Sydney WorldPride Ambassador Miss Ellaneous Performed For Parliament
Image: Image: Facebook
In the first performance of its kind, Darwin-born drag queen and Sydney WorldPride ambassador Miss Ellaneous performed for the Australian Parliament in Canberra.
Ellaneous, a.k.a. Ben Graetz, was in Canberra for a meet and greet with legislators in the lead-up to Sydney WorldPride.
‘A Real Pinch Me Moment’
In a post to Instagram last month, Ellaneous wrote, “So proud to have been able to represent [Sydney WorldPride], [Sydney Mardi Gras] , and [Equality Australia] at Parliament House.”
She went on to share that “It was a real pinch me moment, as I got to perform and represent our community in front of so many political leaders and government change makers.”
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After a panel discussion hosted by Hamish Macdonald, Ellaneous lip-synced to the song “This Is Me” from the movie, The Greatest Showman, to an audience of 100 people.
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Miss Ellaneous Is One Of The Best-Known First Nations Drag Performers
Ellaneous, one of the best-known First Nations drag performers, is also the co-festival creative director along with Daniel Clarke.
Talking about the event, Clarke posted, “A brilliant turn out tonight at Parliament House for an event hosted by the Parliamentary friendship group of LGBTQIA+ people – Co-Chairs, the Hon. Warren Entsch, Stephen Bates MP and Senator Louise Pratt.
“Held in the Main Committee Room well over 100 people attended including many politicians to hear about Sydney WorldPride and the Human Rights Conference.”
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Sydney WorldPride 2023 is fast approaching, beginning next month on February 17. The Queer mega-festival will go on for 17 days, ending on March 5.
With over 500,000 people expected to take part, this will be the biggest LGBTQI event to happen in the Southern Hemisphere.
It will also mark the 45th anniversary of the first Mardi Gras, which took place on June 24, 1978, along Oxford Street. The march, which was held to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall riot in New York City, was initially peaceful but culminated in police violence.
WorldPride started in 2000 in Rome. Since then, it has been held in London, Toronto, Madrid, New York, and, most recently, Copenhagen. This is the first time, however, that WorldPride will be held in the Southern Hemisphere.
For information on Sydney WorldPride 2023, go to sydneyworldpride.com
