Surrey Pride returns to Central City Plaza on June 20
Festival #27 features drag performers, DJs, and artists from across B.C.; long-term venue deal locked in.
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Surrey Pride is returning to Central City Plaza on Saturday, June 20, after last year's festival moved to Surrey Civic Plaza to accommodate a FIFA World Cup Fan Zone.
The festival will run from noon until around 6 p.m. with drag performers, DJ dance music, Music City Showcase artists, Matthew Presidente, Stephen Scaccia & The Pride Collective, and more. Surrey Pride president Donald Crowe — who performs as Myria Le Noir — confirmed the lineup includes impersonators from across B.C. with roots to Surrey.
"I'll be hosting and performing again, and we have a stellar cast," Crowe said during a Pride Festival kickoff event on the Civic Hotel rooftop deck in late May. "We're bringing in impersonators from all over B.C., all with roots to Surrey, connected here, which we really like."
Martin Rooney, a Pride fest co-founder, said the return to Central City is locked in for years. "This is Pride #27, and we're there (at Central City) until Pride #30, for the next few years, because we have a long-term deal with them," he said. "Our 20-by-30-foot flag is once again going up inside the mall. That's a big deal, and there'll be a Pride flag pole on the plaza, too."
Crowe described the annual festival as "a party" — not political — that draws people and volunteers from around B.C. Rooney emphasized it's a safe place to celebrate Pride amid growing concerns about attacks on LGBTQ+ infrastructure and rights.
"We have to be very cautious moving forward about how the political environment ends up turning out here in Canada," Rooney said, noting attacks on rainbow crosswalks and Pride flags south of the border.
Skye Avenue & Lounge, the food and beverage sponsor, will have their patio open for reservations. The show will also be livestreamed inside the mall.
This fall, Surrey Pride will host another "So YOU Think YOU can DRAG" fundraiser on Saturday, October 3 at the Sheraton hotel in Guildford, with the winner receiving up to $5,000 in matching funds. More details and the full festival schedule are available on surreypride.ca and facebook.com/SurreyPrideBC.