Pinkboard's Mardi Gras Graffiti Wall 2010 #2

Mardi Gras Home Page
Mardi Gras 2010 Graffiti Wall #1
Mardi Gras 2009 Graffiti Wall #1

Woohoo!

Totally agree, Sydney Gay's are a pathetic lot of moaners who are incapable of loyalty, commitment or gratitude for what they have.Gay's in other parts of the world would be grateful for just one tenth of what NMG has to offer!
Yet the majority of comments demonstrate a terrible level of apathy and lack of appreciation for what they have.I have been coming from Berlin in Germany every year for the last 4 years and for me it's Gay nirvana. I'm very saddened by the sour comments of some of these people.

I'm sorry German Gay Boy. I'm one of those whingers and moaners. I've missed three Mardi Gras in the last twenty years. 2010 was the worst Mardi Gras I've ever been to. Maybe I compare it to the golden years which finished about 15 years ago but 2008 and 2009 were great parties with a good variety of music styles and DJ choices. How can Mardi Gras get it so wrong! The party is the major fund raiser for the organization and most of my friends rate it as the worst party ever. How can the party committee show such little respect to the majority of party goers. Sleaze Ball 2010 will be a very hard sell.
For the young'uns Mardi Gras used to sell over 20,000 tickets and Sleaze Ball over 16,000 tickets.

I somewhat agree with this post!

I went and had a great time at the party, thought it was totally awesome. Maybe I was in a really good headspace and that helped.

I enjoyed Bimbo Jones and thought he was a grooving start to the party. Carl Cox was great and really enjoyed his beats, it was the first time I had heard him live. I would love if Carl Cox and Frankie Knuckles could come back next year doing a B2B.

David Guetta wasn’t really my thing however appreciate that some people like that style of music. I do wonder just how much of his Future set was played that night though? As do I wonder how many partygoers went from Future to Mardi Gras? It seemed on reflection that there could be a few who had done that.

Dusty Kid is a bit of a young genius talent! Well done to the Kid. Jake, I thought Superstition was a really good clever addition to your set! (Thanks Love! ) Itchee and Scratchee , you are both masters, thanks for playing the party!

The lighting was fantastic in the RHI! Playbill don’t allow a moveable lighting rig over the crowd so it could only be placed in middle of hall over a stage. I thought Sails of the Cross and images projected onto them was a modern concept, one that deserves a lot of credit! I did think Rainbow Lasers in RHI would look really good too, maybe next year! :p

The lighting (and Oracle lasers) in Hordern were awesome reflecting in, around and off the centre script! However I think the line of lighting in each corner should have been lowered further before the party started. The light effect in the corners I thought did get lost into the ceiling a bit, something to remember for next time.

The shows were excellent, huge international acts. In fact never ever thought I would see George Michael on a Mardi Gras stage however it finally happened! After seeing him in concert a week earlier, that totally blew my mind and was in awe of him for making an appearance. Kelly Rowland you darling, Amanda Lepore show was totally trippy! It was worth waiting to hear Adam Lambert, was it the costume or me however he does look very lunchy indeed!

Farewell Mitzy and thanks for getting the party started!

Overall this Mardi Gras had so many elements of what those parties last century had! I don’t agree with many posters that the vibe and buzz wasn’t there, I felt it! As a financial member though and will be voting for it, do agree that the parade and party should be reunited next year!

Well done Katrina, Justin, Zakalwe and the rest of you lot! I’ll certainly come back again next year! Thanks for a fabulous end to the Mardi Gras season for me!


P.S. Now if only you could do something about those doggies in “Operation Walkern” on Sunday night at Homosexual! Honestly Sydney Central Police surely you have better things to do with your time on a Sunday night. Krispy Kreme Doughnuts for example???

Well we can all do this from time to time. I suppose my response to this accusation on this graffiti wall is that it is far better that people get out their opinion on New Mardi Gras; which needs a large, broad base of support within GLBTQ communities; than they keep it to themselves and go away quietly because the event no longer works for them.
Sure we could all take it (heated debate) with a grain of salt at times and I'm sure that NMG, when and if they read this, will be doing that.
$135 for a party ticket is a fair ask so "product feedback" is necessary.
The wingers, bitches & moaners could go one better and write direct to NMG. Why wait for "consultation"?

Here's how it works. THe RHI being the largest venue needs to appeal to the largest number of party goers. The Hordern being the next largest venue needs to appeal to a smaller percentage. Then Dome. Then The Forum - which is a write-off now that they don't use it for Retro. The RHI wasn't packed at any stage of this year's party even with the stage in the middle yet it was packed outside between the Hordern and the RHI. If the RHI doesn't get the crowd in you haven't appealed to the majority of your party goers.
And what's with these 2 hour DJ sets? Doesn't Mardi Gras trust DJ's with a 4 hour set any more?

"And what's with these 2 hour DJ sets?"

Marketing wisdom says you need names to sell tickets. So they put as many names in as they can. They need to sell to not only fickle Sydney queens, but also to interstate and overseas.

Younger people today are not as attached to the community since they can be openly themselves in many more places. Generation Y is said to have short attention spans. Appealing to this demographic would also influence the marketing.

I am Gen Y and i love the community and mostly gay space that MG party provides. I do feel i can openly be myself pretty much anywhere these days, but nothing compares to being able to be 100% gay at a MG party where anything goes, and nobody cares... Love it!

Some of the DJ sets in the Horder were even shorter than two hours - for 90 minutes only, and most of the sets in the Forum were for 60 minutes. Programming of this party was schitzophrenic to say the least.

Though online forums generally seem to have the largest amount of bitches and wingers, it seems to be a self selecting sample.

The people who actually bother to post are mostly those that have an obvious bias. Sometimes I wonder if they even went to the same event as the one I did.

You never hear from the majority of the party attendees who enjoyed themselves, because they don't feel the need to vent.

Or as I've felt myself when you read some posts that are particularly vitriolic, hyperbolic, clueless or opinion presented as absolute fact, I should reply.
I don't because these posters will never change their mind nor could they be reasoned with.

Welcome to The Internet!

This post gave me a pleasant chuckle. I feel so envious of you in so many ways - of your freedoms, of your openness, of your willingness to be 100% gay at the party with the approach that nobody cares... . I wish you had also had the opportunity to go to parties like the first one I went to - Sleaze '94 - which I attended as an inexperienced, relatively innocent young gay man just down from Queens;and for the weekend. There was a hall set up for bondage demonstrations, which quite quickly became the 'back room'. At consequent parties I encountered Trough Man, was standing nearby for Dicks out at 1, saw my first live fisting in the Hordern toilets in the dark at 3:00 a.m., Heard my first DJ play in the toilets ... And for the most part. nobody cared. Those who wanted to dance could do so, those who wanted to do other, could do so, and police dogs were the least of our worries, during before or after the parties. There's a tremendous amount to be said for the way things are now at MG and other Parties, but a lot to also be said for the way things were. And I wonder if it's possible to capture the essence of each era???

These very short sets are very reminiscent of what you would expect at a straight event and at those events it is the case of quantity over quality and that problem definitely was apparent at this years Mardi Gras party. I have been to every Mardi Gras except two and this was by far the worst of the lot. I will voice my opinion to Mardi Gras as I am a member and I hope that every other member that attended will do the same thing.
It is okay to take a gamble on what you are doing with Mardi Gras but at least back that gamble up with some consultation to ensure that you do it right. I only hope that they listen to the genuine feedback and not ignore what they hear and read.

I disagree!

At every show except 8am, the RHI was locked down. This clearly shows that organisers felt RHI was at capacity and it sure appeared that way being in there.

Stop complaining please... Type an email to New Mardi Gras if it concerns you so much.

The party was awesome, move on!

Haha! You may be jealous of me, but i think i am jealous of you! In 94 i was about 6 years old... However despite how things might have changed at the MG parties, i still feel as though i can be me 100%, and not give a rats about anything...

