SF’s Queer Artists Want You To Come See Shows

Michael Phillis backstage for the show he wrote called “The Hand That Rocks the Crawford” at Oasis. The cast from left to right is Sara Toby Moore, Matthew Martin, Katya Smirnoff, and Steven LeMay.

This post was made possible by the fine folks at Pride in Gotham. Learn more and get your tix right here.

by Daniel Sherman

Twenty years ago, San Francisco’s art scene looked dramatically different than today. “As an artist, the city was so bohemian; you could make your art and maybe walk some dogs on the side to pay your rent,” says Michael Phillis, the creator of SF’s long-running gay male revue, Baloney. “There wasn’t the urgency to sell your art that we have today.”

As one of the city’s sole remaining full-time queer theater creators, Phillis has seen the city transform during his two decades here. “I’ve always felt like San Francisco was a garden where new things, new art, new possibilities can grow. If New York audiences sit back with arms folded and say, ‘What do ya got? Why should I care?’ a San Francisco audience sits forward. We say ‘hmm’ a lot. We already care before it starts.”

Despite the shift in conditions here, Phillis stayed, continuing to write and produce his own work. Many of you have seen his rendition of Patty from HR, or his drag musical performance of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or his iconic contributions to Golden Girls Live. 

“I learned from the late great drag legend Heklina: hustle, hustle, hustle. I once saw her putting up posters for her already sold-out show; when I asked her why she was still promoting, she said, ‘You have to show them what they’re missing. Then next time they’ll want it even more.’ I don’t get days off. I don’t have a 401K. I eat a lot of peanut butter. But there’s nothing I’d rather do and nowhere else I’d rather do it. Just when you think it might not be worth it, San Francisco always proves you wrong.”

Michael Phillis

While the last decade has seen so many artists get priced out of the city, and many long-running theatrical institutions have closed their doors, the energy has seemingly shifted since the pandemic. “We have all had enough Netflix and chill to last a lifetime,” joked Phillis. “People are hungry to get out of the house and experience new things. It’s a great moment to reset the dial on live theater, and yet so many theaters are struggling to find audiences. They don’t just want to sit back and watch it happen, they want to be an active participant.”

When Michael Phillis and I reconnected at the end of 2021, we both shared in the sentiment that the city is at a turning point. The people who were only here for work have left, and everyone who remained is craving community. More importantly, we have an opportunity to regrow our arts community with all of the new spaces and (ever-so-slightly) reduced rents. 

Over drinks at the beginning of the year, I shared my experience attending a black-tie gala at city hall, saying that ‘it felt like the Joker was going to break in at any moment.’ Michael’s eyes lit up, saying that his dream project has always been to create a Gotham immersive. We bantered over wine, brainstorming and building a concept. At some point in the evening, I recalled a brochure for the recently renovated Hibernia Bank: a historic art deco building downtown that had just reopened as an event venue. A week later, we toured the space, and a week after that, we signed a contract for our first event. 

Learn more about his amazing immersive event right here.

A new queer immersive theater company was born: Pop Culture Immersives. “What if we could wander the worlds we grew up loving? What if we could throw on fun outfits and go cavort with other like-minded folk? Pop Culture Immersives invites that adventurous spirit and serves it with a healthy side of nostalgia. With an immersive show the line between audience and performer is blurred, if it even exists at all. There’s an invitation there. There’s something enticing about being able to make a choice and see how it effects the whole experience. There’s a wonderful disorientation when the show is happening all around you, not just a safe distance away behind an invisible fourth wall,” says Phillis.

And for Gotham? You are cordially invited to the Wayne Foundation’s First Annual Pride Gala. Just like the iconic galas from the films, guests will arrive black-tie (or Batman cosplay, or pridewear) to a champagne reception and live music. After Bruce Wayne takes the stage, a newsflash: Gotham’s villains have broken out of Arkham! Guests are ‘held hostage’ and taken into the underground vaults of the Hibernia; a dungeon-like labyrinth where each villain has a performance waiting. 

“I’ve seen a lot of shows but I have yet to see any show like this. It’s too big, too crazy, too intricate to work. And yet it absolutely does,” says Phillis, who wrote and directed the show. Part scripted theater and part party, guests will get to free-roam the three stories of the Hibernia and choose which experiences they want to have. Fifty performers have prepared burlesque, fight scenes, singing, tap dancing, shibari, and more, with cocktails and DJ Charles Hawthorne there to keep the party bumping. “Expect to be turned on, surprised, disoriented, and fully entertained. You don’t have to love Batman or be gay to love our queer little corner of Gotham City.”

Learn more about his amazing immersive event right here.

For those who have been in San Francisco long enough, it’s easy to see how the wealth disparity has transformed our culture. But according to Phillis, making San Francisco an arts hub once again means putting in the work. “Artists need money to survive and our country has no tangible way to give it to them. It all falls to each of us. If you want to live in a place with great culture, you have to invest in it. This is a team lift! You don’t just get to sit back and benefit from it – you have to sit forward. You have to say, ‘hmm.’ You have to help the weird shit grow.”

Whether it’s Pop Culture Immersives, or Detour Dance, or Ray of Light, or SFBATCO, or Killing My Lobster, or any of the incredible (yet dwindling) companies producing art in this city – art can’t exist without an audience, and San Francisco needs art now more than ever. Putting it plainly, Phillis exclaims, “There’s a new generation of queer creatives coming up in San Francisco and they’re going to blow you away. They have a lot to say and they’re not shutting up anytime soon.”

Find out more and get your tix to Pride in Gotham here!

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