Ariel Sinclair, celebrating 22 years on Fire Island, hosted the Ice Palace gala grand opening show, assisted by DJ Chuck McTague, on music, lights, and sound, and featuring five additional favorite performers. Ariel began with Martina McBride’s “Blessed,” expressing thanks, country-style, for the bountiful love and other gifts that have come her way, and offered a raunchy parody of “All about That Bass.”
Logan Hardcore and Brenda Dharling sported big black picture hats and pink-and-black shirts reading, “Okay, Ladies, Now Let’s Get in Formation” for a hot “Formation,” Beyoncé’s song. Logan’s solos were Beyoncé’s “Freedom” and a mash-up of “And I Am Telling You I Am not Going,” from “Dreamgirls,” with Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab.” Brenda worked the room, the deck, and the pool during her lively mash-up of “All Coming Back to Me,” “When You Reach for Me,” and “River Deep, Mountain High,” and turned it out in a wild pairing of “La Isla Bonita” and “Wepa.”
Slick singer Sonny Shores gave us an autobiographical adaptation of “That’s Life” (“I’ve been a convict, an author, a waiter …”). Jada Balenciaga gave us an energetic “Burnin’ Up” and a mash-up that climaxed with “Jai ho,” from “Slumdog Millionaire.”
Our dear Porsche sang “Get This Party Started,” à la Shirley Bassey; Elle’s popular “Ex’s & Oh’s (1-2-3, they gonna run back to me);” and, to Logan and Brenda, Ella Henderson’s “Ghost (I keep going to the river to pray).”
Ariel and Logan conducted a “red hot modeling competition,” and the winner, out of five contestants, was Lloyd L. DesBrisay, to whom we also sang “Happy Birthday.” For the finale, Ariel, Brenda, Logan, and Jada collaborated on Peggy Lee’s “I’m a Woman.”