I was thinking the RHI and Hordern set times should be something like this (with shows inserted at appropiate times)
10 - 11 = DJ comp winner
11 - 2 = Newish Local
2 - 5 = International
5 - 8 = More experienced Local (eg Alex Taylor etc.)

NMG has a "DJ Selection Committee", a sub-group of the "Party Working Group" of volunteers. Maybe they'd probably be open to new members and fresh ideas. Go to the NMG website and register your interest in volunteering?

The healthy and lengthy debate about the "goods" & "bads" is beneficial (if indeed anyone from NMG reads these postings) but nothing beats rolling up your sleaves and getting invoved, hands-on.

There's a lot of valid commentary on this forum about what worked/didn't work, but it's not very useful if it doesn't reach those who plan, organise and execute the events.

And heres a point I've just thought of... Panther: Do you ever pass this info/commentary/feedback on to NMG, or does all this exist here in its own (potentially) isolated universe? It could really make a difference if some of the genuinely helpful feedback/suggestions were forwarded to the board and professional staff at NMG.

Just a thought...

If the NMG chairman posts messages on this site I am most certain NMG look to these sites for feedback. If I was a marketing manager for an organisation like NMG, I certainly would.

Bring back Neil Crawford for Sleaze Ball........

Personally, I didn't attend due to the drug dogs - I don't want a police record and I'm a devoted ecstasy user so it's a risk I'm not prepared to take. Yes, I'm still *so* annoyed by this stupid policing and all I can do is avoid potential problems.

Giving up the MG and Sleaze has been tough on me and I always pine for those nights. I have immensely enjoyed every party prior to the dogs but these "modern" ones are a mystery to me.

I have been reading the archives and it *does* appear that life was less complicated and we had less to complain about back then. Things change, I guess ...

New Mardi Gras has cancelled the previously advertised EGM date, and it will now be held on:

Sunday, April 11, 2010 from 2pm at NIDA, 215 Anzac Parade, Kensington.

Source: article from SSO posted on 17/3/2010, http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/2010/03/17/nmg-begins-dissection-of-split-season/22773

NMG CEO Michael Rolic is quoted as saying:

“As last year, we will conduct a wide-ranging survey on the season for members and our broader database, and invite the community to respond to the survey that will be accessible from our website.”

”This will include very clear questions on this year’s format and people’s preferences and ideas for next year.”

“It’s important that we have a mechanism that people can have a say and that we are able to capture and record this, so we can review and draw conclusions based on that.”

"We will be consulting with key partners and stakeholders."

"There is clearly a lot of work to be done. It's too early to say whether we will be coming to the EGM with a specific proposal or to sound out a set of different options with our members, based on the results of internal and external feedback."

So, folks, if you're interested in the future of Mardi Gras, write them a letter, complete the survey and if you're a member attend this upcoming EGM. Oh, and don't forget Pinkboard where a lot of us still like open debate.

"NMG has a "DJ Selection Committee", a sub-group of the "Party Working Group" of volunteers. Maybe they'd probably be open to new members and fresh ideas."

They do have a committie and they do listen to suggestions, but especially for the RHI, they usually stick to whoever plays at ARQ etc

If you let the drug dogs get to you like that, they have won it over you. Do you really think the 10,000+ revellers who attended the party there would not be other devoted ecstasy users? Take a chance my friend, life is too short to worry about some stupid mutt that can't sniff it's own arse to another.

I was sober at MG except for 2 vodka red bulls drunk over the evening. Most were off their chops on drugs, although they remarked that they were pretty crappy.

Just shows how ineffective the dogs are, unless you have a stash of smelly weed or something around your groin/pockets.

The dogs are useless, over my years of attending dance events, gay and straight, I have experienced dogs sniffing me (even with stuff stashed in my shoes) and the stupid things still haven't sat next to me. Figure that out.... You would have to be an absolute tool to get caught, my advice is not to go anywhere near the smelly weed before you go out.

With a 50% strike rate, the dog trainers should be put down. Oh you have to love the society we are living in, knowing we cant even go out with a couple of disco biscuits for the night (which makes crowds less violent) without being nannied by the authorities.

I blame the baby boomers on how they are bringing their children up, we didn't have this problem 10+ years ago.

You left out 1 key paragraph.

The corporate sponsors, who bore the brunt of most contentiousness this year, will also be given a say on the matter.

Sounds like the power of the sponsorship dollar may prevail over responses to the upcoming survey(s) and EGM.

From another Star Observer article:

http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/2010/03/10/nmg-split-decision-looming/22651

"Events NSW estimated the split, combined with the presence of the Atlantis Cruise, added up to $5 million extra revenue to the state's coffers."

That's 5 million reasons why the split may be permanent.

Very interesting times that we now find ourselves in.

I think it's legitimate to ask sponsors if they'd continue sponsoring the event if it changed, don't you?

I'd love for GLBT businesses to sponsor MardiGras, but of course they wont, they get their boost to revenue anyway without having to contribute anything.

I'm the guy who is put off by the dogs ... you guys have convinced me to go to the next major party.

I'm going to avoid pot that day and hide the goodies in my shoes.

I hate missing out on these parties, no matter how negative the feedback - after all, there's nothing like partying en-masse with those that I feel comfortable with.

Dude, if you would normally take weed with you to a party then you deserve to get busted! LOL! Seriously though, NO ONE does this, that is the ONE drug that the dogs are pretty much guaranteed to bust you for if they come close enough!!

If the current sponsors signed up before the split, and I believe they did, presumably they are committed to the usual format as a result. Given their original commitment was arrived at when Party and Parade were on the same night it would seem unlikely their continued commitment could be affected by returning to the format they had been expecting.

A more likely question hanging about is whether their support would be the same for a split. A part of the sponsorship deals could be the maintenance of the event in the same condition it was in at the time of signing up. A continued split would have a high risk of contributing to further deterioration of the events. A big drop in party numbers from this year strongly indicates as much, along with the reality that many attendees did so in the belief it was a one off and their loyalty was required.

Events NSW chasing the tourist dollar? Well so far they haven't been able to give a proper estimate of the extra amount made by the tourist industry. The figure quoted recently in the Sydney Morning Herald was $3 million - $5 million extra from both Atlantis cruises being in town and from the split. Very vague.

In any case if they did play a role in continuing the split they and their State Labor Government would be playing with political dynamite. It would also go against what they recently said in a Sydney Morning Herald article where in the context of tactics for building up new events such as Vivid Sydney they mentioned the primary importance of 'same time same place' programming. Mardi Gras would be affecting a following of visitors and potential visitors it has been building up over 30 years if it were to permanently change its format, changing what people expect from the events' timing as well as making it far more expensive for visitors to attend both and far less rewarding if only one weekend is attended with that weekend only having one major event rather than the previous two.

How will the DJ's fit 15 second ads into their playlist?

putting it in your shoes is the worst idea ever. put it within your underwear somewhere where it can not be visible upon strip search or pat down (this means somewhere uncomfortable). i actually believe the dogs are still necessary. people have become too blazay with openly dabbling in drugs. you have to remember that they are illegal....if you follow these measures, you will find that the police will turn somewhat of a blind eye as was evident with the police at toybox.

or iced tea.

The $3 to 5 million estimated this year will not be sustained over time.

First, the people off the Atlantis cruise ship contributed significantly to this figure. The figure will be no where near as high without an Atlantis cruise. Many of the cruisers will not return because there was no big big party.

Second, the goodwill of the community meant that people were willing to put up with the split to see if it worked. This goodwill will not last. If the majority want it to revert and New Mardi Gras decides otherwise then they will loose the goodwill of the community.

Third, other parties will happen on the night and take the audience away from Mardi Gras. The Mardi Gras party attracts a crowd that no other party does. Many people will choose to party that night after the parade rather than venture out again on another weekend.

