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Lively pop music, colorful lights and excitement filled the air as people walked into Goldstein Auditorium to experience the 20th Annual Drag Show Preliminaries, hosted by Syracuse University’s Pride Union on Thursday night.

Travis Milliman, an SU graduate student, shared his eagerness while waiting for the event to start.

“The lights are great; I’m loving it,” Milliman said. “The preshow music is wonderful, giving me some Tatiana versus Alyssa Edwards realness. I love it. It’s great.”

The competition lineup featured seven contestants: Slayyyter Hilton, Dilf Dangerbottom, Vita Vanitea, Dirty Lucciano, Bina Minute, Captain Cream and Polly Venus. It also included performances by Ergo, who graduated from SU in May 2021, and special performances by the hosts.

Drag icons Saint and Sigourney Beaver, runners-up on season 4 of “The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula” hosted the event. Saint opened the competition with a fierce performance of “Boss Ass Bitch,” while Sigourney Beaver closed the night with a haunting rendition of “Off With Your Head.”

Milliman said he found out about the show through posters around campus, and when he saw Saint and Sigourney Beaver were hosting, he couldn’t miss it.

Other audience members like freshmen Eva Morris and Juliet Cunnington also expressed their enthusiasm for the show. Morris said she planned her outfit for the event a week in advance, and Cunnington shared the importance of having these types of events on campus.

“For a really long time, we didn’t have a place to gather and celebrate something as cool as this, so it’s really cool to see everybody come together,” Cunnington said.

After the various performances, the audience voted for their favorite four drag kings and queens who will advance to the finale that will take place on March 10.
Meghan Hendericks | Photo Editor

Stefanos Schultz, a senior, added to the significance this has on the normalization of drag.

“It means everything — it has to do with visibility, with acceptance, with normalizing drag as an artform,” Schultz said. “It doesn’t have to be so complicated to get as a concept. It’s just a fun art, and that’s all that it is.”

The high-energy performances ranged from pirate tunes to diva pop. Some performers even went the extra mile by including back-up dancers and stage props. The crowd’s excitement soared as they cheered, sang and danced along with each performance.

Molly Irland, a sophomore and first-time drag show attendee, said she loved the show because of the courage of the people on stage.

“I have so much admiration for people who have the confidence to go up there and do that because I could never do it,” Irland said. “And so it’s so much entertainment and so much admiration for their confidence.”

Following the performances, the audience had the chance to vote for their favorite four performers who will advance to the finale that will take place on March 10. The four performers who received the most votes were Dirty Lucciano, Dilf Dangerbottom, Captain Cream and Vita Vanitea.

Finalist Captain Cream shared that this was his first time performing as a drag king, and his drag could be best described as “give me the booty.” Cream also said he didn’t think he would make it to the finale, but he’s “stoked to get a chance to do it again in a setting like this.”

It was also Dilf Dangerbottom’s first time performing, and they shared their love for drag and what drew them to it.

“It means so much to me to be able to play with gender and get to do it as a performance,” Dangerbottom said. “It cheers people up so much — it’s such an art form. It combines so many things together, and I really just love it.”

Vita Vanitea, who’s been practicing drag for three years now, teased a little of what the audience should expect for her upcoming performance.

“You may see some Gaga; there might be a reveal or two. Anyone who has religious trauma, maybe beware … you’ll see,” Vanitea said.

The night could best be described as chaotic, fun and inclusive, said SU senior Ian Borowik. For audience members and performers, the 20th Drag Show Preliminaries transformed the auditorium into a place to feel seen, accepted and connected to others.

Published on February 11, 2022 at 11:44 pm

Contact Paola: pggonzal@syr.edu