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The kick-off event will feature all-Indigenous performances, from traditional dancing through to burlesque artists, all centered on the voices of those who have been present since time immemorial
Celebrating Indigenous and Two-Spirited culture, voices and visibility will be at the heart of this year’s Vancouver Pride Society’s Canada Pride 2024 Opening Ceremony, which is set to kick-off several days of inclusive festivities on Friday, July 26.
Taking place at Bubly Davie St. Lounge—located at 1207 Bute St. in the heart of the city’s Davie Village—starting at 3 p.m., the event is being curated by local Indigenous icon Jaylene Tyme, a well-known drag performer, advocate and auntie who is Plains Cree, Salteaux and Métis from Treaty 4 Territory.
The highly anticipated opening event—which marks the start of the multi-day festivities that ends with the Pride Parade on the afternoon of Sunday, Aug. 4—will also feature drag stars, acclaimed burlesque performers and more.
Recognizing that Vancouver is situated on the unceded ancestral land of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples, the opening ceremony aims to honour the cultural heritage and ongoing contributions of Indigenous people to Queer communities in the city, province and country.
The lineup for the opening ceremony is comprised of Indigenous performers. It will start with a prayer song accompanied by drumming and performances by traditional grass dancers. It will be followed by words touching on the ceremony’s themes of resurgence and kingship from the Community Based Research Centre’s (CBRC) Two-Spirit Program and the 2 Spirits in Motion Society.
Operating for several years, the CBRC program is an Indigenous led team that hosts events in the community in an effort to confront and educate about shame-based colonial narratives around queer sexuality, which leads to experiences of homophobia, transphobia and other forms of discrimination. The 2 Spirits in Motion Society is a national organization that aims to empower Two-Spirited people across Turtle Islands through traditional cultural understandings around gender and sexuality.
Traditional teachings and inspiring words will be shared with festival attendees by Desiree Niss Miou Tgac, Larissa Healy, Jessy Dame, Martin Morberg and Jordy Ironstar.
Ilona Verley, who appeared in the first season of Canada’s Drag Race and is Nlaka’pamux, will perform along with season two’s Indigenous Canadian (Métis) and Two-Spirit drag performer Beth, multidisciplinary artist Continental Breakfast, and drag performers Xanax and Theo Rhetical.
This special opening event will end with a performance by Virago Nation, Turtle Island’s first all-Indigenous burlesque collective. Its members are artists who use humour, seduction, popular culture and politics to celebrate how Indigenous women, femmes, non-binary and two-spirit folk are thriving and creating dynamic identities for themselves.
As part of this year’s activities, Vancouver Pride is also hosting an inaugural Queer Rights Summit from Thursday, Aug. 1, through Saturday, Aug. 3. This important event will see leading voices in the community share their knowledge and exchange ideas about the challenges facing the Queer community in Canada and around the world. Those interested in participating can register online at vancouverpride.ca.
To learn more about Vancouver Pride Society’s Canada Pride 2024 Opening Ceremony, and to learn how you can purchase tickets, visit vancouverpride.ca. To support inclusivity, the Vancouver Pride Society is also offering a “pay it forward” ticket option, allowing attendees to donate tickets to those facing financial barriers in the community.
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