Pony Cabaret co-hosts Miss Cookie LaWhore and Erin Scott have a top-notch list of entertainers lined up for this year’s event on June 20. Photo credit: Jessica Zais Photography.
What: Pony Cabaret, an evening of drag and variety entertainment
Who: UBCO Creative Writing Professor Michael V. Smith and Ms. Cookie LaWhore
When: Thursday, June 20, 7 to 9 pm
Where: Mary Irwin Theatre, Rotary Centre for the Arts, 421 Cawston Ave.
Cost: Suggested fundraising amount $10 to $40; show is for ages 18+
Now in its eighth year, Pony Cabaret is set to gallop onto the stage on June 20.
The cabaret is queer-run and stocked full of talented performers featuring drag, storytelling, comedy and burlesque. The show is hosted by Ms. Cookie LaWhore and local impresario Erin Scott.
Ms. Cookie is the alter-ego of UBC Okanagan Creative Writing Professor Michael V. Smith and her role, explains Smith, is to be the biggest freak in the room so everyone else can feel a little more normal.
“We have so many different kinds of performers this year. It’s such a great smorgasbord of radical weirdoes,” says Smith. “I’m really looking forward to seeing all of these artists on stage.”
This year’s event will feature a rogue’s gallery of queer entertainers including Montreal-based performer Alexis O’Hara, Canadian drag star Chiquita Mère and Calgary rapper Sinzere, with performances from Natasha Kanapé Fontaine, Tintina Tundra, KENDONTCRY and Evan the Juggler.
“I’m excited to be back on the big stage with some big names. Hosting at the Mary Irwin Theatre elevated the show last year, and I’m excited to do it again this year,” says Scott, co-host of the event.
Pony Cabaret is supported by UBCO’s Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies and is organized and executed by the Inspired Word Café as part of the annual New Leaves Festival. The theme for this year’s festival “Queer Art as Resistance” celebrates queerness in the arts through drag, hip-hop, poetry, punk rock and more.
Having the cabaret during this festival allows visiting artists and performers to connect more deeply with the local community over three days, explains Scott, who is also the board president of Inspired Word Café.
“We believe in the resistant power of queer art and feel Pony has embodied that for years in the Okanagan. Teaming up is a no-brainer,” Scott adds.
The evening starts at 5:45 pm with an opening reception for the New Leaves Festival. Doors will open at 6:30 pm for the cabaret. A bar and concession will be available before and during the show. The venue is wheelchair accessible and has gendered, stalled washrooms, with a gender-neutral, accessible washroom available by request. The show is for adults 18 and over.
Pony Cabaret is a fundraiser for the Inspired Word Cafe and tickets are available on a sliding scale between $10 to $40.
For more information and tickets, visit: https://ponycabaret2024.eventbrite.ca.
