Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade will look very different in 2021 due to COVID-19.
Rather than the parade down Oxford Street that has run for the last 42 years, the parade will be a seated affair at the Sydney Cricket Ground with the floats making their way around the stadium.
While the parade usually attracts an audience of around 200,000, just 23,000 will be able to get tickets to the 2021 event.
The event will be a move away from the large floats that have been seen in recent years. The theme for the 2021 will be ‘Rise’.
“Mardi Gras has always been the epitome of creative expression through art and culture; two things severely impacted by COVID-19 this year,” Mardi Gras CEO Albert Kruger said.
“So, it was important to Mardi Gras that we rise to the occasion and to give the community the creative platform to express their pride to the world.
“The 2021 Parade may look different to how it has been in the past, but we feel very lucky to be able to give this opportunity to our communities during these times.”
The first Mardi Gras parade was held in 1978 and has been commemorated every year. The 2020 parade was one of the last major events to occur in Australia before COVID-19 saw the cancellation of most public events. Sydney is scheduled to host World Pride celebrations in 2023.
“The team at Mardi Gras have worked tirelessly with NSW Health to develop a COVID Safe event plan to ensure the Parade can go forward and we’re excited by the prospect of staging the event at the SCG,” Kruger said.
“Not only is the SCG close to our spiritual home of Oxford Street, but it also provides the safest venue for us to hold the event and meet requirements of physical distancing and contact tracing.
“With a greater focus on community, our 2021 Parade will move away from large floats, centering instead on the outlandish pageantry of costumes, puppetry and props that make it such a phenomenon to witness.”
The event will be broadcast across by SBS television.
After the most recent Mardi Gras celebrations, the organisation executed a comprehensive community consultation process to better understand how the LGBTQI+ community would like to see Mardi Gras represent them in the future. The pathway forward for the organisation is one that sees them celebrating LGBTIQ+ people through out the entire year.
The outcome of this process has formed a new vision, ‘Always On’, that will see Mardi Gras develop year-round initiatives to provide a platform for LGBTQI+ people, community groups and partners to celebrate, share experiences and provide support, no matter where they are.
“While we are well known for our main annual event in Sydney, our surveying of the community has shown us that we can be so much more than a parade,” Kruger said.
“Our vision of Always On will see us rise to community expectations and provide year-round opportunities for the LGBTQI+ community to have their voices heard.
“Always On will see us commission and support the development of queer performance and content, support more events beyond Oxford Street, extend our voice to highlight social injustice and support major campaigns, and support community and grassroots organisations year-round,” Kruger said.
“These are just some of the initiatives that make up the foundation of our Always On vision.”
Mardi Gras are also working with NSW Health on a number of different COVID-safe plans to stage additional events, like the popular Fair Day, in 2021. Updates on the progress of this planning will be provided in the coming weeks.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the City of Sydney remained a major supporter of the organisation.
“The City of Sydney is a proud, long-term supporter of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and I commend the organisation for adapting to the challenges presented by Covid-19.
“It is poignant that this year’s parade was the last major event held before we had to go into lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus. I know many in our community, myself included, have held onto our happy memories of Mardi Gras 2020 to get us through this challenging year.” the Lord Mayor said.
“Mardi Gras will look different in 2021 but importantly it will give us the opportunity to come together safely and celebrate. Of course I look forward to the day when tens of thousands of Sydneysiders and visitors from around Australia and the world can gather on Oxford Street once more.”
Parade entry and Parade volunteer applications open on Monday 9 November. Tickets for the live Parade spectacle go on sale Monday 9 November at www.mardigras.org.au. Mardi Gras members will receive two complimentary tickets to the Parade.
More to come
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras shared the announcement of their Facebook page.
OIP Staff
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