A RuPaul's Drag Race winner has been announced as part of the line-up for Wales' first LGBT+ Fringe Festival. American drag performer Jinkx Monsoon, who won the fifth season of the hugely popular television series, will be performing at the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff as part of the inaugural Queer Fringe Festival.
The festival, which is headed up by the team behind The Queer Emporium, will run throughout June to celebrate Pride Month. More than 40 venues across the capital will collaborate with queer artists to put on something every day of the month - including theatre, comedy, live music, film, drag, visual art exhibitions, dance and digital arts. The organisers announced the exciting line-up on Friday, May 27, and have said there is more still to be added to the programme.
Jinkx Monsoon will perform in Cardiff on June 10 with her musical partner Major Scales as part of their 'Together Again, Again!' UK tour. Tickets start from £22.50 and the show, dubbed the pair's "most outrageous, salacious and sacrilegious" one yet, will begin at 8pm. You can read all our LGBT+ news here.
Located in the Royal Arcade on St Mary Street in Cardiff, The Queer Emporium opened last year to huge success, functioning as a hub for young LGBT + people and vendors to gather and feel safe. The space has also turned into a venue which boasts many different cabaret and drag events such as the Queer Gala in March.
Jinkz Monsoon is not the first RuPaul's Drag Race star to collaborate with The Queer Emporium - Victoria Scone, a contestant from season three of the UK version of the show, has performed at several of their events. You can read more about the launch of the non-profit shop, which began as a pop-up, here.
The organisers also announced in April that the festival is offering grants for start-up projects. Yan White, festival director and founder of The Queer Emporium, said: “The aim of the festival is to platform and pay as many queer artists as possible. The festival will also be committed to following a number of guidelines around cultural, neuro, gender, climate and disability awareness.
"The Queer Fringe Festival has consulted with Trans Aid Cymru and Glitter Cymru to create these guidelines. This festival will platform LGBTQ+ artists, from grassroots to more established ones, and gives audiences opportunities to see new and unique content.”
Throughout the event, attendees will be able to visit The Queer Emporium as a central hub for the festival, where the programme and festival merchandise will be available in person. The Queer Fringe Festival runs from Thursday 2nd June to Sunday 3rd July, and updates can be found via its website. To get more LGBT+ stories sent straight to your inbox every day, click here.
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