Tue. August 19, 2014
Chicago, IL -
This November, Best Gay Cities is taking over the Key Lime Cove Indoor Waterpark Resort in Gurnee, Illinois for "Heatwave," a first-of-its-kind, over-the-top-all-night dance and slumber party benefiting the Chicago Gay Men's Chorus. This Thursday, join event producers Michael Snell and Derrick Sorles at Scarlet Bar, 3320 N Halsted, for their fun, fabulous contest to crown the first ever Mr. (or Miss) Heatwave.
"We thought it would be fun to do something like the Bud Boyz; the Stoli Guy; the GRAB cover model search," Snell and Sorles told ChicagoPride.com. "Just make it fun, give away some prizes, and for the next year he/she would make some personal appearances to promote the our 2015 event."
The competition is open to everyone -- boys, girls and trans* folks of all ages, races, sizes and humors are encouraged to get involved. Interested parties can personally inbox Michael Snell on Facebook to enter themselves, or come during the first hour of Thursday's party, between 7 and 8 p.m., and register in person.
"Rules?" you ask -- there are none! The Best Gay Cities boys instruct all contestants to wear their sexiest, hottest look, while stressing that it's not necessarily a "best body" contest.
"Be fun and creative," the duo encourages. "Show your BIG...personality!"
The process will be simple. Attendees in the club will cast votes for their favorite, so all prospective Mr. and Miss Heatwaves should come early to mingle with the crowd for the first hour, and at 8 p.m. the contest begins. Snell and Sorles promise introductions and a few silly questions to show off each contestant's personality, followed by free pizza while the votes are being counted.
The winner will receive a $600 package that includes free room for 2 at "Heatwave" (if the winner already has a room, they will receive $200 cash), two tickets for the Heatwave Recovery Gospel Brunch, a two hour professional photo shoot and two tickets to "Out In the Park" at neighboring Six Flags Great America this September. They will also receive the ability to be paid fees for personal appearances promoting the next "Heatwave" in 2015.
The top two runners up will both receive a Swag Bag full of goodies, including tickets to Six Flags and other fun items.
So, don't miss your chance to compete or vote for Mr. (or Miss) Heatwave this Thursday, August 21, starting at 7 p.m. at Scarlet Bar in Boystown. Scarlet will mixing up a special Ketel One + Red Bull Heatwave drink for the evening at a special price.
"Now with market Days over and the event getting closer, rooms sales have really picked up," Snell and Sorles warned the procrastinators who haven't finalized their plans yet. "As of today, we are 60% booked, leaving only about 160 rooms left."
The duo bought out the entire complex of Key Lime Cove for the event -- which means a totally private party with no families and no children. "Heatwave" will feature a line-up of five DJs spinning for your delight. Starting out will be welcoming DJ #WET, aka Andrew Marks, of Sheboygan, Wisconsin to get things going, followed by Scarlet's Scotty T at 6 p.m. in the water park, with DJ Cody Domino taking over at 8. Next is the famous, or infamous, headlining act -- CAZWELL performs from 11 p.m. until 1 a.m. and finally Scarlet's DJ Luna rounds out the night until 3 a.m.
While suites are, of course, available, a basic room will run interested parties about $200 for 2 people, plus an optional $75 a piece for the two guests that bring it to double occupancy. That means $100 a piece for two people, or $85 a piece for four, will get ticket holders 24 access to the hotel as well as the 12 hour mega-dance party in the hotel and waterpark. For single folks, Snell and Sorles have set up a room share page on Facebook to find roomies.
Tickets can be purchased by calling 1-877-360-0403 -- you must say "'Heatwave' event in November" to have access to the rooms and event. More information can be found on the event's Facebook page, or at heatwavechicago.com.
Check back to ChicagoPride.com next week for more information about the new Mr. (or Miss) Heatwave as well as more about this fabulous not-to-be-missed event!
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