The Ten Best Things to Do at Sydney Mardi Gras 2014

There's the parade, yes. But before that, nearly a month of cultural and celebratory events of all stripes makes up the festival of Sydney Mardi Gras, and there's something for everybody, even Straighty McStraight-Straight. Who relates absolutely and 100 percent to the social expectations of their gender and sexuality? Nobody, probably. And that's something to love, savour, and take away from this most iconic of Sydney events.

This year, there's a sports festival, art you can dance to, DIY monster workshops and the next stage in the life of Strictly Ballroom, among all the parties between February 7 and March 2. With gay marriage rights firmly on the agenda again this year, 2014's Mardi Gras will definitely be one that's remembered.

Here are our picks of the ten best events.

MARDI GRAS FAIR DAY

Fair Day is as much of an establishment as Mardi Gras itself, uniting tens of thousands of Sydneysiders each year and marking the beginning of festival season. Get amongst an absolutely monstrous day, complete with live acts (the likes of Sandy Bottom and the uber saucy Bertie Page Clinic), community stalls, workshops and fabulous food vendors. 2014 will bring with it all the old favourites — an afternoon TUG-o-WAR and 'Doggywood', celebrating the most precious of Sydney pooches. New highlights include a very special Fair Day project: the first Australian NOH8 campaign, a silent photographic protest in response to the passing of Proposition 8 in California.

Sunday, February 9; 10am-7.30pm; free entry; Victoria Park, City Road, Camperdown.

DAY FOR NIGHT

Feel like experiencing live performance on your own terms? Day for Night is a durational work boasting a killer lineup of Australia's most intrepid queer artists and put on by Performance Space. Then, at sunset on February 15, Day for Night will transform into an electrifying dance party. Set against a score produced by leading electronic musicians Stereogamous (Paul Mac and Jonny Seymour), audiences will experience each work in an inspired new context. Part performance, part exhibition, part dance partay, Day for Night is a fusion of dance, sweat and sound, and one of the key cultural events of this years Mardi Gras Festival.

Exhibition February 13-15; 10am-6pm; free; Carriageworks, 245 Wilson Street, Eveleigh. Party February 15; 8pm; $35.

MARDI GRAS FILM FESTIVAL

The Film Festival has always been an important part of Mardi Gras, providing a platform for films that might otherwise fly under the radar. This year is no different, and the festival will show off Marta Cunningham’s directorial debut, Valentine Road, about the tragic murder of gay 15-yea- old Larry King, and Free Fall, the story of two German cops who take the term ‘partners’ to a whole new level. Also included are celebratory screenings of Australian classics The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Muriel’s Wedding.

February 13 – 23; Event Cinemas George Street; $16 - $25.

MAKE PLAY WORKSHOPS

In celebration of the Mardi Gras season, Object Gallery are gearing up to run a series of Make Play workshops, aimed at unveiling creative potential in unknowing Sydneysiders. Unleash your very own out-of-this-world being with Justin Shoulder's Fantastic Creatures Workshop; let Sydney glamourpuss Matt Format help you create your own faaaaabulous lashes in the Bespoke Eyelashes Workshop; put that frustrated costume designer to work in Angela Sinnett's Costume Design 101 or get yo' Mardi Gras bling on with the Bling Your Runners Workshop (again with Sinnett). Then learn how to shoot, cut and upload the entire festival experience, with Gareth Tillson's indispensible iPhone/iFilm Workshop.

February 6–27; 7-9pm; $15-$25; Object Gallery, Level 1, 417 Bourke Street, Surry Hills.

WALKLEY MEDIA TALK: A QUEER THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE NEWSROOM

In recent times, the mainstream media trend has been to closely follow the debate surrounding same sex marriage laws. However, what is happening in the rest of the LGBTQI community? The Walkley Media Talk features a panel of award-winning media personnel — including Monique Schafter (ABC 7.30/Hungry Beast), Sethorun Raj (Sydney Law School) and Elias Jahshan (Star Observer) — and will look at why some issues crack the mainstream while others (bullying, suicide, STIs, etc) remain on the outer. An absolute must for the media savvy and socially aware.

February 27; 6pm; The State Library of NSW; FREE but bookings essential.

MARDI GRAS FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT

The tournament turns six this year and is set up to be better than ever. It goes down on February 22 at the newly resurfaced Bat and Ball Park in Moore Park and kicks off at 9.30am for a day of community and family fun. Hosted by the Sydney Rangers FC, Sydney’s first football club for gay men, and the Flying Bats FC, the world’s largest lesbian football club, the event will have qualified referees, a men's and ladies' tournament, a field set up for the kids and a good ol’ BBQ. The tournament forms part of the slew of sporting events teed up for this year’s Mardi Gras Sports Festival, including the Rainbow Run in Sydney Park on February 8, and the City Hoops 3 on 3 basketball tournament at Prince Alfred Park on February 9.

February 22, 9.30am; $15-20; Registration closes February 16.

QUEER ACT/IONS

Celebrate love and the arts with QUEER ACT/IONS, presented by The Q, young turks MKA: Theatre of New Writing and nurturers of experimentation PACT Theatre in association with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival. First off: A Boy & A Bean, written and performed by Nick Atkins (from 12-15 February). Atkins dives into the very vital debate of marriage equality in an honest and tender performance that sees a boy called Jack stray between love, legislation and folklore. Unsex Me, Mark Wilson's performance of whispered confessions and hilarious self-mockery, will then run from February 19-22.

February 12-22; $10-$25; PACT Theatre,107 Railway Parade, Erskineville. Tickets to A BOY & A BEAN and UNSEX ME are on sale now.

STRICTLY BALLROOM THE MUSICAL

Everyone has to start somewhere, and for legendary Australian writer/director Baz Luhrmann, that somewhere was Strictly Ballroom. Initially a piece he wrote whilst studying at NIDA, it became a smash hit among global audiences, and now has become a musical extravaganza, just in time for Mardi Gras. From March 25, the Lyric Theatre is set to explode in a flurry of kitsch and camp as this Australian classic takes to the stage.

March 25 to April 12; $55-145; Lyric Theatre, The Star, Pyrmont.

TOY WITH ME

Ever thought that your childhood toys defined who you've become as an adult? Photographer Richard Hedger's Toy With Me is a new body of work exploring the intricacies of that notion. In a series of intriguing portraits, Hedger portrays people from all walks of life — such as Tom Ballard, Brendan Maclean and Alex Greenwich — through the toys of their past. It's an invitation for audiences to visually match each toy with its significant other, while reflecting on the debate around the increasingly gendered presentation of toys.

February 16 to March 3; 6–9pm; The Beresford Hotel, 354 Bourke Street, Surry Hills.

MARDI GRAS PARADE

The time has come again to celebrate the world’s largest LGBTQI celebration, the 36th Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade. The march up Oxford and Flinders Streets in Darlinghurst commemorates the 1978 demonstration of a few hundred people standing up against discrimination and has become a celebration that draws tens of thousands onto the street. Get up to Oxford Street early on in the afternoon to take in the visual extravaganza of costumes, floats and fabulous fun. Then squish into your favourite bar early — believe it or not, this is the first weekend the new 1.30am lockouts and 3am last drinks will be in effect in the area.

Saturday March 1; 7.45pm; FREE.

By Mairead Armstrong, James Whitton and Rima Sabina Aouf.