Fourth, last year we were beset by the GFC. Part of this increase must be due increased confidence following the GFC.

For all these reasons I believe that the extra money earned by the split will not be sustained in the long term.

Please note: These are arguments why the $3 to 5 million should not be a significant influence in this decision. I have other reasons for believing the parade and party should be on the same night.

They can also smell it on your clothes if you've been sitting around smoking it at home or whatever before a party.

I've been to many many MG's over the years, so looking back at this year's effort:

Parade 2/10 - hardly any great floats, too many tacky walking entries, scattered all down the street. Most people wearing no costumes, just a cheap sparkly hat or feather boa from the junk shop. Why are there no quality entries anymore? Where have all the talented designers gone? The telecast was a mess too.

RHI Stage 0/10 - centre stage was a total diaster. What idiot at MG thought that splitting that that big fabulous space up would work? The performers had to split their time in four different directions. As a spectactor you were looking at the back of the action most of the time. Really dumb idea.

Dan Murphy 9/10 - In my view he saved the party

RHI "Lighting Rig" 0/10 - a couple of poles with what looked like bed sheets spread between them was an embarrasment. And not a single mirror ball in sight - WFT?

David Guetta 0/10 - A total failure, who obviously knew nothing about MG or Sydney. This guy had people emptying the dance floor in droves and those who stayed stood still! It was very a sad moment that will stay with me forever to see HUGE empty spaces on the RHI dancefloor.

Hordern Setup - 8/10. How could the Hordern be almost great when the RHI was so dismal?

Thanks for listening folks!
R

Those bed sheets were recycled from the year when they were pegged on a clothes line all around the RHI (supposedly as clouds I think).

Just when I was hoping this new designer in the RHI would do better than those sheets, she just gave us something far more bland and intrusive than last year's set up.

Got to agree with you on all those counts. Whatever happened to this years party? So much was promised and so little was provided. If I wasn't living interstate I would volunteer for the party committee as they have obviously lost the plot and need some new blood on it. The money spent on a worthless David Guetta could have been put into having a DJ that knew how to play to a gay crowd in the RHI and then have money left over to put into the lighting rig. As for the moving lighting rig and the centre stage, what a joke that was. I have been to every Mardi Gras party except 2 and this would have to have been the worst.
Shame shame shame Mardi Gras you got it wrong but after having read the comments from the co-chairs I bet they won't admit they got it wrong. It is no wonder that people stayed away in droves and the majority of ones that did go did not stay till the end. A pathetic end to a very pathetic party.

New Mardi Gras notified members by email on 18/3/10 of the new EGM date:
"Sunday, 11 April 2010, commencing at 2pm at Rehearsal Room 2 at NIDA , 215 Anzac Parade, Kensington."

The email also spelt out how to appoint a proxy to vote on your behalf: "you can download the proxy form here.
PROXIES MUST BE RETURNED BY 5.00PM ON 6 APRIL 2010 TO THE COMPANY SECRETARY, NEW MARDI GRAS LIMITED, 94 OXFORD ST, DARLINGHURST"

Proxy votes played a key role in the last AGM when a total of 241 members voted, 135 by proxy, 28 by post and only 78 voted in person.

Proxy voting is normally used in company General Meetings and since it has been playing a dominant role with New Mardi Gras' General Meetings some adaptation will be necessary from members so that members from both sides of contentious issues have the opportunity to cast their votes by proxy for the side they support.

"David Guetta 0/10 - A total failure, who obviously knew nothing about MG or Sydney. This guy had people emptying the dance floor in droves and those who stayed stood still! It was very a sad moment that will stay with me forever to see HUGE empty spaces on the RHI dancefloor."

he didnt need to know anything about MG. sounds like the MG people who booked him didnt do any research. djs like him are booked for what they are doing. so obviously MG people knew what they are getting. personally , i wouldnt book him but dont blame him for a poor choice MG made.

I remember the days when there only a few DJ's ALL NIGHT LONG (the likes of Dean Essing, Robert Racic, Rob Davis, Paul Goodyear etc).

Let's get back to longer sets and I don't mind if we stick with the local talent and pay them just as well.

No, I'm not a DJ - I'm a bit tone deaf but I like my beats (not those beats :-o})

I'm with Arti and I work in the travel industry.

I didnt think the split would work as I know the movements of the international tourists and even the interstaters. Some of these countries get 2 weeks annual leave ! why hang around or come to Sydney just for a dance party ?

I was prepared to see if all those who said they were marching and couldnt do the party but would a week later
would make up for the number of tourists who had left Sydney. The numbers at the party speak for themselves.

The whole Vibe of the party was different. It was like a bigger Sleaze Ball. All the people walking around in their costumes from the March , the hype, the buzz from the March was completely missing. And as posted the party was pretty average.

Does NMG get a cut of the $3-5m extra tourist dollars for keeping the split permanent ? when it looks like it will cause dwindling numbers ?

Promoters of other parties will just put on parties that same weekend as the Parade and its NMG who will lose out the following week.

That's exactly what I said to friends while we wandered around the forecourt.

I thought the original idea of a Mardi Gras "After Party" was to leverage off the excitement and fun vibe of the parade and make it a colourful celebration of all the hard work doing the parade?

This year's was way too "after". The free event after the parade cannibalised party sales for the following Saturday. And I'm sure many marchers in prior years would get caught up in the excitement and buy MG party tickets at the door... something that hardly happened this year.

Yes it was an "ok" party but the split took the wind out of its sails, and no doubt the cost of staging the Carnivale will make a huge dent in profits and far less to fund next yera's festival and parade.

Oh dear, it looks like the parade/party split just didn't work as intended. it also seems that reducing the size of the dancefloor in RHI is a better way of creating a cozy atmosphere than plonking a stage in the middle. Is the cost of o/s DJs ever justified? They rarely seem to generate great feedback.

I think have maybe 2 O/S DJ's (one each for hordern and RHI) and perhaps one big name but surprise act for the night (with some local talent/produced acts).

Give the hordern and RHI 3 DJ's only, 3 hours to start, 4 hours for the int. and 3 hours to finish. That way the sets (esp the int - the one you paid big for!) can build and draw in the room and get into their groove!

So if the decision is made to have party 2011 immediately after the parade, and getting rid of the split functions, will everyone support it? Will it be a sellout crowd next year? There are lots of posts here suggesting 'I'll never go again!'. I've been to lots of the parties. I'm easily pleased, and have to say that, if I don't like the music style in one hall, I go elsewhere, and keep roaming till I find something I can dance to. And there's always PLENTY to see in the forecourt if I can't dance for a while.
Some friends came to their first party tow years ago, the 30th anniversary year. They were overwhelmed by sheer numbers, but more importantly, by the feel of the crowd - the friendly, welcoming, chatty nature of so many people in a confined space. Those people are generally not dance party folk, so the music was practically meaningless to them. They had a bit of a dance, but really revelled in the fun of the crowd. And that's what makes the party for LOTS of people. Sure, it's frustrating when the music is crappy, but then you can get out and mingle. And that's what us out-of-towners come to Sydney for - to see all of you gorgeous Sydney folk having a good time.
In 2011, if the party follows the parade, everyone come along, in a positive frame of mind, and we will have a fabulous time - and with luck, the music will be great too.
A few years ago, Jimmy Barnes played at the party. I know very few gay men who would claim to 'lurve' Barnesy. And yet we screamed the place down when he played. We were caught up in the moment, and enjoyed it immensely. The tone of the party is set by the determination of party-goers to have a good time.

I disagree Paul for example Dusty Kid, Carl Cox and Bimbo Jones were all brilliant!!!

The parade and party split worked brilliantly for the parade. Many people who usually attend the party only could watch or particpate in the parade this year and parade participants could for the the first time unwind in a relaxed community environment.

