Hedwig and the Pretty Beach

Navy bombing exercise disputes notwithstanding, the Puerto Rican island of Vieques appears to be the next big Caribbean thing. A W hotel is going up, and now, the gays are coming. A sure sign of upgrade. John Cameron Mitchell, the man behind breakthrough success Hedwig and the Angry Inch (who has been somewhat famously shooting the film Shortbus, in which the sex scenes are purported to be real) has circulated an e-mail inviting friends and acquaintances to come to a property in Vieques he bought recently with a friend. "We're building a cottage that'll be finished by the end of February, and we're looking for folks who want to stay there for periods of at least 3 weeks when we're not there--starting in March, but we looking for people for all year round," the e-mail reads. Views of the Caribbean and the Atlantic, as well as a large tract of national parkland; use of an S.U.V.; and an "incredible Bio-Luminescent Bay." Sounds pretty good! And it's free--sort of. Mitchell wants to make barter deals with potential visitors to do something to add to the new house. - Tom McGeveran