The screams and applause reached a deafening peak as drag performer Diva Simone, dressed in a full length tie-dyed rainbow robe trimmed in multi-hued feathers, and the other members of Shebang took their final bows to the disco beat of Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” on Friday night.
“Thank you,” Simone mouthed into a microphone, completely drowned out by the ovation from the packed bar. “Remember, Neighbors is not a building; Neighbors is a community.”
The Eugene drag troupe’s last regular weekly show was prompted by the sale of the property that houses Neighbors Bar and Bistro, the revue’s performance space. After nearly a decade of operation, the gay bar located just east of campus on Villard Street permanently shut its doors Saturday night after it received a 30-day notice to vacate.
Neighbors owner Cindy Hill said she would like to relocate after the bar closes but is not sure whether she will be able to do so.
Adam Laird, who attended the performance Friday, said that while there are other gay-friendly bars in Eugene, they are small or too inconvenient compared to Neighbors.
“Eugene needs a lot of gay bars,” he said. “This is it, and it’s closing. I think it’s going to leave a vacuum.”
For members of the University community, the loss of the small bar located in a former McDonald’s restaurant meant the loss of an institution that held important memories and provided a tolerant atmosphere.
“Here, I could walk in with my girlfriend or with my boyfriend and no one would care,” biology major Jessica Gourley said. “I’m here all the time, and this is just very, very sad.”Gourley also said the bar fostered a uniquely caring community.
“I know all the bartenders here and they all text-messaged me on Christmas morning,” she said. “I work at a bar, I know that’s not normal.”
Michelle Simon, who said she would begin attending the University this fall, said she had first come out at Neighbors.
“People were applauding,” Simon said, recounting her experience. “Right now, I’m practically in tears.”
The bar also provided Eugene’s gay community with a space for numerous charity events that benefited nonprofit organizations like HIV Alliance, a health organization in Lane County that supports individuals living with HIV/AIDS and works to prevent new HIV infections, according to the group’s Web site.
The bar’s closure has also means the end of Shebang’s six-year run of performing in one location. There was an estimated hour-long wait for patrons hoping to get into the bar after the show started Friday.
“It’s sad, but it’s also nice to get a break,” Simone said. “It was unexpected. They sold the building and they wanted us out.”
The group is currently looking for a new location to hold a weekly show, but is planning to take the next five weeks off before returning to the stage, Simone said.

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