Pride might run in Vancouver from late July until early August, but its sentiment should carry on long after the glitter and the feathers have been swept and summer has ceased.
The fight for equality and diversity and the celebration of the LGBTQ2S+ is a year-round cause, exactly why Brian Henry Wilson, co-creator of drag fundraiser Werk It, isn’t planning an event at a time when it will be lost in a sea of sequins and sass.
Instead, Werk It at The Wallace, held at The Wallace Venue at North Vancouver’s Shipyards, is penned for November, when the leaves are beginning to turn and everyone is less into watching drag and more into … being one.
“We wanted to bring vibrancy and excitement to an otherwise dark and uninteresting month,” said Wilson, who created Werk It last year alongside co-founder Rachelle Wolfe.
“We wanted to help demonstrate that Pride really is constant, especially for those of us within the community. We’ll keep the pride vibes going into winter, and we’ll show that any day can be prideful.”
The fundraiser might be four months away, but the line-up is prepped and Wilson already expects a turnout to rival last year’s inaugural event.
On the bill for this year is local drag icon Conni Smudge, who will host an open-to-all-ages storytime event. Come nightfall, Wilson will hit the stage with their own drag performance, opening for trans supergroup and show headliners ENBY 6.
“They really blew the roof off of this place last year, so we were really excited to get them back again,” said Wilson, adding how a selection of up and coming drag artists can also be expected.
As with last year, Werk It at the Wallace will raise funds for local charities QMUNITY, Rainbow Refugee and North Shore Pride Alliance. In 2023 the extravaganza racked up $6,000, a total only expected to ramp up this year, said Wilson.
Each charity was selected for its dedication to providing life-changing resources for the LGBTQ+ community, they added.
Wilson said with little in the way of quality year-round Pride style entertainment, there is a thirst on the North Shore for more drag shows and other similar events.
“There is a really strong desire to see more of this art form locally,” they said.
They said drag as an art form is important in helping to break down barriers and remove the boxes people feel pressured to be confined within. That, and drag’s ability to simply celebrate LGBTQ+ culture and uplift the voices of its community in a fun and frivolous way.
“For anyone witnessing that kind of freedom, that kind of celebration, it inspires them to be more authentically themselves,” said Wilson.
“Seeing such a liberation-fueled art form really gets you looking inward, to finding out what your most authentic self is.”
And for those who aren’t within the LGBTQ2S+ community, but who stand in support alongside them?
“There’s enough second-hand joy from seeing people live their authentic self that it’s truly an art for everyone, anytime, anywhere,” they said.
Werk It At The Wallace will be showcased at The Wallace Venue Nov. 16. For tickets visit the event's page.
Mina Kerr-Lazenby is the North Shore News’ Indigenous and civic affairs reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.
