The Birdcage performers could not be tamed on Thursday night in the Russell House Ballroom.
The drag queens and kings took on the runway donning bright and colorful attire while the crowd cheered them on enthusiastically, tipping them with dollar bills. The performers were very interactive with the audience, and even brought three students up on stage to try their hand at entertaining the audience.
“I totally embarrassed myself,” said Turner Finnerty, a first-year finance and economics student and director of finance for IRIS.
Drag shows include a variety of different acts that reflect the personality of each performer. Comedic acts, lip sync and dance are among the most common on a drag stage.
“We’re lip sync artists,” headliner Roxxie Beatz said. “Some drag queens do different things than others like I’m more primarily considered a ‘dancing queen.’ Ebony is considered a ‘camp queen.’"
In addition to having a dance and lip sync number, a drag queen or king will have a thought-out personality that they transform into through costumes and makeup.
“I have a drag persona,” Beatz said. “When I step on the stage I like to look fierce, I like to be upbeat, and I almost like to have a little bit of a b----- aspect to me but still inviting.”
The ballroom was packed with students eager to support IRIS and drag as an art form.
“I love IRIS, and I also lead an on campus discussion group called QPOC which is for queer people of color,” said Dee Miller, a fourth-year sociology student. “I had to come out and support IRIS ... and I love drag. That’s the biggest reason. I love drag!”
Birdcage, as part of Individuals Respecting Identities and Sexualities, was not only about celebrating LGBTQ culture but also about bringing awareness.
“It really could just be for anyone. A lot of people think you have to be gay to go to a gay bar or a drag show and stuff like that,” Beatz said. “A lot of times some of our biggest supporters and stuff are straight people.”
The performers enjoy the thrill that being on stage gives them, and the buzzing and open atmosphere of the room.
“I love performing. I love being on stage. I love entertaining crowds. I like making people laugh,” said Ebony Would, the host of this year’s Birdcage.
First-year international studies student Leah Erwin enjoyed the show, and expressed the significance of performances like Birdcage on campus.
“I think events like this are really important,” Erwin said. “They mean a lot to the community, and I think that means that they’re really important for the rest of the student body here. So I’d like to see more events just like it.”
EBONY WOULD
Kinky, gross, funny. Those are the three words that Ebony Would uses to describe her character and performance. A USC alumna, Ebony Would began her career on the Mr. and Ms. Gaymecock stage, winning the competition in her fourth year.
Drag has always been a part of her life, especially since coming to USC.
“It started as a thing that me and my friends would do. We would just get dressed up and walk around the city,” Would said. “I would walk around Five Points in full drag.”
Would performed “Rama Lama” by Róisín Murphy, and stunned the audience through both a split on the front of the stage and the exotic type of character she portrays.
“Mine, I think, edges more towards a creature that somewhat resembles a woman,” said Would. “Like ... an alien.”
Ebony sees a transformation in herself when she performs, and revels in the thrill of the show.
“I enjoy the sexual expression of drag,” Would said. “It’s strange how when you put a mask on you can become a totally different creature.”
When the performers aren’t on the stage, they are backstage cracking jokes and having a good time, and the bonds they have formed through performing together are both humorous and strong.
“Queer people are so often distanced from their families, especially drag queens, because what we do is so misunderstood. Often times we do create familial relationships within drag communities,” Would said. “We call each other our sisters because we really are.”
ROXXIE BEATZ
This year’s headliner for Birdcage was Roxxie Beatz, a former South Carolina performer with three years of experience behind her. Every since Dec. 27, 2014, Beatz has been wowing audiences with her lip syncing and dancing skills.
“I just kind of used to go out to the gay bars and stuff like that and used to see the art form and I just thought it was really amazing,” Beatz said. “I wanted to learn how to do it.”
Drag is an art form that takes years to master. Beatz herself does not claim to have perfected the art of performance and drag makeup after three years on stage. However, each performance becomes both an enjoyable and learning experience.
“I just always live for performance. I love making people happy and entertaining, and I know that this show in particular a lot of people probably haven’t seen a drag show,” Beatz said. “I definitely want to be one of the people that makes them enjoy drag or makes them want to come back.”
A favorite part of drag for Beatz is the freedom it brings her. There are no specific rules when it comes to creating a number or applying makeup. Instead, drag queens create a new character to fully embody.
“There’s different ways that people talk on the microphone and stuff. There’s different types of performers in different states that you go,” Beatz said. “There’s differences in the style of makeup that a lot of the queens do ... because we all learn from each other.”
Beatz views drag as a unique art form that is revolutionary and impactful to society. A common idea is that drag queens are simply trying to look like women. However, Beatz and the other Birdcage drag queens disagreed.
“Drag is not necessarily about looking like a woman,” Beatz said. “It’s just about expressing what you want and in my opinion it’s the most gender queer thing you can do.”
Beatz’s first show took place in Youngstown, Ohio in 2014. She fondly spoke of her drag mother helping her prepare for her debut. A drag mother is a drag queen that teaches a new drag queen and may have other daughters creating an entire drag family.
“I just went out on stage and did the song ‘Your Makeup is Terrible’ by Alaska. She is a RuPaul's Drag Race queen,” Beatz said. “It was a mess.”
Since the initial performance, Beatz has honed her art form and performed at larger events, like Birdcage, to bring awareness and understanding to her lifestyle.
“SC Pride was a lot of fun. There was a lot of people,” Beatz said. “Also, there was a show in Greenville called Queens for the Cure, and I performed with seven RuPaul’s Drag Race queens.”
When the Birdcage drag queens and kings step on stage they are confident in themselves and their abilities. Beatz states that confidence comes alongside of drag performances.
“Doing drag has definitely given me a lot of confidence,” Beatz said. “Being able to know that you’re putting on this makeup and know that you are beautiful and know that a lot of people are complimenting you, it does a lot for you.”
Beatz inspires young drag queens such as Shenita D, this fall’s winner of Miss Gaymecock and a Birdcage performer, and wants to impart her knowledge to the younger queens and kings. Her major points are to not focus on rules, to be creative and to love what you are doing.
“No matter what anybody tells you, do what you want to do and keep doing it. Because drag queens think that there’s a way to do certain things and that’s not true,” Beatz said. “If you feel comfortable doing what you’re doing and you live through your art, you do your art.”