The Juice Box

Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles of water

By Steve Kleine

Wonderland is the the biggest and most over the top dance party for LA Pride. It is held on the Paramount back lot in the heart of Hollywood. The space is so huge you can barely hear the music as you enter the space. After a quick and very light security check you walk down an alley and end up in a cityscape taken right out of West Side Story. The main activity happens on two streets that are angled so they intersect in an upside down V shape. The stage, which also held the DJ booth and light booth is placed at the intersection of these two streets projecting light and sound down both. At the end of one street was a Ferris wheel.

The hours for this party are a bit odd given that it starts at 7PM and closes at 3AM. We arrived at 8:30PM. A crowd was starting to build, but most of the boys were having cocktails and chatting each other up at this point. However, DJ Wayne G quickly got the boy’s booties shaking with his uplifting vocal sound. While not relying on his trademark “Heaven Horns” he still had the crowd bouncing around to a very well mixed set of music that truly prepared us for lift off.

I remarked to a friend that the visuals were quite good. I look at the stage and realized that it was none other than Guy Smith at the controls. As usual he dazzled us with an ever changing array of effects. I was not sure who was manning the lasers, but they were in perfect sync with the lights and the music. You know you are at a good party when no single light or laser stands out; they just all work in perfect harmony with the music and the energy of the night.

Impresario and Producer Tom Whitman strutted on stage in a bright green mohawk wig to welcome us to Wonderland and introduce the first performer “Mattise.” Despite having the music stop the energy stayed up as this young singer and her dancers took the stage and performed a standard dance number. Wayne continued to infuse us with happiness and joy, much past the 10 o’clock hour when the the fireworks were scheduled to go off. This was a good thing because in this reviewers book, the more Wayne G, the better!

Around 11:30PM, they did the fireworks, which were quite amazing, very bright and just perfect for the size of the space. The crowd roared with approval. It was now time for DJ Manny Lehman to take control of the decks.

Many reviewers here on the Juice Box have voiced disappointment with Manny’s performances in the past year, and this will be no exception. As he has done with most recent sets, it was as if he simply showed up and pressed play. There were many transitions where my group would simply look at each other as if to say “shouldn’t there be ‘more’ going on?” Many times a track would peak and Manny’s back would be to the crowd. It is this reviewer’s opinion that if a DJ is not going to mix in some excitement to a set,they should at least try and fake it when their pre-recorded tracks come to a climax.

Many promoters feel just having Manny’s name on the marquee will be a draw. If he keeps delivering lackluster performances like this I hope the crowd will respond by choosing other events. At $80 a ticket it is an insult to have a DJ play music that anyone with a computer and a sense of rhythm could produce.

Tom came back on the stage around 1:00AM to introduce Kelis (apparently it is pronounced “Kel-ESE”). She strutted on stage with no back up dancers and lip synced or barley sang over pre-recorded tracks of Milkshake (mixed with Madonna’s Celebrate) and A Capella. Manny started up after her set with an after hours sound that sent this reviewer home to rest up for a long day at the Pride festival.

Wonderland is a great event. The location and production value alone vault this party into the top ten LA dance events. Tom and his staff do an amazing job year after year, which is why thousand of boys continue to support it. If Manny would have somehow popped out of his stupor and actually spun like he used to back in the day, this party could have easily earned a well deserved five water bottle rating. But music is the core of any party and his performance took a full (and overflowing) bottle off this review.

Tags: Manny Lehman, Wayne G, Wonderland