A pink and blue gradient background. On top there is a graphic of an open laptop, on the screen of the laptop there is diverse group of people, some in a celebratory pose, some hugging and some holding a Trans pride flag, a rainbow pride flag, a lesbian pride flag and a nonbinary pride flag, one person with a wheelchair is holding a sign that reads “More Love”. Text to the left of the laptop graphic reads “ Virtual Pride, 25 July 2020, 6PM-9PM”
1) Burnaby Family Pride
Digital Event
SATURDAY, JULY 25, 2020
10AM
ALL AGES
Join us to celebrate the beautiful diversity of our LGBTQ2SIA+ friends and family!
Tune in to Burnaby Pride Facebook or Youtube to watch the live stream
Featuring:
Parents Are A Drag
Join local drag sensations Peach Cobblah & Isolde N. Barron in social isolation with a two-year-old diva drag queen! Add some rainbow to your day at this fun and inclusive event which reminds young ones, their parents, caregivers and everyone in between that it’s never too early (or too late!) to get silly and dress-up! Home is a Drag celebrates diversity with songs, laughter and play. Feel free to raid your parents’ closets and your dress up box to dress up for this show!
Real-life husbands, drag co-conspirators, theatre-makers and co-parents to a glorious 2.5 year old, Peach and Isolde have become drag household names through their ten years of community building and event making at The Cobalt, and their weekly West End shows (The Barron Gurl Show, Shame Spiral, etc). See them in a whole new light…with child!
Peach Cobblah, Isolde N. Barron & their child
youth & children Book talk by
Rob Bittner
Rob Bittner has a PhD in Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies (SFU), and is also a graduate of the MA in Children’s Literature program at The University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC. He loves reading a wide range of literature, but particularly stories with diverse depictions of gender and sexuality.
Musical performance
by
Jason Qiu
Classically-trained singer-songwriter Jason Qiu has performed on various stages across Tokyo and his native Vancouver and collaborated with numerous producers around the world. His skills as a songwriter have been recognized by the International Music and Entertainment Association, receiving an IMEA nomination in 2015 for Pop Song of the Year. “Rain,” his recent collaboration with Egyptian EDM producer MaroXX, peaked at number 2 on Beatport’s top 100 future bass/trap releases in February 2020.
Photo by Ryan Funk
Drag duo
Chris Topper
& Justin Abit
Chris sprang to life in 2009 during a casting call for the improv TV show “Tops & Bottoms” (OutTV) He has performed with a number of amazing groups including Commercial Drag, Queerprov, Queer Royale Drag Troupe in Edmonton, and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.
Justin is fresh on the scene, exploding out of his shell in 2019. Justin aims to bring a bit of cheeky joy into your life through copious glitter use and his old-fashioned charm. He won the King of Hearts competition in 2019 and performed in the Kings and Things Summit in Vancouver. Get caught up in this old kid’s twinkly side-eye.
2) Burnaby Pride
Digital Celebration!
SATURDAY, JULY 25, 2020
6PM – 9PM
Join Burnaby Pride for a digital celebration showcasing the diversity and strength of Burnaby’s LGBTQIA2S+ community!
Tune in to Burnaby Pride Facebook or Youtube to watch the live stream
Featuring:
Indigenous Opening by Two Spirit Spiritual leader Sandra Laframboise & Two-Spirit artist Dyani Daemones
Sandra Laframboise
Sandra Laframboise, aka Sandy Leo in community and also spiritual names are: Keleil La Slaughnei (Butterfly Woman) and Nimiwin Nissau Key hey Hun Adjuct. She is a Cree-Métis person. Her father is Algonquin and her mother is Cree/French/Irish from the Traditional territory of the Algonquin. se . Sandra is a Two Spirit Spiritual leader who has been actively practicing in the Vancouver area for 28 years. Her ceremonial rites were received from Frank Supernault, a Cree Elder from Alberta, through the Potlatch ceremonies.
