‘White Party’ Returns to Palm Springs
White Party Global Presents ‘White Party Palm Springs’
The Return Of The Legendary Desert Dance Music Festival
By Vic Gerami
One of the world’s biggest and longest-running queer dance music festivals, the White Party (WP), is returning to Palm Springs, CA. White Party Global (WPG) announced that the WP will take place from April 29 through May 1, 2022, at the Hilton Palm Springs. Thousands of revelers from around the world will once again descend upon the desert community for non-stop festivities.
‘It is an honor to continue White Party Palm Springs for my dear friend Jeffrey,’ said White Party Global Executive Producer Chris Diamond. ‘As we move forward with his vision of inclusion, diversity, and decadence, we are truly excited to once again showcase new dance music trends, global DJs, recording artists, state-of-the-art sound & visuals – and most importantly our returning guests… beautiful men from all over the world.’
Jeffrey Sanker, who founded the White Party, died at 65 years old on May 28, 2021, after a battle with cancer. Sanker started the circuit party in 1989. In 2014, Sanker was honored with a star on The Palm Springs’ ‘Walk of Stars,’ which recognizes notable individuals who have contributed to the cultural and or civic life of Palm Springs.
The three-day party is jam-packed with all types of events.
SOAKED! will feature poolside dancing, state of the art sound, video, go-go guys, and a line-up of world-famous DJs, including Orel Sabag (Israel), Isis (Mexico) and Bruno Knauer (Brazil), and Arno Diem (France).
Friday night, a ‘Rio’ jungle themed throw-down will kick off WPG weekend with DJs Liza Rodriguez (Brazil) and Dani Brasil (Brazil).
Saturday brings the weekend’s most anticipated night as WPG celebrates 30+ years with an ‘eternal’ themed WP spectacle. The 6-hour superhero-themed party will feature state-of-the-art staging, lighting, and sound. Attendees are welcome to wear the traditional white outfits or dress as their favorite inter-dimensional superhero character. DJ’s driving WP’s main event are Rick Braile (Brazil), Chris Turina (Chile), and Phil Romano (Italy).
On Sunday, it’s time for the world-famous ‘T-Dance.’ ‘Big Top Circus’ starts in the afternoon and continues into the night as the sun sets behind the spectacular mountains of Palm Spring. Warm breezes and hot dancing bodies fill the outdoor dance floor with music by international DJs Ben Bakson (Germany) and Dan Slater (Australia). The night culminates with a climactic firework and video display in a tribute to the WP’s gay party impresario Jeffrey Sanker.
The weekend culminates in a high-energy closing party with ‘Afterlife’ on Sunday night. DJs Joe Gauthreaux (New Orleans) and Mauro Mozart (Brazil) will provide the night’s beats.
The White Party is a very unique and special experience because thousands of mostly gay men from all over the world gather in a small desert town within days to dance, be themselves, and have a good time. I went to the WP for the first time, a couple of years after I came out of the closet. Although the Saturday night ‘white party’ is the main event, I had a blast at the pool parties. I know that a lot of people’s favorite event is the ‘tea dance.’ Whether you like big dances, huge pool parties, or a celebratory queer environment, the WP delivers.
Information on the host hotel, weekend pass pricing, and event details can be found at WhitePartyGlobal.com. (All tickets purchased pre-pandemic will be honored for Palm Springs White Party 2022 and 2023).
Additional special guests will be unveiled within the coming months. To be kept up to date on the latest announcements and new musical guests, please visit the WPG website, and follow them on social via Instagram and Facebook.
About Palm Springs
Palm Springs and its neighboring town, Cathedral City, with consistently brilliant sunshine, offer very laid back and relaxed lifestyles, only two hours from Los Angeles.
Palm Springs’ genesis and prominence can be attributed to Hollywood. In the 1910s, studios discovered the wonders of location shooting in Palm Springs with vacant land, mountains, and boulders for westerns and sand dunes for films about the Arabian desert. With the emergence of the studio system when stars were not allowed to be any farther from Los Angeles than within a two-hour drive, in case the studios needed them, movie stars made Palm Springs their weekend retreat of choice.
The town’s LGBTQ population is now estimated at more than 51 percent, the highest per capita gay population in the US, if not the world. The desert getaway achieved a measure of fame in 2018 when voters elected the nation’s first city council consisting entirely of members of the LGBTQ community.
