A 'Christmas Miracle' Just Saved A Beloved Bay Area Drag Club From Closing: Report

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A beloved drag club in San Francisco that was set to close by the end of the year has now been given a new lease on life thanks to a multi-million dollar donation, according to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle.

OASIS in San Francisco's SoMA neighborhood opened New Year's Day in 2014 and has since served as a safe space for the LGBTQ+ community.

"Not even one of Oasis’ cabaret shows could dream up a script like this: just days before the final curtain was set to fall on Oasis, the glittering beacon of queer performance located at 11th and Folsom in San Francisco’s SOMA district, a surprise twist delivered pure holiday magic," the club said on its website.

Club owner D'Arcy Drollinger was ready to call it quits on the club when Sky Stevens, the son of Bay Area philanthropists Mary and Mark Stevens and OASIS patron, donated millions to help save the club, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

"This moment reflects the heart of San Francisco," Drollinger, owner and artistic director of Oasis and Oasis Arts, as well as the City of San Francisco’s first Drag Laureate, said in a statement online. "Saving Oasis is more than keeping a venue open, it’s about protecting space for marginalized artists to take risks, share their stories, and build sustainable careers."

The club will still close on Jan. 1 as it undergoes renovations and the Oasis Arts organization, the nonprofit that runs the business, restructures its operations, according to the report.

“I am humbled that this is happening at this late stage,” Drollinger told the San Francisco Chronicle. “It’s a Christmas miracle moment that I only dreamed could happen.”

Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.