photo by Bruce-Michael Gelbert
Chuck McTague & Porsche ...........................................................................................

On June 25 at the Ice Palace, Porsche kicked off Pride Weekend in style, with the invaluable assistance of DJ Chuck McTague.

Celebrating 10 years of doing drag, Porsche, in fine, fresh voice, began with a peppy opening number-"Suddenly I see, this is what I want to be"-and begged, "Love me, love me, say that you love me." She tickled us by singing "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" as Marilyn Monroe, Carol Channing, and Megan Mullally as Karen Walker.

Porsche channeled Shirley Bassey's earth mother bass-"Something in the way he moves"-and purring as Eartha Kitt, made a louche wish-"I Want to Be Evil. She took us back five decades or so for "Lollipop, lollipop," rich in innuendo, and jumped forward to the present for the Sapphic, "I Kissed a Girl, I Liked It."

To the tune of "I Got You, Babe," sung as Cher-and sometimes as Macy Grey-Porsche revived her find-a-boyfriend contest and, among Brian from Cherry Grove, David from Victoria's Secret, and chef Justin, from Seattle and Ocean Beach, the audience chose 6'5" Justin, to whom she sang "Love me or leave me," while plying him with rum-and-cokes.

Our diva doffed the wig to do Judy Garland-a bit of "Get Happy," then, on a serious note, "The Man That Got Away." She sang an insinuating "Smooth Operator," Sade's song, and then, in duet with Chuck, "Suddenly Seymour," from "Little Shop of Horrors," always a highlight. She debuted Celine Dion's "It's All Coming Back to Me," addressed, with intimacy, to 'new boyfriend,' Justin.

Porsche wound down her show with a lively Bette Midler-"Stuff Like That There," took us to the psychedelic Sixties with Grace Slick's "White Rabbit" and Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart," sang "Happy Birthday," Marilyn-style, to Peter (of Todd and Peter), and bade us 'good night' with Midler anthem "The Rose."