National Eisteddfod pavilion to host ‘full-on queer mode’ party
The doors of the Eisteddfod Pavilion will be thrown open “with sassy gusto” this year for what organisers call a “full-on queer mode” party, entitled Parti Pinc.
Hosted by Mas ar y Maes (Out on the Eisteddfod Field), it will be a celebration and introduction to Ballroom Culture from the Welsh Ballroom Community hosted by duo Seiriol Davies and Lisa Angharad.
The Ballroom scene is a Queer subculture where performers compete in dancing, modelling and elaborate drag performances; founded in New York by the black queer community and now promising to “burst and strut onto the Pavilion stage serving style and face”.
Marc Rees, part of the organising team, said, “Osian Meilir and I went to the inaugural Welsh Ballroom Community Kiki Ball on the main stage at the Wales Millennium Centre, and it was one of the most joyous, inclusive, body-positive events we’d ever experienced, it was utter joy.
“So, we jumped at the chance of organising the Mas ar y Maes Parti Pinc as part of this year’s Eisteddfod, with the hope of having our very own Kiki Ball in the future.”
What to expect at Parti Pinc?
Marc Rees said: “We’ll start with an exhilarating demo from the Welsh Ballroom Community, and then we’ll open up the runway for members of the audience to come up and strut their stuff, under the watchful eye of our wonderful hosts, Seiriol and Lisa and members of the WBC.
“It’s going to be amazing, so make sure you’re dressed to the nines in your campest outfit, whether you’re walking the runway or just here for one of the best nights of the year!”
And in true Mas ar y Maes style, there’s a real ‘Eisteddfod’ vibe to the categories.
“If you want to own Wales’ most important and respectable stage in full-on queer mode,” say the organisers, here are your instructions:
- Costume: Release your inner folk fantasy, but subverted
- Walk: Executive Eisteddfod Realness
- Face: Serving face in your adapted / reimagined Gorsedd robe
Since its inception as part of the 2018 Cardiff National Eisteddfod, the ‘Parti Pinc’ has become an integral part of the Eisteddfod festival and an ever-growing part of the community project.
Marc Rees has been involved since the beginning, and says, “Having been involved in its gestation it’s brilliant to see Mas ar y Maes going from strength to strength and that an LGBTQ+ programme of activities, events, performances, and discussions is forming such a key part of Eisteddfod. We’ve come a long way and we have a long way to go but I imagine that hosting our own Parti Pinc on the Pavilion stage will be a pivotal moment.
“It’s a really big deal to take over Wales’ most prestigious and iconic stage, and it’s a definite milestone moment for Welsh Queer Culture.
“We’re so grateful to the Eisteddfod for being so supportive and game for Parti Pinc at THE Pavilion, although I’ve got to say that it’s a shame it isn’t the infamous former Pink one – now that would have been perfect!”
Parti Pinc is held in the Eisteddfod Pavilion at 23:00 on Thursday 4 August. Entry is free with a Thursday Maes / concert ticket. The Ceredigion National Eisteddfod is held on the outskirts of Tregaron from 30 July – 6 August. For more information go online.
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Please stop using the ‘Q’ word to describe gay people. It’s a very offensive and degrading term.
It’s not being used as a label, and certainly not as one applied exclusively to gay people. It’s also already in the standard abbreviation, LGBTQ+. It’s neither offensive nor degrading, unless offence or degradation are the intention, in which case it doesn’t matter what word is used, does it? Gaycenter, who probably have a better grasp of such things than most of us do, define queer as, “An adjective used by some people whose sexual orientation is not exclusively heterosexual. Typically, for those who identify as queer, the terms lesbian, gay, and bisexual are perceived to be too limiting and/or… Read more »
Sorry Defaid. Typed before reading your reply. We seem to be saying the same thing, only you are doing it more eloquently
Sorry old fruit,but we don’t have to use ‘q word’ any longer,now we can say queer apparently.
Is this the same as the N word? That people can use it about themselves but it is not suitable for other people to use it about them? As I understand it, intent is everything. If someone is using it in a hostile or derogatory way, then they are (rightly IMO) at risk of prosecution for hate speech. Otherwise you are good. It’s like everything these days though. There’s not an unequivocal answer because there’s not an undisputed governing body of the LGBT+ community who can give the definitive answer, so far as I am aware, despite the slavering idiot… Read more »
Go for it…why not!!?! 🙂
Agreed. A mature society includes all its citizens.
Gosh – just thinking what my Nain
and Hen Nain or Anti Norah Issac would say 😂….? They weren’t too keen on the Eisteddfod being open on the ‘ Saboth ‘
Great to see a better understanding of modern and inclusive Cymru ….👍🏼
Bendigedig 🏳️🌈