Montréal Pride Celebrations Program

Filed Under Gay Entertainment, Gay Events, Pride Events | August 13th, 2008 

2nd Edition of the Montréal Pride Celebrations – From August 14 to 17, 2008 – Official Launch of the festivities and programme.

Mr. Eric Pineault, President of Célébrations LGBTA Montréal. (Photo: Célébrations de la Fierté)

Mr. Eric Pineault, President of Célébrations LGBTA Montréal announces the Official Launch of the festivities and programme for the 2nd Edition of the Montréal Pride Celebrations (Photo: Célébrations de la Fierté)

MONTREAL (CNW Telbec) – The 2008 Montréal Pride Celebrations will build on the incredible success of the 2007 edition with an array of activities, open to all, celebrating Montréal’s vibrant and dynamic gay and lesbian community. “The event has been able to double its operation budget and programme, thanks to the incredible support we’ve received from the community, the SDC du Village, the City of Montréal, the Borough of Ville-Marie and Tourisme Montréal, as well as with the generous support from the private sector. The Celebrations promise to give the city its best Montréal Pride ever,” Mr. Eric Pineault, President of Célébrations LGBTA Montréal said yesterday.

With the presence of Mr. Benoit Labonté, Mayor of the Borough of Ville-Marie and Leader of the Official Opposition of the City of Montréal, Sammy Forcillo, Vice-chairman of the Executive Committee and Responsible for Infrastructures and Finances of the City of Montréal and Mr. Laurent McCutcheon, president of Gai Ecoute and the Fondation Emergence, M. Eric Pineault unveiled the official programme of this year’s festivities.

The Montréal Pride Celebrations will host for the first time three days of free events that are open to all at parc Emilie-Gamelin. Here’s the programme overview:

Thursday, August 14 6 pm – Launch of the festivities at Sky

Friday, August 15
11 am to 8 pm – Avenue of Health and Well-Being
At parc Emilie-Gamelin: 7 pm – Launch of the official theme song: Humanity
7:30 pm – Trojan and TD Financial Group Presentation
8 pm – Dream Académie
9 pm – Emily Bégin Show

Saturday, August 16
11 am to 8 pm – Avenue of Health and Well-Being
11 am to 6 pm – Community Day (Sainte-Catherine Street East)
At parc Emilie-Gamelin:
2:30 pm – Franklyne
4 pm to 9 pm – Samedi Pop T-Dance (DJs Bobzilla and Mario Bross)
9 pm – Dorion chante Dion

Sunday, August 17
1 pm – The Parade: Here comes the circus!
At parc Emilie-Gamelin:
1 pm to 11 pm – Mega T-Dance (DJs Mark Anthony and Stéfane Lippé)
9 pm – Closing Show: BIG BANG! with the RadicalQueens 2008

The 2nd Edition of the Montréal Pride Celebrations closes with a Big Bang on Sunday, August 17 with the Radical Queens 2008. (Photo: Radical 5)

The 2nd Edition of the Montréal Pride Celebrations closes with a Big Bang on Sunday, August 17 with the Radical Queens 2008. (Photo: Radical 5)

Also present, the Montréal Pride Celebrations prestigious Grand Marshals:

Mr. Jasmin Roy: Jasmin Roy is no stranger to the world of television. From Chambres en ville to Salut Bonjour and Caméra Café, he is equally at ease in the role of host, reporter and actor. He also has extensive experience in radio, both as a host and cultural reporter. M. Roy strongly believes in the social recognition of Montréal’s LGBTA community as well as the importance of visibility for LGBTA communities worldwide.

Ms. Nicole Brossard: Very early on, Nicole Brossard, poet, novelist and playwright, was involved in many different avant-garde movements in Québec poetry: she was co-founder of the influential literary magazine La Barre du jour (1965-75), organizer of jazz and poetry performances at the Youth Pavilion at Expo’67, co-founder of the feminist newspaper Les Têtes de pioche (1976-1979), and was associate director of La Nouvelle Barre du jour (1977-1979) and the “Réelle” collection (1979-1981). She has won the Governor General’s Award twice, once for Mécanique jongleuse (1974) and again for Double impression (1984). In 1991, she was awarded Québec’s highest literary honour, the Athanase-David Prize. In 1994, she was made a member of L’Académie des Lettres du Québec. Most of her books have been translated into English. Nicole Brossard is a committed feminist and her book of essays, La Lettre aérienne, influenced an entire generation of feminists. In 2003, she was awarded the W.O. Mitchell Literary Prize and, in 2006, she won the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize. In 2006, she published Baiser vertige, the first anthology of gay and lesbian writing in Québec.

The Parade:

The 2008 Montréal gay Parade is scheduled for Sunday, August 17 beginning at 1 pm. The parade will start on the corner of de Lorimier Avenue and René-Lévesque Boulevard East and travel west, through the Village, culminating on Saint-Hubert Street. The parade will feature floats from hundreds of local sports teams, cultural groups as well as other gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender organizations. The parade will also feature both gay and gay-friendly businesses that join us in celebrating the significant contributions of their LGBTA employees and clients. The Parade honours an important tradition that began in Montréal in 1979 and this year, the participating groups and businesses will be encouraged to design their floats incorporating the theme of “Here comes the circus!” A host will announce each group that will pass under the Pride arch and will animate the crowd. A panel of distinguished judges, formed by Richard Burnett, Myriam Ginestier and Emilie Poirier will present six awards for the most exciting, crowd-pleasing and unforgettable floats.

Avenue of Health and Well-Being:

On Sainte-Catherine Street East, between Alexandre-de-Sève and de Champlain streets, the organizing committee proposes to give this year’s event a new dimension by launching the all-new Avenue of Health and Well-Being. There, you will find information regarding the prevention of STI, HIV and AIDS and you can learn about organic, ecological and homeopathic products. You can even treat yourself to a relaxing or therapeutic massage. As the saying goes “Health is Wealth” so come out and experience the Avenue of Health and Well-Being.

Official Theme Song: Humanity

“For the first time in its history, the Montréal Pride will have its official theme song, written and interpreted by James Dean Trépanier, with Julie Vaillancourt as vocals”, concluded M. Eric Pineault.

Here comes the circus! Come on and see us! For more information: www.fiertemontrealpride.com