by Marisa Pesa
Girls just want to have fun, but boys do too. Last Friday the biggest names on the Columbus drag scene appeared in PRIDE’s “College is a Drag…Show” in a Mezz filled with perfume and one-dollar bills. Drag queens adorned in wigs, fake eyelashes, and corsets lip-synced while doing chair dances, splits, and back handsprings. A singular drag king got down with his good self as well.
Nina West, former National Entertainer of the Year 2008 and host of AXIS Nightclub, hosted the evening’s show. Both comedian and drag performer, N. West took the time to mingle throughout the crowd, making small talk with students and coyly asking male audience members “Are you nervous?”
Other performers included Columbus celebrities Mr. Cool Ethan, Sabrina Heartt, Diamond Hunter, Nikki Stone, Helena Troy, and Virginia West. It was repeated throughout the night that these drag artists are the best acts Columbus has to offer, for Heartt is the current reigning Miss Gay Ohio U.S. of A. and N. West is the only Midwestern queen to have ever won the title of National Entertainer.
Lip-sync performances ranged from a relatively innocent rendition of Ariel’s “Part of Your World” to Britney Spears’ racy “Toxic” to Madonna’s playful “Material Girl.”
Both PRIDE and the performers themselves wanted students to leave their worries at the door (where anyone could sign a marriage equality petition) and enjoy the night.
“If you’ve never been in drag, you get to play somebody that you’re not,” Virginia West said. “It’s really great. You get to stand on stage and make people happy and forget that they have problems for a while.”
A three-hour event, “College is a Drag…Show” brought a crowd of nearly 100 people, most of who were drag show first-timers.
“I thought I was going to hate it and think it was really weird,” Kelsey Pinckard, freshman, said. “But I actually enjoyed it and thought the show was cool.”
The night was full of surprises. An impromptu strip dance given by an AXIS employee, Anthony, was met with applause but was cut short once cheeks were exposed and a student was lying horizontal beneath the grinding stripper. Audience members also started “wobbling” or dancing one way or another during intermission.
While intricate costume changes were an incremental part of the show, the 6’ 8’’ host’s numbers included sequined dresses promoting Columbus based attractions such as Late Night Slice and COSI. Her last dress sported a shiny black and red message of peace, “NO H8.”
The night ended with a “suicide drag,” where all the evening’s performers came out for speed rounds where they had no idea what music the DJ was about to play. There was definitely a generation gap with the music; some performers felt old for not knowing current popular songs, said Ciarra Davis, a PRIDE executive board member and the night’s DJ.
“My hair might fall off,” Virginia West said during a set.
At curtain call, Helena Troy deliberately and proudly took off her wig and the chant “Helen Troy is a Boy” erupted from the crowd. Nina West called for a reenactment of the charade, so that the moment could live forever as an Instagram video.
Mr. Cool Ethan, the only drag king of the night, intrigued many. Nina West revealed that beneath the character, she is legally married to her wife and is expecting a baby soon. Ethan informed us that drag kings evolved “to combat a patriarchal society” and that there exists a huge spectrum of drag king performances.
While the event was free, $5 donations were welcome. At the end of the night, PRIDE President Caleb Ray announced that the show had raised $250 from money collected both at the door and from what the performers received on stage.
The money will go toward a new LGBT Capital University scholarship, the first of its kind. Over the next five years, PRIDE hopes to raise $25,000 for a deserving LGBT student.
The idea to host a drag show was a collaborative idea and effort, although TJ Carpenter, another PRIDE member, spearheaded the event. A regular, passionate enthusiast at most Columbus drag clubs, he coordinated with and helped contract the performances.
The artists who graced the Mezz were pulled from different Columbus drag clubs, including Wall Street, AXIS, and Toolbox. Carpenter explained that they were excited to work together because “there’s this invisible barrier between queens and clubs.” He discussed how drag culture echoes gay culture; certain bars draw certain people.
However, it was obvious no rift existed between the night’s seven performances. True comradeship, love, and respect between the artists were evident on stage.
“We’ve gotten to have incredibly once in a life time opportunities,” Nina West said. “We’ve formed bonds of friendships that we’ll have for the rest of our lives, whether or not we continue to have to put wigs on our heads and wear incredible costumes, dance on stage for you. That’s the gift of this art form.”
Although time restrictions forced PRIDE to “downsize the original goal” of bringing in famous national acts, no roadblocks surfaced during the planning process. The club was actually quite “proud” of what they accomplished.
Next year PRIDE hopes to throw a bigger and better show, or to even host a night in which students can come dressed as drag queens and kings themselves.
mpesa@capital.edu
