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Colin Stanart didn’t have time to be nervous before his drag performance as Christi Spice. Instead, concentrating, he put on his makeup, heels and wig.
On Oct. 17, the Multicultural Activities Council and Harborside Activities Board hosted Viva la Diva, a drag show that featured student performers, a professional drag queen and LGBTQ trivia.
Eager students packed the USC ballrooms decked out with colored balloons, high heels and free food to celebrate LGBTQ Awareness month, which kicked off on Oct. 15, to watch their friends perform.
Viva la Diva kicked off with a group of six student performers dancing to the “Petty Song,” a cheer from a viral youtube video. Students sang along supporting the dancers. Five of the students performed drag for the first time.
Stanart was the exception.
“I was super stressed because I had to dress all these other guys that had never done drag before and never worn heels,” he said. “All their songs I had to pick out, get their outfits ready and make sure they knew what they were doing. I was not worrying about myself. I was worrying about them.”
At the age of 17, Stanart’s friend called him over asking if she could do his makeup as a drag queen. After she did, they went to Hamburger Mary’s, a restaurant that puts on drag performances.
That day, a compliment from a drag queen sparked his interest in competing. He began practicing, even though he couldn’t compete until he turned 18.
Stanart had never worn heels. Now he wears them in his room, in the campus gym and anywhere else he feels like practicing. He is an amateur drag queen.
This summer, Stanart performed for the first time.
“I got top three of performers. I was super proud of myself,” he said. “After that first performance, I was like, ‘I don’t even care how bad it was, I feel ecstatic.’ I wanted to go out again.”
Juno Mars also finished as a top three performer. Stanart refers to her as his “drag mom” because of all the advice and help she’s given him. Mars has been doing drag for eight years now. She also performed at Viva la Diva and hosted a panel discussion to answer questions for anyone in the audience.
Students asked about the most difficult aspects of drag, how to deal with haters and where Juno Mars gets her inspiration from. Her inspiration comes from her grandmother who danced in ballets.
“The haters make you better,” Mars said. “If anybody has anything negative to say I take that and make myself better.”
This isn’t drag to Mars, she explained that to her it’s art.
The energy ran high while Mars performed, but students seemed just as excited while she talked to the audience. The crowd shouted compliments throughout the night.
When one student asked Mars what advice she could give to students who were afraid to be themselves, she switched from a lighthearted tone to a much more serious one.
“Take a long look in the mirror. Look at all the flaws and the good things. If you see a flaw, it’s beauty. If you can’t love yourself, how the hell are you going to love someone else?”
After Mars’ panel, Stanart performed again because one of the other student performers dropped out. Besides the stress of having to choose a new outfit and songs on such short notice, Stanart didn’t hesitate further to go on stage again.
“I love the performing. Everybody is so amazed by the hard work you put into it. To have it pay off and people cheering you on, and seeing the smiles on everybody’s faces… It’s absolutely exhilarating for me.”
PHOTOS BY NICOLE CARROLL | THE CROW’S NEST