Hosted by the amazing duo Lee Keple & Mx. Bukuru
Mx. Bukuru
Mx. Bukuru is “the church being your mama never wanted you to meet.” Subverting colonial ideas of Blackness, Mx. blends fierce performance with fiercer politics. Every month is Black History Month baby! They’re the inaugural winner of Van Slam’s Drag Slam and runner up in the East Side Drag Derby.
Lee Keple
Lee Keple is a founding member of QueerProv Canada’s oldest and longest running LGBT+ improv troupe and a retired stand up comic. They have emceed events at Vancouver Pride, the Vancouver Dyke March and Festival (in addition to being parade Grand Marshall), Divas’ Den, and Edmonton Pride’s Women and Trans Festival. Lee has performed at comedy festivals in Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary, and directed the long form improv show “Gays of Our Lives”. They were a long-time resident of Burnaby and are delighted to be back helping build queer community and connection.
An exciting line up of performers featuring:
The Wild Moccasin Dancers
The Wild Moccasin Dancers are a dynamic duo that displays the beauty and vibrancy of pow wow culture through dance. Shyama-Priya is a woman’s fancy dancer who has been dancing for over 20 years. David Whitebean dances men’s fancy and began dancing when he was 16 years old.
Men’s and women’s fancy is the fastest of the pow wow styles. The Wild Moccasin Dancers continue to share culture through workshops and presentations at schools, festivals and various events!
Photo by PriyaBrarPhotography
Tonye Aganaba
Tonye Aganaba is a multidisciplinary artist, musician, and performer residing on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish & Tsleil-Waututh First Nations. They were born in London, England to parents of Nigerian and Zimbabwean heritage, and raised on Treaty 8 and Treaty 6 territory of what is known to many as Canada.
Tonye’s style is fluid (or at the very least non-binary) – and weaves playful threads of Soulful Neo-Folk, Funk, Hip-Hop and R&B. They are a steadfast fixture in their local arts community – and a passionate and political being. When they’re not making music or art – they’re actively unlearning, relearning and having conversations.
Photo by LorneClarke
Cicely Belle Blain
Cicely Belle is a Black, queer writer, activist and dinosaur fanatic from London, UK currently living on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh people, also known as Vancouver. They are noted for founding Black Lives Matter Vancouver and subsequently being listed as one Vancouver’s 50 most powerful people, BC Business’s 30 under 30 and one of 150 Black women and non-binary people making change across Canada. Cicely Belle is an instructor in Executive Leadership at Simon Fraser University and the author of Burning Sugar (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2020). They are the CEO of a social justice-informed diversity and inclusion consulting company with over 100 clients across North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.
Chris Topper
You never know when drag king Chris Topper (Lee Keple’s alter ego) is going to blow into town but it is a given that when he goes, he leaves a hot mess behind. Chris sprang to life in 2009 during a casting call for the improv TV show “Tops & Bottoms” (OutTV) He has performed with a number of amazing groups including Commercial Drag, Queerprov, Queer Royale Drag Troupe in Edmonton, and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.
Stephen scaccia
Stephen Scaccia is a 28-year-old singer/songwriter from right here in Burnaby. Coming out at the age of 16, Stephen knew that he wanted to use his talents to represent the LGBTQ+ community to the best of his abilities. Having worked hard to build a subscriber count of over 60,000 on YouTube, Stephen has gone on to perform with Michael Buble on more than one occasion, and receive a shout out from Mariah Carey herself online about his singing. Stephen cannot wait to continue to grow his audience so that he may act as an ambassador of our community within the world of music and entertainment.
Karmella Barr
Karmella Barr Is Vancouver’s very own sweet chocolate treat. Karmella has had an interest in theatre and entertainment starting at a very young age. This love for entertainment and theatre has lead Karmella to the wonderful world of drag!
Karmella has been doing drag in Vancouver for 5 years and counting. In her shows she is seen as an incredibly personable queen known for the amazing balance of emotion and glamour that she brings to her performances. This amazing balance earned her the title of “Miss Congeniality” in 2016 and then eventually Miss Cobalt 6 in 2017.
