I don't celebrate Easter. I celebrate Hunky Jesus. These are different holidays: One involves a resurrection, while the other involves a pre-screening round for shirtless men near the tennis courts in Dolores Park. I've been attending the latter faithfully for years, which makes me, I think, devout.
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence's annual Easter in the Park returns to Mission Dolores Park on Sunday, April 5, with the full sacrament: drag performances, live music, the Easter Bonnet contest, Foxy Mary, and the Hunky Jesus competition that gives the whole thing its name. Sister Roma, Peaches Christ, and Honey Mahogany are hosting.
Christopher J. Beale
Christopher J. Beale
The performance lineup includes Flamy Grant, Per Sia, Papi Churro, Xochitl, Grace Towers, KaiKai Bee Michaels, and Alotta Boutte. Kids' Easter starts at 10 a.m. with egg hunts. The main stage kicks off at noon. The Hunky Jesus contest starts at 3 p.m. Free, as always, though donations go to local queer charities.
For the uninitiated: when the contest is announced from the stage, contestants line up backstage near the tennis courts on the north end of the park. There's a pre-screening process (the Sisters have seen enough half-hearted Jesuses to last several lifetimes), and finalists are brought onstage for the audience to crown a winner. The advice from the Sisters themselves: well-conceived, clever characterizations always get the best response.
This year marks 45 years since the Sisters were founded. They started in 1979 as a direct response to evangelical power consolidating in San Francisco. That origin story feels uncomfortably current. With drag bans advancing through state legislatures and LGBTQ+ rights under organized assault, an Easter celebration run by queer nuns in a public park is the same act of defiance it was in 1979, wearing better costumes.
The Documentary
And now Hunky Jesus is also a movie. Director Jennifer M. Kroot's feature-length documentary, simply titled Hunky Jesus, just had its world premiere as the opening night film at the 40th BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival. The film interweaves footage from the 2023 Easter in the Park celebration with the Sisters' history on the front lines of the AIDS crisis and their most confrontational direct actions, including the 1987 exorcism of Pope John Paul II.
The documentary features Sister Roma, Honey Mahogany, George Takei, and other members of the order. It hasn't screened in San Francisco yet, but with both SFFILM and Frameline still building their 2026 lineups, it's a near certainty the film will come home before summer. Keep an eye out.
Saul Sugarman is editor-in-chief and owner of The Bold Italic.
The Bold Italic is a not-for-profit media organization, and we publish first-person perspectives about San Francisco and the Bay Area. We operate under a fiscal sponsorship of a 501(c)(3).
You can become a paid subscriber. Or donate. Or learn more about us.
Hunky Jesus 2026 Details
The Sisters Easter Celebration at Dolores Park 2026 Sunday, April 5, 2026 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mission Dolores Park, 19th & Dolores St., San Francisco
- Children's Easter: 10 a.m.
- Main stage celebration: Noon to 4 p.m.
- Hunky Jesus contest: 3 p.m.
Free. Donations appreciated. Volunteer at thesisters.org/volunteers.
Bring a blanket. Bring sunscreen. And if you're entering the contest, bring something better than a loincloth and a prayer.
