Sparkle Weekend: Everything you need to know
The weekend will feature all sorts of events and things to do for everyone.
Sparkle Weekend, the family festival all about celebrating trans joy and gender diversity, is back!
Running from Friday 7 July to Sunday 9 July the three-day event will take place in Sackville Gardens in the heart of Manchester’s Gay Village. It’s organised by Sparkle, the national transgender charity.
The weekend will feature all sorts of events and things to do for everyone.
The headline stage returns with a fantastic range of live music, entertainment, local bands and singers, international artists, and comedy. There’s truly something for everyone from sing-alongs to a dance arena.
Jordan Gray, HUSK, Alexa Vox, Jasmine Gardosi, Lucky Roy Singh, and the House of Spice are among those performing as well as Trans Radio UK DJs.
Sparkle also offers a Sensory Zone, open from 10:30-12:30, which will provide calming music and wellbeing activities for all ages. Fidget spinners, earplugs, and more are on hand if needed.
The Family and Youth zone will be available as a space for families and young people to gather, take part in workshops, and have fun. There’ll be a bouncy castle, face paints, crafts and all sorts. This is being supported by the organisations Proud 2 b Parents, Gendered Intelligence, The Proud Trust, and Mermaids.
In the Positivity Zone visitors will be able to see local queer artists sell their wares, engage in workshops, and share their trans journey. This is a space for art, culture, and creativity.
For places to relax there’s the Wellness Zone. Here, coaches and beauty therapists will provide meditation sessions, hair and makeup, and workshops exploring gender wellbeing through writing and improvisation.
Returning for a second year, LGBTQ Wellness curates a weekend of relaxation, reiki, yoga, meditation, writing, and improv wellbeing workshops.
12 organisations will be hosted in the Community Zone this year where people will be able to get advice and support from groups such as the Albert Kennedy Trust. Visitors can also engage with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence on their mission for a better world.
Sackville Street will be closed for the marketplace, where over forty traders will have a range of stalls with information and merch to peruse. With over 75% of traders identifying as trans, queer, or non-binary, this is a great grassroots area on Sackville Street to browse and enjoy!
New to Sparkle Weekend is The Trans Joy & Queer Power March, which will make a defiant statement for trans rights. Trans joy placards are being produced Lazy Pins; the trans and queer-owned design and placard group.
While the event is completely free, ticketing has been introduced but only to capture metrics needed for future funding bids.
Weekend tickets are available here. Fri evening comedy (18+ only) tickets are available here. Trans Joy & Queer Power March tickets are available here. Sensory Space tickets are available here.
Check out the full guide of what’s going on here.