SYDNEY WORLDPRIDE

AGather. Dream. Amplify – It’s All About Celebration and Healing for This Year’s WorldPride

ALBERT KRUGER is the CEO of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG) and has played a vital role in further developing and growing the organisation and building upon its focus on diversity and inclusivity for the LGBTQIA+ community.

SGLMG is a not-for-profit organisation and is built on the foundations of fighting for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community, free creative expression, and challenging systems of injustice and inequality.

Albert expressed that the SGLMG has a long history and was born from a protest on Oxford Street in 1978 and as a result the iconic strip is the beating heart of the Sydney Mardi Gras Festival.

He explains that throughout the pandemic “we were proud to have never stopped marching, giving our communities in Sydney and across the world a moment of hope and pride during a very challenging time and that there could not be a more poignant year to return to Oxford Street — given we are welcoming the world Down Under for the first WorldPride in the Southern Hemisphere, as well as celebrating the 45th anniversary of the first Mardi Gras.”

“We were proud to have never stopped marching, giving our communities in Sydney and across the world a moment of hope and pride during a very challenging time.” everyone who still does not have equality. And to Amplify what is important to you, while also including and wanting the same for everyone else. It is about both healing and celebration. The event has tried to incorporate the values of inclusivity and accessibility for everyone. There are so many ways for individuals of any age to get involved. Because of the large number of events, the best way to find out what’s happening each day is to take a look at the WorldPride website and check out their festival program which will give you a ‘cheat sheet’ to all the times and places where events are happening. It is recommended that you plan and book early as a lot of events are ticketed. If you are looking at coming and getting involved in WorldPride this year, there are many ways that you can do this. For an all-age zone that is perfect for families then look no further than the new viewing area Ruby Road. It is located at the Moore Park end of the Parade route, so you will have uninterrupted views of the Parade. Feel free to pack a picnic or take advantage of the onsite food trucks, entertainment, bars and live screens to see all the action.

Each year Mardi Gras has a theme and this year it is “Gather, Dream Amplify” incorporating the foundational values of inclusivity and accessibility. It is a calling for people to Gather and participate in a global movement. A time to Dream, about the future, of possibilities and create a space of inclusivity for

If you would like to listen to the Human Rights conference, organisers have thought about all the ways to make it accessible. There is a wide array of ticket options available for individuals and groups, including free live stream and online virtual options if you can’t get to the event.

The Clock

470 Crown Street - 17th Feb - 5th March

Get ready to D.A.N.C.E people. The Clock is celebrating love & pride with celebrity guest, Richard Reid, as our exclusive curator for Sydney WorldPride 2023. The colourful calendar of events includes boozy brunches, karaoke nights, drag queens, trivia with local legend Breko, popup drink menus, giveaways at Rowdy Randy’s Raffle and much more. Don’t miss - Kylie Karaoke on Thursday 2 March from 7pm - all Kylie’s classics, all night - hosted by RuPauls Drag Race Down Under star, Hannah Conda!

Goros

84 - 86 Mary Street – 22nd Feb - 4th March

Our resident queen Milan Swaay is taking over GOROS to bring you a HUGE two weeks of fabulous activity for Sydney WorldPride 2023! Get ready for karaoke competitions, LGBTQIA+ mixers, 90’s and 00’s dress-up parties, and plenty of queer anthems to get you dancing for two weeks straight. FREE ENTRY every single night.

OPERA AUSTRALIA presents Opera Up Late

Feb 18th & 23rd

Sydney Opera House - Joan Sutherland Theatre

A late-night celebration for the ages! Opera Australia is throwing open the doors to Australia’s most famous cultural icon for Sydney WorldPride with two exclusive concert performances of Opera Up Late. Making a grand debut at the Sydney Opera House, international cabaret star and opera lover Reuben Kaye will host this late-night celebration of queer romance, drag and music. Directed by the award-winning Shaun Rennie, this production has a distinctively Australian flavour, including re-imagined opera classics plus a few musical theatre and pop numbers along the way... this is no regular night at the opera! Opera Up Late offers a rare after-hours glimpse at what the stars of Opera Australia get up to when they unlace the corsets and take off the wigs. Please note this production may contain adult themes, coarse language, and sexual content (...if you’re lucky!).

Book now at opera.org.au

Switched On: Nakhane - March 3rd 2 Angel Place, Sydney

Multi award winning singer, songwriter, actor, and novelist Nakhane has been hailed as “a real star in the making” (The Observer) who “makes the dancefloor a place of tenderness” (VICE). Their previous album, You Will Not Die, garnered acclaim from Pitchfork, The New York Times, The Observer, MOJO and Noisey, and the adoration of fans like Madonna and Elton John, and collaborators such as Perfume Genius, ANOHNI and the aforementioned Nile Rodgers. Q magazine called it “remarkable; defiantly modern and unashamedly emotional” while Pitchfork wrote that the album was “an instant revelation on its own terms and strikingly intimate.” Madonna called Nakhane out as one of her two favourite artists and said their music influenced her 2019 album Madame X, and Elton John interviewed Nakhane on his Beats 1 radio show. In their many guises in music, film and literature, Nakhane has been instrumental in challenging the status quo in conversations about gender and sexuality; steadily building a body of work of cultural importance that hits every dancefloor sweet spot.

Book now at sydneyworldpride.com

- Tickets from $59