The Roost

Location: 10345 104 Street NW

Today, the Excelsior Lofts sits across the street from a squat, square building housing the offices of the Canadian Border Patrol. It is an unremarkable stretch of road, one which, without the recently installed Neon Museum, you would drive down without a sideways glance outside your window. This wasn’t always the case. Had you driven down 104 Street in the 1980s, you would have found yourself in the heart of Edmonton’s gay disco district, with the legendary Flashback to the west and The Roost to the east. These two juggernauts of LGBTQ2 nightlife dominated Edmonton's gay culture for over a decade. Flashback was born in one location, came into its own in another, and finally died in a third. The Roost was born, grew, and died all in that red brick square; all that remains now is a fading and long-forgotten rainbow pride flag painted across the front cement step.

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This segment is a drag performance by the Imperial Sovereign Court of the Wildrose

 
 

Watch Edmonton Queer History Project’s #NIGHTLIFE

Watch “Reviving the Roost” by Vivek Shraya.

Learn more about the history of Edmonton’s LGBTQ2 bars and clubs with this 5-part series published by the Edmonton City as Museum Project.

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