The parade and party split was disasterous for the party. The party was great up until a half hour after Kelly Rowlands performance but it just didn't have the crowd numbers or buzz to sustain the night. Clearly the international vistors just weren't enough to make up for the locals and interstaters who decided to give the experiment/accident a miss.

Given that the party funds the parade and all things Mardi Gras its time to put the split behind us and return to having both on the same night.

... now can someone please diarise a reminder to New Mardi Gras to ensure that they book the venue for the right night!

They did book the venues for the right night - the one they had a four year contract for - the first Saturday in March, signed and agreed from 2008-2011. Someone didn't check their party venue contracts after they agreed to do the Parade on Feb 27th (for whatever reasons) and applied to the Council for the Development Application in Feb 09 for that date. Let's keep the facts right here. It was an administrative screw up.

I don't think that the split worked brilliantly for the parade at all. I have been going in parade and party for many years now. This was the first time I haven't gone to the party at all. One big weekend is fine, two weekends, out of the question for this little black duck. I suspect that parade people who don't normally go to the party also didn't when it was on the following week...if they had, surely numbers would have been up rather than down. The Carnival party was nice, at best. It was free, but hardly had the feeling of a proper party..it felt like a poor subsitute and I think being free was the correct ticket price. Having been once ,I wouldn't pay $50 to go again. And this was the same sentiment expressed by a lot of my fellow parade participants

I live In qld, is anyone able to do my proxy agaisnt the split?

There has been no motion moved about whether there should be a split or not. So any vote on this issue will not be a formal motion, and so will not be binding. (This is my understanding of General Meetings. Please correct me if I am wrong.)

I will be at the meeting and voting against a split, if there is any such vote.

damo79 - You can allocate your proxy with specific instructions to another member who will be in attendance, preferably someone you know and trust, to follow your intentions in the event of voting recommendations from the floor, whether binding or not.

I'll be at the meeting. Happy to take any proxies. Happy to have instructions.

First off. The parade: I think it's high time to ditch the "all inclusiveness attitude" as most of it was just a tired bit of crepe paper, a truck and a flashing light and I have no idea nor care if the south western gay golfing community cooking group want to march. As long as they have a fuck off big float that looks amazing and they are all coordinated in the same costumes and it's followed by a similar group, equally "floated" up or costumes synchronised, I don't care. Just make it look like a parade, not some weird lynch mob.

People on foot idly strolling up the road looking like they had just thrown on anything and jumped the barrier while waving some broken bit of wood with a sign scribbled in artline minutes before? Floats didn't make sense unless you were a corporate consumer (oh and we all know there were lots of those). And, the "ad breaks" in the parade stalling it so that foxtel could run it's sponsor messages were just shonky and made for one of the worst looking parades ever.

Whatever happened to amazing floats, amazing colours, amazing glitter and sparkles and that WOW factor?

I know we're on the tail of the GFC but really, why bother?

The Party: After being a part of MG Party committee during it's golden years, we'd always get feedback - good and bad. And, with debrief we'd go over what did and didn't work. Of course whatever didn't went into the sin bin.

I just find it disappointing that NMG seems to have forgone what party experience there has been over the years and someone somewhere seems to have their hand in the bin. The few "new generation" parties I've been to always seem to lack something, or repeat the same party mishaps. And, no it's not me being from the "we did it better than you" school of thought.

This year's MG party just left me wondering why the RHI was practically empty for the final show and outside in the courtyard, same.

This confirmed to me that many people had left to go elsewhere not bothered about staying for the final show, or indeed the party as even I know some who didn't or didn't choose to last till 5am.

DJ's: Coxy was as always and only can be...rockin! He was a major highlight as he played to the crowd and just stormed with party track after party track.

Dusty Bins, sorry Dusty Kid isn't ready in my mind to take a venue like that on. His tracks took way too long to build and go anywhere...and he seemed like half the time he was back in his bedroom with his "My first Technics" and collection of minimal tech experimental house.

In the Forum,Itchy and Scratchy were a welcome revival.

The RHI always makes me shudder as I'm not a big fan of popcampgirlie remixes, but even I could feel and hear it. The reverberation from the speakers onto the space could be heard distinctly, which doesn't usually occur till later when the party starts to thin out and all your ssound buffers have gone home.

I had no problem with the centre stage. Hey, you gotta mix it up a bit to keep it fresh. But, I don't understand why Australia II was overhead?

The RHI cathedral scenic was alright for control, though all the way down south east it was lost. A shame really as the "stained" glass window was pretty.

Mr Guetta? Well, what can you expect from a DJ who's remixes are used to flog everything from cars to coke.

Sets for 90 minutes at a big gay dance party! Wha!

...most of the DJ's would be just about getting the vibe and running with it by then...except for Mr Guetta who, well...let's face it, every track sounded the same, of course...remixed by..Mr Guetta.

The George show? I don't know if he actually sang during rehearsals on Saturday arvo and then just decided to come out and play audience Karaoke but it would have been nice to have him on stage at least longer than the drag king impersonator [was it?] that came up first.

The best thing about the Lapore show was when she was carried on stage and stood there like a staue amid screams from dilated punters of "Oh my god it's Gaga"

Of course, if it had been, that would have been superb from a show angle. From the Lapore angle, I still don't know if she can perform. Pose yes, perform...um. No.

Of all shows, the Lambert show was really quite good, but it was just sad as most people had left and I'm sure Mr Lambert had expected a sea of shiny happy people, not a few waves of straggling party goers down the south east seaboard near Cathedral Guetta.

Production quality was up, but that's most likely due to the return of an event professional with years of party and major event experience.

People seemed lost, perhaps without the energy the parade brings prior to the party. Of course the split didn't work and perhaps this contributed to the party missing a mark or three.

I guess there's always Sleaze ball...

"Production quality was up, but that's most likely due to the return of an event professional with years of party and major event experience"

Ok Mr Darcy, you make this statement, as you obviously are very close to this employed person, but how can you slam almost every other area of the party without laying some of the blame on the production? The sound in the RHI was woeful. And that very much is under the production team's responsibilities.

Be biased, and admit it. Or be objective and lay blame evenly across the highly paid professionals instead of just slagging off to the hard working volunteer working group.

Little wonder New Mardi Gras took new directions several years ago, only returning to the 'old model' this year, and may be now regretting 'dumping' the previous professionals as well. The bad mouthing of the 'public' face of this team, and others who worked tirelessly over the last 4 years, by currently involved people, is not exactly what I would call professional. But, either way, expectations were high, and weren't realised.

I assume, Mr Darcy, you are a current member? And therefore will be in attendance next Sunday to vent your views in the appropriate forum, called by the current Board to address the cuurent circumstances?

Let's hope so.

"DFAT confirms Jock McKeon as Australian found dead in Indonesian apartment

* From: AAP, April 06, 2010 4:08AM

CONSULAR officials are assisting the family of an Australian man found dead in an apartment in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.

The 37-year-old man, from NSW, was reportedly discovered by his maid today.

A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokeswoman confirmed the death, and said consular assistance was being provided to the man's partner and family in both Australia and Indonesia.

South Jakarta police have named the man as World Bank consultant Jock McKeon, according to an ABC Online report."

Jock was New Mardi Gras' Party Director in its early days and long time partner of DJ Shigeki.

Our thoughts go out to Shigeki and Jock's friends and family during this difficult time.

Thanks Mr Darcy. A little harsh in places but well expressed and enough was spot on to make up for that. A good read.

A lot of the problem was due to circumstances beyond the volunteers' control (ie reduced atmosphere caused by the split) the rest of the critiques are, as always, requiring analysis from the volunteer committee that puts the work in and hopefully can learn from whatever was less that a success. The critiques come from a longstanding and paying base of support. Poor petals they may be (if there are any thin skinned volunteers affected out there, love you so xxoo) but this is not the time for bromides.

Make it a habit to tell people thank you. To express your appreciation, sincerely and without the expectation of anything in return. Truly appreciate those around you, and you'll soon find many others around you. Truly appreciate life, and you'll find that you have more of it.

