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Former house and band mates Ash Pritchard and Danielle Spencer tell Mary Agnew about their mission to prove not all Hong Kong gay nights have to be about shirtless champagne consumption.

What was your motivation start Fruit-i-licous?
Having lived in Hong Kong for over five years, there were two things that we really missed on the Hong Kong nightlife scene. The first was a decent indie-music night where we could dance to the tunes we really liked, the second was an inclusive gay- and straight-friendly space.

Do you think there is a separation in the scene here?
The Hong Kong gay scene is pretty split. There are bars for gays, nights for lesbians and then different venues for ex-pats and locals. We just wanted to create a friendly, slightly kooky, fun-focused night so that everybody could come and drink, dance and be merry.

Sounds lovely. Is that your ethos for the night?
The ethos is to be fabulously fun, inclusive and not pretentious. There are a lot of nights in Hong Kong which cater to gay men specifically but there are very few places for lesbians. We want Fruit-i-licious to be a place where gay guys, lesbians, bisexuals and their friends can come together to party in a fun community. The music, entertainment and special Fruit-i cocktails help it all go smoothly.

How did your first event go?
Really, really well. I think it is important for people in the gay community here to see other gay people bring their non-gay friends along to these events and see them all just having a laugh. I think this is especially important for the younger crowd.

What is the set up of the night?
It's a real mix of indie music and live performance. We'll have three or four performances per event, each lasting a few minutes. We generally warm up the evening with a mix of indie and rock tunes, and then weave in some pop sounds and camp classics as the night goes on.

Is it true that you donate all the profits to charity?
Well, Danielle is involved with various charity organizations here. It’s really important to us that all the proceeds of the door go to a good cause. The first few Fruit-i-liciouses will support W.I.S.E Asia, which is a female-orientated nonprofit that aims to give vulnerable females in Asia a voice. After that, we will select a different beneficiary for each event.

What are your plans for this month’s event?
The Vixens burlesque troupe is now resident at Fruit-i-licious and they will be performing a new routine. This month will feature recording artist/drag queen sensation La Chiquitta. We'll also have a live performance from the V-Day monologues, an onstage orgasm contest, and even some live music. Danielle and I will be singing some songs to get the crowd going.

The next Fruit-i-licious is on Thursday 18 at Rockschool in Wan Chai. For more on W.I.S.E Asia, see www.ammado.com/nonprofit/107435.