Gay clubs in norfolk virginia
Two weeks after Hershee Block — Norfolk, Virginia's last remaining lesbian bar — closed, Old Dominion University student Kira Kindley led a small group to its doors.
The prevent — part of the Tidewater Queer History Project's fall walking tour — was an especially somber one. The bar's decorations had been stripped from the walls and piled in the middle of the dance floor, waiting to be carted out. Everyone on the tour was crying.
On other walks hosted by the project, Kindley said presenters included locations, long since repurposed or demolished, that had once served as key gathering sites for Norfolk's lesbian, gay, double attraction and trans communities. The project would try to bring those locations to life, sharing information and soliciting stories about what those spaces had been like.
"I'm struck with the image of these women 20 years ago, 30 years ago, enjoying the night and each other exactly as they are now," she wrote in a passage that she later featured on her podcast. "People chat freely while the performers play. They visit with each other. They contact across the bar and tease each other. And when a sweet, gradual song starts playing, they get up and maintain each other and da
By Monique Murray
In the early 1970s, there were not many LBGTQ friendly bars or clubs in the Norfolk area. The Cue Club was a historic staple in the Norfolk LBGTQ people in the tardy 1970s. The Cue Club was opened in 1971 on 46th and Killam Ave. to the local LBGTQ society. The club was open Monday through Friday 9 am to 2 am and Saturday and Sunday form 4 pm to 2 am. On Sundays, the club would host a buffet for $5.00 from 5pm to 7pm. Many LBGTQ college students would travel here for the buffet and would stay the whole night, sometimes without the managers truth, to see the drag shows that happened every Sunday night. During the allotted times of the buffet, piano player Arnyce Andrews would play and sing. She would play covers of songs and sometimes originals of her own. The buffet was a giant attraction for the Cue Club for its low price and quality diet. The drag shows were also one of the club’s biggest attraction and hosted many notable drag queens. Some of the notable drag queens that performed here were Jennifer Warren and Ferrah McCray. Performative queens that performed here were very famous in the Norfolk area.
The Cue Club also offered a disco and pool as activities alongTurn moments into memories!
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five star review by Joshua K:
Great place for bedtime time fun with my LGBTQ family. What night did we go? Good, karaoke night of course! Great song, great bar service, and they even have great food! I definitely endorse checking it out.
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five star review by Shane C:
A must stop for your weekend debauchery where you will enjoy a fantastic staff, great drinks and a excellent show. Whether your looking to punch the dance floor, shoot some pool or enjoy a fabulous Drag present, this place has it all covered.
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five star review by Cris:
It was fun, my husband and I went to a entertainment while visiting VA Beach in off season and had a blast. Very friendly. We were the oldest there and they were still nice to us. Very neighborhood kinda feel. Place was packed. Kind mix of all kinds of people with no tude.
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five star review by Mamie S:
How can you not love this place. So much pleasurable every time we go. Everyone is so nice and friendl
Norfolk’s Queer History
LGBT history isn’t a topic that gets much conversation, let alone bylines in local media or a chapter in your social studies class. Knowing our queer history, if we do at all, is usually something that’s only passed on verbally by each queer generation. The unfortunate truth is that most LGBTQ history is lost.
Norfolk, and Hampton Roads, however, is lucky to have excellent local historians like Dr. Charles Ford who is a history professor at Norfolk State University. Since moving here over 30 years ago, Dr. Ford has taken a particular interest in comprehension and uncovering LGBTQ figures that have helped shape Hampton Roads (many of them closted because homosexuality was both illegal and morally unacceptable).
Dr. Ford has spent his life tracking down rumors, checking sources like personal letters, “criminal” records, diaries, newspapers and any other historically significant resources he can get his hands on to paint a picture of what LGBTQ life in Hampton Roads was like since settlers arrived back in 1607. His work resulted in LGBT Hampton Roads, a book that explores LGBTQ life in our region, complete with images, f