Ralph Marston

New Mardi Gras sent out its 2010 season survey to members on 1/4/10 and it is also available for anyone to complete at:
http://www.mardigras.org.au/mardi-gras-2010/season-survey/index.cfm

Its a concern that the survey has been sent out so close to the EGM on 11/4/10. The results ideally would be something members could have as a discussion point at the EGM but its untimely disemination would seem to limit that. Hopefully members at the EGM will at least be provided with the season's financial result.

The email sent with the survey refers to another survey held in conjunction with Events NSW:
"If you purchased a ticket through Ticketek or Moshtix this year you may already have taken part in our joint survey with Events New South Wales. Both surveys are of tremendous assistance so if you have time to complete this one as well we'd be very grateful."

It seems that Events NSW was a bit more prompt with the surveying. Lets hope that doesn't lead to their's being more influential. Can anyone say what this earlier survey was like and how it compares to the "NMG 2010 season Survey"?

Once again: surveys but little by way of informed community debate/discussion. No news about what position NMG is taking and minimum coverage in the gay press let alone cases being put forward both for and against the split, which would be the ideal. There's also next to no discussion about the overall direction of Mardi Gras and alternatives to the split for improving its performance.

The Mardi Gras parade needs urgent major surgery.

Unfortunately the focus of the Mardi Gras parade has changed over the years. It has now become a collection of boring walking groups, Government Department’s and agencies such as Railcorp, Sydney Buses, NSW Police, the SES and political groups. Do we need a government bus, a police car, a fire truck or a rescue boat and trailer in the parade? Do we need the Police Band in the parade? Do we need Clover Moore in the parade? Do we want Clover Moore in the parade? After all the City of Sydney Council and the State Government have done a wonderful job turning Oxford Street into a straight nightclubbing destination.

The parade has also turned into a rather dull advertisement showcasing the companies and organisations that we work for. Do we need a group of people marching up Oxford Street year after year simply because they work for the Defence Department, the Sewerage Pumping Station or the Zoo? I think the general public get the message. They now understand that gay and lesbian people are employed everywhere.

The time has come for New Mardi Gras to control the quality of the parade. We need to inject more glamour, humour, flesh and satire into the parade. We need to fight for equal rights including same sex marriage. We need to be clear about what we are trying to achieve and focus our message across as many floats as possible.

We need to put the “Gay & Lesbian” back into the parade and tell the attention seeking straight people that have hijacked our parade to find another parade if they have no connection to our community. We need to ban t-shirts and small home made signs the size of tissue paper and restrict the number of small flat top trucks with a parade decoration budget of less than $16.99. We need the venues on Oxford Street that profit from Mardi Gras to sponsor some of the floats or we will move the parade to another location.

Or do we simply hand over the parade to the State Government & Tourism NSW?

If you want to enter the parade you should have to audition. There should be a standard set for entries. If you don't meet that standard then you don't go in it, simple as that.

I wonder if the lack of a workshop had anything to do with the quality of the parade. Would any participants care to comment?

Hear Hear. I think that most of my favourite floats over the years would have been banned from the parade in recent years.

I wonder how "Poof Fiction" would go down now - numerous dancing drag Uma Thurmans with syringes hanging out of their chests.

Or the dead Kennedy float with a gaggle of Jackie O drag queens.

In really bad taste, but really fabulous.

The Mardi Gras parade is beginning to look a lot like Moomba these days.

I agree the Parade does need more attention than it has been getting. I thought that the 2008 Parade in which Graham Gooden played a role directing was the best by far that New Mardi Gras has put on. He brought a performer's instincts to the creation of the Parade that we haven't otherwise seen from New Mardi Gras. Many have said that the Parade lacks the creative flair it once had (Tobin Saunders, William Yang to name a few) and I agree that there should be a reinvestment in this area.

One step would be the hiring of a Parade Director with a creative/performance background to oversee and the hiring of leading Artists to encourage others with a creative and performance background to see Mardi Gras as a opportunity to do something special. In the past individual and small group entries where people were able to invest much more in creating exciting costuming were something like five times the number they are in more recent Parades. Care should be taken to encourage the participation of these people who can do so much to make the Parade an exciting event.

When you look back at the history of SGLMG you realise how much it's success is owed to entrants such as these pursuing themes such as: GLBTQ sexuality and culture, camp humour, politics, flamboyance, creativity, just having fun being out and proud putting on a wonderful display that stops the inner city for one big exciting night of the year. The two overarching themes given to the last two parades: History and Geography are far too prosaic for setting the tone for an exciting celebration of self expression.

The Parade itself is an original hybrid of Mardi Gras and a GLBTQ Pride celebration and if you compare it to Pride Parades overseas it stands out as an event that can give more to participants and audiences alike if done well. SGL Mardi Gras did not become the largest GLBTQ celebration in the world because Sydney has the largest or most vibrant GLBTQ community but because this unique hybrid is much more interesting and dynamic.

Some may believe that "well the parade is dependant upon who rolls up to participate". It's not at all that simple and whether intended or not New Mardi Gras is giving leadership that shapes the Parade for better or worse. Much can be done to encourage and cajole participants into Mardi Gras like preparations:
*There is a signal given when an inappropriate overarching theme is chosen sidestepping the "traditional" themes of humour, flamboyance, GLBTQ sexuality & cultures, creativity, self expression. These provided more fertile ground for creating parade entries and are more fun for participants and audiencesand they should again be emphasised.
*Providing leaders in the form of head artists participating in the parade who also assist and encourage other participants.
*What is written in the Parade guidelines should also carefully encourage creative participation.
*Whatever happened to the Mardi Gras organisation having humourous entries of its own?

Like the managers of any collaborative, large scale creative endeavour New Mardi Gras has a major job cultivating the event. This means they need to have creative artists and performers employed to work on this. They need to be putting it out there into the community that it is their aim to harness people's creative and performance energies for the parade.

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is a unique success and for it to continue at that level of success it needs to carefully take stock of those elements which brought it there in the first place. Those things that made it original and outstanding. Those qualities came from the quality of its lighthouse event : the parade. Improve the parade and you will improve visitor numbers. After all it's the one element of the festival visitors to Sydney can't get in other big western cities. The vibe around the parade affects the credibility of the whole festival but it especially influences the success of the Party held in its immediate aftermath. It is content rather than format that needs to be improved upon for New Mardi Gras to have a healthy future.

Yes, New Mardi Gras still has a workshop. Its in Petersham on the road that runs along the southern side of the railway line. It's role doesn't seem to be as well publicised as the workshop in Erskineville once was. Its not as well located. The building is anonymous and a bit forbidding looking. Maybe it should be moved as part of a review designed to improve the level of creative participation in the Parade.

"The Mardi Gras parade is beginning to look a lot like Moomba these days"

I couldn't agree more. I think there is an element within the organisation that is very pc/conservative and who are forcing everyone to become G rated and "acceptable" to the mainstream. They are either embarrased to to be gay/lesbian/whatever or so worried about what the sponsors might think that they feel they need to tone down everyone.

It's time we fight back and say f' you!!!

But I wasn't aware that anyone except MG could use the workshop this year? I've used the workshop to build many floats in the past and having other people to bounce ideas off and having space to build something properly with tools that make it all easier was a great help in the past. Previously you've been able to cut costs of your float a bit by using the bulk paint that MG purhcased (or had donated), or using some of their glitter supply...but was told this year that there were no resources like that available this year.

The other useful resource that didn't exist this year was the parade participants email list. I got all sorts of useful tips about how to sew foam, where to buy stuff etc that made a real difference. This year it went to Facebook and didn't seem to have many people offering advice.

If anybody is responsible for the Moomba-like direction of the Parade it's the Sydney GLBT community.

MardiGras itself only has two or three entries, the rest are by the community. It looks like nobody wants to put any actual time, money or effort into their floats.

