Attitude x Disney on Stage Pride Brunch: Remembering an unforgettable afternoon
Attitude recently joined forces with Disney on Stage to present a special Pride Brunch, an event packed with West End magic and Disney classics for a celebration of our community
By Aaron Sugg
As if Pride season couldn’t be any more fabulous, Attitude and Disney on Stage sprinkled a little extra magic during Pride month with our very own Pride Brunch. This highlight in the 2026 queer calendar’s glittering festivities left every guest feeling like the hero of their own story. The June event featured show-stopping performances by the West End’s Hercules and The Lion King casts and, of course, a Disney singalong. The Attitude x Disney on Stage Pride Brunch was nothing short of supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
Alfie Garston hosts Attitude x Disney on Stage Pride Brunch
Regular Disney events host and performer Alfie Garston, partner of comedian Tom Allen, hosted the event on 27 June at Oriole bar in the heart of Theatreland.
He welcomed guests with a reminder of everybody’s favourite on-stage classics, old and new: “Disney has been telling its stories [on stage] for years, starting back in the 1990s with Beauty and the Beast, and now we have two of my personal favourites in the room,” he said, referring to special appearances at the event by cast members from The Lion King and Hercules. The Disney on Stage Pride Brunch began with stellar performances from new Hercules lead Bradley Gibson, before Nosipho Nkonqa from The Lion King cast captivated the audience with an electrifying rendition of ‘Circle of Life’.
Unforgettable moments
Next, five talented actors and singers from both musicals spoke about their experiences as queer people on some of the UK’s largest stages. From The Lion King, we had cast members Sandile Gontsana and Lwando Dutyulwa, while all the way from Mount Olympus for Hercules came cast members Serina Mathew, Stefan Lagoulis, and the UK music director, Daniel Whitby.
From across the world, from Africa to Australia, these five performers were united in expressing their love for the West End stage, sharing their common experience of chosen family. As they spoke about what Pride means to them, a comment by The Lion King’s Gontsana particularly resonated: “One of my favourite lines from the show, from the song ‘Shadowland’, the line is: ‘Though it may take you so far away, always remember your pride.’ That’s what I live with; I live by that every day.”
An exclusive performance
After the actors left the stage to a wave of applause, our guests were treated to an exclusive performance by Bradley Gibson, who plays Hercules, as he delivered one of the musical’s classics, ‘Go the Distance’. In a room of like-minded people from across the LGBTQ+ community, the lyrics hit deep, sparking reflections on how far queer people have come, and how far there is still to go. One shared feeling echoed throughout: the power of standing together, recognising how Attitude and Disney will continue to amplify the voice of the LGBTQ+ community. To quote lyrics from ‘Go the Distance’: “I would go most anywhere/To feel like I belong”.
The party continued with canapés and beverages fit for kings and queens of the jungle, as well as demigods. Guests hit the dance floor as ourPride Brunch DJ worked the decks. What was truly touching is that the cast performances still lingered in conversations long after the final note had been sung. From RuPaul’s Drag Race UK star Ella Vaday to Tom Allen and Attitude publisher Darren Styles OBE, guests were singing the praises of the West End Disney magic we had just enjoyed.
A Disney singalong
The next highlight was a crowd-pleasing Disney singalong, with an onstage duo encouraging guests to belt out some of the greatest Disney classics that bring out everyone’s inner child. Climaxing with a Drag Race-worthy lip-sync death drop from one of the singers, the performance left the room erupting with laughter and cheers.
Next, the Disney Alumni Choir graced the stage. Scott Maurice, Jonathan Andre, Lauren Alexandra, Enyonam Gbesemete and Sharon Wattis – all previous cast members of The Lion King – came together to perform its Elton John classic ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’.
As Garston brought down the curtain on the event by thanking the Attitude x Disney on Stage Pride Brunch guests for attending, one question remained: same time next year?