Megami, center, won the cosplay contest dressed as Monique Heart in a handmade costume fashioned from more than 1,000 playing cards.
Transgender entertainer TS Madison, left, and television personality Carson Kressly, right, hosted the contest and handed over a check
for $2,500 to Megami.
DragCon: You’ve come a long way, baby!
BY BOB KRASNER
In the beginning, drag was simple. Men dressed
as women for theatrical purposes. Eventually,
drag became established in underground gay
culture and then — and we’re skipping way ahead
here — in mainstream culture as a result of the
popularity of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” a television hit
across America.
Then it got somewhat confusing: Drag kings
started popping up (women dressing as men), as
well as hyper queens (women dressing as drag
queens). And there are the transgendered ones, the
gender fl uid, those who choose not to identify as
male or female and, surely, others. Luckily, everyone
has a home at RuPaul’s DragCon, where for
three days, the Javits Center was fi lled with drag
celebrities and their fans, many of whom had concocted
outfi ts that rivaled those of the stars.
Inspiration seemed to come from everywhere —
glamorous movie stars, suburban housewives, science
fi ction, pop culture, horror movies, fairy tales.
Imaginations were running as wild as some of the
wigs. Though the event seemed smaller this year,
enthusiasm was not in short supply.
Families came with their kids for the chance to
meet their favorite queens from the tube, including
Miss Fame, Detox, Acid Betty, Shuga Cain,
Yvie Oddly and many more. Contestants from
Thorgy Thor was in the house.
the upcoming “RuPaul’s Drag Race UK” version,
including Sum Ting Wong, Cheryl Hole, Vinegar
Strokes and Scaredy Kat, were introduced onstage,
as well.
RuPaul kept busy, DJ’ing twice from the main
PHOTO BY BOB KRASNER
PHOTO BY BOB KRASNER
stage, interviewing Whoopi Goldberg and Diane
Von Furstenburg, checking in on the merchandise
booth and avoiding photographers.
“Not now bitch, I’m working!” he yelled at us, in
response to a request for a photo.
22 September 19, 2019 TVG Schneps Media