Queer arts community finds new stage in Dartmouth for regular performances

Nova Scotia’s queer performance art scene has found a new home in the heart of downtown Dartmouth.

“It makes me so excited to see this all starting to come back together because we worked so hard to build it up,” said Jason Spurrell, a drag and burlesque performer known as Rouge Fatale.

Spurrell and Steven MacLeod, known as Deva Station, are well-known drag queens in the province.

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With years of performance experience under their belts, they’re passionate about helping younger artists break into the queer arts community, which hit a roadblock when Menz and Mollyz closed.

“It pretty much put us in a complete and total standstill,” both Spurrell and MacLeod said.

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Menz and Mollyz was the only venue that dedicated weekly stage time to the 2SLGBTQ community.

Since its closure, the community still thrived online and found ways to continue sharing their art virtually but both Spurrell and MacLeod say it’s not the same as having a regular in-person space.

“We tried to keep the heartbeat going as best as we could but nothing compares to being able to be with the community right there, and feel that energy on stage,” Spurrell said.

That’s where Debbie Phinney, an ally of the 2SLGBTQ community and pub owner, comes into the equation.

“I want a full community of everything so this is the final piece to be accurate in my community,” Phinney said.

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Phinney owns Staggers Pub and Grub in downtown Dartmouth and while there have been occasional drag shows hosted on her stage, she’s now offering the queer arts community a weekly performance venue.

“It’s going to be every Saturday right now. So, it’s once a week just like every other thing I put on my stage. So, it’s just going to be a part of what we are,” she said.

Both Spurrell and MacLeod say it’s an opportunity to reignite the passion of the queer arts community in person.

“It gives them a place to be them, that they don’t need to be scared of anything, and Debbie is an amazing ally, and that’s what we want this space to be. It’s not necessarily a queer space, it’s an allied space that everyone is welcome, and encouraged to come,” MacLeod said.

The first show is scheduled for June 11.