Manotick’s second annual family-friendly drag show opened with the song “Come Alive” from The Greatest Showman and the audience did exactly that, dancing as the sun set on sparkly costumes.
The drag show was part of Manotick’s annual Taste of Manotick festival on Sept. 14, which showcased Pride and encouraged kids to interact with diverse communities. The drag show concluded the night and featured local talent including Joe Zaddy, Eden Moore, Zak Zinya and headliner Adrianna Exposée.
Exposeé, a well-known queen with accolades ranging from Miss Capital Pride 2019 to Queen of Halloween 2020, said she enjoys being “the first drag performance people see.”
Exposée said her “super conservative” parents motivated her to make her drag digestible to a wide range of people.
“I feel like no matter what the audience is, I’m going to try and break through to them,” Exposée said.
In family-friendly environments such as the Manotick Festival, Exposée expressed the importance of reaching audiences who may not be familiar with drag.
“It’s just important to make sure you’re not feeling isolated as a kid,” she said. “If you’re family, it can really only bring you closer together by discussing something new.”
Up-and-coming drag king Joe Zaddy echoed a similar sentiment.
“There’s a lot of stuff happening right now in the news about people not being OK with exposing children to anything LGBT,” he said.
Zaddy said attending drag shows can present different aspects of diversity to kids in a family-friendly environment.
“It’s giving kids the option to know that they’re not weird, they’re not odd,” Zaddy said. “They’re different, but it’s okay to be different. I want kids to be able to live their lives earlier than waiting until their mid-20s to be open and comfortable.”
Adele Bennet, 14, who attended her first-ever drag show alongside her mother described the energy as “fun and queer.”
With Zak Zinya dressed as Ken from Barbie and with Disney songs on queue, kids in the audience were dancing as much as the performers.
“Clearly the kids enjoy it,” Bennett said. “They can dance, they can do whatever they want.”
Bennett said she’s excited to attend more drag shows in the future.
“I’ll be mad at my parents if they don’t let me go anymore,” she said.
“It’s just really important to be able to express yourself in any way you want,” Bennett added. “You can show kids that if you want to do something like this, it’s OK. And I think that’s awesome.”
Featured image by Kyla Silva/The Charlatan.
