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{{Advert|date=July 2022}}
{{short description|Annual LGBTQIA+ event in Melbourne, Australia}} {{short description|Annual LGBTQIA+ event in Melbourne, Australia}}
{{More citations needed|date=August 2019}}

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{{Infobox recurring event {{Infobox recurring event
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| genre= ] | genre= ]
| attendance=
| attendance=261,806 (2020)<ref>{{cite web |title=ANNUAL REPORTS |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/about/annual-reports/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=22 June 2022}}</ref>
| patron= | patron=
| website= https://midsumma.org.au/ | website= http://midsumma.org.au
}} }}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2012}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2012}}
'''Midsumma Festival''' is an annual celebration of LGBTQIA+ arts and cultures, held annually for 22 days across January and February in ], ]. The festival began as a one-week celebration of gay pride in 1989. The festival has expanded over the years to a three-week event that attracts over 280,000 people each year. The festival is now one of the top five gay and lesbian arts and cultural celebrations, along with New York, San Francisco, Vancouver and Sydney.
Midsumma is Victoria's premier queer arts and cultural organisation, bringing together a diverse mix of LGBTQIA+ artists, performers, communities and audiences. The primary event, '''Midsumma Festival''', usually runs over 22 days in Melbourne's summer (January/February) with an explosion of queer events that center around both hidden and mainstream queer culture, involving local, interstate and international artists. The festival program comprises a curated '''Midsumma Presents''' program plus the community-driven '''Open-access''' stream, and is made up of diverse art forms and genres, including visual arts, live music, theatre, spoken word, cabaret, film, parties, sport, social events, and public forums. In addition to the primary festival in summer, Midsumma works year-round to provide artists, social-changers and culture-makers with support and tools to create, present and promote their work.<ref name="Midsumma Festival">{{cite web |title=About Midsumma Festival |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/about/about-midsumma/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

Although the primary festival is held in summer each year, Midsumma works year-round to provide artists, social changers and cultural makers with support and tools to create, present and promote their work. Midsumma is an open-access festival. Each year over 5000 culture makers, artists and performers present their shows or works in over 100 Melbourne venues over the 22-day Festival. The two main categories are Performing Arts and Visual Arts.

Midsumma's visual arts program features exhibitions in and around Melbourne from local, national and international gay artists. Yarra Arts and Queer City play home to many of the exhibitions.

The festival's performing arts program includes musicals, theatre, cabaret, film, spoken word, music events and dance parties. These performing arts events are largely produced by the community.

⚫ == Midsumma Carnival ==
Midsumma Carnival is held on the opening weekend and traditionally held in Alexandra Gardens with stalls, food, and entertainment from 11am to 11pm. The main stage includes entertainment from the coming festival program to showcase and promote the coming events.

'''Stages:''' Main Stage and Picnic Stage

'''Precincts:''' Sports, Youth, Family, Tea Tent (for older audiences) and a Chill Out Zone

<nowiki>*</nowiki>No Glass Allowed!

==T Dance==
The day is brought to a close with the T Dance, Midsumma's dance party under the stars. Artists who have performed at T Dance include ], ], ], ], ], and the ].

== Queer City ==
Queer City was a collaboration between ], ], Midsumma, and local galleries and artists from the gay community. In 2012 the Queer City was focussed around 1000 Pound Bend Gallery and performance venue, in Little Lonsdale St, Melbourne along with City Library and a new exhibition space known as Mailbox 141, which is the old glass and wooden mailboxes of 141 Flinders Lane, that have been converted into a small art exhibition space.

There is an exhibition of Vivien St James’ work, a celebration of fluid or ‘unstable’ gender at Platform Space, as well as exhibitions at Guilford Lane Gallery and fortyfive downstairs.

== Yarra Arts ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2011}}
Yarra Arts is the collaboration between the City of Yarra, Arts Victoria, Midsumma, local galleries and artists from the gay community.

