According to Urban Dictionary a ‘washashore’ is a newcomer to a coastal or island community, a non-native, and who can sometimes (?) be a subject of xenophobia. In Provincetown, it is however considered a badge of honor in this gay mecca at the tip of Cape Cod which has a very diverse community. The Pilgrims laid claim to the place in the 1600s BUT they were not the first. That honor belongs to the Wampanoag Nation and its 69 tribes who had lived there for centuries before.
In the 1800s Portuguese fishermen started settling there, then in the 1900s, it became an artist’s haven, before the gays arrived in the 1960s to gentrify and decorate the place. So in Provincetown, everybody who stays in the Winter when the population drops down to 3000 people is technically a washashore and they are the ones who get to celebrate at the annual Washashore Festival.
Technically its called Provincetown’s Genre-Bending Queer Music Festival which celebrates the freedom, breadth, and power of Queer expression in this village at the end of the world that has long been a safe haven for rebels, adventurers, artists, and liberated souls of all stripes. Presented by Provincetown Brewing Co., Crown & Anchor, and Tangle-Made Production. This year’s event is being hosted by Tony Award winner John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and starring Jake Wesley Rodgers (often described as the musical love child of Elton John and David Bowie, )
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Saturday’s opening night festivities at the Crown & Anchor will feature headliner Boyfriend – a critically acclaimed New Orleans-based “rap-cabaret” star – and a performance by local rapper and fan favorite Drizzy Bravo. The festival will kick-off Saturday with the second-annual “Net Gala” leading into the night’s performances, and will end with a Provincetown edition of Mitchell’s legendary New York party “The Mattachine.”
For the first time ever, the festival will culminate with a host of programming at Provincetown’s historic Town Hall. With Provincetown’s largest event space as a backdrop, the festival’s Sunday night extravaganza will open with performances from trans-Korean-American synthpop guitarist Superknova – who was a runaway fan favorite at Washashore Festival 2022 – as well as an original immersive musical piece commissioned specifically for the Town Hall space by composer and DJ Andrew Haigh and singer Joao Santos. The evening will culminate with Rogers’ headlining set – his first ever appearance in Provincetown – in addition to performances form host Mitchell throughout
October 7th and 8th For the full schedule and tickets stc https://www.facebook.com/washashorefest
Labels: 2023, genre bending music, Jake Wesley Rogers, John Cameron Mitchell, Provincetown, Washashore Festival
