As the saying goes, “good things come to those who wait.” And you have been waiting for quite a while… La Casa has the pleasure of announcing that the finalists of this season’s Drag Games have been chosen, and you are in for a treat…
Born out of the summer of 2019, the Drag Games gives local, national and even international artists a stage, a theme, three challenges and the opportunity to qualify for the grand finale, which will take place very soon (finally).
Cast your mind back to 5th September 2019 (we’ve been counting, over 600 days ago…) to where it all began. Since the very first show, we have seen so many drag artists and creatures display their skills, talent and versatility on stage at the Bad Mother Fucker. Each month, the audience voted for a theme, and we gave the participants three challenges:
Runway
The candidates had one month to prepare their themed outfit ready for the runway, where they showed time and time again that their creativity was endless. With each theme, the judges and the audience were captivated by the work put in by the participants. We really want to thank everybody who embraced the stage and made it their own. The hard work and flair delivered was a real celebration of who you are. This challenge, however, was not only for the hopeful candidates. Frida or Ren S were often found recruiting audience members at the BMF entrance, where they would later strut the runway donning their finest fashion and expressing themselves freely and to the fullest.
Battles
Next stage – lip sync battles! After a quick draw out of the hat, the participants faced off head-to-head performing to one of three songs chosen at random that they had been preparing the month prior. The real challenge was to share the stage, and it was clear that the audience often struggled to pick a winner between the two performers. Even our clap-o-meter freaked out on several occasions (we very quickly abandoned that idea) as the round of applause for each contestant was too close to call. In the end, the presenter (whether that be La Maryposa or Camomille) had to call the shots according to the ovations, and we then found ourselves with our three or four finalists before the closing challenge…
Performance
The performances chosen by the night’s finalists did not have to be related to the theme, but they all had one thing in common. They demonstrated the diversity that the art of drag has to offer. From live vocals, to ingenious mashups, to classic lip syncs, all of these performances gave the audience food for thought when it came to voting for their favourite to win. Each judge had their own individual vote, and, combined with the audience vote, we discovered who our finalists were…
The Finale
Despite a little hiccough along the way (cheers, Covid), we were able to finish our final round online with the theme “Proportionizing”, which was won by Zizi Buffet (French drag artist living in Sweden). She joins the other winners of the previous rounds : Lucy Sombralaganzza, Elips, Garnement and Persephone 2.0.
Oh no, I haven’t made a mistake (don’t worry, we study maths in Wales). Following their decision to not participate in the competition, Miss Kahlo Graham will not appear in the grand finale. However, we have the pleasure to announce that the runner-up of the “Outer Space” round will take their place… And that artist is… Spleen!
Yet, there is still someone missing… Due to personal reasons, Chiara (Dalya) has decided to conclude her drag journey. However, she will appear in the grand finale, not as a contestant, but to give us a beautiful performance and explain to us how she reached her decision.
Join us very soon for the grand finale of the very first season of the Drag Games, coming to a screen near you… Watch this space…
Drag Games photos by Solweig Wood, photo of Zizi Buffet by Domka Spytek.