AUSTIN, Texas — Four times a year, thousands of wrestling fans flock to a North Austin brewery to participate in a creative spectacle and wrestling party.
- Event happens 4 times a year
- Each match has a theme
- 2,000 or more people attend each match
Spectrum News visited the Party World Rasslin’ (PWR) crew on June 15 as they prepared for their Bioslam match at 4th Tap Brewing Co-op on 10615 Metric Blvd.
“It’s like pro wrestling. But it’s also kind of its own thing. There’s theater, there’s comedy. It’s a big hybrid, a big performance art hybrid,” said Dan “The Man” Ziglar, who is a performer and creative director for PWR.
“You can expect some violence,” said Ziglar. “You can expect some humor, some emotional moments. We try to make it a roller coaster. We try to give everyone a little bit of everything.”
PWR started five years ago as a backyard wrestling event.
Photo of the crowd at a Party World Rasslin' match on June 15, 2019 (Spectrum News)
When we started this it was really ramshackled,” said Ziglar. “There were maybe 50 people, if that, at the first ever show. It was in a backyard. It was on some mats. It really sucked. But it was a lot of fun for some reason.”
Now the crowd for each match has grown to at least 2,000 fans.
“We kind of have our own culture that sort of naturally sprung from the ground. People that were just interested in this weird DIY thing,” Ziglar said.
PWR crowdfunds to pay for each show so that admission is free.
“These shows we usually spend three months on and it costs thousands and thousands of dollars and like hundreds of hours from people who basically just do it because they want to do it which is awesome,” said PWR commissioner Chris Monica.
The warehouse-like venue where the matches take place is like a huge installation piece. There is art all around the room.
Photo of a Party World Rasslin' match on June 15, 2019 (Spectrum News)
Ahead of the Bioslam match, we asked performer Adam “Sweetie Tuff” Serwa what he and his tag team partner “Cry Baby” planned to do to their opponents Dumpster Babes.
“We’re gonna show a blend of cool submission moves, aerial attacks, strikings, slams, and other things that end with s,” said Serwa.
“I grew up a wrestling fan. And I am in a unique position because I am a queer wrestling fan. We were not represented back in the day,” said Serwa.
Serwa said he is glad to see more LGBTQ wrestlers and that they are presented as strong and not just a victim.
“You know it’s a positive thing for the kids. They don’t have to just be like whatever the media tells them,” said Serwa.
Ziglar said PWR is a collaborative operations and everyone involved helps with the story lines. He said the sense of community created between the performers and the fans keeps bringing everyone back.
“We have this huge audience of people that kind of won’t let us stop if we wanted to,” said Ziglar.