"It’s Definitely More of a Party Vibe": Sydney Hosts Its First Ever Queer Formal

History is about to be made.

Limo rides. Nerve-racking slow dances. Corsages that never stay on like they should.

"It’s unfair for the kids to not experience that for the first time," Bexx, event producer at Minus18, tells Student Edge.

Thankfully, on Saturday evening, Sydney’s LGBTQI students will get the full formal experience. And they’ll be making history at the same time, too.

Four-hundred and fifty under 19s are expected at Sydney’s first ever Queer Formal, hosted by Minus18 at Petersham Town Hall, with tickets covered by donations to a crowdfunding sponsorship campaign. Earlier this year, 500 of Melbourne's LGBTQI youth rocked-up to their Minus18 Queer Formal; another is planned for Adelaide in September.

(In 2016, a conservative group tried to troll Minus18’s Melbourne event by buying up all the tickets, not realising they were effectively funding the formal and allowing as many people to attend as possible.)

You might have thought Sydney was already the pioneer of Queer Formals in Australia, considering it boasts the Mardi Gras, the nation’s equal highest 'Yes' vote for marriage equality and the most same-sex couples in the country. However, a NSW-based event is long time in the making, arriving eight years after Minus18’s first formal in 2010, which was hosted in response to an incident where an LGBTQI student wasn’t allowed to bring their partner to their school ball.

"The schools provide a space for a formal for all students, which is great, but it doesn’t necessarily prioritise and include those who [can’t] afford a limo, or who might not have a partner, or who are part of the LGBTQI family," Bexx says.

"We saw firsthand [in Melbourne] the kids getting really excited about sitting down and having a meal with their friends; having photos with their friends; dancing on the dancefloor; wearing the corsages; wearing the awkward shoes that they want to wear but they can’t walk in; wearing their beautiful dresses; their outfits; expressing themselves in any capacity whatsoever.

"That also means we saw the parents out the front who are very thankful for this."

With catering from Street Sliders and live bands, performances and DJs, Sydney students can still expect the best and cheesiest parts of a typical school formal on Saturday night.

"We definitely have a photo booth,” Bexx says.

"We have the sit-down dinner vibe. We’re gonna introduce the slow dance section when the DJs start as well. There’s definitely parents at the front, and we offer corsages to those who don’t have them when they arrive on site."

But there are certainly elements to the Sydney Queer Formal that set it apart from a standard school shindig.

"You don’t get your typical principal doing the 'Welcome, class of '87' [speech]," Bexx says.

"You’re not gonna have teachers walking around. It’s definitely more of a party vibe combined with a formal theme. That means everyone from all walks of life—rural; metro; there’s a lot of people that come from different cultural backgrounds—turn up to the event."

Nonetheless, there are sensitive issues that come with organising a Queer Formal. For instance: Can LGBTQI youth bring non-LGBTQI allies as dates?

"If it’s an LGBTQI person from the community and they want to go but they don’t want to go by themselves, they can bring their cousin or maybe someone who is an ally," Bexx explains.

"We don’t necessarily go under the basis of 'you need to identify in order to come through', because language is quite a fluid thing for everyone, especially if you’re in that age bracket as well.

"[The Queer Formal] is a safe space that prioritises those from the LGBTQI community and others are welcome to join, but we generally prioritise those from our community, because this is their only chance."

Minus18's Queer Formal (Sydney) takes place at Petersham Town Hall on Saturday 7 July, 2018.

Header Image: Facebook.com/Minus18