Can Drag Queens Teach Us Anything About How to be Classical Performers?

I've been reflecting lately on live, solo performance. Not just my own performances, but the performances of my colleagues. In the past year, I've noticed some general issues that have bothered me, including...

• Lack of commitment to musical ideas
• Lack of narrative in performances
• No cohesive performer identity
• Reaction to mistakes in performance

I am just as guilty of these things as pretty much anyone. I believe, fundamentally, that it is harder to be a performer than it is to be a musician. But how can we as classical musicians bridge the gap between artist and showman? Enter....drag queens.

Drag queens may be an extreme example. I've seen the art of musical performance likened to athletes or artists of other disciplines. But as I was watching YouTube videos and the documentary Paris is Burning it occurred to me that these performers are exactly like classical music performers...or at least how they could be to break some of the barriers of stuffy performances. 

There are superficial characteristics of drag queens that we can apply to the musical world: the lip syncing, the musicality of a performance, the transformation from man to woman  (similar to what a lot of us try to do in reinterpreting music). But on a deeper level, drag queens transform into a character, a product, and an image. Those of us in the classical world can learn a lot from that process.

• Drag queens create a complete character: new name, back story, identity, and brand.

Most musicians will tell you today that they are presenting a complete package. I try to do that in my own professional life. My business cards, website, programs, posters, etc...all are a part of my brand image. Something I used to try and do was be "authentic" to myself and intertwine these two people--Kevin the bassoonist and Kevin the person. Drag queens do this on a daily (err...nightly) basis. Joe Smith becomes Lady Shockinawe. People don't pay $10 covers at bars to see Joe Smith in a dress (as fabulous as it may be). They pay to see Lady Shockinawe slay the hell out of a Brtiney Spears cover. That's how I approach my performances. I don't think people want to come and see a dorky dude who happens to play the bassoon toot around for an hour. Instead, people want to come and see Kevin Eberle, the bassoonist. By creating this separate identity, I think people know what they are coming in for and can make a value judgement about their passive participation. If you don't care for Lady Shockinawe, you're not going to go see her. But they people that are there to see her are having a blast. That's what I want in my performances...don't you?

• Drag queens don't take negativity from anyone!

The drag queens I knew in LA were some of the most positive performers I had ever encountered. Hecklers in the audience, the competition from other queens, the backhanded compliments and the fundamental skill of reading...the community can be quite negative. If your makeup isn't perfect or your outfit is terrible, people will let you know. Same thing in our world, right? "You were really sharp..." "...that second movement was really hard for you, huh?" We have countless examples from our own experiences that we can relate to. If we acted more like drag queens, then we reply to things like "You were really sharp" with things like "Thumbtacks are sharp, darling". The point of the story is to not let things bother you and certainly not to take them in as a part of your identity. Lady Shockinawe isn't "the drag queen who does a bad Britney", she's just Lady Shockinawe. I'm not "the bassoonist who plays Mozart too fast [or too sharp or whatever]", I'm just Kevin.

• Drag queens do their job

Drag performance is an industry in this country now. Thanks to people like RuPaul and Lady Bunny, drag queens now have an industry standard to which they adhere. A quick wit, sharp tongue, dance skills, and a show identity are now expected from these performers. As musicians, we are also held to standards though many people choose not to adhere to these. It is true that the standards are different for every performer and every instrument--memorization, for example, is a standard for singers and pianists whereas for wind players, it isn't necessarily. However, when developing a brand and an identity of a performer, standards must be adhered to or you will lose credibility. If Lady Shockinawe came out and was sickeningly sweet and sang torch songs, that would have to be part of her brand in order to be taken seriously. If her followers expect her to come out in skimpy clothes and lip sync to the Beyoncé songbook, she had better do it or she'll lose a following. To that same end, if my identity is based on standing, audience interaction, performing music of women composers, etc...then I had better include those things in some capacity into my recitals and performances where I can or I'm not being true to my brand.

I'm not saying you need to go out and become a drag queen. What I am saying, however, is that in creating a brand and identity, set the bar very high for yourself based on what you want to be known for and what your colleagues are doing.