Last year, I wrote about Augustana College’s Gender & Sexuality Alliance’s event, the Night of Noise Drag Show. I became GSA’s secretary for the 2017-2018 school year and I’m happy to announce that GSA is bringing the queens back again to the Gävle rooms this Friday, April 27th, 2018 at 6:00pm!
Night of Noise had a surprisingly high turnout last year. GSA’s meeting attendance tends to dwindle in the spring due to pledging season, theatre productions, and students’ busy class loads. Despite all of this, the audience was made up of not only LGBTQIA-identifying students, but also non-students and students who had never gone to a GSA meeting. People were offering tips to the queens and cheering them on with much excitement. The refreshments table, packed with a variety of bags of chips, was practically empty by the time the night was over.
There are some differences between last year’s Night of Noise and this year’s. First, GSA is putting greater emphasis on inviting off-campus guests to the larger, more accommodating Gävle rooms. Wallenberg Hall was roomy and all, but Gävle just screams “party” and “celebration.” Second, GSA is charging for attendance. Members of the club will be selling tickets for $3 in the Brew and charge $5 at the door, so get your tickets early! Don’t worry, the refreshments are still free. Finally, there will be more drag queens performing! Last year, there were four queens with us, but this time there will be five.
Night of Noise isn’t just an excuse for GSA members to party on campus. Night of Noise is sort of a “sequel” to Day of Silence.
“What is Day of Silence,” you ask? Well, you can read about it more in-depth online (here and here), but I’ll give you a brief description. Day of Silence is a change for LGBT+ individuals to reclaim silence. Similar to how African-American people are reclaiming the n-word, LGBT+ people have been reclaiming “queer,” the “fag,” and silence. They’ve been hushed for years about same-sex marriage, trans rights, gay rights, bullying, adoption, freedom of expression, and so on. The battles haven’t quite ended, but we are approaching more equal grounds each day. People who participate in Day of Silence remain silent during the day–at school, at work, etc.–to bring awareness to the issues LGBT+ individuals face constantly. Night of Noise then gives LGBT+ people a chance to celebrate their identities in a safe environment free of ridicule. GSA’s Night of Noise offers that and invites allies to join in the fun as well.
So, spread the word and tell anyone you may know about the event! You never know what a simple “Are you going to Night of Noise on Friday night?” can stir in your everyday conversation. Ask your WGST professors, your LGBT+ friends, your ally friends, and anyone you can think of. Grab your tickets while you can and get some free snacks on Friday!
You can get your tickets in the Brew during week 8 or pay at the door on Friday night. Spread the word on Facebook here.