EQUALITY & DIVERSITY
The festival is hosted by Contact theatre, a theatre and arts venue which aims to change young people’s lives through the arts.
As Contact’s permanent home on Oxford Road continues its building transformation, Contact has been producing shows at various venues across Manchester over the past year.
Similarly, the Queer Contact Weekender will take place at selected venues across the city over the two days.
The programme kicks off on today with Mother’s Ruin - a collaboration between Contact, Waterside Arts and the Royal Exchange Theatre.
Taking place at the Waterside in Sale, the Mother’s Ruin family will perform a fiercely entertaining cabaret show.
Hosted by glamorous eco warrior Timberlina, visitors can expect a mix of comedy, music, drag, poetry and the unpredictable performed by a troupe of subversive queer artists.
Tomorrow there will be a two conversations events at city centre bar YES - both are free to enter.
The first is an open forum with Contact staff, artists and young people about the future direction of Queer Contact as the production team look to reimagine the festival from 2020 onwards. There will be opportunities for artists to find out about new commissioning opportunities for next year’s festival.
Secondly, there will be a conversation between Glasgow/ Berlin-based live artist Nima Sene and curator Tuna Erdem from the Istanbul Queer Arts Collective who will discuss how experiences of otherness related to their queer and migrant identities shape their work.
At 3pm, Manchester-based poet and former young programmer at Contact, Mandla-Rae will host Outspoken, an evening of poetry and spoken word performance at Manchester Metropolitan University.
She will be joined by Ella Otomewo, Billie Meredith, Maz Hedgehog and Bryony Bates for a celebration of Manchester’s queer women and nonbinary artists.
Finally, the Queer Contact festival will come to a close with the Vogue Ball. At this spectacular catwalk show, club culture meets high art as Vogue houses come together to compete for dance supremacy.
Taking place at Manchester Academy 2, tickets cost £35 for front row, £25 for other seats and £15 for standing.
Matt Fenton, artistic director at Contact said: “We are really excited to launch our Queer Contact Festival Weekender. While building work continues apace on the refurbishment of our iconic building on Oxford Road, including a new cabaret and music venue, it’s great to continue our journey across the city.
“We’re working with familiar faces and festival favourites alongside new partners and venues to showcase our work with UK and international queer artists. We’re thrilled to be welcoming back Mother’s Ruin and the stunning Manchester Vogue Ball, as well as offering important platforms to new and emerging voices.”
For full information and tickets, visit: contactmcr.com/whats-on.