Two weeks ago, on Wednesday, October 24, 2012, close to 50 students and others attended the annual Drag Show at Suffolk University. The Donahue café was transformed into a theater, with colorful covered tables stacked high with candy and snacks. Students mingled and chatted while enjoying old music and taking advantage of the free drinks offered. The show was organized by the Performing Arts Office and co-sponsored by the Rainbow Alliance.
“It’s great because we have a professional drag show for free,” said senior Rebecca Havu, president of the Rainbow Alliance. “It’s an actual drag show but it’s here at Suffolk. A lot of people have never seen it before and it makes it very accessible.”
The first performer was Starla, who came out gyrating and thrusting to Rihanna’s “S&M.” There was a lot of crowd involvement and everyone laughed and gasped together as they enjoyed the show.
“You think it’s gonna be so awkward, but then it’s awesome,” said Havu. “The performers are so charismatic and it’s so fun to watch.”
More than entertaining, the Drag Show was hilarious. The performers opened the crowd up to create a fun and involved environment. The next song was “Ain’t Nobody” by Chaka Khan, and the performer was named Misery.
Misery went above and beyond her performance and began to interview each table. Some people were nervous, and much of the interaction was embarrassing. Still, she visited everyone and made sure to make the entire audience a part of the entertainment.
“I saw my first show three years ago,” Havu recalled. “It makes people unafraid of the culture, and they became comfortable. It creates positivity.”
The show continued in a similar fashion. Crystal Crawford, the third performer in the group, raunchily parodied well-known songs that had the crowd roaring with laughter. All in all, the show was a success, and it gave a new group of people a closer look at one of the less accessible forms of entertainment.
“Events like these are important if we’re going to work towards a more activist route at Suffolk,” said sophomore Emily Harding, treasurer of the Rainbow Alliance. “I think people have a lot of stereotypes. People have no idea what the drag culture is actually like. This helps people become more aware of trans-rights.”
Harding recalled her first visit Drag Show at Suffolk and said she enjoyed this year’s much more because she was more involved at school and with the Rainbow Alliance.
The Alliance is a student run LGBTQ club on campus that supports gay rights. The members of the group meet once a week to discuss issue and plan events, and meetings are open to everyone. Their next event will happen on Transgender Awarenes Day, November 20. Displays on each floor of Donahue will commemorate individuals who died as a result of hate crimes.
The Drag Show at Suffolk brought in people from all over. There were students from other colleges in attendance, and some Suffolk students brought family members. Shows like these and other LGBTQ powered events are a great way to spread awareness and acceptance throughout the community.