Sound system playing Kylie remixes, a few lights, absolutely woeful choreography (or none at all), oblivious marchers who are not synchronised (obviously nobody could be bothered to turn up to rehearsals, that's if they even organised some!), simple and boring shorts and t-shirt type costuming.

It used to be that entrants would put in 110%, now we'd be lucky to get 50% effort.

We have nobody else to blame but ourselves.

If anybody put as much effort into actually producing a fabulous parade entry that they put into sitting around bitching about the parade, it would be back to world class in no time.

I guess we've had it easy for too long? Maybe we're just getting old? Always looking back to the "good old days".

Time to look to the future, get some new blood and new ideas, and ignore the "back in my day" bleating of most of the comments on Pinkboard.

I think that the organisation isn't doing enough to cultivate the parade in recent years.

Although the Parade has reached a low point I think its still possible to dramatically improve it for next year with more thoughtfully executed entries; which this year included a very good 'Egyptian' entry from New Mardi Gras itself; by deliberately planned out leadership, preferably from creative/performance professionals. The organisation needs to be very careful to encourage the best Mardi Gras style contributions from the participants.

When reviewing the Parade this year I can still remember very good entries that obviously put in alot of effort: there was an excellent Central Coast social group, Lifesavers with Pride camped it up enjoyably, some of the the Thai guys are entering each year in ever more elaborate gold outfits, I loved the drag with a tall red candelabra headpiece, and there were quite a few more besides these. The crowd cheered on the parade appreciatively. All this praise needs to be said too in order to encourage these people to keep coming back. It isn't "Code Blue" yet and the danger of such talk is that it becomes discouraging and a self-fulfilling prophesy.

Yes, there needs to be more of the good stuff and the job for New Mardi Gras is to cultivate a better parade by carefully educating entrants and following their experiences each step along the way to find out what can be done to best assist and to encourage people to believe that this is the place to invest their creative and performance energies towards putting on an exciting Parade.

I was in a float with music and a routine. During rehearsals we could hear the music fine. Come the parade the music was drowned out by firstly the float behind us and secondly by the crowd blowing (whistles). I could only hear the music sometimes. I had to guess where we were up to in the choreography half the time. I'm sure we looked much tighter at rehearsals.

It would have been great to have one or two quiet floats between us and the following float. A t-shirt group would have been perfect. Plenty of scope for everyone if the floats are well organised.

Please if there is a split motion today, vote against it!!!

Just returned from the meeting. Basically the board supported having the parade and party on the same night.

Yay... common sense has prevailed!

Well it was an interesting experiment (based on a mistake) that we all participated in, and evaluated...

Now we can put it behind us.

The Mardi Gras board at the Extraordinary General Meeting disclosed more information than many had expected at the EGM.

The discussion of the 2010 season was not as some had anticipated as the board itself announced the split would be a one off. An explanation of the season's financial results was given with the proviso that it hadn't been audited. The unaudited result was a $400,000 loss. Ticket sales for the party were between 11,000 and 11,500.

Further information was made available from the 2010 season survey which had 2000 respondents. The question about people's preferences for or against the Parade & Party being split found:
60% were in favour of them being on the same night,
22% favoured this year's split,
15% were undecided.

The board had made a decision to make the best of difficult circumstances brought about by the split by being upbeat about the season despite their misgivings.
They chose to invest in the organisation's future by funding the best season they could rather than conserving NMG's capital and funding a minimalist season only. They denied that the financial result was a crisis, and pointed out that their healthy financial position (where $1.6 million was reserved as capital in case of financial crisis) left them with a healthy bank balance even after this season's loss. They believed it was best to maintain the organisation's reputation by doing the best by the community in terms of the quality of the season.

The Motion to bury the quest for a suitable legal vehicle to hold Intellectual Property rights was lost.

Shouldn't someone be held accountable for this? The Parade and Party split was such a massive mistake that it cost them $400,000 in losses. They were quoted in SX News as saying that their 'rainy day' surplus funds from other seasons should help to cover their losses. But these funds were meant for a rainy day and not because the management makes such a fatal error in regards to booking venues. Are these people that made this mistake still on the board? Off with their heads I say

Off with their heads......

i think you'll find someone who made a HUGE different in Mardi Gras' future got the sack for this, she was a fantastic asset, Anna Mcinerney

Anna was a fantasic assest and built New Mardi Gras out of the smoking ashes of the old mardi gras. There may have been a mistake somewhere but it was ultimately the boards (and chair at the time) decision to persist with the lie rather than break a contract (Atlantis Cruises). Anna was loved by the volunteers and board alike and she made an amazing contribution to Mardi Gras.

Oh dear... you lot hung David Imrie out to dry at the AGM and now you are adding Anna's name to the hanging gallows. Nice one guys. A mistake was made, yes, a bloody expensive one, as it turns out. The new Board led by new Co-Presidents have moved on and been nothing less than totally honest ever since the AGM. Having a meeting just over a month after the season was very courageous and allowed the membership to vent now, instead of the usual 5 odd months where the vitriole and nastiness has had tome to fester. The Board, with a new solid CEO, have made changes and put in place strict governance policies to avoid such problems/oversights again. Let's move on with them....please!

I fear that the loss will be much higher than the $400,000 that NMG have suggested.

It has been reported in SX that NMG sold around 11,300 tickets to the 2010 party. Ticket sales during recent years have averaged between 15,000 and 17,500. These figures suggest that between 3,700 and 6,200 tickets remained unsold at $135 per ticket. Covert these numbers to a dollar amount and you have lost the opportunity to earn between $499,500 and $837,000 in additional income/tickets sales.

NMG have reported that they did not lower the standards or cut the number of halls at the 2010 party. They also signed big international names to perform at the party. This suggests that they did not cut their expenses for the 2010 party.

Factor in the cost of staging the one-off Mardi Gras carnival after the parade and it is hard to imagine that NMG’s expenses will be lower than in previous years.

We must also remember that NMG have lost the opportunity to make a profit on the 2009-2010 season.

Only time will tell how large the loss will be but we have gone from a $389,900 profit for the 2008-2009 season to a potential MINIMUM loss of $400,000 for the 2009-2010 season. This represents a negative turnaround of $789.900. So the real cost to NMG and the community is much greater than the estimated MINIMUM amount of at least $400,000 that has been suggested by NMG.

A "loss" and a "lost opportunity to earn" is very different. In short, you are assuming that between 15,000 and 17,500 would equate to a break-even. Also, the loss is festival-wide, not party alone. Other events made profits. Also, the 3,700 and 6,200 difference could be attendance figures, not sales figures.

This question was asked at the meeting. The loss is an unaudited estimate. The co-chair said they have been pessimistic with this estimate.

There were cuts to the party. The footprint was a bit smaller. The wooden flooring area was smaller. The RHI stage would have been cheaper. I am sure they were able to save in other areas too.

Also, NMG would not receive $135 per ticket. You need to allow for GST, credit card fees, ticket agency fees and a whole lot more.

I honestly do not know why MArdi Gras bother - with the bunch of whingers you guys are!!

Sure they did a scheduling error, and paid a hefty price (lower number etc) but for F@ck sake guys this is our party and our community, lets get behind and support it.

I do not work or have any involvement with Mardi Gras, but would love the opportunity but after reading this it makes me not really bothered too.

Lets hope our Mardi Gras board and committee have thick skin and can rise above some of the vicous things on this wall - thank god this is a minority! Because frankly they do a fantastic job and hats of to everyone involved, without them we have nothing just remember that!!!!

4,000 tickets to the party that went unsold would have handed NMG around $500,000.

Stop playing with words; it was a major financial disaster.

