 Show The event raised over $6,000 for the LA LGBT Center. May 28 2019 11:01 AM EDT For most of the past two months leading up to the first ever Drag Queen of the Year Pageant, organized byRuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars season 2 winner Alaska, the Atlanta-based “trash queen” Abhora was rendered practically immobile. “The minute I was alerted of the pageant I immediately went into an anxiety coma," she told Out in an interview. “The anxiety kept compounding and compounding as time went on. Like ‘they are formulating ideas and gathering people and you’re not doing that. You’re not doing enough.’ All of that just stops you from doing anything.” That wasn’t ideal since her seven competitors were pretty talented, with former pageant queens in the mix. “I just had this fear that I was going to go on stage and my music was not going to start, my look was going to fall apart, I was going to fall off my stilts, and everything was going to go horribly wrong,” the former The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula season 2 competitor explained. “But if you go into it intending to do that, and that’s the bit, then how do you fuck up?” Well, you fall upwards. On Sunday night, that “bit” saw Abhora win the pageant at a sold-out event that boasted Gia Gunn, Peppermint, Jiggly Caliente, Sharon Needles, Willam, Nicole Byer, and Landon Cider as judges. The event also raised more than $6,000 for LA’s LGBT Center. “Last night we made Herstory!” Alaska said in a statement to Out, of her pageant. “I had no idea the level of talent and stunningness that would be brought to the Montalban Theatre last night in Hollywood. “I’m so proud of our winner, Abhora, and I’m so excited for the exposure this event will give all eight of our contestants.” Abhora was joined in the competition’s top three by LA’s Aurora Sexton and Chicago’s Kat Sass, reflecting the event’s diversity with a trans woman and nonbinary person in the mix. At the pageant, which was hosted by Jackie Beat, queens wore leopard print (some in the audience did as well) in honor of a track from Alaska’s album Vagina, released last week. They alsoperformed an opening number to “One In A Million” from Miss Congeniality. For her performance, Abhora said she put everything she had into the competition in the final two weeks of prep, after she got over her anxiety. For the narrative arc, she wanted to tell the story of her time since Dragula, where she placed fourth, losing out to eventual winner Biqtch Puddin. “It was mostly a reflection on the past year, just getting to meet all the people that appreciate me and my art,” she said. “And also having to do my art on repeat and on demand. Things sort of lost [their] luster for me and I felt like I was wearing a ‘me’ costume and going to places and having people endlessly tell me how much they love me. It didn’t satisfy me.” The story, which onstage featured the competitor on stilts and wearing a hoop skirt that was revealed to have six other queens beneath it, was a “guilt trip of a suicide note about coming to terms with drag as it is and conforming by doing the world’s largest ‘death drop.’” And though that name for the move fits the narrative, the maneuver, which originated in the ballroom scene, is correctly termed as a dip. The conversation of conformity was particularly poignant for Abhora as her entry into the competition came at a time when she was considering exactly that. “I was actually considering auditioning for Drag Race,” she said. “But the moment I put the camcorder up to start recording the interview, I just couldn't get myself to recite the phony answers I had written for myself so I would seem more glam.” Choosing this competition instead allowed her to underscore who she is as a queen, and still walk home with $10,000 (via PayPal), a sash, a crown, and a bouquet of flowers. For those who think that the self described “trash queen” will abandon her aesthetic and go the way of glamour, that couldn't be further from the truth. “My new wealth is not going to influence me or how I carry myself,” Abhora said when asked. “My very first purchase will probably be a year’s supply of Top Ramen and a year’s supply of duct tape to fix my shower head; you know, all the luxuries of the modern working class.” RELATED | Willam, Miss Shalae, and Rhea Litre to Host Benefit for Trevor Project See EW's exclusive cast reveal with Drag Race winner Alaska and Lola LeCroix. Drag superstars Alaska and Lola LeCroix are saying hieeee to inclusivity with another edition of their popular Drag Queen of the Year pageant. EW can exclusively reveal the cast and premiere date for the 2021 DQOY digital ceremony, which debuts Sunday, March 7 at 5:00 p.