August 25th: HALO’s utopian dreamscape to take over The Cause London.
Have your wings at the ready as at 6 pm on Friday 25th August, HALO will be taking over The Cause London for a night of gleeful revelry. A far cry from your quotidian warehouse rave, the party will pack the variety and energy of a festival into a 12-hour event, encompassing DJ sets, art installations, retail stalls, and beauty pop-ups, with proceeds going to various LGBTQIA+ charities.
A motley of international nightlife’s most sought-after DJs will commandeer The Cause’s maze of rooms, curating an eclectic soundscape designed to help party-goers celebrate what it means to be queer today. British-American model and rave DJ Aiden is flying over from Berlin to headline the event, while inclusive community 2Cperrea, established to celebrate Latin America’s perreo sub-culture, will also be performing. The Hungama collective (dubbed an “Indian Studio54'') will also take to the decks alongside Lexii, AllyXpress and collectives Jungle Kitty, GGI, Pay IT, and HALO itself.
But the night’s aesthetic will be as much of a focal point as its sound. The venue’s four rooms will be strewn in kitsch Y2K pageantry— think cutesy pink bouncy castles, balloons, and bubbles. Meanwhile, the festival’s art space is being thoughtfully assembled by art curator Tom Burkitt. Put together by Scarrie, vintage clothes and merch pop-ups will also abound, along with nail, hair, and tooth gem artists (liberally reducing guests’ getting ready time) and a POC book store.
HALO is an inclusive community and events collective concocted by London-based, Northern creative Christopher McCrory. A regular on the club scene, McCrory noticed a chasm between the light and joy intrinsic to the LGBTQIA+ community and the underground darkness that has become a staple of modern raves, and set out to bridge the gap. He was also galvanised by something deeper: our uncertain political and social terrain. “Modern times feel increasingly dark and uncertain: it almost feels as though we’re being held accountable for what goes on up top, at the hands of the people in power,” he says. “This night will be the opposite of that. We’re bringing the light and silliness back into clubbing. I’m a big believer in the adage, ‘If you bring positivity, you’ll receive positivity.’ So that’s what HALO’s all about.”
A philanthropic venture, HALO will donate proceeds to six LGBTQIA+ charities. Said organisations include Mermaids, which supports some of the most vulnerable members of the trans community, trans and non-binary youth, and the Trans Legal Clinic, which provides free, accessible legal help to transgender and non-binary people in need, who, due to society’s prejudices and systemic failures, often struggle to cover their legal fees. Profits will also go to charities Gendered Intelligence, Galop, and The Outside Project.
For those out of town basking in the sun on the 25th August (or attendees wishing to relive the utopian dreamscape long after it’s over) the event will be immortalised in the metaverse from the end of September.
www.halohalohalo.club
www.instagram.com/halo.halo.halo.club