Miami Beach Chamber with City National Bank, Regis HR and R House Drag Brunch will Participate in Parade
The 11th annual installment of Miami Beach Pride promises to be “Out of this World,” says Bruce Horwich, chair of the Miami Beach Pride Board of Directors. Signifying the galactic appeal of this annual celebration, the “Out of this World” theme for 2019 harkens to a “Star Trek” inspired future where different people (and different planetary races) enjoy full equality. The theme also means that during the parade and festival, guests and participants will experience an abundance of otherworldly images and décor, representing the “Big Bang” experience Miami Beach Pride provides the community.
This year, once again, the Miami Beach Chamber along with City National Bank, Regis HR and R House Drag Brunch will be participating in the parade.
Included in the celebration this year, Miami Beach Pride will feature a week of activities with rainbow flag raising ceremony at Miami Beach City Hall which kicks off the week on Monday, April 1 at 6:30 pm. The flag raising ceremony will be followed by a “Flip the Switch” event at 7 pm for the third annual “Pride Lights the Night” whereby buildings throughout greater Miami will light up in the colors of the rainbow flag as a tribute and remembrance of the PULSE nightclub victims. Flipping the switch in front of 1111 Lincoln Road will be Pulse survivor Josean Garcia.
On Tuesday, April 2, the Miami-Dade Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce will host a fundraising cocktail party and MegaMixer networker at the Shelborne South Beach Oasis Patio from 6 pm to 9 pm. All proceeds will benefit Miami Beach Pride, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
Wednesday, April 3, brings two activities into the Pride Week Spotlight. From 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm, WeWork Lincoln Road hosts “The Business of Pride,” an interactive workshop addressing how to make LGBTQ+ employees comfortable in the work environment. From 6 pm to midnight, the acclaimed World Erotic Art Museum presents the George Daniell Exhibition Opening Reception. Daniell was an accomplished photographer and portraitist whose portfolio spanned the breadth of the human condition from the Great Depression to ‘50s Hollywood glamor and included photographs he took in 1938 of herring fishermen in Canada to portraits of Georgia O. Keeffe, John Marin, Audrey Hepburn, W. H. Auden, Lena Horne, Tennessee Williams, Anita Eckberg, Robert De Niro, Bernice Abbott, Lena Horne, Edith Hamilton, as well as D. H. Lawrence’s three women, Mabel Dodge Luhen, Lady Dorothy Britt and Freida Lawrence.
On Thursday, April 4, PAMM presents their monthly Free Community Night from 7 pm to 11 pm with live music, drink specials, drag performances and more on their dramatic waterfront terrace overlooking Biscayne Bay and the cruise port.
Friday means it’s time to get dressed up for the Miami Beach Pride VIP Gala. Cocktails will flow and hors d’oeuvres will be plentiful as guests mix and mingle with Pride VIPs, Grand Marshals, celebrities, sponsors and community leaders.
Just prior to the VIP Gala on Friday, a “Sunset Pride Celebration” is an official Miami Beach Pride event in association with the It Gets Better Project. From 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm, the staff of the Project will invite guests to connect with influential members of the LGBTQ+ community in the Miami area and learn about the advocacy work the It Gets Better Project conducts on behalf of LGBTQ+ youth. Free transportation to the Pride VIP Gala will be provided from this event.
Winding up Friday night – and back by popular demand – is the After Party and Kick-Off event at Basement in the Edition Hotel from 11 pm to 5 am Saturday. Jake Resnicow and Scott Hauser invite guests to unleash their deepest desires and release their wildest fantasies with over-the-top live acts and superstar DJs. Basement features a nightclub, bowling alley and ice-skating rink with award-winning sound and lighting.
Nowhere is the spirit of Pride and celebration more apparent than during the extraordinary two-day Pride Festival on Saturday and Sunday that features two stages with world-class DJs, entertainers, and celebrity appearances. The Festival features special surprise performances throughout both days, along with 125 vendor booths, food and cocktails at Lummus Park in world-famous South Beach. Don’t miss the Pridelines Youth District and Safe Zone, Lambda Living Lounge, BB&T Food Pavilion, “The Garden of Eve” Women’s tent the Pink, Blue and White tent, and many family friendly activities.