In 2009 this exhibition series featured a premier event from ], a group show, ''TransMasculinities'', which explored aspects of gender, as well as a range of work at the artist run gallery initiative ] on the street of the same name, in Melbourne's ]. ]’s new body of work, ''Veiled In Plain Sight'', was created specifically for Midsumma celebrating the relaunch of ] in Abbotsford. It was off the back of the exhibition series, ''Transmen Translated'' in 2008, that artist and curator ] brought together ''TransMasculinities'', a Midsumma group show featuring photography, painting, drawing and video by eight Female to Male artists from Australia, the UK and the United States. The exhibition explored new ideas of masculinity and offered an insight into the physical and psychological aspects of transgender butch, gender queer and transmasculine experiences, and was shown at ]. ] featured work from ], ], Gary Campbell, ], ], ] and ] and explored concepts ranging from identity, relationship and material assumptions through photography, and even playful work which portraying women's relationships with each other and the open road. The 2009 ''Yarra Arts Exhibition'' was launched on Wednesday 20 January at ] Gallery.{{cn}}

In 2012, ] presented his 25th Anniversary exhibition series entitle ''Cycles & Sequences'' which explored cycles of life, notions of time and endurance, change and transition in today's ]. ''Cycles & Sequences'' included the first ever paintings of the ] stars, ], ] and ]. Celebrating positive gay role models in his art has been an important aspect of Watson's work, and this exhibition featured Lance Corporal ], who appeared on the front cover of the U.K.'s ''Armed Forces'' magazine in 2009, as a soldier who is openly gay.{{cn}}

==Registered events==
The majority of Midsumma Festival events are within the umbrella events program. That is, they are created, produced and funded by independent third parties who pay fees for inclusion in the Midsumma Festival each year. In 2012 there were approximately 160 events.

⚫ ===Midsumma Boards and Management===
* Midsumma Festival Inc. is an incorporated association.
* The Chair of Midsumma Festival is John Caldwell
* The Board of Midsumma Festival includes Dr. Jane Daniels, Rodney George, Dean Hamood (Treasurer), Aaron Hockly, Rachel "Rat" Simpson, Kate Wickett. Mark Latchford resigned in March 2012.
* The Festival Manager is ].

'''2011'''
* Chair: ], Board:
* General Manager: ]

'''2010'''
* Chair: Lisa Watts, Board:
* General Manager: Adam J Lowe

'''2009'''
* Chair: Lisa Watts, Board:
* General Manager: Adam J Lowe


'''2008'''
==The 22 day Festival==
* Chair: Lisa Watts, Board:
Melbourne's '''Midsumma Festival''' is normally held over 22 days in January and early February. A diverse array of close to 200 events are presented to audiences of over 260,000 thanks to involvement by over 5000 culture-makers in around 100 different venues across Melbourne and wider Victoria. The festival usually opens in a CBD park with the massive Midsumma Carnival, which has around 120,000 attendees. The annual Pride March follows later in the festival and almost half the events are free. Midsumma was started by the city's Gay Business Association in 1988 to celebrate the Melbourne queer community's arts and culture.
* General Manager: ]
* Festival Administrator: ]


'''2007'''
Due to COVID-19, the 2021 festival ran, exceptionally, from 19 April to 5 May with the 2021 Pride March held on 23 May.<ref name="2020 Arts Review">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Festival wraps with increased numbers and awards announced |url=http://artsreview.com.au/midsumma-festival-wraps-with-increased-numbers-and-awards-announced/ |website=Arts Review |date=12 February 2020 |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>&nbsp;<ref name="2020 Annual Report">{{cite web |title=2020 Annual Report |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/about/annual-reports/#2020 |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
* General Manager: Jarrod Hughes
* Festival Administrator: Molly Whelan


