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Boise Pride has announced the lineup for the 2020 virtual Festival taking place on Saturday, September 12. The Pride celebration will feature internationally recognized musical acts, comedy performance, drag artists from RuPaul’s Drag Race, and some of the city’s most talented drag performers.
Boise Pride’s virtual broadcast will begin at 4 p.m. Mountain on September 12. The broadcast can be accessed at boisepridefest.org. For the complete Boise Pride lineup, please visit https://www.boisepridefest.org/events/2020-virtual-pride/artist-lineup/.
Boise Pride’s presenting sponsor is Fred Meyer. The title sponsor and virtual Pride platform sponsor is Albertson’s. Additional sponsors include Citi, Mike’s Hard, Project Filter, and Wells Fargo. The full list of sponsors can be found at boisepridefest.org.
“We are proud to have grown to be the largest Pride celebration in Idaho,” said Michael Dale, president of Boise Pride’s board of directors. “But in our 31st year, things have turned out a little differently than usual. We have reimagined what Pride could look like, bringing that celebration and visible manifestation of queer culture and community to the virtual space. This will be an exciting new experience for Boise Pride, incorporating many of the elements you know and love into an online streaming experience, including music, drag performances, speaker segments, and more.”
Headlining the virtual Boise Pride Festival will be the Grammy Award–nominated singer, songwriter, actor, and activist Alex Newell. Newell has toured with Adam Lambert, including performances at Coachella and the Governor’s Ball Music Festival, among other stops. He has used his platform to uplift LGBTQ youth through his advocacy with the Trevor Project, GLAAD, and other organizations. Newell is well known for bringing the character of Wade “Unique” Adams to life on Glee over the course of four seasons, one of network television’s first transgender characters. Newell can currently be seen on NBC’s Zoe’s Extraordinary Playlist.
Also headlining is Mary Lambert, an American singer, songwriter, poet, and spoken word artist best known for being featured on the marriage-equality anthem “Same Love,” from the Grammy-winning Macklemore & Ryan Lewis album The Heist. Lambert’s sophomore full-length album, Grief Creature, was released in late 2019.
Additional performers include synth-pop band Ariana and the Rose; Be Steadwell, a singer-songwriter with roots in jazz, a cappella, and folk, whose original music features proud LGBTQ content; and antiracism advocate Heather Small, an English soul singer and former lead singer of the band M People, who later became a solo artist and enjoyed international acclaim with her song “Proud.”
Drag performance has become an integral part of Pride celebrations across the globe, and Boise Pride is proud to present a stellar lineup of drag artists, including Ongina (RuPaul’s Drag Race season 1 and All-Stars season 5); Brita Filter (RuPaul’s Drag Race season 12); the bearded, singing Idaho queen MissFyre (hosting Drag Queen Storytme); a Hometown Drag Spectacular featuring Denimm, J’sha, Lady Delicious, Maliah Gemeni, and other local drag artists; and Blackberri, “the bearded beauty of Houston,” who will present a special segment about Drag Out the Vote, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization whose mission is to get out the vote using the power of the art and activism of drag.
Hosting the virtual festival will be actor and comedian Arlo Weierhauser. Originally from Oregon, Arlo brings “fun uncle” vibes and distinct “coach energy” to their stand-up. They’ve been on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and you can also see them in Disney’s Timmy Failure.
Boise Pride Festival’s theme, “Power in Progress,” represents the significance of movements, including Black Lives Matter, and conversations around BIPOC representation and intersectionality in the LGBTQ+ community. This theme is inspired by and channels Daniel Quasar's “Progress Pride Flag,” designed to be inclusive of the whole LGBTQ+ community. The official Boise Pride logo has also been updated with a color scheme consistent with this theme and message, a demonstration of visibility and a symbol of the work that lies ahead.
“We recognize there is a lot of work to be done, as a community, as individuals, and as allies of the BIPOC and trans communities,” said Dale. “We hope this visible change and embrace of a more inclusive Pride flag will support further dialogue, action, and our organization’s efforts to advance social issues important to all in the queer community. This is truly a work in progress.”
To help bring the celebration to life for viewers at home, Boise Pride is offering complimentary Pride-at-Home boxes courtesy of festival sponsor Albertson’s. These boxes will contain a Progress Pride flag, a Boise Pride face mask, a button, temporary tattoos, hand sanitizer, gifts from festival sponsors, and other Pride-related items. They will be available by online reservation only at boisepridefest.org (Limit one per person. First come, first served.) Additional styles of Pride flags and the official Boise Pride T-shirt will be available as add-on purchases. Boxes (and any add-on purchases) will be available for pickup at The Balcony, 150 N. 8th St. #226.
About Boise Pride
Founded in 1989, Boise Pride, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, celebrates its 31st anniversary festival this year. Exceptional support from the community has made the festival a standout LGBTQ+ celebration. Boise Pride strives to promote unity and celebrate the diversity of sexual orientations and gender identities by engaging the Boise community year-round. For more information about Boise Pride, visit boisepridefest.org, @boisepride on Twitter and Instagram, and on Facebook at facebook.com/BoisePrideFest.
