Drag Kings in the New Wave

Abstract

SUMMARYIn an examination of Midwestern drag king performers and communities that have emerged since the study by Volcano and Halberstam of king cultures in London, New York, and San Francisco, this article considers traditional and alternative ways of “doing drag,” both performative and participatory, as a means of interrogating the proximity of a “new wave” of king culture to academic theory. Tracing the evolution of drag king performance in the Twin Cities from the 1996 workshop by Diane Torr to the formation of two distinct king troupes in the late 1990s demonstrates a particular trajectory in kinging that reflects a new consciousness and enactment of gender theory through artistic praxis. Participation plays a key role in breaking down the distance between spectator and performer in venues such as the First International Drag King Extravaganza in Columbus, Ohio, and Melinda Hubman's art installation “Performing Masculinities: Take a Chance on Gender” in Minneapolis. By engaging the “audience” in drag, the Extravaganza“Science Fair” successfully referenced drag kings' shared history with early American freak shows in a clever and critical way. Moving beyond the contest framework of early king shows, new drag king troupes like Minneapolis' Dykes Do Drag are “mixing it up” in an attempt to complicate notions of butch/femme gender roles, sexuality, and drag stereotypes.