As its title suggests, “Drag: The Musical” has sass in abundance. Those willing to look beneath the off-Broadway play’s sequin-studded surface, however, will find a thoughtful tale about family, self-acceptance and the sanctity of LGBTQ-inclusive spaces.
“RuPaul’s Drag Race” veteran Alaska Thunderfuck, one of the musical’s stars and also a co-writer, worked with director-choreographer Spencer Liff to create a show that would offer a “sneak attack” on audiences’ emotions.
“If you love drag, it’s going to make sense to you and it’s going to speak to you. If you know nothing about drag, it’s going to make sense to you and it’s going to speak to you,” Alaska told HuffPost. “It’s funny and stupid, but it also has something to say, and, I hope, could possibly make you cry.”
The writer-performer added: “You can bring the kids, you can bring your straight dad and you can bring your grandparents, and everybody will come away feeling like we have more in common with each other than we have differences.”
“Drag: The Musical,” which opens Monday at New World Stages in New York after two successful runs in Los Angeles, centers on former lovers Kitty Galloway (played by Alaska) and Alexis Gilmore (Broadway’s Nick Adams), who now operate a pair of competing drag clubs in the same town.
Unfortunately for Kitty and Alexis, however, both clubs are in financial despair as the city around them is gentrifying and rents are skyrocketing. Enter Alexis’ estranged brother, Tom Hutchinson (Joey McIntyre of New Kids On The Block), who makes a last-ditch, if reluctant, effort to save his younger sibling’s business.
At first, Tom’s adolescent son Brendan (Yair Keydar at a recent performance) approaches his uncle Alexis’ love of drag with skepticism. Over time, the two form a kinship that leads Brendan toward a path of self-discovery.
Alaska, whose real name is Justin Andrew Honard, drew heavily on personal experience while working on the script and songs for “Drag: The Musical” with co-writers Tomas Costanza and Ash Gordon.
In preparing the show for its New York debut, the trio has written a new song, “Straight Man,” for McIntyre that Costanza has joked is an “anthem for every dude who cracks open a cold one, swings a club, and cranks up the rock at the family barbecue.”
And earlier this month, it was announced that none other than Liza Minnelli had joined the musical’s creative team as a producer. The legendary actor and singer is not only saluted throughout the show, but also narrates its opening and closing scenes.
“She’s not just a gay icon ― she’s a world icon,” Alaska said of Minnelli’s involvement. “It’s unbelievable she’s a part of this, because she’s so fierce and so amazing and we all just love her and are obsessed with her.”
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Though “Drag: The Musical” isn’t an overtly political piece, the show’s portrayal of a drag queen’s bond with a youngster may ruffle a few feathers, given the recent restrictions some conservative states are imposing on drag performers appearing at events where minors are present.
Noting that the relationship between Alexis and Brendan is based on “real stuff that I dealt with as a child,” Alaska said it was never intended to reflect any modern controversy.
“It speaks to the timeless idea of being a young person and figuring out who you are. That’s a universal thing,” the writer-performer explained. “As to the fact that we’re talking about it in the news … I guess it’s just our turn to be a scapegoat. It’s a game we’ve seen before, and it’s not new or shocking to anyone in our community. The good thing is that we, as queer people, know how to mobilize, and we know how to fight back.”
Watch a teaser for “Drag: The Musical” below.