“It’s a show that I don’t really watch that much to be completely honest, but I do know two queens that came out of Denver that won that show - Yvie Oddly and Willow Pill most recently,” Xan said. Both pointed to representation issues in “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” the show that has made queens increasingly visible - but that has yet to feature a drag king as a contestant. While Pratt and Xan agreed that they’ve seen drag kings be successful in Denver, they’ve still witnessed opposition to the group overall, even among some drag queens with more “traditional” views about what drag should be – gay, cis-gendered men portraying women. “When I initially started doing drag, the only time that I felt confident was on stage, and over the last four years, I’ve felt that my confidence has grown off stage as well.” Related Articlesĭenver drag queen Willow Pill is the new champion of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” “For me, (drag) was a lot of gender exploration and just trying to find who I was as a person,” they said. Xan, who is also nonbinary, understands what Pratt means when they said drag has helped them explore their identity. Influenced by pop culture icons Freddie Mercury, Lady Gaga (and her male drag persona, Jo Calderone), and fictional character Danny Zuko from Grease, Xan also plans to bring “boy band realness” to Denver Pride. Bow ties are a staple for Sawyer’s “fruity and gay” character.Īnother drag king, 26-year-old Xan (who goes by one name) has to French braid and tuck up all of their long, blonde hair under a wig cap in order to become their drag counterpart, Alexandre Valentino Skye. For their performance, Pratt donned a colorful striped dress shirt and suspenders. While some kings aim for realism, working to make their looks as stereotypically male as possible, Pratt prefers to go for a more cartoonish style. Pratt said all of the drag kings they’ve met have their own unique looks and spins on masculinity. Grey Pratt, 26, draws a blue beard on their face to become their drag king character Sawyer InHerpants, at their home in Denver, Saturday, June 11, 2022.

Pratt contoured their face to create a sharp, angular jawline and cheekbones and painted large, raised blue eyebrows over their natural ones and set it all with hairspray - a quick-fix substitute since they’d run out of their usual setting spray. “I mean, I’m authentic,” they added with a laugh. He’s a very extroverted, authentic, out-there, outgoing person that I absolutely am not. “I’ve enjoyed being Sawyer and having him. “(Drag) kind of helped solidify who I was and how I identified myself, and it was a fun way of figuring out who I was,” Pratt said. Yet, drag has been pivotal to helping Pratt find their identity, too. Looking into their bathroom mirror in their downtown Denver apartment, using bright blue body paint to draw on the beard that would soon help transform them into Sawyer, they explained that the drag persona is completely different from their own personality. Pratt (who uses “they/them” pronouns) would describe themselves as an introvert. A drag king on the side, Pratt plays their drag persona Sawyer InHerpants at various events in Denver. Grey Pratt, 26, is at their home in Denver, Saturday, June 11, 2022. Just a few hours before the Aurora performance on June 11, Sawyer InHerpants was Grey Pratt, a 26-year-old nonbinary Denverite with a love for musical theater and rock climbing. Unlike drag queens, drag kings are mostly women and nonbinary individuals who often don fake beards, bind their chests, and sharpen their features to perform at venues and events dressed as men.Īt least seven drag kings will perform in segments throughout the duration of Denver PrideFest, which takes place in Civic Center park on Saturday, June 25, and Sunday, June 26. If you missed it, not to fear: The performance will be repeated at Denver Pride by Sawyer InHerpants, one of Denver’s local drag kings.ĭrag kings are a group of performance artists who adopt a masculine persona. Drag king Sawyer InHerpants, played by Grey Pratt, performs at the drag event Spill the Tea, a fundraiser for Aurora Pride, in the parking lot of a JCPenny in Aurora on June 11, 2022. Stiffly, with each of his wrists connected to his shoes by elastic bands, the performer moved like a puppet to the opening song of his set: “I’ve Got No Strings” from Disney’s “Pinocchio.” Then, in an instant, the music changed into a mashup of *NSYNC songs, to which the performer lip-synced along, with dance moves straight out of a “Bye Bye Bye” music video. On a sweltering June Saturday in the parking lot of a mall in Aurora, a performer with a beard, mustache and hair the color of a blue Jolly Rancher made his way onto a stage that had been set up for a “Drag Picnic” Pride Month event called Spill the Tea. Tuesday, August 30th 2022 Home Page Close Menu

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