A drag cabaret described as the ‘Grammy’s of Drag’ will bring together new and veteran queens in a bid to showcase their talent.
Kat Gilardi’s Divas One Night Only event attracts the who’s who of drag in Cape Town at an extravaganza that would do drag icon, RuPaul proud.
“Divas One Night Only means so much, but ultimately it's about exposing drag talent and showcasing the art form of drag in Cape Town,” Gilardi said.
The event will be hosted at the Joseph Stone Auditorium in Athlone on July 9.
Ashanti Trimble will be among the drag queens performing at event as a first-timer despite being active in drag artistry for a decade.
“I started out helping other drag queens get ready for performances and soon realised that drag was something that I always wanted to do,” she said.
Trimble was selected for the line-up after auditioning.
“I’m so happy and excited to be part of the show. I’ve wanted to partake for the last three years and to have made it at the ten-year celebration mark - I am over the moon,” she said.
“This is an absolute dream come true and I’m happy and grateful that Kat chose me to be part of this awesome show,” she added.
Trimble plans to offer an item in song where she will share a love story with her performance.
“I believe that I will be bringing something new to the stage. I have been getting my outfits sorted and figuring out what I want to do with my hair and make-up”
The TRANS-formers is a dance group that was formed 11 months ago and is thrilled to have made it past auditions to the main stages next month.
The group consists of Dee Blogging, Larissa Gordon and Kendall-Leigh Cupido who came together as three transgender women who love cabaret, last year.
Gordon, 33, a teacher from Retreat started doing drag when a fellow drag queen, Blaque Labelle, entered a pageant and encouraged her to do the same.
“She told me that if I buy the material, she will design my garments. She won the pageant in 2019 and I was the first runner-up,” she said.
“It was such a great experience where I felt the sisterhood. That was where I grew to love the art of drag,” she said.
Gordon said drag artistry opened the door for her to find herself as a transgender woman.
“I was still living as a gay man but it helped me discover my true self,” she said.
The TRANS-formers plan to perform an array of pop music.
“This is one of the main events that happen annually. Getting to be part of it is an absolute privilege. We can’t believe that we’re getting to perform on this stage,” she said.
The group has been getting together weekly to rehearse.
“We know the songs and have our music ready, it’s just a matter of choreographing our set,” she said.
Maxine Wild is a 27-year-old stylist and make-up artist who has been doing drag for the past ten years and has graced the Divas One Night Only stage five times already.
“I am very blessed to be a part of Divas One Night Only. It’s an amazing opportunity for all of us to come together and showcase our different styles of drag,” she said.
Wild said the show had led to multiple opportunities.
“A lot of people understood me and took me seriously after my first show. It felt good to belong and share a stage with the best of the best in the city,” she said.
For her performance this year, Wild plans to do an impersonation of the late Latin American singer, Selena Quintanilla.
“The most important thing for me is the costume. Portraying another person is extremely difficult, that is why it is important to get the look as close to its original style, colour and fit as possible,” she said.