![]() ![]() JEFFREYS: I would start by saying that drag is a theatrical form. ![]() TIME: What are the first things people should know about the history of drag? Jeffreys, a drag historian and videographer who teaches theater studies at Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, about the history of drag, the influence of RuPaul and some of the common misconceptions many people have about drag. In an interview with the Guardian last week, RuPaul stirred controversy by saying that he would probably not let trans women compete on the show, saying, “Drag loses its sense of danger and its sense of irony once it’s not men doing it.” He has since apologized for these comments, but the sentiment has cultivated a larger conversation about who gets to do drag, and why.īeyond the realm of VH1, drag is a multivalent art form with a complex and stratified history. Recently, that influence has raised questions over who that image includes. In doing so, Drag Race has also played a key role in codifying an image of what a drag performance should look like. Though this isn’t the first time drag has reached pop-cultural prominence - the format and RuPaul both had a moment in the 1990s - the TV show has helped bring it to a new level of visibility. With RuPaul set to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on March 16 and the tenth season of the hit show RuPaul’s Drag Race premiering on March 22, drag seems to have solidified its place in today’s mainstream entertainment zeitgeist.
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