FABalice Festival Tribute To Cult Classic Priscilla
FABalice Festival started in 2018 and was inspired by the cult classic movie The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. It sits prettily on the gay social calendar just after the Mardi Gras festivities in Sydney, a picturesque desert escape in which to recover from the excesses of the previous weeks, or you know, just add to the damage.
FABalice was one of the few festivals around the world that has managed to skirt the coronavirus pandemic, with last year’s event being squeezed in just before the world locked down. And they came screaming back in 2021 with an even more impressive program of events which by all accounts was a hugely fabulous affair.
“The FABalice Festival was born from a bunch of passionate locals who just love Alice Springs and history. The festival was inspired by the Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert being filmed here over 25 years ago.
“We want to share our town with the rest of the world. We know that once you come here, it’ll blow your skirt up how stunning it is, and not to mention laid-back.”
The festivities in 2021 started on Thursday, March 11 with a “Queen Theme” screening of Bohemian Rhapsody and continued throughout the weekend with a street party, Drag Queen Story Time, Lunch and Fashion Show at the DoubleTree Hilton, Drag Queen Bingo, Lip Sync Battle and FABalice after party.
But the main event of the weekend was the FABalice Carnivale, which had to contend with a last minute venue change due to the inclement weather that was threatening. A sold out event, the opportunity for everyone to kick up their heels on the dance floor was not lost though, with the drag performances, cabaret acts and much more taking place under cover, instead of under the central Australian starscape as had been originally planned.
The event got a nice little national plug and a touch of star power when Australian drag royalty Courtney Act, rocked up to the rock, in a frock and a… (well you know) and covered fabALICE for Channel 10’s The Project – the exuberance of the participants in the interviews were enough to make you want to get in on the action next year!
The event was such a raging success that the organisers have already confirmed on the fabALICE Facebook page that they’re locked in for next year, from March 11-13.