The Golden State’s first Pride event of the year, Cathedral City LGBT Days, aka Cathedral City Pride, kicks off its three-day celebration Friday.
It’s the eighth year for the Coachella Valley event.
Here’s everything you need to know about Cathedral City Pride.
Friday
- The official Pride flag raising and lighting will take place at Cathedral City’s City Hall at 5:55 p.m.
- A community film screening of Mike Nichols’ classic “The Birdcage” will take place under the stars at the Cathedral City Community Amphitheater. The film stars Robin Williams, Gene Hackman, Nathan Lane, Dianne Wiest, and Calista Flockhart. It follows a gay cabaret owner and his drag queen partner who agree to put up a false, straight front so their son can introduce them to his fiancée’s right-wing moralistic parents.
- “The Birdcage” screening is free to the public. Register for film tickets here. Doors open at 6 p.m. for the 6:30 p.m. showing.
- Bars throughout Cathedral City will host LGBT Days specials following the movie and all weekend.
Saturday
The day’s festivities include a headline comedy show starring River Butcher at the Agave Caliente Terraza, the outdoor entertainment pavilion at Agua Caliente Casino Cathedral City. Butcher’s first half-hour special “A Different Kind of Dude” was called “a masterclass in culture war commentary” by Esquire.com. Butcher was named one of Vanity Fair’s “Ten Comics to Watch” at Montreal’s Just For Laughs/Juste Pour Rire in 2017, just 6 years after doing his first standup open mic. He recently recorded his first one-hour special in Portland, set to be released on YouTube this year. Get tickets here.
Sunday
- Thousands of well-wishers will line up to cheer teams in the annual Bed Race and Parade of Beds, where participants run festively decorated beds down Avenue Lalo Guerrero. It starts at 10 a.m.
- The Bed Race will be emceed by local talent and accompanied by live entertainment, including the Madonna tribute act Blonde Ambition
- After the Bed Race, Cathedral City LGBT Days will host a champagne Sunday brunch with drink specials, vendors, and gourmet food trucks. The yummy fest will start at noon.
