This year’s Auckland Pride Festival is on from February 1 to 16 and 2020’s programme offers the largest line-up of events ever for the festival. There are a total of 154 events and over 75% of them are free or koha entry.
To officially start the 2020 Auckland Pride Festival, Te Takaranga Āniwaniwa takes place on Saturday, February 1 at 6am in Aotea Square. This is a free event to honour and remember those who are no longer with us, who are “pioneers of Pride in Aotearoa, and Ahurea Takatāpui,” says the Auckland Pride website.
Other 2020 major events include the OurGala, OurMarch, and OurParty.
OurGala takes place on the evening of Saturday, February 1 at Q Rangatira and has a dress code of “QUEER EXCELLENCE” (it was also written in all caps on the Auckland Pride website so they definitely want attendees to dress to impress). TVNZ’s House of Drag winner HugoGrrrl is your host for the event that is described as an extravaganza of music, drag, cabaret, burlesque, comedy, and more. This is a ticketed event and you can buy your tickets on the Auckland Pride website.
OurMarch takes place on Saturday, February 8 at Albert Park. Gathering around the Queen Victoria statue in Albert Park at 4pm, OurMarch aims to reclaim the streets of Auckland and is an opportunity to participate in fighting against the issues still affecting Auckland’s rainbow communities. There is no cost to participate in this open-access event however registrations are essential to assist event organisers with participant numbers and communicating updates and requirements. You can register on the Auckland Pride website.
Following OurMarch is OurParty on Saturday, February 8 at Aotea Square. Starting from 6pm, queer musicians, artists, performers, dancers, and foodies are set to take over Aotea Square for a fabulous celebration. This is a free, all-ages, and accessible event.
To view the full 2020 festival programme and all the event information, visit the Auckland Pride website.