Fallen Stars
Fallen Stars is a female fronted LGBTQ hard rock band from all over Vancouver. We work hard to prove that you can be a proud part of the LGBTQ+ and still be a fan of heavier music! Our music has been on radio stations all over the world, featured on TV shows and our Youtube channel has over 10K views.
biawanna
Biawanna is a dynamic singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer who’s worked on multiple projects in different genres since they found their start at the age of seven. Their blend of indie-pop, RNB & dance-pop creates an energy that’s equal parts smart, sexy, and fierce. They channel a certain strength through their namesake, Biawanna, matriarch of the Solomon Islands, who gave birth to a long line of chiefs that they are a descendent of. Biawanna is currently getting ready to release their debut EP, ‘Care’, which should be expected soon.
Justin Abit
Justin is fresh on the scene, exploding out of his shell in 2019. Justin aims to bring a bit of cheeky joy into your life through copious glitter use and his old-fashioned charm. He won the King of Hearts competition in 2019 and performed in the Kings and Things Summit in Vancouver. Get caught up in this old kid’s twinkly side-eye.
kendall gender
As a performer, host, model and LGBQ2+ activist, Kendall Gender is a bonafide Canadian drag sensation. With grassroots in Vancouver, she has performed coast to coast since 2014 and shows no signs of slowing down.
Kendall is most known for being the queer ambassador for Fairmont Hotels, a member of infamous drag group ‘BRATPACK’ and a past winner of elite drag competition “Vancouver’s Next Drag Superstar” in 2017. She has also just been elected as the “Empress of Vancouver” and will be raising money and representing the city for various charities as a part of the Dogwood Monarchist Society. In 2020 she was also the first drag performer to do a halftime performance at the Rugby 7’s game, performing for a crowd of 50,000 people.
Georgia Couver
Georgia Couver is a Vancouver-born music composer, violinist and visual artist with a passionate for the community and celebration of queer femininity. She performed with orchestras and few contemporary ensembles, such as the West Coast Symphony, The Legion of the Flying Monkeys and also the Rusty Buckets. She has written several string music and other graphic scores for composition workshops, including the Jean Coulthard String Quartet reading session. She debuted as a composer in her first short film music project and burlesque project, such as Strange Seduction’s Secrets from the Shadows (a queer- modern adaptation of Hades and Persephone) and Blood N Guts 48 hour horror film- making festival in September and October 2019. Couver produced her music first show at the Avante Garden, featuring 3 new and emerging artists in March 2020, prior to the pandeminc hit of COVID-19
Naomi Grace
Naomi has been singing since she could make sound. Drawing from a broad spectrum of creative influences, her style can be defined as “old-school flare, new-school flavor” with a repertoire that spans swing-era jazz, classic soul, retro-pop, rock and classic R&B. Sultry, powerful, dynamic – whether she’s singing rump-shaking funk/ soul anthems or heartstring-tugging love songs, Naomi’s presence and versatility can set the mood for any occasion. Hailing from and currently residing on the ancestral territory of the Musqueam, Squamish an Tsleil-Watuth Nations (otherwise referred to as Vancouver, BC) Naomi is a multi-disciplinary artist and is currently creating a portrait archive of womxn of the African diaspora.
Ralph Escamillan
Ralph Escamillan is a queer, Canadian-Filipinx performance artist/choreographer/teacher and community leader based in Vancouver, BC. Starting at age 14, Ralph trained first in Breakdancing then explored a multitude of other street dance styles such as Popping, House, Waacking and Locking. His passion for dance expanded to include training in Ballet, Modern, Jazz and was a graduate of Contemporary Training Program Modus Operandi in 2015.
The founder of non-profit organization VanVogueJam, Ralph shares his passion for Vogue/Ballroom culture at his weekly by-donation class and vogue balls, acting as a beacon for the queer dance form in Western Canada.
Photo by Joe Bulawan