The queer community of Western Sydney is celebrating one year since the opening of LGBTQIA+ club night Grease Trap.
The event launched a year ago in Penrith and since then the independently produced night has welcomed hundreds of patrons, showcased local drag and created paid opportunities for emerging performers.
Hosted by Western Sydney drag artist Burger Queen, the anniversary will be held at Elton Chong and feature drag performances, music and the “unapologetically chaotic atmosphere” that has become Grease Trap’s trademark.
“When we started Grease Trap, people kept saying Western Sydney wouldn’t support regular queer events. A year later, we’re still here, still growing and still proving there’s an incredible community hungry for safe, inclusive spaces closer to home,” Burger Queen said.
Queen told Gay Sydney Daily that rainbow people in Western Sydney were looking to connect with each other locally, which was the genesis for the event.
“As attitudes have evolved over the last two decades, pockets of suburbia have become much more tolerant and allowed LGBTQIA+ people to stay closer to their suburban upbringings and friendship groups,” Queen said.
“There is a surprising number of LGBTQIA+ young people in the Greater Western Sydney region when you start looking, and one thing I heard consistently was people wanting queer safe spaces locally — actually intended for queer people, rather than a bingo or brunch designed to attract a predominantly heterosexual crowd.”
The first birthday will also mark the return of Open Grill, the event’s open-stage competition for emerging drag, burlesque, circus and strip performers. The winner receives a paid booking at a future Grease Trap event.
Queen said that while there hadn’t been an explosion of LGBTQIA+ spaces and events in Western Sydney just yet, increased acceptance and rainbow-safe spaces were apparent.
“Our host venue, Elton Chong, in particular has been an incredible supporter of us and has employed queer and trans bar staff outside the context of our event. We have never had any incidents either at the event or in the area.”
Events like Grease Trap create visibility through joy, Queen said, and allow people to exist, celebrate and connect without having to leave their community.
“When people see queer events thriving in places like Penrith, they become part of the fabric of the local community rather than something that’s seen as ‘somewhere else’,” Queen said. “Queer communities don’t just belong in the inner city — they belong everywhere.”
Doors open at 8pm at Elton Chong in Penrith on Friday 14 August for Grease Trap’s first birthday.
