Asheville will become a sea of rainbow on September 30 at Pack Square Park when the annual Blue Ridge Pride Festival returns for its 14th year. The festival will take place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and will include 12 bands on two stages, an evening drag show and 200 local vendors.
Before the Blue Ridge Pride Festival there will be a parade known as the WNC Welcoming Procession, which invites participants on a march down Patton Ave. to the heart of Asheville’s downtown, where the festival will kick off.
The event is produced by the Blue Ridge Pride Center, Inc., which was founded in 2009 as a resource for the diverse LGBTQ+ communities of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. That includes 23 western North Carolina counties: Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes and Yancey.
According to the website:
“Western North Carolina is home to an estimated 55,000 to 80,000 people who identify as LGBTQ+. Our rural geography poses some special challenges. Stigmatized people who live in rural communities are typically isolated by both their identity and their geography.
“Blue Ridge Pride seeks to support our rural LGBTQ+ community in partnership with the many wonderful people … who are eager to help. Our goal is to serve as a valued partner, collaborating with WNC’s many community service organizations and companies that welcome and serve our community.”
A quick glance at The Blue Ridge Pride Events calendar confirms there will be a number of events in the week leading up to Blue Ridge Pride, including:
Aloft Pool Party, which will kick off Pride week with a splash of fun, poolside drag shows and a DJ spinning some of the most iconic queer anthems. Sunday, September 24 at the Aloft Hotel, 51 Biltmore Avenue, Asheville. 1 p.m. – 5p.m.
The Art of Pride, where patrons can see the transformation process for drag queens Ganymede and Indica Gemini and will include beats by DJ Griffin White, specialty cocktails by Saint Brighid’s and a chance to win a $100 Marquee gift card. Thursday, September 28. Marquee Gallery, 36 Foundy Street, Asheville. 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Music Bingo hosted by Divinity Holeburn. Thursday, September 28, Green Man Brewery, 27 Buxton Avenue. 7 p.m. – 8 p.m.
A Drag Queen Bar Crawl, a two-hour long tour where attendees will “enjoy fine brews, seltzers, wines, and sours from multiple iconic downtown breweries, all while being entertained by a local diva escorting patrons along the way. Kicks off Friday, September 29, 4:30 p.m. Downtown Asheville.
For more information about Pride week in the Blue Ridge area, go to the organization’s website.