Welcome to another #WEEKINDRAG! I unfortunately came down with a cold last week (sickening, in a bad way), so I’ll recall highlights of the past 2 weeks!
Recently in the world of drag a rather uncomfortable debate has caused somewhat of an uproar between the community, all sparked by a tweet by RuPaul.
That show already exists. It’s called #MissUniverse https://t.co/3iz1B09bzC
— RuPaul (@RuPaul) March 31, 2016
Ru suggested that Miss Universe is a show for bio queens, and that Drag Race is not. This sparked a argument surrounding the validity of bio queens in the community, with some people suggesting bio queens do not exist at all and aren’t worthy enough to be considered drag queens, let alone be allowed on the show. However, many disagreed with this, including myself. I love drag. I love drag as an expression of creativity. Drag has pushed forward and broken rules and never conformed to mainstream ideals and gender norms. Therefore, belittling female drag queens seems rather contradictory to me. Whether a drag queen is male or female under their character is a factor I simply care little about. Will bio queens ever be accepted onto Drag Race? Maybe. However, I believe the main issue in this debate isn’t concerning the race, it’s concerning the misogynistic views that came from this, and that is something I believe needs to be re-evaluated. My friend China Dethcrash wrote a more in depth piece on the subject, examining the validity of bio queens and their role in queer environments, click here to read their views!
Over on my side of the pond, the legendary LipSync 1000 competition at The Glory in London had it’s final after 8 heats. The final was narrowed down to 16 talented acts who battled it out to become the new LipSync 1000 champion, and a prize of £1000. The queen who came out victorious was the stunning Rodent Decay, who took home the prize and later told me, “It was a really amazing experience and to win was unreal but honestly what I loved most was getting to see all of the talented queer people in our community celebrating this stuff. It was really affirming.”
Back from an incredibly successful Brazilian tour and releasing a new music video (see the Gimme All Your Money video here) the incredible Alaska Thunderfuck takes no breaks as she launches herself into her new New York show, “Cher and Cher Alike”. Accompanied by best friend Handsome Jeremy, the pair take to the Laurie Beechman Theatre to showcase their ode (and obsession) to the one and only Cher. The show is on until the 16th of March, for more information and tickets, click here.
This past week, iconic San Francisco drag queen Peaches Christ made her Philadelphia debut in Pissi Myles‘ show, “What Makes me Pissi” at L’Etage! If you missed the show this month and you’re down in the City of Brotherly Love, don’t miss next month’s show where Pissi’s guest is our friend Sutton Lee Seymour, fresh off of her big run south of the border!
On Sunday the 10th, Tina Burner was crowned the 2016 Miss Industry, besting some of the most fabulous queens in New York City! We were able to get a few words with Tina about her big win. “Winning a pageant for such an amazing charity as Trinity Place made it that much more amazing. Drag should be used as a platform for good. There is too much negativity in our community sometimes so it was great to be on the positive upside “.
Congratulations Tina! Check out this extended look at the pageant in this video below!
See you all next week for another all new edition of “The Week in Drag”! If you think we missed a story or if you have suggestion for next week, tweet us at @WERRRKdotcom and let us know!
