Block Island Pride 2023 (RI)

Info

Block Island Pride takes place from the 14th to 17th September 2023.

We are the island’s one and only LGBTQIA+ organization working to promote cultural diversity and progress through inclusive events and community action.

Thursday, September 14th
The first day of the second annual Block Island Pride starts off with the kid-friendly Dodge Night Market, where Drag Queens Ninny Nothin’ and Danuel Duel will be mingling on Dodge Street from 4:00- 9:00 pm.
Pop over to The Travelling Seamstress to make rainbow tie-dye. Take photos and enjoy light refreshments at The Island Free Library for Drag Queen Bingo. Finish off the night with deserts and jazz music at Persephone’s Kitchen.

Friday, September 15th
On the second day, Spring Street Gallery will be hosting a Life Drawing Class with Katherine Clarke Langlands and a nude model. Katherine is a multidisciplinary artist whose work includes painting, sculpture, installation, collage and assemblage. She is a part-time Block Islander and, always, a Vermonter. Katherine grew up immersed in the snow/skate culture of Darkside Snowboards and that sensibility often informs her gritty, relevant conceptual ideologies, artistic progression and her vibrant dynamic paintings and sculptures. Katherine is currently a studio resident at the Vermont Studio Center, represented by Soapbox Arts Gallery in Burlington, VT and an MFA student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. They will provide basic drawing supplies like pencils, charcoal, and paper, but please feel free to bring more with you. The class will last between 45 minutes and an hour. Space is limited, so sign-up with the form below to ensure you have a space!
Please note that we will be charging $30 for the class, which will be collected before the beginning of the class via cash or Venmo.

Saturday, September 16th
In the morning, come back to The Island Free Library at 10:00pm to enjoy Drag Queen Story Hour with Ninny Nothin’ and Danuel Duel. They will read us a selection of queer themed kid’s books, nibble on snacks, and dance to music with rainbow streamers.
After Drag Queen Story Hour, walk with Ninny and Danuel up to the Ocean View Pavilion to gather for the start of our march through town. The march will start approximately at 12:00 pm. We encourage everyone to dress extravagantly in rainbows and bring instruments to make noise! The march will finish down at the beach access across from the Beach Head.
Following the march, we encourage all participants to come to The Yellow Kittens for a family friendly drag show hosted by Ninny and Danuel at 1:00pm. At this event we will award a prize to the best dressed and perform a comedic lip-sync numbers, music, and plenty of banter. Tickets are $15 for admission to the event.
In the evening at 6:30, join us at Frederick J Benson Town Beach for Soundwaves’ screening of To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything!
Finish off your Saturday with a House and Techno Party at Club Soda from 10:30-1:00.

Sunday, September 17th
Take an afternoon walk with the Island Naturalist Kim Gaffett to Black Rock Beach as we highlight examples of queerness in nature and tell old stories of queer island residents. Who knows what cool stuff we'll discover when we are enjoying a good walk! Please meet at the Painted Rock. This event is free, but we ask that you email Kim at kim.gaffett@tnc.org to sign-up, so we can estimate the number of participants.