The Gay Lesbian Transexual Straight Bisexual Alliance’s (GLTSBA) Annual Drag Show in Plant Hall aimed for an exciting event this year. Drag queens and kings strutted across the Grand Salon’s stage in dazzling performances. The event was pulled together in a relatively short amount of time by Zach Peterson, a freshman philosophy and psychology double major. Many other organizations helped promote the show as well, including: Alpha Psi Omega, UT Democrats, Extreme Elite and Diversity Fellowship. Considering the Spring Dance Concert, a dodgeball tournament and a magician all performed on the same night, Peterson said, “The turnout was great!” Nearly every seat was filled with eager spectators, cheering on the performers and volunteers.
“I never expected to be at a drag show in Plant Hall, but I love the fact that UT is accepting enough to put on a performance like this,” said Erin Ledford, a senior English major.
Performers such as Nate Lance and Alec Leddy dressed in extravagant gowns, short skirts, flowing wigs and high heels.
Their performances shocked and excited the crowd. GLTSBA’s president Chelsea Bender and Robin Hudson participated as drag kings and donned men’s clothing with fake facial hair and socks in unusual areas. They put on an imitation runway show between acts which drew much applause from the audience.
Along with the performers, the room was strewn with a handful of cross-dressers. The show invited audience volunteers to put on impromptu performances as well. The first group was asked in pairs to put a condom on a banana behind their backs. The winning team succeeded in five seconds. Another set of volunteers were given audience-suggested drag names such as “Fancy Fiona” and “Tucked-in Everlasting.” They then dressed up backstage and gave their own mini-performances. Though all the participants were women, they invoked their drag king personas and entertained the crowd.
“Overall the show went well,” Peterson said after the event. “It was amazing for the time we did it in and it was a great learning experience,”.
He admits that a time limit did impede some of his hopes for the show, but expects that next year’s performance will bring perfection.
“Although we ran into some obstacles, the group got the event together to make it a good night,” explained Nate Lance, a junior marketing major, who participated as a drag queen and danced up and down the aisle. “For next year’s show, I plan on coming back better than ever and giving a great performance.”
“The show has continued to improve since I’ve been here,” said Robin Hudson, one of the drag kings and a junior English major.
“This is the first year I went all out in drag and it was a lot of fun. I like the show because it gives a lot of people a chance to experiment with cross-dressing in a fun environment.”
Peterson aims to improve the show for next year. “We’re starting to prepare now, so we’ll have way more time to get performers and acts together,” he said. “If the show is anything like this year’s it will be certain to draw crowds of enthusiastic students and faculty.”
Kaylee Moore can be reached at kjmoore@spartans.ut.edu.