See Tituss Burgess with the DSO, Go Queer Camping, Get Fern Fest Tickets, Attend North Star Lounge LGBTQ+ Night
Another successful Michigan Pride season is in the books! Once again, communities across the state have pulled together to plan events ranging from sprawling big city fests to gatherings in rural communities that don’t always feel welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community — this year, our calendar included nearly 50 events (with several yet to come in July and beyond). There’s plenty to do beyond Pride, too. Don’t miss Tituss Burgess as he performs with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra or your chance to enjoy a fun, queer-affirming outdoor event camping with The Queer Outdoors. Closer to home, make a night of it at an upcoming North Star Lounge LGBTQ+ event.
1. See Tituss Burgess Perform with the DSO
Acclaimed Broadway and TV actor Tituss Burgess will bring his larger-than-life voice to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra June 29 for a fabulous evening of song in celebration of Pride. Reserve your tickets now for a show featuring song selections from Broadway and film with accompaniment from the DSO conducted by Principal Pops Conductor Designate Enrico Lopez-Yañez. The event marks the first time the DSO has officially recognized LGBTQ+ Pride, a tradition the symphony intends to continue. Don’t miss our Q&A with Burgess!
June 29, 8 p.m., Detroit Symphony Orchestra Hall (3711 Woodward Ave., Detroit). Tickets are available now at tickets.dso.org/syos/performance/10306.
2. Go Camping with The Queer Outdoors
Sign-ups are open through June 28 for The Queer Outdoors annual camping adventure, set for July 26-28 at Bay City State Park on the shores of the Saginaw Bay. Campers will enjoy a large sandy beach, 2,000 acres of wetland woods and one of the largest remaining freshwater, coastal wetlands on the Great Lakes, the Tobico Marsh. The organization holds queer-affirming outdoor adventure and meetup events throughout the year for all skill levels, including the Queer Workday Honeysuckle Happy Hour volunteer cleanup event on June 27 and a hike through Saginaw Forest with Ann Arbor Employee Pride on June 30.
- Camping along Saginaw Bay: July 26-28, sign up at bit.ly/3KStHA8 by June 28.
- Honeysuckle Happy Hour (volunteer forest clean-up event): June 27, 4:30-8 p.m., Rouge Park North Prairie Trail Entrance, sign up at bit.ly/4cLeyMX
- Saginaw Forest Hike: June 30, 1-3 p.m., Ann Arbor Community Center (648 S. Wagner Road), sign up at bit.ly/3xpEA9d.
3. Get set for Fern Fest 2024
Picking up where the 40-year-old Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival (aka Michfest) left off when the annual festival ended in 2015, Fern Fest will return for its third annual gathering on July 9-14. The six-day women’s music festival has expanded rapidly since its inaugural event in 2022, prompting a move to a new, larger space at Smiling Acres in Trufant Michigan, north of Grand Rapids. The new space will offer more room to move and an upgraded sound system to showcase artists like Alisabeth Von Presley and Angel Davenport. Fern Fest producer Abra Wise told Pride Source earlier this year that Fern Fest is designed as a “time of connection and healing for women, non-binary and trans folks as they spend a week listening to music in the woods, off the grid and disconnected from everyday life.”
July 9-14, Smiling Acres (3060 N. Johnson Road, Trufant). Find tickets and more info at michiganfernfest.com.
4. Hit Up North Star Lounge for LGBTQ+ Night
Pride Month is drawing to a close, but every Thursday is Pride Night at North Star Lounge. Don’t miss events like Queer Bingo, upcoming performances by artists like folk singer-songwriter Meredith Hinz (June 27), eclectic musician Mothy (July 11) and indie folk duo Just Homesick (July 18), trivia with Terry McClymonds (who served as the resident trivia master at \aut\ bar for nine years) and queer open mics where community members share music, poetry and unique talents. Find the full list at nstarlounge.com/events.
Thursdays, 5:30-9:30 p.m., North Star Lounge (301 N. Fifth Ave., Ann Arbor).
5. Upcoming Michigan Pride Fests
The last official weekend of Pride Month is packed with community events all over the Great Lakes State.
Saturday, June 29
- East Lansing Pride. Albert El Fresco (Albert Ave. between Grove St. and M.A.C.), 5-9 p.m.
- Flint Pride. Riverbank Park, 2-8 p.m.
- Holland Pride. Centennial Park, 12-5 p.m.
- Jackson Pride. Horace Blackman Park, 12-6 p.m.
- Monroe County Pride. 111 W. Elm Ave., 12-6 p.m.
- South Haven. Stanley Johnston Park, 12-10 p.m. First Pride event!
- Three Rivers. Downtown Three Rivers, 12-11 p.m.
- Warren. Warren City Hall, 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
Sunday, June 30
- Big Rapids. Downtown Big Rapids, 12 -8 p.m.
- Buchanan. Downtown Buchanan, 4-9 p.m.
- Port Huron (Blue Water Pride), 701 McMorran Blvd., 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
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