It didn’t take long for drag artists to migrate online or producers to reimagine drag experiences with large-scale drive-in shows or more private driveway performances.
Monday, September 21, 2020
Interview: Nina West and the Power of Drag
It didn’t take long for drag artists to migrate online or producers to reimagine drag experiences with large-scale drive-in shows or more private driveway performances.
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Nina West is giving back to the world and being a light- or rainbow- in a dark, gloomy hellscape that has been 2020. Something that has been in mind since moving to Pittsburgh only a month before the Tree of Life shootings are the words of Mister Rogers- “Look for the helpers”. In a time which seems that bad news is carried by bad news and delivered with more bad news, drag has transformed and found ways to continue to uplift audiences- as the article notes, drag has turned to online performances and outdoor venues. Drag started as a protest to conventional, hetero norms and so it is no surprise that the sequin glove was raised again to fight during this pandemic. The article follows the journey of Andrew Levitt, Nina West, and her story of being a tried and true Columbus Queen. Ms. West is devoted to giving back, which is highlighted by her ‘Dolly x Nina Kindness is Queen’ collaboration with the always generous Dolly Parton- benefiting both the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and the Nina West Foundation. This article is vibrant, uplifting, and truly a spark of good news needed right now. The only negative that I can see is that the collaboration is unfortunately completely sold out.
Nina West is such an inspiring individual. During her run on RuPaul’s Drag Race, she won Miss Congeniality because of her positivity, community support, and just the light she brings into a room. She has always been an advocate for more inclusive drag and for community support, and its great to see here get a chance to shine on stage. The drag queens I follow on Instagram have been very adaptive to finding ways to translate their club gigs and their performances to a virtual modality. These are people who by trade are flexible, creative, good at working with constraints, and persevering; and they are doing just that when clubs and bars are closed, and they have to find new ways to perform. Hopefully, they are able to overcome these unprecedented times, because drag is a great way to discover yourself, to be innately transgressive, and to just have a good time.
I only recently started watching drag queens' performances online and even more recently, Rupaul's Drag Race. Although I am no fan of Rupaul, I am so inspired by every contestant. About 45% of the queens on the show are non-cis, and having that representation is so important to me, especially on my lowest days. Being able to root for people like me, watch them succeed, and ultimately be glamorous and treated as such is a feeling I wouldn't trade for the world, and it's even convinced me to be more open with how I present myself. It is a beautiful art form that makes me and so many other queer folks so happy, and I think it's great that even online, it has been able to grow, evolve, and reach new audiences. I will guarantee that there are other people who discovered drag in quarantine like I did, and queens will have an even larger audience to perform to once the world opens back up again.
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