After a brief switch to virtual events, including a Minecraft server for queers to hang out on, Sapphic Seattle made their big sold-out nightclub debut at Supernova in March and never looked back. Unfortunately, that realization came just as the Omicron variant rocked the nightlife scene, forcing nightclubs to back off big events for a while. It was after a huge December event at the woman-owned Moses Auto in South Seattle that it became clear future events would have to be much bigger. “There’s nothing femme-centric whatsoever.”Ī post shared by group’s early gatherings in 2021 were mostly limited to beach hangs or house parties. “I was seeing parties in New York and LA and I thought, why do these big cities get massive blowout parties where you see women and Sapphics having these incredible nights, whereas in Seattle there’s a million general nights that are very male-dominated,” Balducci told me in an interview. And, speaking from my experience, it really blows. Especially in the age of COVID, dating apps reign as the primary way for queer women and non-binary people to connect.
Seattle may be one of the gayest cities in the country, but there weren’t many consistent (and appealing) options for queer women to meet and get freaky with other queer women. Sapphic Seattle founder Hannah Balducci started the party out of frustration. And as Sapphic Seattle prepares for its first official Pride, it’s clear that this is just the beginning. Boasting over 18,000 followers on Instagram and racking up millions of likes and views on TikTok, what started as a DIY house party has grown into sold-out themed club nights drawing in thousands of Sapphics-a term used to describe women and non-binary people attracted to women and non-binary people more on that later-from across the region every month. “I work in the morning, but I think it’s worth it to stay!”Īt just over a year old, Sapphic Seattle has already had an outsized impact on the queer nightlife scene in the city. While waiting in the interminable bathroom line, she told me she drove by herself all the way from North Everett just to have her first Sapphic-partying experience. “I never realized clubbing could be so fun,” said 29-year-old Kate, a gay-leaning bisexual who led worship at church before recently coming out. Others stood alone gleefully taking in the women- and enby-centric party’s raucousness. And on the dance floor, off the dance floor, in line for the bathroom, pushed up against the arcade games, people were hardcore snogging without a care in the world. Onstage, dancers Lavender, Onyx Wolf, and Harley B twerked and took tips. When I arrived, party attendees were stuffed cheek-by-jowl on the dance floor, bumping and grinding to female pop diva power anthems by the likes of Doja Cat and Megan Thee Stallion selected by DJ SummerSoft. And on Supernova’s lower floor, things got sweaty. On the club’s upper floor, a photographer operated a glittery photobooth for queer friends and lovers to have a second, queerer chance at a prom photo-one they could feel proud of. The wristbands given to patrons at the beginning of the night-yellow for “friendly,” pink for “ flirty and friendly”-glowed under the UV lights, making it easy to tell who was down for what. The night’s Sapphic Prom theme meant that many party attendees were wearing the formal attire of their gay dreams-mascs in sharp suits, femmes in skimpy dresses, some hero in intricate Victorian garb. Walking down Supernova’s hall of mirrors entrance earlier this month, I could feel the heat of the party before I entered the room.ĭespite the Thursday night’s chill, local party startup Sapphic Seattle had packed the SoDo nightclub with hundreds of queer women and non-binary people in search of hotties and a good time.