For the past nine years United We Dance has been one of the highlights of Melbourne’s queer community’s calendar. Primarily established as a fund-raising event, bringing together people from different multicultural communities, the event has gone from strength to strength.
Organising an annual dance party with the best multicultural DJs and 15 excellent performances staged over the evening doesn’t just happen by itself. Many months of hard work happen behind the scene and accolades must be given to John Tzimas, Colin Krycer and their teams who have undertaken this mammoth effort annually.
I have been lucky enough to have been involved as the photographer for the event since 2004, when it formed the closing party for the Inaugural Australian GLBTIQ Multicultural Conference in October that year.
United We Dance has raised tens of thousands of dollars for organisations such as the Gay and Lesbian Switchboard, JOY 94.9, Pride March, the Australian Lesbian & Gay Archives, the Gay & Lesbian Foundation of Australia and many more. It has also provided grants through its parent body, the AGMC, for the smaller multicultural groups in Melbourne’s queer community, such as Greek & Gay, Arcilesbica, Aleph Melbourne, i Ragazzi and others.
It has been an honour being involved with United We Dance for all these years. I love the people who attend, in all their diversity. I love the organisers for putting on an excellent night’s entertainment, knowing that every cent raised is going directly to support the community. I love the buzz it gives me, being there and getting to meet and photograph everyone. I also love that it’s a place where people from every nationality, cultural background, religion (and absence of), gender identity and sexual orientation come together to enjoy a night out and treat each other as equal. It sets an example wider society can take a lesson from.
Please take a few moments to browse my galleries from this and previous years and enjoy a sense of the unity and harmony that United We Dance fosters. It’s truly unique.
- 2010: Google Photos & Facebook
- 2009: Google Photos
- 2008: Google Photos & Facebook
- 2004: AGMC
Thank you again Colin and John.