this February 25! In The Dark is bringing everyone's favorite party girl for a one night only event at the new O Bar, still located at the Home Depot Ortigas complex, but now closer to the back of Sitel. The event will run from 07:00pm to 11:00pm. Patrons can stay on at O Bar after, but regular O Bar door charge will apply.

General admission tickets cost PHP 750.00 while special VIP tickets cost PHP 1,800.00 and include a special meet and greet session with Adore along with a photo opportunity. You can buy your tickets at the door or you can order them online at the In the Dark Events page.

So let's all go and PARTY with Adore!

[Technicolor Musings] Happy LGBT Pride, Geeky Readers!

By the time this blog entry publishes, my partner Tobie and I are probably still struggling to get out of bed after what I assume has been a wild night of celebrating LGBT Pride with many of our friends at O Bar. I've written about why Tobie and I love O Bar so much quite a number of times on this blog and the others that I manage. Our desire to support them so much is what primarily drives this for us.

I do hope that all of you took some time this month (with it being LGBT Pride Month) to show a little love and support for the LGBT community. Whether or not you identify as part of the community, it's never too late to get on the side of true equality in terms of legal rights. And we in the LGBT community can use all the support that we can get - such is the struggle of any minority group within a democratic society.

LGBT Pride, or simply gay pride, isn't just about partying or making a fool of yourself in public. It's more about standing up and being counted among those who believe that the LGBT community deserves to have the same right as other human beings. This is not about special rights or simply giving something extra to gay people - this is about extending existing rights to the gay community, as we deserve as citizens of this country.

And so we wave the colors and we march and we do all sorts of other things to try and advance our cause step by step. And we have a long way to go.

[Pink Scene] Know Your Oh Divas - Karen

Karen is one of the longer-term Oh Divas who has performed at the original O Bar location in Malate and eventually at both Ortigas locations as well. She's a whole lot of drag queen to deal with but she certainly has a unique presence on the stage. Personally I think it has a lot to do with her eyes - she has a certain intensity that's most evident when she gazes at the crowd. In that regard she truly maintains a certain amount of presence as she goes through her performances.

Karen has quite a number of tricks in her bag and over the years I've watched her in a wide variety of costumes, wigs, and other ways of tweaking her appearance. Then you have to factor in her many different performance routines, her props and all these other elements that just come together and present what a true Oh Diva that she is.

She's a woman of few words, but she still has a fair amount to say in this Know Your Oh Diva feature. I'm just thankful that she opted to participate in these interviews.

[Pink Scene] Know Your Oh Divas - Precious Paula

These days, it's hard for any O Bar guest not to recognize Precious. She's definitely one of the more visible Oh Divas these days given the number of performances that she has throughout the week. And to be fair, she's quite the phenomenal performer. Precious has an interesting balance of feminine beauty and sheer physicality - something that truly helps her stand out.

But more than anything, you can tell from the way that she performs that she's extremely passionate about what she does. And while there are many different types of drag queens out there, Precious Paula is certainly a uniquely talented drag queen. And this girl really knows how to work her make-up!

So I'm glad that I finally pinned her down for an interview for this week's Know Your Oh Divas feature. And I'm sure a lot of you O Bar fans have been looking forward to this as well!

[Pink Scene] Know Your Oh Divas - Jay

Jay is actually the very first Oh Diva that I ever got to meet, although at the time he was out of drag and pretty tired from a busy Saturday night. But over the years I and other O Bar patrons have been repeatedly blown away by her intensity and showmanship each and every night.

It's hard to perfectly explain what it is about Jay's performances that I like the most. Maybe it's the fact that we never really know which character she will represent next time she takes the stage from Lady GaGa to Nicki Minaj.

Admittedly, I'll know her as Jay, although her official drag name is actually Jaja. No matter what name she goes by, Jay is one fierce drag queen. And she is the highlight of this week's Know Your Oh Divas interview feature.

[Pink Scene] Know Your Oh Divas - Bernie

One of the things that I love the most about drag queen culture is that there is no one "right" way to be a drag queen. In the same way that the LGBT community has enough color to make up any number of rainbows, so does drag culture include a wide variety of queens. You have pageant queens and comedy queens and you have those queens whose sheer physicality is beyond reproach. And the Oh Divas of O Bar Ortigas certainly demonstrate quite a wide range of those different types of queens.

I don't quite know how to classify Bernie - one moment she can be soft and feminine and the next she's an intensely fierce performer. She can strut with grace and charm and then shift into some pretty wicked dance moves. And that transition between the different aspects of Bernie is totally seamless - thus she always leaves the audience guessing as to what she's going to do on stage next.

This week's Know Your Oh Divas feature interview is the one and only Bernie!

[Pink Scene] Know Your Oh Divas - Letlet

One of the things that I love most about the drag shows at O Bar Ortigas is the fact that each Oh Diva has such a unique personality. You can see this in terms of how they do their make-up, how they dress, how they move on stage and based on the types of songs that they choose. These are all aspects of a greater whole - of what makes each Oh Diva so fabulously unique.

Letlet is certainly one of the more experienced drag queens at O Bar. Her performances celebrate classic artists of song, stage and screen in a manner that is uniquely hers. And while some might joke that her choice of songs to perform sometimes feels a little dated - these are often the very same people who can't help but sing along during her next number. She knows how to play to the crowd and to get everyone cheering and shouting like some master conductor of the everyone at the bar.

So let's get to know Letlet a little better in this week's Know Your Oh Divas feature interview.

[Pink Scene] Know Your Oh Divas - Katkat

Being a longtime O Bar patron, It's interesting to note the growth of development of the various drag queens who have graced the O Bar stage over the years. And it's only natural for people to strive to better themselves and constantly seek to improve within their chosen path in life, whether it involves writing books or in this case impersonating celebrities and entertaining hordes of fans.

Katkat has been performing at O Bar for some time now and I can definitely say that her performances just keep getting better and better. Each Oh Diva brings something different to their performances and Katkat has a diverse range that can have her all pretty and demure on one end then hilarious funny the next. And it takes a certain a degree of skill and understanding of people to be able to read an audience like that and really figure out what tickles everyone's funny bones.

So this week's Know Your Oh Diva feature involves none other than the Captivating Katkat - and I'm sure you'll find her responses quite captivating as well.