'''2019'''
⚫ ===Midsumma Carnival===
The entire festival usually kicks off with '''Midsumma Carnival''', a huge outdoor celebration of around 120,000 attendees at Alexandra Gardens in the centre of downtown Melbourne. It's an opportunity for all the diverse members of our queer communities to come together in public for a unique celebration of who we are and how far we've come. There are precincts for all age groups, including families, youth and the elderly. Queer athletic teams from around Melbourne congregate in an area called the Sports Precinct, where you can watch a game, casually join in, or even sign up to be a part of a team. Several stages showcase events from the festival program, with DJs, performers and fun social activities such as the much-loved dog show, which gives out awards to four-legged friends and their owners. Picnic rugs abound throughout the park, and an entire village of almost 200 stalls enables community groups, festival sponsors, government agencies and politicians to promote themselves, provide education and give away or sell merchandise.<ref name="Midsumma Carnival">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Carnival |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/info/midsumma-carnival-2020-info/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>&nbsp;<ref name="Midsumma Carnival 2019">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Carnival 2019 |url=https://www.starobserver.com.au/artsentertainment/scene-events/midsumma-carnival/191356 |website=Star Observer |date=30 December 2019 |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref> <br /> <br />
At 6pm, the families head home and Melbourne's queerest outdoor dance party, T Dance, fires up on the two main stages, with live performers and DJs. This nighttime dance party brings out the main headliners, and attendees can dance away into the midsumma night.
⚫ ===Midsumma Pride March===
Since 1996, the annual Pride March has proudly walked down Fitzroy Street, St Kilda to Catani Gardens, where the after-pride celebrations include live music, outdoor bars and food stalls. With around 10,000 marchers and 45,000 spectators, annual traditions include the Rainbow Aboriginal Float and a contingent of LGBT youth at the beginning of the parade to affirm the importance of our queer youth.<ref name="Midsumma Pride March">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Pride March |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/info/midsumma-pride-march/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>&nbsp;<ref name="QNEWS: Midsumma Pride March">{{cite web |title=The biggest ever Midsumma Pride March happening now |url=https://qnews.com.au/the-biggest-midsumma-pride-march-ever-happening-now/ |website=QNews |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
===Open-access Midsumma Events===
Midsumma Festival is an open-access festival, with events being produced each year by over 5000 culture makers, artists and performers. The 22 day festival is filled with community-created art exhibitions, live theatre, live music, poetry readings, round table talks, parties, films, picnics, sports and community events. <ref name="Midsumma Festival Event Registrations">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Festival Registrations |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/participate/open-access-event-registrations/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
===Midsumma Presents program===
To balance out the Open-access offering, the '''Midsumma Presents''' program provides some "big ticket" events, complemented by niche offerings designed to ensure that the program represents and attracts every single colour of our rich, diverse rainbow. The theme each year is specifically designed to promote and highlight the talent of groups who are rarely represented in mainstream offerings, in line with Midsumma's focus on diversity and inclusion of the entire community, not just parts of it.


* '''Chief Executive''': Karen Bryant
==Development and Mentorship Programs==
* '''Programming Manager''': Daniel Santangeli
The organisation has now matured to become one of Australia's most significant queer arts organisations, supporting generations of LGBTQIA+ cultural voices, discovering artists and starting conversations that shape queer art and culture forever. Most important of these programs are '''Midsumma Futures''' and '''Midsumma Pathways''', which provide mentorship, networking and development opportunities for early-career artists and culture-makers.<ref name="Midsumma Futures">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Futures |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/participate/midsumma-futures/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>&nbsp;<ref name="Midsumma Pathways">{{cite web |title=Midsumma Pathways |url=https://www.midsumma.org.au/participate/midsumma-pathways/ |website=Midsumma Festival |access-date=5 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
* '''Finance & Office Manager''': Angus Li
* '''Marketing Manager''': Felicity McIntosh
* '''Administrator''': Matt Hirst
* '''Communications & Website''': Alan Drummond


==See also== ==See also==
Line 45: Line 97:
{{reflist}} {{reflist}}


==External links==
{{Commons category|Midsumma festival}} {{Commons category|Midsumma festival}}
*
* ] holds archival material relating to the Midsumma Festival * ] holds archival material relating to the Midsumma Festival


Revision as of 17:10, 22 August 2022

Annual LGBTQIA+ event in Melbourne, Australia
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Midsumma Festival
Carnival crowd at Alexandra Garden
Carnival crowd at Alexandra Garden
Carnival crowd at Alexandra Garden 2010
GenreLGBT festival
Location(s)Melbourne, Australia
Founded1989
Websitehttp://midsumma.org.au

Midsumma Festival is an annual celebration of LGBTQIA+ arts and cultures, held annually for 22 days across January and February in Melbourne, Australia. The festival began as a one-week celebration of gay pride in 1989. The festival has expanded over the years to a three-week event that attracts over 280,000 people each year. The festival is now one of the top five gay and lesbian arts and cultural celebrations, along with New York, San Francisco, Vancouver and Sydney.

Although the primary festival is held in summer each year, Midsumma works year-round to provide artists, social changers and cultural makers with support and tools to create, present and promote their work. Midsumma is an open-access festival. Each year over 5000 culture makers, artists and performers present their shows or works in over 100 Melbourne venues over the 22-day Festival. The two main categories are Performing Arts and Visual Arts.

Midsumma's visual arts program features exhibitions in and around Melbourne from local, national and international gay artists. Yarra Arts and Queer City play home to many of the exhibitions.

The festival's performing arts program includes musicals, theatre, cabaret, film, spoken word, music events and dance parties. These performing arts events are largely produced by the community.

