Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras has announced that DJs Dan Murphy and Estée Louder will headline Glitter Club 2026, the premium parade-night viewing event returning to Taylor Square on February 28.
Murphy, a long-time fixture in Sydney's queer nightlife scene, comes to Glitter Club fresh from a run of sold-out Club Broadway shows and multiple I Remember House events. Louder – the creative force behind Ultra Violet, the Mardi Gras event centred on LGBTQIA+ women and gender-diverse performers – brings a femme-driven sound shaped through her work across emerging performance spaces.
Glitter Club is positioned as the latest evolution of Mardi Gras' premium parade-night offering, with tickets priced between $138.90 and $159.99 including booking fees. Set at Taylor Square, it gives attendees a close vantage point of floats as they pass through the precinct.
The event features a raised viewing deck, onsite bars, food trucks, private toilets and a five-hour program of DJs, hosts and live entertainment. A special guest performer and additional roving entertainers will be announced soon.
"Glitter Club is the best way to see the magic of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade," said Mardi Gras chief executive officer Jesse Matheson.
"DJ Dan Murphy and Estée Louder are cultural powerhouses who understand the heartbeat of our community, and bringing them to Taylor Square creates an atmosphere you simply cannot experience anywhere else. Glitter Club puts you inside the Parade. Close enough to feel every beat, every costume and every moment of our collective joy."
Glitter Club will run from 6.30pm on parade night, with tickets available via mardigras.org.au or through the Mardi Gras app. Meanwhile, Mardi Gras has yet to confirm the location or other details of 2026's official parade-night after-party – traditionally held at the Hordern Pavilion – saying only that next year's event will be "reimagined".
The 2026 Mardi Gras festival runs from February 13 to March 1 under the theme "ECSTATICA".
Other events across the festival include the Progress Pride flag-raising at Sydney Town Hall; Ultra Violet and Black Cherry on opening night; Fair Day; the Kaftana and Paradiso pool parties; Laugh Out Proud; and Queer Screen’s 33rd Mardi Gras Film Festival.
The program also features Queer Art After Hours, theatre productions Perfect Arrangement and The Normal Heart, the Mardi Gala at the Ivy, and the festival-closing Laneway street party in Surry Hills, among other events.
Editor’s note: Journalist Ben Grubb pays $50 annually for Mardi Gras membership to access discounts, including at retail stores and bars, but does not use the membership’s voting rights.
Ben Grubb is the founder and editor of Gay Sydney News, an independent publication covering LGBTQIA+ news. A journalist with more than 15 years' experience, he has reported and edited for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WAToday, Brisbane Times, The Australian Financial Review, News.com.au, ZDNet, TelecomTimes and iTnews, primarily on the topic of technology. He previously hosted The Informer, a queer current affairs program on Melbourne’s JOY 94.9 radio station, and contributes to LGBTQIA+ media including Stun Magazine. Ben has also appeared as a technology commentator on Channel Ten's The Project, ABC RN’s Download This Show and commercial radio stations 2UE, 2GB and 6PR. Contact Ben: [email protected]
