Lincoln’s Star City Pride Festival and Parade are back this weekend.
The festival opens Friday, June 8, at 4:00 p.m. in the north Haymarket’s “Polygon” parking lot. The all-ages portion will feature local drag entertainment & guest speakers, 80+ Vendors (open till 8 p.m.), 4+ Food Trucks. The festival goes 19+ (or with parental supervision) at 6:00 p.m. with live music, more drag performances, and an appearance from 2021 American Idol contestant Beane.
Star City Pride
Saturday’s Pride Parade kicks off at the Nebraska State Capital, starting at 10:00 a.m.
Shane Dostal with Lincoln Transportation and Utilities (LTU) said the parade route will mimic the same rout as the Mayors 1-mile youth run. The following roads will be closed from 7 a.m. to noon except where noted:
- Lincoln Mall from 13th to 14th streets will close from 6 a.m. to noon
- 14th Street from “H” to “K” streets
- 16th Street from “K” to “H” streets
- Goodhue Boulevard from “G” to “H” streets
- “H” Street from 14th to 16th streets
- “K” Street from 14th to 16th streets
“G” Street from 14th to 16th Street will also be closed for float staging. StarTran Routes 40-Heart Hospital, 53-SouthPointe, and 54-Veteran’s Hospital will be detoured during these closures. Travelers are encouraged to seek an alternate route and exercise caution around these closures.
“The Lincoln Police Department will be out doing, they’ll be at those intersections providing an additional layer of safety besides just our barricades that we use for street closings,” Dostal told KLIN.
After the parade, the festival will reopen at 12:00 p.m.
Saturday’s all-ages portion of the festival will feature a proclamation from Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird, a drag story hour, live music, a youth Pride Pagent, and the return of vendors/food trucks.
At 6:00 p.m. the will go festival 19+ (or with parental supervision) with live choir singing, a presentation of Star City Pride Royalty through the years, and performances from Jazell Barbie Royale (as seen on Queen of the Universe) and A’keria C. Davenport (as seen on RuPaul’s Drag Race).
For more information, visit starcityprideevents.org.