Splash Nightclub’s drag show nights aren’t the only options near the University to see fabulous and fun performances from local queens. In fact, you only need to go as far as the LSU Student Union.
Feminists in Action at LSU will host a drag show in the LSU Student Union’s Royal Cotillion Ballroom on Sept. 7 at 9 p.m. “DRAG Me Out of This Political Climate” intends to provide its audience with an escape from the current state of politics in the U.S. The event will be the first drag show put on by FIA.
Hosted by drag queens Carina Von Tuna and Scarlett Diore, the show will feature performances by five local Baton Rouge queens, including Justin Betweener, Laveau Contraire and Reia Mars.
English junior Nick Beason, who performs as Scarlett Diore, approached FIA president Carson Richman and mass communication senior Jack Stallard, who performs as Carina Von Tuna, with the idea to do a drag show as a satirical escape from today’s politics. The show will open with Carina Von Tuna performing as Hillary Clinton, and the performers will touch on political issues throughout the show.
Stallard and Beason said they wanted to make sure to include different types of drag performers, not just the skinny, white, cis male drag queens that Stallard says are usually showcased in shows like this one.
“People should expect to see subversive drag performance that’s meant to make the audience kind of uncomfortable,” Stallard said. “But also we’re going to be a bunch of people presenting genders opposite our own to the 10th degree so it’ll also be just plain funny.”
FIA organizes events like this drag show to promote feminist awareness and activism to the University and local community. They invite people of all backgrounds to get involved and learn more about issues related to women and gender. If a student wants to get involved with FIA, they can attend its Wednesday meetings at 4:30 p.m. in the LSU Women’s Center.
The FIA event is not the first drag show to be held on the University’s campus. Last spring, the Louisiana Queer Conference put on its first drag show as a “Queer After Party” to the conference itself. Carina Von Tuna hosted the show, and Scarlett Diore performed along with other drag queens, including Chanell La’Sha, Sasha Vanguard and London Manchester, who are also University students.
The LAQC is an annual event held by on-campus organizations Spectrum, Queer Students of Color (Qroma) and the LSU Office of Multicultural Affairs. The conference started in 2011 to provide leadership development, networking opportunities and social support to LGBTQ college students and their allies in Louisiana.
Drag queen London Manchester performs at LAQC's Queer After Party in the LSU French House on Saturday, April 14, 2018.