Midsumma Carnival

Midsumma Carnival is held on the opening weekend and traditionally held in Alexandra Gardens with stalls, food, and entertainment from 11am to 11pm. The main stage includes entertainment from the coming festival program to showcase and promote the coming events.

Stages: Main Stage and Picnic Stage

Precincts: Sports, Youth, Family, Tea Tent (for older audiences) and a Chill Out Zone

*No Glass Allowed!

T Dance

The day is brought to a close with the T Dance, Midsumma's dance party under the stars. Artists who have performed at T Dance include Slinkee Minx, Trevor Ashley, Ricki-Lee, Paul Heron, Inaya Day, and the Divine Knights.

Queer City

Queer City was a collaboration between City of Melbourne, Arts Victoria, Midsumma, and local galleries and artists from the gay community. In 2012 the Queer City was focussed around 1000 Pound Bend Gallery and performance venue, in Little Lonsdale St, Melbourne along with City Library and a new exhibition space known as Mailbox 141, which is the old glass and wooden mailboxes of 141 Flinders Lane, that have been converted into a small art exhibition space.

There is an exhibition of Vivien St James’ work, a celebration of fluid or ‘unstable’ gender at Platform Space, as well as exhibitions at Guilford Lane Gallery and fortyfive downstairs.

Yarra Arts

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Yarra Arts is the collaboration between the City of Yarra, Arts Victoria, Midsumma, local galleries and artists from the gay community.

In 2009 this exhibition series featured a premier event from T.J. Bateson, a group show, TransMasculinities, which explored aspects of gender, as well as a range of work at the artist run gallery initiative 69 Smith Street on the street of the same name, in Melbourne's Fitzroy. T.J.Bateson’s new body of work, Veiled In Plain Sight, was created specifically for Midsumma celebrating the relaunch of Tacit Contemporary Art in Abbotsford. It was off the back of the exhibition series, Transmen Translated in 2008, that artist and curator Jesslyn Moss brought together TransMasculinities, a Midsumma group show featuring photography, painting, drawing and video by eight Female to Male artists from Australia, the UK and the United States. The exhibition explored new ideas of masculinity and offered an insight into the physical and psychological aspects of transgender butch, gender queer and transmasculine experiences, and was shown at Red Gallery. 69 Smith Street featured work from Benja, Mark Bareald, Gary Campbell, J. Kristensen, Piepke, Mel Simpson and Rat Simpson and explored concepts ranging from identity, relationship and material assumptions through photography, and even playful work which portraying women's relationships with each other and the open road. The 2009 Yarra Arts Exhibition was launched on Wednesday 20 January at 69 Smith Street Gallery.

In 2012, Ross Watson presented his 25th Anniversary exhibition series entitle Cycles & Sequences which explored cycles of life, notions of time and endurance, change and transition in today's disposable society. Cycles & Sequences included the first ever paintings of the Bel Ami stars, Lukas Ridgeston, Kris Evan and Dolph Lambert. Celebrating positive gay role models in his art has been an important aspect of Watson's work, and this exhibition featured Lance Corporal James Wharton II, who appeared on the front cover of the U.K.'s Armed Forces magazine in 2009, as a soldier who is openly gay.

Registered events

The majority of Midsumma Festival events are within the umbrella events program. That is, they are created, produced and funded by independent third parties who pay fees for inclusion in the Midsumma Festival each year. In 2012 there were approximately 160 events.

Midsumma Boards and Management

  • Midsumma Festival Inc. is an incorporated association.
  • The Chair of Midsumma Festival is John Caldwell
  • The Board of Midsumma Festival includes Dr. Jane Daniels, Rodney George, Dean Hamood (Treasurer), Aaron Hockly, Rachel "Rat" Simpson, Kate Wickett. Mark Latchford resigned in March 2012.
  • The Festival Manager is Monique Thorpe.

2011

2010

  • Chair: Lisa Watts, Board:
  • General Manager: Adam J Lowe

2009

  • Chair: Lisa Watts, Board:
  • General Manager: Adam J Lowe

2008

2007

  • General Manager: Jarrod Hughes
  • Festival Administrator: Molly Whelan

2019

  • Chief Executive: Karen Bryant
  • Programming Manager: Daniel Santangeli
  • Finance & Office Manager: Angus Li
  • Marketing Manager: Felicity McIntosh
  • Administrator: Matt Hirst
  • Communications & Website: Alan Drummond

See also

References

  • Carnival Carnival
  • T Dance T Dance
  • Adam Love Adam Love
  • Drag Drag
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