Dragqueens



Mannen die zich voor openbare optredens op glamoureuze wijze als vrouwen kleden noemt men wel dragqueens. Vrouwen die zich op deze wijze als mannen kleden heten drag kings. Natuurlijke vrouwen die uitgbundig gekleed en opgemaakt zijn worden faux queens genoemd
Dragqueens zijn meestal homoseksueel, zij spelen hun rol en voelen zich in hun dagelijks leven geen vrouw.”
Vaak zijn dragqueens uitbundig gekleed en gebruiken zij extravagante make-up, schoenen met zeer hoge hakken), weelderige pruiken, kunstborsten of borstplaten en worden de geslachtsdelen met duck tape weggewerkt. Het beeld dat in de media vaak wordt gepresenteerd van de travestiet is op deze uitbundige travestieten gebaseerd.

Kleurrijke nichtenoptochten, schitterende dragqueens, Miss Travestie Holland-manifestaties en andere beelden die men in de media over travestie krijgt voorgeschoteld, hebben bijgedragen tot de associaties die men gewoonlijk bij travestie heeft: extravagant, karikatuur en persiflage, glitter en glamour, homoseksualiteit, toneel, exhibitionisme, vermaak. bron: Travestie, een serieuze (nood)zaak / Paul Vennix, 2001, p. 5

De dragscene schijnt zich elk jaar verder uit te breiden. Veel mannen (voornamelijk homo's), maar ook vrouwen (veelal lesbisch) willen zich als Drag Queen of Drag King manifesteren op de diverse podia. De feesten met dragqueens en travestie-optredens zijn niet aan te slepen. De bingo's, game-nights, show-avonden, Miss verkiezingen, etc. vliegen je om de oren.... Naast Dragqueens zijn er ook Drag Kings (bijv. Franky Mooseknuckle) en Faux Queens (Miss Tulip Fields) actief in het show circuit.
Tijjdens de optocht op Hartjesdag paraderen veel dragqueens en dragkings over de Amsterdamse Zeedijk

Waar komt de term "dragqueen"vandaan?

Het woord “drag” zou een benaming zijn voor de mannen die als vrouw vaak in lange over de grond slepende jurken rondliepen (drag betekent slepen)
Sommigen vinden dragqueens ordinair, storend en confronterend, anderen dat drags vrouwen belachelijk maken. Hiertegenover staat de mening dat drag juist de traditionele genderrollen omver duwt en speelt met de verhouding tussen “mannen” en “mannelijkheid”, en “vrouwen” en “vrouwelijkheid”. Drags maken een krachtig statement: zowel mannen als vrouwen mogen mannelijk én vrouwelijk zijn.  Zie ook: Jennifer Hopelezz Is dat seksistisch?. In: Attitude, #007, januari 2018, p. 27

A drag queen is a person, usually male, who dresses in clothing of the opposite sex and often acts with exaggerated femininity and in feminine gender roles for the purpose of entertainment or fashion. Often, they will exaggerate certain characteristics such as make-up and eyelashes for comic, dramatic, or satirical effect. While drag is very much associated with gay men and gay culture, there are drag artists of all sexualities. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly in dedication, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once, or those who simply prefer clothing and makeup that is usually worn by the opposite sex in their culture. Drag queens can vary widely by class and culture. Other drag performers include drag kings, women who perform in male roles and attire, faux queens, who are women who dress in an exaggerated style to emulate drag queens, and faux kings, who are men who dress to impersonate drag kings.

There are many reasons people do drag including self-expression, comfort, transvestic fetishism, and spiritual reasons, as well as the higher-profile performing and entertaining. Drag can be a creative outlet, a means of self-exploration, and a way to make cultural statements. While the general public may be most familiar with the "high drag" of professional performance artists, drag is also part of regular life and street culture for many gender-nonconforming or gender-variant people, who may or may not consider what they do, "drag."

Drag queen activities among stage and street performers may include lip-synching performances, live singing, dancing, participating in events such as gay pride parades, drag pageants, or at venues such as cabarets and discotheques. Some drag artists also engage in mix-and-mingle or hosting work in night clubs, such as drag bingo, and at private parties and events.

The etymology of the phrase “drag queen” is debatable, but many scholars believe that the phrase was coined in the 1800s as a reference to the hoop skirt. As seen in this photo, hoop skirts would “drag” along the ground.

The term “queen” was used as a derogatory slur towards homosexuals.

The term drag queen occurred in Polari, a subset of English slang that was popular in some gay communities in the early part of the 20th century. The first recorded use of "drag" to refer to actors dressed in women's clothing is from 1870.

A folk etymology is that drag is an acronym of "Dressed Resembling A Girl" in description of male theatrical transvestism. The film Connie and Carla also made a reference to this, though the acronym was slightly altered to men "Dressed as Girls."

Queen may refer to the trait of affected royalty found in the personalities of many who do drag (whether this is their normal personality or a character created for the stage). It is also related to the Old English word quean or cwene, which originally simply meant "woman", then was later used as a label both for promiscuous women and gay men. The Old English word appears derived from Middle Dutch quene ("old woman"), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *kwenǭ ("woman"), from Proto-Indo-European *gʷḗn ("woman").
Another term for a drag queen is female impersonator. Although this is still used, it is sometimes regarded as inaccurate, because not all contemporary drag performers are attempting to pass as women. Female impersonation has been and continues to be illegal in some places, which inspired the drag queen José Sarria to hand out labels to his friends reading, "I am a boy," so he could not be accused of female impersonation. American drag queen RuPaul once said, "I do not impersonate females! How many women do you know who wear seven-inch heels, four-foot wigs, and skintight dresses?" He also said, "I don't dress like a woman; I dress like a drag queen!".
Some performers draw the distinction that a female impersonator seeks to emulate a specific female star or celebrity, while a drag queen only seeks to create a distinctive feminine persona of his or her own.

Drag queens are sometimes called transvestites, although that term also has many other connotations than the term "drag queen" and is not much favored by many drag queens themselves. This is because of the distinctions between drag queens and transvestic fetishists. "Drag queen" usually connotes cross-dressing for the purposes of entertainment and self-expression. It is not an accurate way to describe people who cross-dress for the fulfillment of transvestic fetishes alone, i.e., people whose cross-dressing is primarily part of a private sexual activity or identity. Those whose motivation for transvestism is not primarily sexual, and who may go about their daily lives cross-dressed, often do not adopt the over-the-top drag queen look, at least not for daily wear; these individuals may or may not self-identify as drag queens.

There are also performers who prefer to be called "gender illusionists" who do blur the line between transgender and drag queen. Generally transgender performers do not consider themselves to be drag queens and drag queens don't consider themselves to be illusionists, but, as with everything, there are exceptions. Often these distinctions are more generational, as laws and acceptance of individuality change and grow. Many drag queen prefer to be referred to as "she" while in drag and desire to stay completely in character. Some performers object to being referred to as "he" or by their legal name while in character.

Drag performer RuPaul is an exception, as he seems to be completely indifferent to which pronoun is used to refer to him. In his words, "You can call me he. You can call me she. You can call me Regis and Kathie Lee; I don't care!" The term tranny has been adopted by some drag performers, notably RuPaul, and the gay male community in the United States, but it is considered offensive to most transgender and transsexual people. In the transgender community, it is taken as a degrading term along the lines of the highly offensive words "fag" and "faggot" in gay communities. This has caused the usage of the term to diminish.


Bron:  Dragqueen (Wikipedia)
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