The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: drag show

  • Humboldt drag artists slay outside the box

    Humboldt drag artists slay outside the box

    by Griffin Mancuso

    Shannon Rhodes already had a passion for fashion and makeup before delving into Humboldt’s drag scene. After attending several drag shows dressed to impress, Rhodes ran into drag artists Val de Flores and Sharon Taterz who offered them the opportunity to start booking their own performances. In May of 2023, Rhodes debuted as Killpop at the Septentrio Winery.

    “I kind of blackout when I’m performing, because it’s very short,” Rhodes said. “It’s just like, three to four minutes. The energy—it’s addicting. The crowds are amazing. It’s awesome getting to perform in front of a fully queer space, where everybody’s there just to see you and support you and be positive. All the other girls, they’re super fun to hang out with.”

    Killpop’s friend Seraphim Nagel joins their performance at the Septentrio Winery. Photo courtesy of Makayla Kuhnke.

    Despite being a small county, Humboldt has a thriving drag community. Every member’s introduction to drag and their personal relationship to the art form is unique. Additionally, every drag artist’s reason for performing is different and reflective of their life experiences.

    Paul Michael Leonardo Atienza, an assistant professor of Critical Race and Gender Studies at Cal Poly Humboldt, has been doing drag performances for 20 years. They began to explore their gender expression after attending an LGBT campus retreat during their senior year at UC Riverside.

    “We were processing trauma in our lives, and what came out for me was how I was shamed as a child of my gender expression, and particularly feminine gender expression,” Atienza said. “Many of us were figuring out, ‘Well, how do we work to strengthen and remove less of the stigma that we learn?’”

    Atienza took on the identity of Maria Arte Susya Purisima Tolentino during their drag performances. Ma Arte drifts between being an extension of Atienza and a separate persona, but Atienza considers her to be a creative collaborator. Together, Atienza and Ma Arte have collaborated with drag artists and members of the queer community across the world.

    Lawrence Fobes King, a queer middle schooler from Ventura, California, was murdered in 2008 by a classmate. This tragedy moved Atienza to use drag as a form of protest by bringing awareness of injustices against the queer community.

    “At that time, [drag] was still quite small, but people were really into watching drag, and a lot of the drag at that time also was lip synching to popular music,” Atienza said. “And I was like, ‘Well, if you have this audience, what can you do to also add more social issues to it?’ And with the murder of Larry King, I tried to pair a song and created a performance in honor of his struggle and his memory.”

    Drag also offers a secure support system to queer people and an opportunity to share queer joy. Joel Costello, who performs as Feral Fawcett, found his inspiration in popular drag queens like Trixie Mattell and Bob the Drag Queen. Performing since March of 2023, Costello found that Feral Fawcett had a positive impact on a wide range of community members.

    “This mom asked if she could take a picture of us because her daughter was in grade school and was getting bullied for being gay,” Costello said. “There was a lot of drama against drag queens happening at the time, so that felt really good… it reminds me that there’s more to it than just being silly and collecting the bills.”

    Feral Fawcett also provided Costello a space to explore feminine gender expression.

    “I feel like she is a representation over the feminine side of myself, which is something that before I used to try to squash down,” Costello said. “I came from a hometown that was not very pro-LGBT, so I always tried to be like the manly gay guy. It was nice to have a release… I like blending my masculine and feminine side into one thing.”

    Through drag, Rhodes has been able to gain confidence in their artistic skills and their body.

    Thrash and Recycling (left), Gliterous Cliterous (middle), and Killpop (right) pose together at the Septentrio Winery. Photo courtesy of Makayla Kuhnke.

    “I feel like my confidence was taking a hit for a while – you know, my body was changing,” Rhodes said. “That also means my favorite clothes that I like to wear don’t fit, I got to figure out new styles, new clothes. Having people just be like, ‘Damn, bro,’ and seeing photos of myself looking good performing in the body that I have is just like, ‘Alright, I guess your ass is kind of fat.’ The crowd really just shows you like, ‘I am cool. I’m doing this because I got so many awesome qualities to me.’”

    Drag expects a lot out of its performers, both mentally and physically.

    “What people don’t realize — until they maybe watch [RuPaul’s] Drag Race or something — drag queens have to be a comedian, a dancer, a seamstress, a hairdresser, a makeup artist, like your own manager,” Rhodes said. “You do everything for that performance. Even some are singers. You have to be so many things as a drag queen, and I think it’s a really pure form of art because you’re doing it all.”

    Drag artists have a lot to carry on their shoulders, including the stigma and lack of education around drag. 

    In 2023, Tennessee legislators passed the Adult Entertainment Act, meant to prohibit adult cabaret entertainment on public property, including, “male or female impersonators.” The act’s broad language allowed law enforcement to potentially prosecute drag artists and trans people. After Tennessee, anti-drag bills have been introduced in at least 14 other states. Many conservative legislators have used concern for the safety of minors to pass anti-drag laws and censor openly queer expressions.

    “A lot of people think it’s a super sexual thing and that it’s like a fetish,” Costillo said. “Most drag performers I know have a very distinct separation between the two.”

    People of many different gender identities do drag, but their gender identities are separate from their identity when in drag.

    “In general, people conflate gender expression, gender performance, [and] gender identity with sexual orientation, sexual behavior and practice. And all of those are separate,” Atienza said. “People who are drag performers are of all gender expressions and sexual orientations. I think that’s one thing that we need to challenge not just in drag, but in understanding gendered and sexual lives. We’re bodies that have different ways of feeling [and] expressing themselves and society has put us in specific boxes.”

    Despite the adversities the drag community faces in the U.S. and the rest of the world, drag artists have been thriving in Humboldt County. The definition of drag is constantly changing and growing. Members of Humboldt’s queer community from all backgrounds have been able to find a safe haven in drag, allowing them to heal from trauma and play with gender performance.

