THE fabulous expression that is drag is rapidly inching into the mainstream through various shows – both live and streamed – that elevate the artists and their craft into more than just mere entertainment.
Fire & Ice Media production, the newly formed company of LGBT powerhouse couple – singer-songwriter Ice Seguerra and wife, actress, and former Film Development Council Of The Philippines chairperson Liza Diño, will be staging a pre-Valentine extravaganza that showcases Drag Race Philippines season 1 winner Precious Paula Nicole alongside Viñas Deluxe and Brigiding.
Fresh from their multiple wins at the Aliw Awards for Best Stage & Musical Direction for Seguerra’s anniversary concert, Fire & Ice media wants to shine the spotlight on the art of drag through Divine Divas: The Ultimate Drag Experience. The concert will showcase Philippine drag culture at its finest on February 10, 2023, at the New Frontier Theater, Araneta City, Cubao. It will be a showcase of the various disciplines that drag represents: impersonations of music superstars like Beyonce and Lady Gaga, as well performances of original songs that the drag artists themselves helped create and bring to life.
But more than the performances, the concert also aims to present the colorful, multi-faceted lives of the drag queens: from their struggles to their triumphs. After all, beneath the glamourous make up and the wonderful clothes, there is a human being wishing simply to be seen, represented, heard, and loved. Says Brigiding of her experience: “This is a very inspiring moment for me because I’ve never thought of this when I was younger, I’ve never seen someone like me when I was younger, but because I dreamed and believed, it’s happening. And now, to be that inspiration to the younger queer artists and the LGBTQ community is one big beautiful thing.”
Part of the reasons for staging this concert is also to bring the art out onto a bigger platform, a bigger stage, one that is not limited to a niche audience and a very specific, limited crowd. “This is an opportunity for drag queens to be seen on the main stage and to be considered as mainstream artists. Fire &Ice wants to support that. Especially since we are part of the LGBT community. We deserve to be front and center and not just be on the sidelines. Through this concert, we hope that more people will appreciate these drag performers and help normalize drag as a form of entertainment,” producer Diño explains.
For Seguerra, this is a key moment in the history of Philippine drag. “Local drag queens are finally there on the main stage. You see their names alongside mainstream artists and concert performers. For me, that’s a big thing because drag has always been on the sidelines. Has always been underground.” The time has definitely come for drag to take the spotlight and shantay its way onto the mainstream stage.
Ticket prices for Divine Divas: The Ultimate Drag Experience range from P800 (Balcony B) to P6,500 (SSVIP) and are now on sale at TicketNet (visit www.ticketnet.com.ph or call 89115555).This event is co-produced with Nathan Studios, a production company co-founded by veteran actress Sylvia Sanchez.