It’s officially spring, and that means bears are coming out of hibernation to roam South Florida... and they’re hungry! Lauderdale Tropical Bear Week is back and organizer Chuck King is excited.
“It’s going to be a great week. We have all kinds of new events that we’ve added this year. We’ve changed some of the days that events fall on. It’s gonna be a great, fantastic lineup.”
Bears, their fans, and anyone looking for fun, sweaty parties are invited to six days and nights of action.
The week kicks off Tuesday, March 31 with a VIP reception at the Sonesta followed by a free kickoff party at No Manors courtesy of the Bears of South Florida.
Bear Cabaret has been a fun staple of the week for years and this iteration features a new location and new artists. The party moves to the new Gray Box Theater and is headlined by Beardonna, the Parody Bear Extraordinaire.
The inimitable and slightly intimidating Nicole Halliwell will host Bear Pop at LIT, promising games and chaos on the patio and dark zone vibes inside.
There will also be myriad pool beach parties by day and stellar DJ sets at night. But the crown jewel of the weekend is Bear Village at Richardson Park on Saturday starting at 1 p.m.
This year’s headliner is Horse Meat Disco, making their first appearance in the Fort Lauderdale area. The name is eye-catching and their sets are hypnotic.
“We decided to book a headline DJ act,” King said. “It’s a five-hour evening tea dance to round out the day. We’ll end the day with Horse Meat Disco, which is one of the biggest traveling, iconic groups.”
Their sets celebrate the disco era with updated remixes. The group has a bunch of A-list DJs that travel and perform.
For more information on events and to buy tickets, visit Lauderdale Tropical Bear Week.
Photo via Lauderdale Tropical Bear Week, Facebook.
