Popular Wichita drag bar isn't closing after all

Club Boomerang is back in business.

The gay bar at 1400 E. First St., which is known for its weekly drag shows, had planned to close at month's end.

Its owner, Brad Thomison, had said he was just too busy to run the place anymore — while working full time at Wichita State University, owning a massage therapy practice, a mobile DJ service and both performing in and producing drag shows across the region.

Thomison co-owns the bar with his partner Joshua Pfister.

"We wanted more time to spend with our family — our kids are growing up, and we're trying to have some better balance in life," Thomison said.

But plans changed for the club.

In the weeks since announcing the club's closing, "so many people showed up and talked to us about how much they were going to miss the place and how they didn't really feel safe or welcome in other spaces," he said. "What got me the most was the young people, in particular trans people, our gay and lesbian people who feel most at home in our space there.

"It really brought to light something I always knew but made it even more obvious: that this was family, too."

Thomison plans to delegate more of the club responsibilities to his "wonderful, creative" staff and cut back in other areas of his life to keep the club open, he said.

He said he's considering how to better use the club's outdoor space as well as its back room, which had been used primarily for private parties.

But the club experience will remain largely the same, he said.

"The only difference people will see is in the added diversity and creativity that we show in entertainment," he said.

This story was originally published June 26, 2018 at 10:43 AM.