Melbourne’s Midsumma Festival has been running over 30 years, and is one of the highlights on the Australian LGBTIQ calendar. Here I preview what’s in store this year.
Art exhibitions, showcases, talks, cultural programs and even dog shows make up the near month-long event, which encompasses education, community awareness and tons of LGBTIQ pride. The Pride March, which traditionally concludes the Midsumma Festival, in St Kilda, celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.
Daddy, photograph credit James Henry
Considering that Midsumma comprises 194 events across 98 venues, it’s no surprise to see it pulling crowds of up to 110,000 at Carnival Day alone.
One of the major presentations taking place this year will be Queer Unsettled, a provocative program, delving into themes of colonisation. As an interpretation piece, it combines live music, moving images and various exhibitions.
Joel Creasey in The Boy, George
The Nocturnal x Midsumma: Lunar New Year Disco, will feature Drag Race darlings from Thailand, in a celebration of the Chinese New Year, at Melbourne Museum after dark, and Blow is a celebration of Indigenous femmes and Pacific womxn of colour told through cultural drag and vogue dance.
“This comic circus features Australia’s very first dildo throwing act!”
An intriguing event will be Famili, which unpacks daddy issues, through thequeer lens and Dark Sepia, involving stories created through carving, tattooing and printmaking. Equally interesting will be The Sky After Rain, which tells true stories of queer Iranian migration and diaspora.
A long-time favourite of the festival is the Midsumma and Australia Post Art Award exhibition at the Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamar Hall. This year it features celebrity guests Bob Downe, Tom Ballard, Nath Valvo, Dolly Diamond and Drag Race Thailand’s Pangina Heals.
Midsumma and Australia Post Art Award exhibition celebrity guest Dolly Diamond
While four Australian finalists will take the stage in the Queer Playwriting Award Showcase at Gasworks Arts Park, the venue itself also presents a diverse and inclusive program of Midsumma visual art, drama, comedy, circus and performance art. Highlights include Queen Bette, which tells the story of Hollywood icon Bette Davis, Jinxed, a burlesque vaudevillian creepshow, and the Big Glittery Sh!tshow! Yes, that’s correct! This comic circus spectacular, hosted by Jack Wilde, features Australia’s very first dildo throwing act!
Also featured will be the play When The Light Leaves. Written by Rory Godbold, it tells the story of a dying man, who despite the support of his partner, sister and nurse, makes a decision to end his life.
When The Light Leaves tells the story of a dying man, who decides to end his life.
Another compelling presentation will include Gavin Roach’s Australian premiere of Frances Poet’s Adam. It tells the remarkable true story of a young trans man’s progress and journey from Egypt to Scotland. First performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2017, it won the Fringe First award.
“Joel Creasey takes on the role of Prince George Of Wales in the new solo play, The Boy, George.”
A DNA favourite, Steven Fales returns to Australia with his one man show, Confessions Of A Mormon Boy. Dolly Diamond performs with the Jack Earle Big Band and Matthew Hadgraft sings up a party in Elton John – Your Song, with audience participation encouraged.
Steven Fales returns from the U.S with Confessions of a Mormon Boy
Comedian and now TV host, Joel Creasey takes on the role of Prince George of Wales in the new solo play The Boy, George, written by Patrick Livesey. Filled with the intrigue of one-sided phone calls, it puts a cynical eye over politics and royal succession. And Seth Drury tackles another royal encounter exploring a Disney hero obsession in Unmasking Prince Charming.
Festival venues include Theatre Works, Chapel Off Chapel, Hare Hole, Arts Centre Melbourne, Gasworks Art Park and the Melba Spiegeltent.
The ever-popular Midsummer Carnival DJ set. Photo credit, Suzanne Balding
Carnival Day at the Alexandra Gardens is the Festival’s signature event with a variety of stalls, food and entertainment. The main stage not only features drag shows, but also the iconic Dulcie’s Dog Show, which has featured judges from Joan Rivers to the Lord Mayor Of Melbourne. The evening closes with a T Dance presented by top DJs with a top set list!
Catching up with ‘Mormon Boy’ Steven Fales
Midsumma Festival runs from Sunday, 19 January to Sunday, 9 February 2020. For more: www.midsumma.org.au
