Correction appended
Members of Queers and Allies donned boas, bras and baseball hats in their annual drag show last night in the Tavern.
Queers and Allies held the show in conjunction with ATV, Eagle Nights and DC Kings as part of Founders' Week. Audience members could just watch from their seats, but many chose to participate.
The night started as a typical drag show - girls dressed as boys dancing the "Soulja Boy" and boys dressed as girls. The hosts asked for donations and taught the audience how to tip a drag queen, emphasizing the use of one's mouth rather than hands to donate money to Queers and Allies.
Audience members-turned-models dressed up in business shirts, ties, urban wear and even heels as they worked the runway. They participated under pseudonyms such as Butch Cassidy and Lady Bellatrix de la Court. Cheers from the audience helped select the winner, who received a copy of the Amanda Bynes film "She's the Man." Most of the competitors were first-time drag queens.
"They had a lot of potential as a group," said Tracy George, a junior in the School of International Service.
Two participants - Mandee Glamour and Oliver Clothesoff - were the scheduled entertainment for the event. Clothesoff opened the evening with the act "Not a Fucking Drag Queen," in which he dressed in head-to-toe zebra print. His closing piece, the show's final act, was a performance to Five for Fighting's "Superman," in which he donned an entire Superman outfit.
Glamour started both of her acts fully clothed, but ended each one in "barely there" lingerie. Her first piece was a song about unrequited love. When her lover turned her down, Glamour turned to S&M techniques and strapped him to a chair to win him over. Her closing act showed Glamour as a waitress who stripped down to her bra and underwear when she spilled some water on her apron. This performance included whip cream, tassels and audience participation.
"This is the most confident display of sexuality I've yet to see as this school," George said after Glamour's performance.
The drag show attracted a large audience, filling the Tavern by the end of the night.
Lisa Paquette, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, said she and her friends came to try something new.
"It sounded like it would be fun and entertaining, a new experience for some," Paquette said.
Correction: The name of the female burlesque performer is "Bambi Galore," not "Mandee Glamour." Also, the song that Oliver Clothesoff performed was "Kryptonite" by Three Doors Down, not "Superman" by Five for Fighting.