Saturday also means the Clevelander Pool Party from 2 pm to 8 pm featuring performances and food and drink specials in celebration of Pride.
Sunday is the main event – the 11th Annual Miami Beach Pride Parade — complete with 3,000 proud participants, dozens of colorful floats and thousands of spectators celebrating their authentic selves! Beginning at noon and spanning the length of legendary Ocean Drive from 5th to 15th streets, the parade is a celebration of the diverse – and fierce — fabric of the LGBTQ+ community. Following the parade at approximately 2 pm on the Celebrity Stage will be the Opening Ceremonies with Grand Marshals, celebrity performers and VIPs, City leaders and special guests.
Stick around following the Opening Ceremonies for the second day of the Miami Beach Pride Festival with more food, more cocktails and more energy from two stages of international DJs, global and local performers, drag queens, and more, all culminating with an A-list headline performer and fireworks!
Since its inception in 2009, Miami Beach Pride has grown from a neighborhood event to an event on the global stage with A-list celebrities such as Gus Kenworthy as Grand Marshal in 2018 and Betty Who, Thelma Houston and Taylor Dayne as headliners. Previous Grand Marshals and VIPs have included: Ross Mathews as Celebrity Grand Marshal in 2017, Elvis Duran as Grand Marshal in 2016, Iggy Azalea as Duran’s Special Guest that year and Jordin Sparks as headline entertainer. Mario Lopez was Grand Marshal in 2015, Gloria Estefan was Grand Marshal in 2014 and Adam Lambert performed in 2013.
Miami Beach Pride attendance has grown as well. An estimated 15,000 spectators turned out for the first Pride parade in 2009; an estimated 145,000 attended the event in 2018, which attracted not only South Floridians, but also visitors from throughout the world. In addition to Parade spectators, last April’s event included more than 70 parade contingencies, 35 floats and 3,000 participants. The Pride Festival which followed featured more than 100 LGBTQ-friendly vendors and businesses, plus refreshments, two stages of entertainment, a family-friendly play area and fireworks. Recently, Miami Beach Pride was named one of the “Top 100 Events of the Year” for the fifth year in a row by BizBash Magazine and has earned the Pink Flamingo Award as favorite multi-day event for five years in a row.
Miami Beach Gay Pride is made possible with the support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners and the Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority and the City of Miami Beach. Presenting sponsor for this year is once again Celebrity Cruises. While still a work in progress, additional sponsors for Miami Beach Pride 2019, as of February 19, include AHF/Impulse Group; AMBIENTE Magazine/ Unity Coalition; Atlantic Broadband; AXEL HOTELS; BB&T; Best Buy; BLICK Art Materials; Bud Light; Capital One; Care Resource; Chase Bank; Comcast, NBC6, Universal and Telemundo; Cox Media; CVS Health / CVS Pharmacy; Edge Media Network; Gay Cater SoFlo; GayTravel.com; George Daniell / WEAM; GMCVB; Hot Spots!; It Gets Better Project; Jackson Health Systems; Lincoln Rd BID; Magic City Casino; Miami-Dade Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce; Miami Dade County; Miami Foundation; Morgan Stanley; Nike; Perez Art Museum Miami; Pink Banana Media / I Love Gay #Miami; South Beach Group; South Beach Insurance; Stella Rosa Wines; TD Bank; Tito’s Handmaid Vodka; Tobacco Free Florida; Tra Publishing; Truelieve; Twist South Beach; Urge; Walgreens; WEAM; WeWork; Whole Foods; Wire Magazine; Wix.com; Baptist Health; Mini USA.
South Beach Group, the official hotel sponsor of Miami Beach Pride offers special rates for Pride attendees who use the promo code: SBGPride at www.southbeachgroup.com/pride
For more information, visit www.miamibeachpride.com.
