This City of Sydney is getting ready to celebrate the biggest party of the year this weekend with the 38th annual Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday 5th March. In the lead up to the huge festivities, we’ve had the release of the official theme song, Kaleidoscope, by Courtney Act who is this year’s Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Global Ambassador.
Courtney Act, pop singer and entertainer, wrote the song with Australian singer, song-writer and producer Sam Sparro, believing “you may feel broken or separate but when you look through a kaleidoscope suddenly all of those broken bits and pieces create a beautiful image”.
Preparations for the parade are down to the last minute details for marchers and their floats with spray tans setting and final marching practices booked. This y
ear, organisers have announced there are 30% more floats in the parade.
It’ll start from 7.00 pm winding its way from Hyde Park up Oxford street, along to Flinders street, Darlinghurst. Whilst all the floats will be at their most fabulous and glittery best, there are a couple big names to check out:• The Peoples’ Republic Of Mardi Gras – the pink army battling against homophobia and transphobia
• Muslims Against Homophobia – Promoting queer Muslim rights, including LGBTQI and Non-LGBTQI members
• Australian Olympian & Paralympians – Showing that Australia’s best athletes support diversity and inclusiveness
• Sydney AFL Women – with 17 women’s teams with a mixture of straight, gay, trans, Muslim, Catholic, Christian participants who all support each other for who they are
• Sydney Queer Irish – Pirate Queens – Panti, the pirate (drag) queen of Ireland share the message of love and equality across the world
• Gayby Baby – The families that feature in the film and its supporters marching thank the community who supported the film
• Trans* – Marchers in support of transgender rights delivering a statement of Trans* pride to the world
• Gay for Ruby Rose – A light-hearted celebration of gender fluidity and sexuality as a spectrum
One of the best ways to view the parade is at the official Parade Viewing areas, the Diamond Club (Taylor Square – exclusive to Members of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras) and the Parade Side show (Flinders Street). Hosted by Portia Turbo and Andrew Mercardo the family-friendly area has seating, food stalls, bars, toilets and live event screens.
After the Parade there is only one place to be, the completely unmissable, unstoppable, Mardi Gras Party where all the magic happens. Creative Director George Savoulis has “revamped the Party experience this year” they’ve brought the stage to the middle of the room for epic high energy shows all night. Centre stage at one am with Mardi Gras Global Ambassador, Courtney Act, will be the “Queen of Austria” and 2014 Eurovision Song Contest winner, Conchita Wurst, paying homage to the art of drag in her debut Mardi Gras Party performance.
Back for another incredible performance is International queen of R&B, Grammy nominated sing-songwriter Deborah Cox. Her spectacular performance was last seen at the Mardi Gras Party in 2002 and this year she’s back with an exclusive Mardi Gras production show featuring a medley of her hit songs, including “Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here” and “Absolutely Not”.
The massive Mardi Gras Party line up includes top international DJs for Australia and overseas including:
One of the most sought after remixers around, Dirty Pop (USA) making his Party debut; Ben Manson (France) synonymous with the French electronic gay scene brings his melting pot of electronic vibes to the Party; former Sydney-DJ now resident Dutchman Rado (Netherlands) is returning with killer progressive, tech and deep-house beats; following her epic 2015 performance YO! MAFIA (Australia) is back on stage for her party-banging and hip-hop flavoured genre-smashing sets; keeping the party going for ten years across Australia and New Zealand, Haylenise (Australia) will be smashing out her house sets.
These amazing DJs will be joined by the likes of: Tracy Young, Mark Picchiotti, Buck Naked, Mark Alsop, Victoria Anthony, Kitty Glitter, Maze and Masters, Colin Gaff, Seismic and Tanner Derrby, with many more acts being announced in the lead up to the night’s Party. Over 12,000 fabulous party people will be there for the spectacular shows, DJs and awe-inspiring performances.
Your how-to guide for the biggest party weekend would not be completed without a stop off at the Beresford Hotel on Sunday night for the Laneway event. This awesome night has evolved from a tiny street party to this indoor/outdoor extravaganza complete with diva drop-ins, pop-up shows and world class DJs. DJ’s Announced So Far… Tracy Young (USA), Kitty Glitter (AUS), Jodie Harsh (UK), Sveta (AUS), James Tobin (AUS), Rob Davis (AUS), Corey Craig (USA), Jim Jam (AUS) and more to come… But only if you’ve already got your ticket – this massive party has sold out already!
What: Sydney Gand and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade
When: Saturday, 5th March from 7.00 pm
Where: Oxford and Flinders Streeets, Darlinghurst
Website: mardigras.org.au
Join the conversation: #parade #sydneymardigras #MGparty #OurMomentum @beresford #MardiGrasMoment @sydneymardigras
What: Mardi Gras Party ‘16
Where: Playbill Venues and Entertainment Quarter, Moore Park
When: Saturday 05 March, 2016
Time: 10pm – 8am
Final release tickets on sale now at $156.50 + transaction fees at mardigras.org.au
Website: http://www.mardigras.org.au/2016-festival-event-guide/mardi-gras-party-mgparty
What: The Laneway
When: Sunday, 6th March, 2.00 pm
Where: The Beresford Hotel, 354 Bourke Street, Surry Hills
Website: http://merivale.com.au/theberesfordhotel/whats-on/
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