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Ladyfag's SHADE Party Hits NYC For New Year's Eve
“Are you a hologram? Are you tired of being a hologram?”
That’s the tagline for New York City nightlife party curator Ladyfag‘s New Year’s Eve installment of her monthly party “SHADE.”
Taking place in a Brooklyn warehouse location announced the days leading up to NYE, “SHADE: 2084” is slated to be a massive warehouse rave with overarching dystopian themes informed by the digital age and the surveillance state.
Ladyfag, who was recently featured in HuffPost Gay Voices Associate Editor James Nichols‘ series “After Dark: NYC Nightlife Today And Days Past,” utilizes her monthly “SHADE” parties to curate large-scale, all-night fantasy rages informed by overarching and intelligent thematic frameworks. Past “SHADE” parties have included a dystopian homage to Detroit called “Detropia” and a commentary on the commercialization of LGBT Pride called “Shame.”
The Huffington Post chatted with Ladyfag this week about “SHADE: 2084” and what attendees can expect at this NYE fantasy.
The Huffington Post: What is your vision for SHADE: 2084?
Ladyfag: Dark! “SHADE” tends to veer to the dystopian themes quite a bit to quench our dark side — it is called “SHADE” after all! That said, it’s still New Year’s, so it’s dark and festive at the same time. The New Year is a time to reflect on the world you live in and, while the trajectory the world is veering towards isn’t always looking too promising, at least we still have the freedom to come under one roof and think about it. The “Shade State” is meant to be tongue-in-cheek, but also a reminder of how blessed we still are in spite of it all. Big Brother will NOT be watching…
How is the framework for this party informed by life in the digital age and the surveillance state?
The installation is centered around the idea of a futuristic means of delivery of information to the masses, of the totality and centrality of the message, and of the human race huddling together to weather the storms. It’s strange to re-watch dystopian future movies from my childhood because half of the futuristic things in them ended up becoming reality. A lot of what we’re creating for the event is intended to be a bit tongue-in-cheek, while also making you think about it. The first time I ever saw “Blade Runner” was actually on NYE when I was a teenager. I remember my heart and mind racing so fast… and in a way I’m trying to recreate that feeling.
You previously told The Huffington Post: “We feel a certain responsibility at this point to live up to the SHADE reputation, so we’re always trying to outdo the last one.” How are you going to accomplish this through SHADE: 2084?
We always have to think outside the box because a lot of our crowd is a little spoiled in thinking that they should all be on the guest list and that budgets are astronomical. But it forces us to be a bit more creative in trying to give them a fully immersive experience as best as we can. We still have to do our job of providing the “wow factor.” But for SHADE: 2084 we went more of the mental route with the installations, attempting to communicate the message to the guests’ minds directly and then let the partygoers can use their brains to paint the picture of what’s happening around them and outside of the building. We also splurged on sound and lights because, well… techno!
What does next year hold for SHADE and Ladyfag?
Things are about to get a lot SHADE-ier… without ever throwing any of the proverbial Shade. I guess we’re hoping to bring new meaning to the word — and to give New York the kind of positive Shade they deserve!
Head here for more about “SHADE: 2084” or here for ticketing information. Want to learned more about Ladyfag? Head here to read her interview from the series “After Dark: NYC Nightlife Today And Days Past.”
Want to see more photos from past “SHADE” parties? Check out the slideshow below.
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