What Is A Drag Queen?

Drag queens are becoming more and more prominent in-and-outside of popular culture. With this growth in popularity, it is important that everyone who witnesses this phenomenon truly understands what it is that they are actually witnessing.

Google images Defining a Queen

Who are drag queens and what do they do? These are the basics everyone needs to know about the drag queen community!

As this blog is dedicated to bringing you all the most important information on the drag queen community, I felt that it was extremely important to first provide the basics as a stepping stone on which to build upon in all of the posts to follow this one.

What Makes a Drag Queen

The most basic understanding of drag queens are that they are men that dress in women's clothing in order to take on a different persona than that which they choose to live in their day-to-day lives. Typically this persona is created for the purposes of entertaining others. This differs from transvestites because drag queens are gay men who dress and perform as women but do not wish to be women or to have women's bodies (Taylor and Rupp 114-115). A Short History of Drag Performers

“ The art of performing in drag is said to have began when clothing first started to take on gendered meanings in cultures as a form of cross-dressing behavior.”

Drag is not a new or recent practice. In fact, this type of performance art has been around for centuries. The art of performing in drag is said to have began when clothing first started to take on gendered meanings in cultures as a form of cross-dressing behavior. The earliest examples of the contemporary drag queen could be found in the theatre in England and in vaudeville and burlesque shows in the United States during the nineteenth century. Males could also be seen portraying female characters in Hollywood movies and television shows to this day. The only difference between drag performers of the past and those who practice this art today are that the actors who portrayed females in theatre, television, and movies were typically straight men while those who choose to participate in drag today are typically gay men. (Schacht and Underwood 4-6).

Prevalence of Drag Today

The drag queen community is one of the most widespread and cherished communities today. Not only is 'Drag Night' a staple of gay bars worldwide but the drag queen community has become a pop culture staple as well. This community has gained exposure through such phenomenons as 'RuPaul's Drag Race' as well as countless other movies, television shows, and more. It is this growing interest in the community by those outside of it that inspired me to create this blog and I look forward to sharing even more information about this community in the coming posts.