Nightlife

Hanarchy Now Productions founder calls it quits

by Devra First

SUPERWOMAN has come down with a wicked case of burnout.

Since 1996, Hanarchy Now Productions, an outfit promoting local queer and progressive events for women, has had its nose to the grindstone. And perhaps no one has ground her nose quite so hard as founder, community activist, and impresario extraordinaire Hannah Doress.

For the past three years, Doress has spent every waking hour doing her best to revitalize what was once a semi-arid women's entertainment scene. She and her co-Hanarchists have had remarkable success, presiding over events such as the post-Pride bash Tryst and the cutting-edge performances of spoken-word troupe Sister Spit. "When I started Hanarchy," Doress says, "this was a really different place to live. We've organized a community that is more inclusive, sex-positive, bi-positive, trans-positive, progressive, and supportive of artists than before."

But building Hanarchy up from scratch, trying to recruit a steady stream of volunteers, and struggling to keep events profitable has taken its toll. Doress has come down with a wicked case of burnout. The work she's been doing is no longer financially or personally sustainable. And so it is that she announced -- first at a benefit for Sister Spit on November 20, and again in a mass e- mail sent out late Monday night -- that she is throwing in the towel and relocating to the West Coast, north of San Francisco. (This decision, she writes, is personal; not a "dis on the community that I have sacrificed so much for and that I love so much.")

Doress's departure is a major loss for the Boston women's community, which has come to rely on her as the mastermind of many of its most anticipated events. What her leaving will mean for Hanarchy Now Productions is not yet entirely clear. A Hanarchy Transition Committee has been formed; its main objective will be to maintain Hannah's List, the weekly e-mail newsletter that informs 1500 subscribers not just of where the kicks and the chicks are, but also of important causes and organizations, political candidates' stances, and issues affecting the g/l/b/t community.

With no more Hanarchy events, at least for the time being, these missives may soon become a lot shorter. Doress is quick to point out, however, that there are still plenty of local organizations putting on events for women. She stresses the importance of supporting the businesses and events that are out there, such as New Words Bookstore in Cambridge, and YES!, a ToolBox Productions party taking place on Friday at the Milky Way Lounge & Lanes in Jamaica Plain. A lack of support is one of the main reasons Doress is calling it quits. "I think people took us for granted," she says.

Doress has been talking with Radcliffe's Schlesinger Library about archiving Hanarchy's materials so that people who want to follow in her footsteps will have an example to look to. The organization's legacy is therefore sure to linger on -- and in more ways than one. "People who don't have events at which they can meet other people are depressed people. You know, meeting people, dating, all that stuff -- it's a source of joy," Doress says. "One of Hanarchy's main achievements was that we got a lot of people girlfriends."

To get involved in the Hanarchy Transition Committee, e- mail hanarchyeast@chickmail.com; or call the Hanarchy line at (617) 983-8884. For updates and more information, check the Hanarchy Web site at http://www.hanarchy.com.