    “I do believe RuPaul in saying that we’re born naked, and the rest is drag, right?” Atienza said. “Drag is really a way to demonstrate the constructiveness of gender and how there’s so many possibilities out there. Drag to me is not just on stage, with queens and kings and in-betweens. Drag is every day.”

    Find the artists here:

    Ma Arte

    Instagram: @dragmaarte

    Facebook: Ma Arte SP Tolentino 

    Killpop:

    Instagram: @kill._.pop

    Feral Fawcett:

    Instagram: @myferal_lady

  • CDOR hosts drag show and dialogue

    by Monica Robinson

    Individuals from diverse backgrounds and viewpoints participated in programs centered around racial, social and environmental justice during the Campus and Community Dialogue on Race. The goal is to provide spaces for reflection, examination and dialogue to promote change.

    “Brown, Bearded, and Beautiful” was the last presentation held by Production Manager and Show Host Jorge Luis, aka Val De Flores, of the Vibe Queer Bar on Friday, Oct. 27.

    The discussion entailed the creation of an LGBTQIA+ supportive community environment through drag performances and open dialogue to promote education in a predominantly white and heteronormative Humboldt.

    When Luis moved to Humboldt, it was the first time he felt a feeling of safety and belonging in a queer community.

    Luis reflected upon his “machismo” upbringing near San Diego. 

    “You know, I’ve always been a weird kid, like, that’s why I didn’t play soccer,” Luis said. “Because I wanted to wear my mom’s heels.”

    Luis’s mission is to provide a stage for people to reveal their talents, creating an environment where everyone feels significant and acknowledged. He explains how drag shows go beyond entertainment and are an opportunity to build connections in a safe space. 

    The joy Luis said he experiences when seeing the audience sing and dance during performances highlights the heartfelt solidarity within the drag culture in Humboldt County. 

    “I’m married, so it’s my way to let loose and not kill my husband,” Pearl Anderson said, an occasional attendee of the Vibe Queer Pop-Up Bar.

    The shared passion for self-expression and acceptance creates a bond that surpasses societal boundaries.

    “Drag is something that you put on to make yourself feel a little bit more competent each day,” said Luis. “Sometimes that means a wig, and sometimes it’s your dad’s cowboy hat, you know. It’s like, whatever you want to put on that day to kind of just give yourself that little push.”

  • Canceled Ferndale drag show spurs protest

    Canceled Ferndale drag show spurs protest

    by Andres Felix Romero

    Queer activists known as the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence hosted an action they called a ‘Day of Non-Judgement’ outside the city hall in Ferndale, CA on Jan. 22 in response to the recent cancellation of a drag show fundraiser. The show was canceled by the venue ownerswho were concerned about extremist violence following anti-LGBT signage outside of a local church. The church has a history of using its signs to spread anti-LGBT hate. 

    The Day of Non-Judgement consisted of sermons, testimonies, and speeches in support of the Humboldt queer community from event goers such as local clergy, parents of queer youth, and Cal Poly Humboldt students and staff. Cal Poly Humboldt professor of psychology Benjamin Graham spoke in remembrance of Camile Nauta, a Humboldt student who recently passed away and was involved in the queer community. Graham also spoke on the significance of having the Day of Non-Judgement in Ferndale.

    “It’s a great opportunity for the community to come together and wash over the hate and fear that too many people live their lives in,” Graham said. 

    Other attendees supported the action by holding signs or flags. Phoenix Gomez held a pride-themed California state flag, and said they felt that there was work to be done due to the threats.

    “We should be allowed to have our events. We should be able to have them without being interrupted,” said Gomez. “If there’s hate by any form, there’s always going to be work to be done.”

    The Sisters’ Eureka order is also known as the Abbey of the Big Red Wood, and includes members such as Mistress of Scriptures (Secretary) Sister Gaia T of the Revolting Earth. 

    Sister Gaia T felt action was needed to support the Humboldt queer community.

    “The sisters respond to the need of our community. We were told that our community didn’t feel safe in Ferndale,” said Gaia T. “We were told that people wanted something that made them feel welcomed and loved. Part of what the sisters do is the ministry of presence, where just by entering spaces we create safe spaces for everyone around us just by being present.”

    The Day of Non-Judgement is an opportunity for the community to come together in a public space and support one another by speaking out against hate, and in support of diversity and acceptance. Sister Mary Magnalaid Me hopes that the action in response to the recent bigotry is an opportunity for change in Humboldt, especially as attitudes vary across the county.

    “Humboldt County is a very rural place and each little pocket really has its own flavor and its own local culture,” Magnalaid Me said. “My concerns are that the roots of the watermark of judgment, racism, patriarchy, homophobic, and negative sorts of perspectives, has roots in Ferndale that are in other places in Humboldt and other places in our nation and our world as well. Perhaps they’re visible here. And when things become visible, what we have are opportunities, opportunities to bring the margins together, and opportunities to galvanize people to organize for change.”

    This is not the first Day of Non-Judgement the sisters have hosted. Since the Abbey of the Big Red Wood’s debut at Humboldt State University’s 2006 Queer film festival, the sisters have been a part of the local community. They’ve hosted bingos and fundraised for local charities such as Humboldt Domestic Violence Services and Humboldt Breast Health Project, to name a few. 

    The canceled event was organized by Lost Coast Pride, and was going to be Roaring 20s themed. Already, plans are in the works for more drag events in the area. Shortly after the Day of Non-Judgement on Jan. 22, Rivera mentioned that a few venues had already offered to be a space for the show.

    The Day of Non-Judgement ended with the protestors performing their rendition of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire,” with some, including Graham, providing instrumentals on their own guitar.