❤ TORONTO QUEER SLOWDANCE ❤With a lending library of designated dancers for all you wallflowers, and a dancecard-booklet to set up dances in advance (should you choose to), Toronto Queer Slowdance has all slow songs, all night long! (Except for the occasional intermission when we play the fastest songs we can find!)
It's high school with a happy ending. Come and experience why slow is beautiful, and why love is not ironic.
★★★
La Plaza
The Dovercourt House (Basement)
805 Dovercourt Road.
Saturday, Nov 1, 2025
Doors open at 8:30 / Dance promptly from 9 PM – 1AM
$23 admission includes your Dancecard-booklet!
Complimentary breath mints & breath gum on-site!
19+
The entrance to La Plaza is outside and to the LEFT of the triangular staircase.
Yes, this is the building where we had the Slowdance for a decade for those who remember.
Unfortunately La Plaza is not an accessible space.
Outside, there is a single step up to a concrete slab, then 5 steps down to a double door. Just beyond the door is one more step down into the foyer.
★★★
Fabulous and inspired attire, while desired, is not required. But it would be awesome! As this event falls on HALLOWEEKEND, feel free to dress up in costume!
You do not have to be queer to attend this party, but you must have an open mind, an open heart, and open arms. Do keep in mind that many of our attendees fall within the LGBTTQIA+ continuum and may or may not be interested in dancing with the "opposite" sex, so if you are stridently straight, this may not be the most receptive community for you. That said, we have a wide plethora of attendees, and it is impossible to know who might show up on any given night.
We are always looking for Designated Dancers for our evenings. If you are outgoing, warm, and willing to undertake the joyous duty and responsibility of inviting wallflowers out onto the dancefloor then please contact the organizers at [email protected] with QUEERDD in the subject line and we will send you more information about your role!
To be alerted to ❤❤❤ FUTURE EVENTS ❤❤❤ in your area, please join our QUIRKY EVENTS Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SherwinsQuirkyEvents/
★★★
❤ A NOTE ABOUT MASKS: For this event, WE ARE NOT REQUIRING VISITORS TO WEAR MASKS when attending. We will however have masks available at the door for those who want them. We understand that this policy may be controversial. We have a longer explanation at the end of the Notes about it. Our next edition of this event on Feb 14, 2026 will be a masked one.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT LIGHT SENSITIVITY: During the night, there will be a mirrorball spinning in the middle of the room with a pinspot on it. Bright lights will be reflected off of it for the duration of the event. Additionally, our Designated Dancers wear bright LED lights on their chests so they are easy to identify. Those sensitive to bright or flashing lights might consider sunglasses and a hat with a brim. If you dip in and decide it's too much, we can refund your admission.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT THE DANCE CARDS: The dancecards are these little handmade booklets that contain a setlist of every song that will be played that evening. The idea is that during the course of the evening, you can "book" certain songs with certain people, and vice versa. So when your charming host announces a particular song, you can look on your dancecard and see who it is you're going to dance with next. There is a little space after every song where people can write their names. How filled your dancecard gets depends on you, of course. Look for the Dancecard-Signing Station located somewhere on the premises where small pencils are available. Use of the dancecards, is, of course, optional, and completely up to you. Proceed at your comfort level.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT: Essentially, you have the right to ask anyone you want to dance. But whoever it is you asked has the right to refuse your request, and not have to give any reason why. But wonderfully, you have this right as well. This is done because slowdancing with someone is rather an intimate sort of enterprise, and you should have the right to back out anytime you wish. Queer Slowdance is about consensual respect and enjoyment.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT THE DESIGNATED DANCERS: On any particular night there will be a handful of our Designated Dancers available to dance with you for the first half of the evening - so arrive early! They will be wearing glowing lights over their hearts, and these Designated Dancers are warm, charming, and safe people to ask to dance. Of course, the same Rules of Engagement apply, and they, as free agents, can decide for themselves who they want to dance with, and for how long, but in all likelihood, they would be very open to dancing with you. Please think of them as a warm taxi light in the middle of a blizzard.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT OUTSIDE ALCOHOL: This event is absolutely not BYOB. The venue lives off of bar sales, and Queer Slowdance exists off the kindness of the staff at La Plaza. Additionally, outside alcohol endangers their liquor license. So outside alcohol is strictly prohibited! Anyone who brings in outside alcohol may be banned for life this is that serious.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT SCAM BOTS: Because this event page is public, the scam bots have access to it. The week before the event, and especially the day of, they always post a comment saying that unfortunately “something has come up” and they cannot attend the event and that they have two tickets for sale and that you should DM them. DO NOT DO THIS. We don't sell tickets online. We ONLY sell them at the door in person. Don't believe their lies.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT COMMON SCENTS: Because at this event folks will be in very close proximity to each other, pretty much hugging, we would like attendees to be mindful of what they smell like. Bathing is a great idea, but ditch the fragrances! Thank you!
❤ A NOTE ABOUT INTERPERSONAL SAFETY: Sometimes it happens that there is someone in the crowd who will make you feel unsafe or uncomfortable when dancing. This does not have to be an obvious thing. It could just be a weird feeling. You are more than within your rights to stop the dance right there, and not have to explain. You are more than within your rights to say to them, "Hey! Don't fucking do that!" and then discuss your boundaries during the dance itself. We urge and encourage discussion of boundaries. If something more serious occurs, do please let the organizer know. The organizer is the person in the cat ears and stunning dress at the DJ Laptop. They are both your mom & dad & kooky aunt tonight and a safe person to come to if something happens, and we will try to resolve it with everyone's safety in mind. The organizer reserves the right to ask anyone to leave for any reason which they do not have to divulge to anyone.
❤ A LONGER NOTE ABOUT THE MASKING POLICY: We get a lot of emails. I don't always reply to everyone, but I read everything. When there is no masking, it's asserted that the event is being discriminatory towards the immunocompromised, and that queer folks are overrepresented in that category. When the event mandates masks, it's asserted that the event is discriminating against those who have mental health challenges, because SSRIs make body temperature regulation difficult, and masks make it impossible, and that queers are overrepresented among those who take anti-depressants.
Both these assertions, I think, are legitimate. But they're also asking for mutually exclusive conditions. And honestly, the stress of trying to accomodate everyone is giving me an ulcer. Here's the thing: I'm not a doctor or scientist. I started putting on quirky events as a fun thing to do, and because I felt there was a need for them. In this circumstance, I realize that whatever policy we adopt, people are going to be disappointed and upset. So I did the only fair thing I could think of: Go back and forth from Maskless to Masked, event to event.
So we're going with that. Our next Slowdance on Feb. 14, 2026 will mandate masks. This one does not. This doesn't mean that this policy won't change in the future, but this is what it is for now. Thanks for your understanding.
❤ A NOTE ABOUT THE EVENT COVER IMAGE: It wasn't made with AI. I actually drew it in Illustrator and coloured it in Photoshop. I worked hard to be able to do these things! Made By A Real Human Being!
★★★
"Relive the prom without the angst." - the Canadian Press
"In an age where physical contact is a scarce commodity, an event that brings strangers safely together is long overdue." - The Montreal Gazette
"I really like hugging people, and this is like, a five-minute hug." - Telyn Kusalik, one of our guests
★★★
❤ Copyright 2025 Joe Catman AKA Sherwin Sullivan Tjia. Written By a Real Human Being! ❤
Event Venue
LaPlaza Toronto, 805 Dovercourt Rd, Toronto, ON M6H 2X4, Canada
