The drag scene: new york vs london by amrou al-kadhi
- "self-referential theatricality that performs and deconstructs gender tropes rather than imitating them, giving the art form, I think, a comic and necessary politics. This is something at the foundation of the London drag scene"
- "Whilst London drag is inherently about performance, many New York queens take centre-stage in the city's glamorous nightclubs.
- "A major element of the New York queer scene echoes structures of dominant culture you might think it would reject: VIP areas for the most famous queens and club kids, a self-governing queer paparazzi, and a genuine club A-list including figures such as Amanda Lepore (who still makes a living through nightclub appearances) .... The hierarchical format of Capitalist Celebrity Culture isn't abandoned, but intimately replicated just through a queer lens."
- "For decades, the New York queer scene has been intertwined with mainstream culture. Back in the 60s, ... Andy Warhol was determined to create spaces within mainstream culture where queer people could operate. He borrowed the language of American Capitalism and re-wrote it through a queer framework, giving New York queers a chance at mainstream ideals of success - their "15 minutes of fame". His legendary Factory - bang in the middle of midtown Manhattan - was a playground for queer "celebrities," who took starring roles in Andy's films and television programmes (that often infiltrated mainstream networks). His trademark Marilyn screen prints could also be seen to operate on this logic; in effect, Warhol stole a mainstream cultural image designed for straight male pleasure, and colourfully distorted it. Andy's Marilyn was as much drag queen as she was screen siren."
- "Although parody is involved, what seeps through is an overwhelming desire to simulate hetero-normative images of success, as a way to claim that those at the ball are also eligible."
- "although I was excited by the astounding production value of the New York scene I experienced, what I missed was irreverence, and the sense of an alternative cultural model to Capitalist success. Though this partially exists in New York, it forms the basis of London drag."
- "Coming out of a tradition of theatre - from Pantomime to Shakespeare - our drag queens love the stage. We hold dear that sense of irreverent theatricality that is at the core of Absolutely Fabulous. "
- Hence our prized drag establishments are not nightclubs, but venues with stages; The Royal Vauxhall Tavern, Molly Mogs, The Glory, The Bethnal Green Working Men's Club, The Admiral Duncan and the posthumous Madame Jojo's & Black Cap. And I see less of a trend towards "realness" and a perfectly polished image, as I see looks that lack "finesse" in a celebratory, political, and ultimately, theatrical way (Jonny Woo, Scottee, Jon Sizzle Etc…)
Alan Carr: Chatty Man, S14-Ep11: British Queens vs American Queens (W/ Ru Paul)
"more nudge-nudge, wink-wink"
Takes the piss
American:
Sexier names
Glam
Glam
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