South Bay drag is on the expansion tip. There were no fishy drag queens Friday night at Local Color. Polly Vinyl, host of the Kweenzofharts event, says her troupe is performing and recruiting, and they’ll take anyone with talent—as long they can sell it.
Or as Vinyl says: “Do you walk like a girl or like a guy in heels?”
Local Color provided its open art space to Kweenzofharts and welcomed an all-ages audience, where fake IDs weren’t required to enjoy the party.
Mulit-persona Queen Samantha Hayne, who’s been performing drag for two years in the South Bay, flowed through the audience in a goth-kid look while lip singing “Equal Rights, Equal Lefts” by Otep. Her character was pissed. She stomped through the crowd in heels, jumped on tables and threw her arms in the air.
The show stayed PG-13 with limited nudity, but cleavage certainly made the cut with Tessi Ticular. She lip-synched to “Big, Blonde and Beautiful” by Queen Latifah while wearing a voluptuous blonde wig and leopard print bodycon dress embellished with a black corset.
Talent, confidence, and “snapback wit” were on full display, as Queen Pia Messing sang “Stay” and “Love on the Brain” by Rihanna while dressed in black, from heels to lipstick.
Ms. Vinyl also sang husky vocals while playing bass and skating on roller skates.
“If I’m going to learn a song that much I’m going to sing it,” says Vinyl, who was inspired to start Kweenzofharts after her previous drag troop, Games of Hearts, discontinued shows in Mountain View.
Local Color’s venue lends itself to an interactive stage. Audience members lounged in lawn chairs on top of faux grass carpets, while performers weaved in and out. Some performers, like Queen Andromeda, threw props to the crowd. Andromeda lip-synced in bubble-gum pink as she pranced around with a lollipop and bag filled with sweet goodies. The almost-innocent look was a crowd favorite.
While the audience threw dollar bills to performers, those performing recited an ongoing joke throughout the night: “It’s a lot of work to look this cheap.”
Hayne co-hosted the event while Vinyl was indisposed, making her grand entrance that much more dramatic. The evening remained dynamic with multiple costume changes and a diverse playlist by DJ/performer Ms. Ayumi Winehouse.
“I try to show up in face and get my costume done as soon as possible,” says Hayne, who had two costume changes to for her two acts.
Vinyl had three costume changes. “I want to hint at the character or the theme I’m doing,” she says. “I don’t want to hit you in the face with it.”
To join the drag troupe, Vinyl advises, participants don’t need to worry about gender but do need to pay attention to detail. “If you can do yoga and math and make it fun an interesting, do it,” she says.
Vinyl hopes the South Bay builds on drag variety shows like the Local Color event and Circus of Sin at the Caravan Lounge.
“It opens up more avenues for younger people to do, see, hear and experience the new thing,” Hayne adds.
Local Color’s next drag show will be an audition performance for those hoping to join the troupe. Events can be found on the Kweenzofharts’s or Local Color’s Facebook page.
.Kweenzofharts Adds Local Color to Drag Concert
