LGBTQ+
QUEEN OF THE DRAGS It’s May already and drag fans will not be disappointed this month as we have more queens taking to Sheffield’s stages than you can shake a disco ball at. First up we have the season six winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Bianca Del Rio [Mon 16 May] at City Hall. A self-proclaimed “clown in a dress” with a raw and racy edge, Bianca Del Rio is a costume designer and theatrical performer, as well as the familiar wisecracking artist that emerged on the New Orleans nightclub circuit in 1996. Bianca Del Rio continues to tour the world captivating fans with her sharp wit, dismembering humour, and perceptive commentary in a brash, metro kick to the ego—everything and everyone is her target. Step into her line of verbal fire for an unforgettable, humbling experience. Laugh. Malin Bridge Inn continue their line-up of drag cabaret with DJ Brooke [Fri 6 May] with her new regular slot for Fireball Fridays with non stop bops and hilarious comedy and the return of Tanya Minge [Fri 20 May] with her Disco Diva Party where she’ll be spinning the decks, dishing out the dirt and if you’re lucky, showing off her amazing powerhouse vocals. Trixie Lee is back at Hagglers Corner for their Drag Queen Bingo [Wed 18 May] with lots of prizes to be won and a big cash prize for the last game. Dressing up is optional but encouraged (there will be a cash prize for the best dressed so go big! )and food which will be served from The Bhaji Shop 5pm till 9pm. Table bookings are required so please book a table through the website. And following the success of their launch night, Anna Kissed returns to host KINK [Sat 28 May], an all-gender queer focussed fetish social at Spirit of Sheffield. Spirit will also be hosting Rainbow Blades [Sat 7 May], Sheffield United’s LGBT+ supporters club for their pre-match social before the home game against Fulham and LGBT Sheffield will be hosting their night Rockies [Sat 7 May] later that evening. Double Edinburgh Comedy Award-nominee and star of Live At The Apollo, Larry Dean [Wed 18 May] will be taking to the stage at Leadmill for his rescheduled show Fudnut. Like the rest of the city and beyond,
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we are all passionately behind saving Leadmill who are under threat of eviction. And Larry’s show is just one example of the many LGBT artists who have performed at the venue who host regular LGBT+ comedians, musicians and drag shows alongside their regular LGBT+ night No Shade. You may not also be aware that Leadmill also hosted SAYiT’s LGBTQ+ youth groups during Covid when they needed a larger space for social distancing and recently hosted their fabulous Alice in Wonderland themed queer youth prom. Their staff have also engaged in LGBTQ+ awareness training and they have always been both publicly and behind the scenes hugely supportive of Sheffield’s LGBTYQ+ communities and have our full support in return. Over at DINA we have the relaunch of their Queer Film Club [Wed 4 May] on the first Wednesday of each month showing a specially curated selection
of short films. ! This event is part of a programme of queer socials at DINA each Wednesday, including a comedy open mic, an art social, and a book club! And last but not least, it’s sadly not all glitter and rainbows as we have seen a huge increase in anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes in recent years alongside antiLGBTQ+ media and political campaigns. Sheffield Against Hate [Wed 25 May] will be bringing together LGBTQ+ and faith communities and allies for a demonstration at Sheffield Arena to say hate speech is not welcome here or anywhere else, as they host Franklin Graham who overturned the previous ban on appearing in the city due largely to his homophobia. That’s your lot for this month, as always keep an eye on the Sheffield LGBT+ events page on Facebook www.facebook. com/sheffieldlgbtevents for updates and announcements on the latest events and news.
Until next time, love and rainbows...