Mardi Gras - Where To Now?

Feature, By Christian Taylor, 4th August, 2008

Mardi Gras is arguably one of Australia’s most famous events – its contribution to gay rights, culture and social change has been felt right around the world, and thousands of tourists still travel to Sydney annually to be a part of it.

Mardi Gras is also an extremely complex beast. In one sense it’s a community organisation, our platform to speak and create, but it’s also a commercially viable business. It still has elements of a protest, but it’s also a celebration. It’s accountable to its members, yet it’s obliged to be open to everybody, and answers to a variety of stakeholders. It seeks to represent and appeal to an extremely broad range of people in a rapidly changing, competitive world, yet our relationships to the event are all personal, vastly different and constantly evolving. In many ways, it’s a victim of its own success, which is also why we love it.

Now that the dust from the thirtieth anniversary has settled, Mardi Gras stands at a very interesting crossroads. The organisation has just announced a $483,650 profit from the last financial year – no doubt a huge chunk of that came from the party, which sold out a week beforehand. In the days leading up to the event, they really were the hottest tickets in town.

Meanwhile, Mardi Gras have also announced that there won’t be an election for Board Directors this year, because there simply haven’t been enough nominations from the public. The five nominees who have put up their hands will automatically be elected to the Board at the Annual General Meeting on August 23, but that still leaves three positions vacant.

So, what conclusions can we draw from this? Why do so many of us want to go to the Mardi Gras party, yet so few of us want to be on the Board? Is it too much of a commitment? Did the news about the nominations closing date not travel far enough? Or, given that Mardi Gras is primarily an arts and entertainment event these days, do we now regard its management as a job for paid staff?

In a recent interview with Sydney Star Observer, Mardi Gras’ Company Secretary Melanie Miller said that she thought the lack of nominations was actually a “really positive response”, despite the fact that it wasn’t a response at all, but a lack thereof.

“In one respect you might be thinking, well why aren’t more people interested in being directors? I think it shows that [the community and the members] think that the current directors have done a really good job so they’re happy to let it continue,” she said.

While it is certainly true that the board have done a great job, Miller’s take on things feels a lot like wishful thinking. Wouldn’t it be wiser to err on the side of caution in this case? Wouldn’t it make more sense to consider some of the reasons why nominations are down, and address them?

“There are only so many hours in the day, and being on the board of New Mardi Gras really is a substantial commitment,” says new Chair, David Imrie. “We meet very regularly, because we’re a very hands on, operational board. We organise events alongside volunteers and the very, very, very small paid staff that we have.”

According to Imrie, Board Directors don’t just sit around a table making decisions. On a typical day they’re dealing with a wide range of people, from bar operators or fencing suppliers, to representatives at City Of Sydney and the Local Area Command.

“We’re a volunteer board – just about all of us are in very demanding full time employment as well, so we are very stretched for time. In the lead up to season sometimes you’re up until 2 or 3 in the morning sending emails, reading reports and going through budgets. Those three months leading up to season are mayhem.”

When you think about the scale and impact of Mardi Gras, and that it’s mostly come from people volunteering their time and talent, it’s pretty humbling. But after thirty years, could the well be running dry? Is it possible that these days, people are far more likely to start their own event, rather than raise their hand for a demanding, unpaid position on the Mardi Gras Board?

“We’re now entering a new generation,” says Imrie. “We’re making a concerted effort to appeal to the younger members of our community. We recognise that it probably won’t be as easy to sell tickets next year as it was this past season – world economies are a little bit weaker, fuel prices and interest rates are up… And it’s not a big important birthday year. There are certainly some challenges for us ahead.”

If the next season is going to be a challenge, what about the next five seasons? Or the next ten? What does the next generation really want from Mardi Gras? How will Mardi Gras continue to not just survive, but flourish, in an increasingly competitive arts, events and festivals arena?

Because of Mardi Gras’ hard work, they’re now in a position to consider some different ways of doing things. An investment in more paid staff seems the first logical step, and Imrie has said that Mardi Gras is looking into this. It would definitely free up the board, allowing it to become a more strategic and forward-thinking force. A board should be about power, influence and expertise, and while a volunteer board has been necessary up until now, a move towards a group of paid professionals could provide invaluable connections, advice and guidance.

To take that idea further, imagine what could be possible if the Mardi Gras board was comprised of Australia’s current gay, lesbian and transgender leaders, the high profile movers and shakers from a range of industries. Such a group could take Australia’s pre-eminent gay pride event into exciting, new directions, and really make it a force to be reckoned with on the international stage.

“If someone owned Mardi Gras and ran it as a business, it would most likely be a very different organisation. If it was funded by the community and by the state, supported by massive donations and bequests, then it’d be very different again. It’s in the unique situation where in many ways it has to be everything to everyone. It’s a balancing act,” says Imrie.

He’s right – it’s a delicate balance. Mardi Gras has had an amazing history, and the future could be just as amazing. As we look forward, it seems like the perfect time to consider what Mardi Gras really is today, what it can do, how much we still want it and how much we’re prepared to allow it to change.

There are still three positions vacant on the Mardi Gras Board. Mardi Gras are looking for someone with a finance background to become Treasurer; someone from an arts and entertainment management background; and someone with a history of managing corporate and/or government relationships. For more information click here.

All members are invited to attend Mardi Gras’ Annual General Meeting from 11am, August 23 at the Metropolitan Community Church, 96 Crystal St, Petersham.

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