The rise and fall of the
Drag Queen .
Are London ’ s iconic venues under threat ?
GLAMOROUS , FABULOUS AND OFTEN OUTRAGEOUS ; DRAG QUEENS DO MORE THAN JUST BLUR THE LINES BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN - THEY DRAW LINES ALL OF THEIR OWN . IF , AS MANY WOULD HAVE YOU BELIEVE , IT WAS A DRAG QUEEN THAT THREW THE FIRST PUNCH IN 1969 IN NEW YORK ’ S GREEN- WICH VILLAGE , IT WAS A BLOW THAT TRIGGERED THE GAY RIGHTS MOVEMENT . YET BY 1972 THE HIGHEST PAID ENTER- TAINER IN BRITAIN WAS DANNY LA RUE , A FEMALE IMPER- SONATOR WHO SINGLE-HANDEDLY TURNED CROSS DRESSING INTO MAINSTREAM FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT - APPEARING ON PRIME-TIME TELEVISION ADORED BY BLUE-RINSE GRANDMAS AND ENTERTAINING ANOTHER QUEEN AT THE ROYAL VARIETY PERFORMANCE .
This form of female impersonation was about as safe and non- threatening as it gets and took itself very seriously . Acts like Danny La Rue cannot be compared to those that grew up in the 1960 ’ s counter culture like “ drag queen of the century ” the larger and more delicious than life - Divine . Divine ’ s Drag look evolved as an antithesis to mainstream , conservative fashion of the day demanding why gay people should look the same as straight people . And in Divine ’ s view if they were going to look different why not “ own it ”. So Divine shaved his hair , painted on Joan Crawford fake eyebrows and squeezed himself into a Jayne Mansfield ’ s cast-off dress . Divine was anything but safe . Today another Ru Paul leads the latest drag queen entertainment sensation in RuPaul ’ s reality show “ Drag Race ”. About to go into its 8th season the show that first appeared on an obscure US cable channel in 2009 now attracts an audience of over 6 million – a high proportion of which are in the coveted 18-49 advertising demographic . It would seem Drag is hip and hot ; an entertainment phenomenon but as Ru Paul himself said in an interview with The London Standard in 2014 , for him dressing in Drag has always been about power and humour . Ru , 6ft 4in before he puts on his stilettos , told Stephanie
Theobold that , “ it ’ s always been about the power ’. ‘ If I walked in here in drag , it would blow your mind because it ’ s huge , it really is . It ’ s like Superman ’ s costume . I ’ ll see pictures of myself and I ’ ll go , “ Oh my God !” ’ But not all Drag artists have the backing of global media companies and it would seem that protest remains a necessary part of the Drag scene as some of London ’ s most iconic drag show venues continue to close . One victim of closure is The Black Cap , the legendary Camden Club which despite hosting the stars of RuPaul ’ s Drag Race was closed in April 2015 for possible redevelopment . It would seem that despite Drag artists ’ popularity and mainstream appeal , the lure of property profits has more economic appeal than entertainment as the Black Cap appears destined to become a residential development . The fate of perhaps one of London ’ s most famous drag venues Soho ’ s Madame Jojos is also unclear having lost its license in November 2014 . The club ’ s website , somewhat sadly still describes itself as “ the jewel in Soho ’ s crown - a ruby-and-gilt gem with a pedigree dating back to the 1940s ”. The club lost its licence after a serious assault outside and undoubtedly will be sadly missed . “ Jojo ’ s brought together gay culture and burlesque culture with mainstream music and club nights . Everyone went there . It was a rare place that brought together all these worlds ,” said Alexander Parsonage who was part of Theatre Group Finger in the Pie that performed a cabaret show at Madame Jojo ’ s every month for six years until its closure . Some in Soho believe that this is part of the council ’ s and property developer ’ s aim to gentrify the area and remove any vestiges of its “ red-light ” reputation . So whether inspired by Ru Paul ’ s reality shows or want to support London ’ s drag scene that has battled its way through homophobia and prejudice to become a cultural phenomenon – here are some of the ways you can still marvel at the sequins and sass of the best of the best drag artists .
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