In February I am honoured to be speaking at a panel
event which is part of a larger media event which is part of the one of the
most exciting festivals happening in Manchester this year. It’s Queer
Contact, and the line-up is so good it makes you wish it was actually Pride
and that there was a parade at the start.
From the 5th
to the 15th a plethora of queer arts comes to Contact and beyond
with a program of music, theatre, performance, comedy and more.
National treasure David
McAlmont launches proceedings with a live performance on the 5th,
alongside the talented Mr Guy Davies, which, from experience, I can promise
will be intimate,
fun and very touching.
Justin Vivian Bond is another sensational name on
the bill and is in town for not one but two performances, including a collaboration
with our
very own David Hoyle. Bond is a trans icon of cabaret and is here to share
Valentine’s weekend with us, using both original songs and familiar cover versions
to interrogate and celebrate love. Expect to be stimulated and moved. On top of
that there is a related JVB event with a
screening of Shortbus and a Q&A
to follow.
The Queer Media
Festival is a highlight for me. Almost thirty media professionals (and me!)
will gather to talk about storytelling, their work, their identities and career
paths. There will be films screened, performances, a news broadcast, and a gathering
of like-minded but diverse creative individuals under one roof. The event is promising
to be a great opportunity for students, for peer-learning and networking, for
idea generating, for meeting and greeting, and for exposure to new ways of
thinking. Speakers include V-Squared aka Vinny and Luke (YouTube stars), John
Bird Media (blogger), Tim Macavoy (Director at InterTech Diversity Forum), Anna
McNay (arts editor, DIVA), Paul Brand (Northern Political Correspondent, ITV)
and Addie Orfila (producer, Hollyoaks). Tickets
here.
Queer Contact has comedy covered with a six-comic
line-up for the Comedy
Playground, while word nerds will thrill at the selection of poets,
novelists and playwrights sharing their practices at Paul Burston’s Polari on the 10th.
Kate
O’Donnell explores trans identity with humour and music, while site
specific drama takes a
police raid on a Victorian drag ball as its thrilling subject. The
Vogue Ball at Gorilla sees competing Houses dance to victory, or defeat,
while Mother’s
Ruin host one of their far-from-usual cabaret spectaculars. The closing
party, Love Art,
is in the hands of the creators of Cha Cha Boudoir so couldn’t be in better
hands.
Explore the full line-up for yourself right here
and treat yourself to something new and challenging. There will be queer
bohemia aplenty at Contact, but all across the city February is turning into a
high point in the cultural calendar – Seeing
Queerly has a terrific line up, while the first Manchester-based LGBT History Festival provides the context
for how far LGBT people have come. February is a chance to learn and connect,
network and create, and be touched by art and performance. Please be a part of
it. The rest of 2015 has a lot to live up to…
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