I don't think anyone is being particularly nasty. We are simply asking that the people that made this mistake are held accountable and not allowed to continue with the organisation. The Board and Management have the important job of keeping Mardi Gras alive and healthy and if there are any more $400,000 losses in the future I can tell you that Mardi Gras will be dead. That's pretty serious, especially considering it was avoidable

The question people need to be debating is what do they
really want the parade to be. Do they want it to be a
fab visual and aural parade like the Rio Mardi Gras so
straights will come to watch and TV will be happy to show
flamboyant happy gays parading with the obligatory bums
through chaps shots. That's what my Mum likes. I know of
at least 3 people (a few years ago) who have come out
of the closet after watching the parade in person and
seeing people dressed up having a great time. But also
remember what the parade was originally about, political
protest. Many things have been achieved because of the
general population becoming more aware due to the parade.
There are still more things to achieve. It's true it's
much easier for a teenager/young adult to admit they are
gay and still have friends and go to straight parties, see
bands etc. than say 20 years ago. The third part is that
community groups spread around Sydney get more exposure
through the parade and hopefully more members. And the
final part is to show that gay people are just people too
and are spread thoughout society. These 4 parts make up
the parade today and I think they all should stay. They
just need to be organised better, like the suggestion
above (seperate noisy floats by quieter walking groups).

It was a major financial disaster. Wonders why the CEO was/is paid so much money. Obviously not to check current contracts...

Can I ask why everyone is going on just at NMG. You would think that a company you have done business with for 30+ years would have picked up the phone and and said "hey, we have a laspe on contract" Why is no one yelling for the venuse to be held accountable? As a key stake holder to Mardi Gras and it's financial successess why is no one yelling at fox/playbill to be held accountable. They have pushed every other community event out and they saw their chance with Mardi Gras and took it. No offence to anyone here but I think as a community we should hold more then the BoD accountable for this loss.

I think it ironic that the New Mardi Gras board put forward a Motion to abandon the search for an appropriate legal vehicle to protect intellectual property, in case of the organisation's financial collapse, at the same EGM where they announced a huge $400,000 loss(a minimum according to Co-Chair Nick Parker because unaudited). Surely this demonstrates the need to continue the search for the best legal solution.

I think even a company you deal with for 30 years is still required to honour contracts with other companies (ie the organisers of the fair who had booked the RHI & Hordern for Parade weekend) even when they may clash with your own requirements, when those requirements of yours aren't in a contract. Basically I don't think Playbill could do anything about it and held no responsibility for the split.

Two entries above shed some new light on what was going on this year on the ground for parade participants:

Re: Mardi Gras still has a workshop
But I wasn't aware that anyone except MG could use the workshop this year? I've used the workshop to build many floats in the past and having other people to bounce ideas off and having space to build something properly with tools that make it all easier was a great help in the past..............

The other useful resource that didn't exist this year was the parade participants email list......... This year it went to Facebook and didn't seem to have many people offering advice.

- Thu 8 Apr 2010 22:46:18 Replies: add



Spacing
I was in a float with music and a routine. During rehearsals we could hear the music fine. Come the parade the music was drowned out by firstly the float behind us and secondly by the crowd blowing (whistles).....
It would have been great to have one or two quiet floats between us and the following float....
- Sat 10 Apr 2010 15:34:21 Replies: add

It's great to see this sort of constructive criticism on Pinkboard. These issues are obviously important to the success or otherwise of the parade.

Another issue, brought up in SSO's online comments, was the unwillingness of the RTA to approve floats for use in Mardi Gras Parade, leaving entrants reliant on large trucks, inadequate for putting on the best display:

"...They Dont use 8 Tonne Trucks. Its pathetic that after 32 Years The Mardi Gras Commitee cannot even progress further with applying for Special Permits from the RTA to use & construct ACTUAL Floats (Floats are not 8 Tonne Trucks) they are a small Stage Built with Wheels and somekind of small Vehicle underneath (refer to NY Maceys Christmas Parade, Brazil Carnevale) they dont use Trucks. Trucks Look Hideous. The Idea of Using these Ugly looking Vehicles looks Bad in my Opinion. I briefly watched a video of MOOMBA in Melbourne – they used a real Floats if Im corect( I saw one with Molly Meldrum & Kate Ceberano on it) . It did not look like a 8 Tonne Truck...." Michel Angelo said, April 7th, 2010 @ 2:15 pm
see: http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/2010/04/07/%e2%80%9878ers-to-take-on-nmg/23635

Please do something about these problems, New Mardi Gras.

So if I have read the SSO comments right - we can now conclude that Moomba is a better parade than Mardi Gras. Who thought the day would come?

And so Anna should have made an amazing contribution since she was paid $170,000 per year.

I think we could take it as an example of one way that the Moomba has a better infrastructure for its Parade. Who would really say that the Moomba Parade itself is better than Mardi Gras?
I certainly don't think so.
Its a way Mardi Gras could improve, obviously.
Just why hasn't the NSW RTA approved the use of proper floats for Mardi Gras?

NMG might do a wonderful job and I agree they do, but, at the end of the day if profit margins are not met and the organisation goes down AGIAN!!!

Do you call that a good job?

No matter what organisation it is, profit or not for profit, organisation need to be accounted for and kept honest, and giving the opportunity for people to have their say on these walls is part of the fabric of what democracy is all about, keeping the bastards honest....

Now I know why the last NMG CEO left so early in his tenure, he saw a tsunami coming.... the next 12 months will be very interesting.

NMG should just contract the whole festival out to different providers and see if that works better.

All these people calling for heads to roll, well there is only way - become a member and stand for election as a director at the upcoming AGM. I seem to recall postions went unfilled at last year's AGM.

Oh yeah, outsourced contracts are a real winner - NOT!!!
But enlighten me on who you think would be an ideal provider/partner to run part or all the festival next year

Hey it is it is just an idea, do you have any better? you cant tell me from what has been going on with the poor current finances (which is a reflection of how things are run) something else needs to be tried and tested. Who ever wins the tender/s for different projects and who NMG decides to go with, it's up to them and their members.

"IT'S A BRAVE NEW WORLD"

"become a member and stand for election as a director at the upcoming AGM"

How many times have I seen this post over the years, for a postman like myself who is a member and has been a volunteer, for one thing I do have the organisational/political experience, to even think of running for election.

Can you imagine if I was elected chairman,treasure or even secretary, what my resume for the position would say when printed in the papers LOL... Not a chance.

You talk about "the poor current finances (which is a reflection of how things are run)".

The current finances are a reflection of how well "things were run" during the last year since The Mistake was made public. The loss is significantly less that it could have been. NMG is still solvent.

Let us wait until another year has passed before we pass judgement on "how things are run".

"Now I know why the last NMG CEO left so early in his tenure, he saw a tsunami coming.... the next 12 months will be very interesting.NMG should just contract the whole festival out to different providers and see if that works better"

Firstly the former CEO was a she.

Secondly, many things are already contracted out such as the Fair Day bars and most of the party production.

The fact that New Mardi Gras has amassed a great surplus over the years is a great testiment to their financial management.

Granted the scheduling stuff up was a huge mistake. Hopefully they have now put in new sign off procedures for all future contracts.

The question is were they financially better off breaking the contract with Atlantis OR running ahead with the split season and hoping for the best OR should they have made huge cut backs to reign compensate for lower ticket sales?

If Mardi Gras reneged on the contract with Atlantis, Atlatis probably could have sued them for a much bigger amount then the reported $400K loss. What message would this have sent to potential future sponsors?

If Mardi Gras cut back on the festival and party to reign in costs there would have been hell to pay and alot of damage would have been done to the brand.

The Board Chair at the time has sinced moved on. The CEO at the time has since moved on. There was a full election of the current board by members late last year... which included more candidates than positions for the first time in years.

No one wants a loss but what was the alternative given the huge stuff up and subsequent lack of support from the community?

Firstly, who cares if the former CEO was a she instead of a he, lets not get to politicly correct here. The fact is, who ever was driving the ship jumped overboard way before their tenure was due to expire, which indicates they did not want to be put in the spotlight and did not want to take any responsibility for their actions (they passed the buck).

