We live in a dazzling world. After the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade’s fiasco with Broadway musical “Kinky Boots”, it appears the world, or at least the United States, is moving into a more glittery era—one of jazz, pizazz, and snazz! And the Huff Post is showing it’s demographic colors by showcasing an ongoing installment honoring locally based New York drag voices. “Accompanied by a larger movement to understand drag culture outside of the pageant circuit, many individuals engaged in the drag community throughout Brooklyn approach drag culture through a nontraditional lens of "alternative" drag or performance art. Visit HuffPost Gay Voices regularly to learn not only about the individuals involved in Brooklyn's drag community, but more about the culture of the community itself.”
This week, we get a look at Brooklyn superstar Cher Noble, a celebrity so hot she’s making headlines all over the country. Noble, who got her start in Ames, Iowa, is a wonderful reminder to the more rural artists in this country that we need creative queers everywhere—not just New York City or San Francisco. Noble’s art centers around the idea that drag performers are the Falstaff’s of the queer community: “I'd put them (drag queens) somewhere between class clown and billboard. On the one hand, drag queens are a sort of comic relief. They (generally) don't take themselves too seriously, which is important compared to serious issues affecting the LGBT community and LGBT rights. On the other hand, when you see a drag queen, you automatically think about the LGBT community. We keep it topical.”
This is an interesting point, and one being made consistently throughout the queer and allied community alike—how do we talk about queer issues while also presenting visibility around queerness that isn’t wholly rooted in trauma? Perhaps drag culture is one answer to how we can move towards entertainment and folly that allows a community entrenched in warfare to breathe a little.
The interview, which has Noble talking about everything from LGBT issues to RuPaul’s Drag Race, to how Brooklyn solidifies as a community, is a beautiful representation of how to celebrate local gaymous celebrities. If you’re local to Brooklyn, you’re in for a treat! “Every Thursday you can find me, Lady Simon and Cherri Baum performing at Wreck Room for Trey LaTrash's Bless This Mess along with some amazing special guest performers and DJs every week. The last Tuesday of every month, Hamm Samwich and I have a show at Tandem called MARRY/FUCK/KILL where we invite three queens to each give a performance based on marriage, fucking or killing. On a random Saturday every month, I am also at Trey LaTrash's Dizzyland -- if you haven't been there yet, check it out. It was the first and only party where I've actually had to stop partying to drink some water. Need I say more? Other than that, there's always a chance that if you are at a drag show or party in Brooklyn, I will probably make an appearance.”