Performances and a roundtable discussion will take place at Turk and Taylor Saturday to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1966 Compton’s Cafeteria Riot, with a screening of the Emmy-winning documentary Screaming Queens to follow August 27.

The Tenderloin Museum will kick off Saturday’s event with a look at how The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot play has brought the history of the uprising to life for modern audiences. The production, which premiered in 2018, has been running continuously at 835 Larkin Street since April 2025, in a space built specifically for the production — a recreation of the classic diner at Turk and Taylor streets where transgender and queer Tenderloin residents gathered in the 1960s.

The play draws on the tensions that preceded the riot, including harassment, discrimination, police aggression, and conflicts within the community itself. According to a review last year by the Chronicle, the play’s characters grapple with the difficulty of finding respectable work, avoiding abusive police encounters, and simply being able to exist openly, while activists push for equal rights.

The production also draws on other historic acts of resistance in the neighborhood, including the Vanguard Street Sweep, a demonstration held soon after the riot in which LGBTQ Tenderloin youth protested aggressive police tactics.

The custom-built theater space at 835 Larkin is designed to put audiences directly inside that world, with period details including sugar shakers, ashtrays, and a cramped diner layout, per the Chronicle. The site No Proscenium notes that Compton’s uses drag performances and music from the era alongside the drama, giving audiences a closer look at the people and tensions surrounding the riot.

The Tenderloin Museum describes the production as its longest-running and most significant program, and Saturday’s discussion will focus on the role theater and performance can play in preserving activist history. Susan Stryker, creator of the documentary Screaming Queens and the historian who helped bring the Compton’s uprising back into public awareness, will lead a roundtable with the play’s co-writers and longtime cast and crew.

Following the discussion, Pearl Marie, Lawrence Tome, Lucy Diavolo, Muffy Koster, and others will perform at Turk and Taylor streets, where the anniversary event will conclude with a special performance by Flyaway Productions and closing remarks from Stryker. The event will also include resource sharing, altar building, art-making, food, and other activities.

The 60th-anniversary events will continue next week with a screening of the Emmy-winning documentary Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria at the San Francisco Public Library on August 27. Co-directed by Susan Stryker and Victor Silverman, the film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Stryker, Jonathan Cordero, Toshio Meronek, and dee(dee) c. ardan, facilitated by co-curator Ach Kab. 

The discussion will connect the history of the 1966 uprising with contemporary struggles over colonialism, policing, and co-optation, while considering collective liberation rooted in Indigenous stewardship. The event will be introduced by Chandra Laborde.

Related: Documentary Celebrates The 50th Anniversary Of The Compton's Cafeteria Riot