Resigning from a position of responsibility and running away from their stuff up is worse than trying to stick around and face the music, what message does that send to potential future sponsors?

I take my hat off to anyone who tries to help run an non-profit organisation like NMG.
But when you have millions of dollars and many stakeholders involved, you would think after 30+ years the organisation, regardless of it being the old MG or NMG, there would be some corporate governance, policies and procedures in place to run the organistaion effectively.

And as for damage to the brand, that was done years ago after the collapse of MG, and with the rebuilding of NMG, they managed to get it together again for the 30th MG and claw back some credibility only to probably loose it again after this year.

Let's hope NMG can get out of this current financial problem, otherwise someone from outside the community will.

There is too much money at stake for this event to simply disapear.

Maybe someone from events NSW will run the festival and parade and Future Music will run the party?

Interesting point of view, I like it!

"If Mardi Gras reneged on the contract with Atlantis, Atlatis probably could have sued them for a much bigger amount then the reported $400K loss. What message would this have sent to potential future sponsors?"

If the 2009 Party made a profit of $X, and 2010 had an unaudited loss of $400k, then the potential NET cost of the Atlantis 'experiment' was $(X + 400k).

Of course when the former chair was telling porkies about the split weekend being an experiment, no one could have known what the magnitude of this potential cost would end up being.

I think the loss can be squarely put down to the one mistake: the admin error which necessitated the split. Aside from that, the board produced an OK season that probably minimised the damage from the split. It's fair to ask:
would the result have improved if the board had been more forthcoming about the reasons for the split from the beginning? The season could have done better without the atmosphere of uncertainty where people were questioning whether the split would be permanent. The board could have found more sympathy and support by levelling with the community. Instead it left people feeling disenfranchised, and in the political void created, criticism was inaccurately directed at sponsors.

Sadly the former CEO, Anna McInnery, has left the organisation after years of competence and hard work which helped resurrect Mardi Gras. Maybe an uncharacteristic mistake on her part caused the split? However, those who knew her work wish her well.

The split and subsequent financial loss are but one important issue the organisation is dealing with.

A review of the Parade is to take place over the coming months. This comes in the wake of criticism about the parade's creative decline; controversy over the exclusion of an Animal Rights activist entry this year; questions about the balance between Mardi Gras style entries and Pride style entries; criticism of a lack of use of the Parade for GLBTQ political activism; and many in the community saying the parade has become boring.

The current board is attempting to abandon the effort to find an appropriate legal vehicle separate to New Mardi Gras to safeguard the organisations' Intellectual Property Rights in community ownership in case of any financial disaster which might befall New Mardi Gras. Under the current arrangements, if New Mardi Gras went into receivership this could necessitate its sale, which could be to a non-GLBTQ community organisation. It came perilously close to happening last time Mardi Gras went belly up and is the largest risk to Mardi Gras' long term future.

I CANNOT WAIT to see you all line up to be on the NMG Board this year. Simply, cannot wait. What's that I hear? Oh no not me. I'm too busy/sad/bitter/important?

Stop criticising and actually put your money where your mouth is. Being on the board is for free, without thanks and places you in the eye of all you bitchy queens that just want to complain because the Board will never get your individual, personal view of perfection squarely right.

If us queens didn't bitch about the board, NMG would probably have posted a greater loss than 400K.

Can you believe the NMG board spent 150K on bringing out Spencer Tunick and did not get a cent in return directly from hosting the event.

They said the money was well spent because it would raise the profile of the organisation and the long term effect, well the short term is not looking good to even get there.

Once again when somebody gives their real opinion on Mardi Gras issues, not in any destructively critical fashion but as a genuine critique, someone tries to stop the debate by attempting to stigmatise what is going on as "bitching".
I just don't think thats true.
I think there is an important role to play for a forum such as this to reflect peoples's opinions: negative and positive. So if you disagree with what you've just read why not put in your own opinion about the subject at hand rather than simply trying to stop the flow of debate by playing the player rather than the ball. What is the point of the community refraining from giving its true opinion of how things are going? Just who do you really represent when you try to squish discussion like this, inaccurately saying it is mere "bitching"?

"I CANNOT WAIT to see you all line up to be on the NMG Board this year. Simply, cannot wait."

Every time YOU question or critisise government/opposition policy on this that or the other, do people around you tell you to 'Stop criticising and actually put your money where your mouth is and run for parliament at the election this year'? Perhaps they should to point out your hypocrisy.

"Once again when somebody gives their real opinion on Mardi Gras issues, not in any destructively critical fashion but as a genuine critique, someone tries to stop the debate by attempting to stigmatise what is going on as "bitching"."

Bitching is when you criticise from the sidelines without any constructive comment/suugestions re how you think things could improve.

Constructive criticism is where you give your opinion with suggestions on how things could be done better.

The heros are those that give their opionion and are prepared to back it up by becoming a volunteer or member.

Its easy to be a bitch. Its a little harder to be someone that makes a difference.

precisely.

If an organisation is allowed free reign with no constraints or accountability it will spend more than it takes in, and fail.

Furthermore it's customers or members suffer.

NMG members are the owners and have every right to ask where their membership money is used, whether they "bitch" about it or not.

You should attend some corporate AGM's - the shareholders can be merciless against boards.

I think the 'former Treasurer' has shown his true colours in SX. And they were hardly positive or supportive shades of gray.

Despite being a person who supposedly cared for the organisation, it is obvious he, and others close, are on a mission to destroy out Mardi Gras.

Put them in the "Bitter and Twisted" box and send them on their way. We have way too much positive stuff to celebrate in our community.

AGREED!!!

AGREED.

And exactly why did he resign from the board?

I love all these comments from people who don't even have the gumption to put there names up on the posts!

Who's colours are showing now ?

At least the "former Treasurer" puts his name to the article.

Are members allowed to see minutes of Board meetings so they can see what the former Treasurer got up to and how the Board responded?

Don't be ridiculous. You didn't put your name on your post either...

its ridiculous but 100% true.......

Sitting here posting comments that are just character assassination makes me sick! It happens all to much in the community we live in!

Have you taken the time to consider the 'former Treasurer' comments?

Records clearly state during his time about one million dollars of profit where made for the organisation as apposed to the reported $400 - $500 K loss by the current Board. Like or lump him that is fact!

And giving credit for that profit to one person on a Board and team is also ridiculous. It was careful management and the wonderful work of the thousands of volunteers that made those profits.

The contracts that caused the split were signed around the time of the 2009 Mardi Gras - in other words, the 2008/09 year. A new Board and, now, management were left with a difficult task and managed to maintain the brand whilst taking a long term perpsective of the result.

Would be nice if a few others also took a slightly longer viewpoint, instead of the kneejerk reactions of some self appointed PCMs in the media.

Ok so NMG made a mistake and it cost them dearly this year. They have acknowledged this fact. It's time to pick up the pieces and move on and concentrate on delivering Sleaze Ball and next years Mardi Gras and hopefully building a better fiancial situation for the company.

Lets get behind them and give them ideas to what we think would make next years festival, parade and party more successful.

I would have thought that at a time when New Mardi Gras
had lost some support (as this years' financial result attests, along with declining Sleaze Ball attendances) it was vital to keep the communication channels open and counter productive to try to stop dissent with simply referring to "bitching".
New Mardi Gras needs to truly understand what people are thinking in order to best chart a course to the future. It's support base is far larger than volunteers and members, let alone the board of directors and people who may be able to run for it. For this reason its' important to hear from people as widely as possible. When that happens here on Pinkboard it reflects the wider GLBTQ communitys' sense of ownership of the event and that's very healthy for the long term future of any community owned celebration.
I want to continue to hear what people really think and to have genuine discussion and debate here on Pinkboard.

Please use the new Graffiti Walls to continue this discussion.