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. PT on Sessions Live with eight queer performers vying for the crown for the first time since The Boulet Brothers' Dragula contestant Abhora took the pageant's inaugural prize in 2019. "Lola and I initially set out to do this pageant as an experiment. What would happen if we held a competition that welcomed all different types of drag performers, regardless of their gender identity or anatomy or history — all on the same stage?" Alaska, winner of RuPaul's Drag Race All-Stars 2, says in an exclusive statement to EW. "The world as we know it came to a halt shortly after the time we announced the 2020 pageant, and we had to postpone it indefinitely. But luckily, thanks to Sessions Live, we now have the perfect streaming platform to put on a digital version of the pageant." Alaska further jokes that Abhora's "reign as Drag Queen of the Year has gone on far too long, and has brought the world nothing but plague, unrest, and misery," so the crowning of a 2021 champion will usher in a new era for the budding empire. Chosen by a "mysterious panel of anonymous Drag Elders," the eight queens chasing the crown — Maureen San Diego, Chiquitita, Lucy Stoole, Tito Soto, Cassandra Complex, Tenderoni, Dixie Surewood, and Jake Dupree — are also competing for a sash and a bouquet of "very nice" flowers in addition to the title and $10,000 prize. The presentation will be a mix of pre-recorded segments and live broadcasts from Loyal Studios and remote locations from the contestants' homes. Celebrity judges set to preside over the contest include Nicole Byer, 2019 contender Aurora Sexton, and various members of the RuPaul's Drag Race global family, including Shea Couleé, Peppermint, Vinegar Strokes, Jiggly Caliente, and Alaska's Race Chaser podcast cohost, Willam. The first 500 digital tickets to the show will be priced at $20, and every regular ticket sold after the initial number will cost $25. A $49 pass gets you an official program as well as access to a 30-minute after-party Q&A, while the $79 option includes a signed program in addition to after-party access. For $149, all of the aforementioned perks are included along with a virtual one-on-one meet and greet with Alaska after the show, a signed limited edition official 2021 DQOY candle by Maison de LeCroix, and an official poster signed by Alaska. See the full cast of contestants competing for the Drag Queen of the Year 2021 title below. Tune in to the ceremony March 7 on Sessions Live. Drag Queen of the Year Credit: Courtesy of Maureen San Diego Drag Queen of the Year Credit: Courtesy of Chiquitita Drag Queen of the Year Credit: Courtesy of Lucy Stoole Drag Queen of the Year Credit: Courtesy of Cassandra Complex Drag Queen of the Year Credit: Courtesy of Dixie Surewood Drag Queen of the Year Credit: Courtesy of Jake Dupree Related content:
Who is the drag queen of the Year?And the winner of the 2022 Drag Queen of the Year Pageant is … Militia Scunt! A San Francisco icon who recently moved to LA, Militia is a performer, singer, and activist who has been a figure participant in discussions of race relations in the queer arts community and equity in the nightlife scene.
Why did Mimi Imfurst get eliminated?Mimi Imfurst auditioned three times before becoming a contestant on the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race. He placed high in the first two challenges but was eliminated in the episode "Totally Leotarded" after lifting fellow contestant India Ferrah over his head during their lip-sync.
Who is the most famous drag queen?Pabllo Vittar is considered the most popular drag queen in the world by many statistics. For one, she is the world's most-followed drag performer on both Instagram and Twitter. In 2022, Vittar also became the first drag queen in history to perform at Coachella.
What season of dragula was Yovska on?Yovska (season 3)
Yovska on 'The Boulet Brothers Dragula: Titans' cast.
|
Abhora Drag Queen of the Year
Related Posts
Copyright © 2024 ShotOnMac Inc.
