RALEIGH — Performers at the Lincoln Theater sang and danced for a cheering audience in highly choreographed routines wearing high heels and tight, sparkling dresses. And all but one of the entertainers were men.
The most experienced and talented drag queens in the area competed Sunday in The Independent Weekly’s fourth annual Queen of the Triangle Drag Pageant in Raleigh.
Former pageant winners Jezebel, Tequila Rose and Nellie Bottoms started off the festivities with energetic performances that drew gleeful cheers from the crowd. Jezebel showed off her athletic abilities by gracefully prancing to her music. Tequila Rose particularly excited the raucous crowd by gyrating her full-figured body directly in front of her fans. The champions, however, weren’t flawless; Nellie Bottoms lost an earring and her blonde wig while dancing her routine.
“When my wig fell off I was sort of plucked,” said Bottoms, an eight-year veteran to drag queen pageants. “It didn’t stop me from going on because a true professional would have kept on, and I did.”
The formal wear competition was the next phase of the pageant. The 2004 contestants paraded their sparkling dresses and elaborate makeup as those in attendance—a crowd that was evenly split among gay and straight fans—playfully shouted things such as, “Shake it sister!”
Master of Ceremonies Robby Robbins encouraged the crowd to “tip” the performers. “It’s expensive to look this cheap!” he belted into his microphone.
After the formal wear round Justin Keiler, the owner of Expressions in Chapel Hill, gave away sex toys and lubricants to lucky winners of a raffle in order to keep those assembled entertained while contestants changed wardrobes. Keiler gave out several trash-bags full of sexual paraphernalia, including some objects worth more than $100.
“Its a wonderful event. It’s a great way to reach out to the public,” said Keiler, whose business has sponsored the pageant for the last three years. “The past few years it’s been pretty wild. Never can I see such interesting people.”
The drag queens competed in the performance category after the interlude. Conchita Coco opened the main event with an ambitious number that included background dancers. Next, Loreal St. Lauren did her best rendition of Christina Aguilera’s “Genie in a Bottle” and “Dirty,” prompting Robbins to scream in his high-pitched voice, “HOLLA!”
Captain Jack, the only “drag king” in the pageant, said he wanted to show support for the drag and gay community. The 18-year-old female dressed as a pirate and sword-fought with another cross-dressed woman during the performance round.
While the crowd cheered with sporadic enthusiasm for the other contestants, Chastity Nichols clearly became the audience favorite after singing her bi-lingual version of Toni Braxton’s “Unbreak my Heart.”
Before the winner was crowned, the pageant honored 2003 winner Nellie Bottoms with a special ceremony. Bottoms had decided to settle down and to begin using his real name, Jesse Jones, on a more permanent basis. Jones, who said he lettered in football, basketball and baseball at Plymouth High School in Plymouth, N.C., wanted to spend more time with his husband. Bottoms teared up during the ceremony and thanked everyone at the event.
After the immediate-past winner was honored, Robbins announced Chastity Nichols as the 2004 Queen.
“I thought Conchita won,” Nichols said. “I was like, ‘I hate her.’ When they called her out for first runner-up, I was like, ‘Oh my God, did I just win?’”
Many in the crowd agreed with the judges’ decision to crown Nichols the winner.
“I thought she was really talented and she deserved to win,” 19-year-old Kathryn Lee said. “I thought it was a lot of fun. There was a lot of really positive energy.”
Loreal St. Lauren, Geana L-Tate and Conchita Coco all tied for the first runner-up.
“They were all fabulous—it was a tough choice,” said Richard Hart, judge of the competition and editor of The Independent Weekly. Hart, a happily married straight man, said although this was his first experience attending the pageant his newspaper sponsors, he had performed in and won similar pageants in New Orleans, La.
“Growing up I went to drag shows all the time,” he said. “If you grow up in New Orleans, it’s just part of your life.”
Robbins said he chose to hold the event at the Lincoln Theater because the venue normally houses more mainstream events.
“The thing about this pageant is that I could have had it at a gay bar any day of the week,” he said. “But it’s always a gay night at that venue, and a lot of the straight people that are here tonight don’t come to [gay bars]. It’s a good way to mix it up. We’ll be here as long as we have enough room.”
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.