Lesbian event organiser Toni Farrow has decided to finish her monthly ‘Girl Spot' nights with a final event in October. Farrow has organised K' Road events for women for over a decade, from Retro nights at Kamo to the current Girl Spot nights at Blend. The nights are ending due to a number of reasons, says Farrow. “Personally I have committed to a lot and no longer have the time to organise the event,” she explains. “We would also need to find another venue, as the one we are in is not suitable for a women's event. Management at Blend are difficult to work with, which has caused problems for our clientele in the past. Also the demand for Girl Spot has been dropping and without a large number of regular patrons it is hard to deliver the best for the girls. Due to the diversity in the lesbian community running a women's event is very demanding, you end up doing it out of love rather than doing it from a business point of view.” Farrow believes lesbians enjoy their time out and enjoy a safe place to go. “We are a social bunch with a lot of pride. Over the last decade I have noticed a greater age range of lesbians on the scene with a lot more pride of who they are and the journeys they have taken. I have also noticed a form of ownership of K' Road, also known as 'Gay Road', with the introduction of more gay venues. “The lesbians are out there and are no longer hidden away in some dark side-street venue. Stereotypes of lesbians have been broken and we no longer all fit into the one box. Lesbians are like a box of chocolates, you get them in all varieties.” Diversity in the lesbian community makes very difficult to provide a single lesbian place to go that will please the majority, says Farrow. “This unfortunately divides us and doesn't make it feasible for a lesbian only bar or club on a weekly basis. It's sad, as there are plenty of lesbians in the Auckland region. So I think that for women, there will always be something social to do, however it will only ever be on a monthly or fortnightly basis.” Farrow plans to complete her business studies in 2007. “As for my future in the gay/lesbian community, I will always be around and you haven't seen the last of me yet. “Plans are already in the pipeline for an event at a new and exciting venue. I personally think with the joining of minds with other lesbian event organisers that we could pull off an amazing event that the girls would talk about for some time and give the women what they deserve.” Girl Spot's final night will be Friday 6th October 2006, at Blend, 322 K' Road, Auckland, from 10pm. Ref: GayNZ.com (m)
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Wednesday, 27th September 2006 - 12:00pm