This Saturday, hundreds of queer Cincinnatians will walk the red carpet and turn the dance floor into a runway at Luis Villalón’s annual Gay Icons Costume Party.
Villalón, a former radio broadcaster for local station La Mega 101.5 and current host of the podcast The Culture Clash, has made the event bigger and better every year as it has gradually transformed into the Met Gala of gay Cincinnati.
At the party, each attendee will dress up as a “gay icon,” whatever their definition of that may be—years past have seen people dressed as everything from RuPaul to Hannah Montana to Florence Pugh in “Midsommar”—and walk the red carpet at Circuit Ultra Lounge in Over-the-Rhine, located at 1124 Walnut St., before entering a runway competition to show off their costumes and duke it out for several prizes.
The event was initially a small house party started by two of Villalón’s friends and was originally just an excuse for their group to put on costumes and ring in the first weekend of Pride, but the event got so popular that he realized it could be “something special” if he turned it into a public event.
“We’re very inspired by the Met Gala and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. But really, it started as a way to see people come and be creative with their costumes,” he said. “I have always said that this party is a celebration for our queer inner child that was once afraid to put on a little mascara … As adults, we encourage it, we celebrate it. Every time someone shows up to the red carpet, it’s really a celebration to that inner child that was once too afraid to be proud of who they are.”
Check out our unofficial calendar for celebrating Pride in Cincinnati all month long
In years past, the event has raised thousands of dollars for Cincinnati Pride and other local LGBTQ+ causes in the area. It ties in with his goal to create spaces that are “for LGBTQ people and by LGBTQ people.”
“I mean, this is really just a big Halloween party for us, right?” Villalón said, laughing. “It’s a party where we are celebrating ourselves, we are celebrating being free, and celebrating being surrounded by people who care and love everything that we do … our goal is to create a yearly event that people look forward to.”
Another reason the event came together, he says, is to match the sort of events that take place during June in larger cities across the United States.
“I want everyone to feel fabulous right here in Cincinnati. I want everyone to understand that Cincinnati has the capability of creating events, and Cincinnati has fabulous people,” he said. “We don’t have to go anywhere, we don’t have to go to Chicago Pride, we don’t have to go to New York Pride to get the things we want. We have the talent and the people to create events like this, and we can be just as fabulous as any other city.”
Villalón encourages attendees to pre-game with their friends and get ready for the evening together.
“Getting ready with your friends before the red carpet at your house, having a cocktail, while everyone is just feeling comfortable, and music is playing, and everyone is excited to head to the red carpet is always my favorite part of the night,” he said. “Then you get to the red carpet, and everyone’s hyping you up, and celebrating as loud as they can. I will say, the first hour of the event is the most nerve-wracking, but quite frankly the most thrilling of it all.”
The Gay Icons Costume Party, hosted by The Culture Clash, is this Saturday at Circuit Ultra Lounge in Over-the-Rhine. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased here. For more information, visit The Culture Clash’s Instagram page.
