Indigo Girls and Thea Austin to Headline Cedar Valley Pridefest in Waterloo, Iowa

Indigo Girls to headline Friday Night Concert; Thea Austin, the voice of "Rhythm is a Dancer," to headline Saturday's Pridefest
By: Cedar Valley Pridefest
 
WATERLOO, Iowa - July 31, 2018 - PRLog -- Friday, August 24th and Saturday, August 25th, downtown Waterloo will be flooded with messages of diversity, inclusion, community and equality for the seventh-annual Cedar Valley Pridefest. As a part of this two-day celebration of community, Cedar Valley Pridefest will provide more than 18 hours of entertainment, access to information and vendors to the community. Last year, the event drew more than 3,500 people from all over Iowa and more than 20 states.

Thanks to six years of positive growth and support from the community and a new presenting sponsor, Hotel 4th & Waterloo Convention Center, Cedar Valley Pridefest will be a two-day event for the first time.

"Partnering with Hotel 4th has allowed us to expand not only the amount of time as well as the footprint of Pride, but they were also able to use their connections in the entertainment industry to help us book Grammy Award-winning artists Indigo Girls for our first Friday night concert," said Mike Tyer, Marketing Chair for Cedar Valley Pride.

New for 2018 is Friday's Concert Event that kicks off at 5:30 p.m. with XRAYDJ, drag performances, singer/songwriter Daphne Willis at 7:15 p.m., and the Indigo Girls at 9:00 p.m. A free Community Block Party kicks off at 10:30 p.m. and runs until midnight.

"Saturday will maintain much of what attendees have loved the last six years, with 12 hours of live entertainment on the main stage plus educational speakers, a kids' zone, art exhibit, drag impersonators, roller derby, vendors and information and much more," said Tyer. "The night will culminate with SNAP!'s Thea Austin performing their Top 100 Billboard hit 'Rhythm is a Dancer' at 9 p.m. and local group Sissy's Sircus burlesque show at 11 p.m."

"Our goal for Cedar Valley Pridefest isn't to celebrate our differences, but to come together as a community through acceptance," said Michelle Hall, another event organizer. "We are here to celebrate that the Cedar Valley is a great place to live because of its diversity, acceptance and equality. As a mom and active community member, I enjoy being part of Pridefest and help give my kids and my community this chance to come together and discover what we have in common."

The all-volunteer group organizing Cedar Valley Pride expanded the festival to two days because of community feedback.

"Attendees, friends and fans of Cedar Valley Pride have been after us for the last several years to increase the scale of our event," said Dave Deeds, President of Cedar Valley Pride. "Now, because of the Hotel 4th sponsorship and major support from other sponsors including SingleSpeed Brewing Co., Kings & Queens Club, Salon Iris and Trio SalonSpa, as well as NRG Media's KOKZ, Rock 108 and KPTY Radio stations, we're able to give the community what they've been asking for — a bigger event with even brighter entertainment."

The 200 and 300 blocks of West Fourth Street, including the crossing with Jefferson Street in downtown Waterloo, will be closed off to accommodate the 18-hour event. Friday's Concert event runs from 5:30 p.m. to midnight on August 24th and Saturday's Pridefest runs from noon to midnight on Saturday, August 25. Advance tickets can be purchased at CedarValleyPride.com in a variety of packages ranging from $35 for Friday's Concert with Free Admission on Saturday, or a Saturday Pridefest ticket only for just $10. Concert tickets increase by $5 at the gate. The event will be put on rain or shine. Plus, you can listen to KOKZ 105.7 FM, Rock 108 (107.9 FM) and KPTY The Party 107.3 FM for a chance to win tickets prior to the event or participate on the Cedar Valley Pridefest Facebook page.

The event will feature live music, food and beverage vendors, information booths, female and male impersonators and much more. Many of the performers will be members of the LGBT community from across the country and Iowa. A showcase of performers is available at www.cedarvalleypride.com. In addition, the event will feature a special tribute to Steven Siegel-Slykhuis, who passed away in late 2017 and whose family and friends made significant gifts in his memory to CVP. He will be honored on stage by a brief talk and one of his favorites, Cher, impersonated by legendary Cher impersonator Steven Andrade from Princeton, N.J. Other female impersonators will entertain the audience throughout the day, including Waterloo's own former Empresses of Iowa Courtney Michaels and Ruby James Knight. Plus, show cast members from Kings & Queens Club and guest performers from House of Love will perform drag numbers.

Cedar Valley Pride is sponsored by Hotel 4th, SingleSpeed Brewing Co., Kings & Queens Club, Salon Iris & Trio SalonSpa, CUNA Mutual Group, KOKZ 105.7 FM, KFMW Rock 108, JSA Development, The VGM Group, UnityPoint Health, ThunderRidge & Edgemont Park Apartments, MET Transit, Waterloo Center for the Arts and many more, along with the Friends of Cedar Valley Pride group who helped raise nearly 10% of the cost of the festival through individual donations.

More information about the event, sponsorships, volunteer opportunities and more can be found at www.CedarValleyPride.com.

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More about Cedar Valley Pridefest
Cedar Valley Pridefest is a two-day event in Downtown Waterloo celebrating diversity and the LGBT community. Friday, August 24th features a concert by the Grammy Award-winning Indigo Girls. Saturday's PRIDEFEST is a 12-hour event hosted on the 300 block of West 4th Street on August 25, 2018 and is designed to generate community awareness and unity. A volunteer group formed Cedar Valley Pride Fest Inc. in January of 2012 to plan the first pride event on August 18, 2012.

Media Contact
Mike Tyer
cedarvalleypridefest@gmail.com
End
Source:Cedar Valley Pridefest
Email:***@gmail.com
Tags:LGBT, Indigo Girls, Gay Pride
Industry:Music
Location:waterloo - Iowa - United States
Subject:Events
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