Union Square Plaza set the scene for the 2026 edition of the Big Gay Dance Party. ~Photo by Megan Senturk

By Christa Lee

Pride Month went out with a bang at the Big Gay Dance Party the last week of June in Union Square Plaza. It was free and included vendors, a live DJ, drag performers, and plenty of dancing, with an extra hour added this year.

“It’s a party where we want to celebrate the LGBTQ community,” said Iaritza Menjivar, senior events manager of the Somerville Arts and Culture Division. The theme was “Gender Euphoria,” where the public was encouraged “to come dressed as whatever felt the most like them.”

Drag artists Amanda Playwith and Andi van Dyke performed at the event. “It’s honestly one of my favorite pride events to do,” said drag queen Amanda Playwith, who has been performing at Big Gay Dance Party since its start about ten years ago. She works together with Menjivar months in advance and has a personal connection to it. When asked about what makes this event unique, she said, “I was born and raised in Somerville and still live in Somerville. To me, the place I grew up is celebrating the person that I am.”

For those who missed it, she performed a This is Me/Born This Way medley and a Mamma Mia mix. Andi van Dyke, a drag king for four years, performed Holding Out for a Hero and Bohemian Rhapsody.

“It was so wonderful to get to perform for people of all ages,” said Andi van Dyke. “Especially when you see little kids lighting up and coming up and talking to you, or their parents trying to get pictures with the two of you because their kid is queer and they haven’t interacted with a queer person who’s wearing as much makeup as we are.”

~Photo by Megan Senturk

Fifteen vendors set up shop, including businesses such as Reimagym and Fairly Reckless. “What we hope is that this event is also a place for LGBTQ based communities to be able to showcase what they offer to the community,” said Menjivar. The event wasn’t as big as it is now when it first started. At the time, there were only a few vendors, and it ran for a shorter period of time. “We were lucky if we got like 50 people,” said Amanda Playwith. “And it was family and friends that I knew, or the people who were running it were inviting people. And every year it just grows and grows.”

Menjivar hopes the Big Gay Dance Party “continues to support the LGBTQ community” and to make it more community-run by including more partners and input. It just needs more funding.

“There’s a lot of hatred in the world and people who are against drag,” said Amanda Playwith. “We just want to entertain everyone and let people forget about what’s going on in the world for 5 minutes.”

~Photo by Megan Senturk