Behind the Scenes of the UWM Drag Show: Conversations with a Drag Queen

The backstage area of the Miller High Life Theater exists in bold contrast to the grandeur of the lobby. The walls are a shade of off-white familiar to those who’ve spent time in a hospital. The pale grey concrete floors aide to the echoing of shoes and voices down the lonely corridors. It is a funny sort of irony that this mediocre monolith is home tonight to the kind of vibrant showmanship one would find on the Vegas strip. 

A hallway on the second floor is lined with wooden doors on either side. Next to each door hangs the names of performers who, for the evening, made these rooms their personal salons. The smell of hairspray invades the nostrils. There is a dull murmur of voices and laughter muted by walls.

On a campus that strives towards inclusive excellence, it comes as no surprise that UW-Milwaukee’s annual Drag Show is one of the most anticipated events of the year. On this particularly dreary night, as rain pummeled the streets of Milwaukee, the Miller High Life Theater proved a glittering refuge from the elements for the Drag Show’s 20^thanniversary.

The Comic Strip Queen

We approached the dressing room of Matt3 F!n!sh, and knocked on the door. A gentle voice beckoned us to come in. Matt3 was perched on a brown office chair, their hair hidden under a brown beanie and their face painted in remarkable shades of green and blue. We exchanged the common formalities between interviewer and interviewee as Matt3 absentmindedly observed their makeup in the light-lined mirrors that covered either side of the room. 

“It usually takes me 3-4 hours to get ready, if I can have that amount of time,” Matt3 says. It was over two hours to showtime, “I don’t like to rush myself, I like to…marinate… if that makes sense.”

Matt3 is a calm presence, contrary to the firecracker persona that would later take the stage. An illustrator and an artist as well, Matt3 finds inspiration for their drag makeup from comic book characters and art. Their love for color is apparent in their assortment of makeup.

On a Styrofoam head to the right of Matt3’s array of beauty products is a chin-length lavender wig.

“I love to use this ‘box of crayons’ eyeshadow pallet,” Matt3 says with a laugh, motioning to a well-loved assortment of bold eyeshadows, “She’s been through it. I use a lot of BH cosmetics. Their eyeshadow pallets, I feel like they have a lot of really cool colors but they’re not as pigmented as this box of crayons.”

“Even in my illustrations I love to use so many colors,” Matt3 says, “Complementary colors. Things that you think would clash but go really well together.”

Matt3 is a self-proclaimed ‘drag race baby’, RuPaul’s Drag Race, that is. Matt3 credits the show for introducing them to the art of drag. Taking the fantastical glamour of RuPal’s Drag Race to reality is a lot of work and dedication, Matt3 expresses.

“You’re gonna look busted,” Matt3 says with a wry laugh, “You’re not gonna look good the first time. You’re just not. I know a lot of people who say ‘oh, I want to have a polished look’, but you’re not going to have a polished look unless you look busted first.”

Matt3 reinforces the importance of practice relating the art of makeup to the art of drawing. Matt3 boasts nearly a year of drag experience after first appearing in their school’s talent show last March. After many months of trial and error and monetary investment, they’ve accomplished a persona that holds its own next to the most seasoned Drag Queens of the evening.

“It definitely made me more confident, even my boy self,” Matt3 says. Each Drag Queen refers to their identities differently. Some prefer she/her pronouns when in drag and he/him pronouns when in plainclothes, others prefer they/them all the time. When it comes to pronouns, it is always a good idea to just ask. Matt3 doesn’t have a preference, and feels their drag persona is just another side to who they are.

“I think gender is a concept that I’m just playing with,” Matt3 says, “I eventually want to do drag that’s just androgynous, alien kind of.”

Matt3 beams at the thought of the array of colors they could use in an alien persona. Currently a student at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, Matt3 speaks about their drag look as a painter would an empty canvas, or a potter would a lump of clay. Matt3 feels drag has instilled in them a sense of confidence that sticks with them even when they aren’t in drag. The art of drag has helped them to observe their gender identity and help them express it.

“I wear makeup too as a boy,” Matt3 says, “I keep saying a boy, but I mean as a being… I’m kind of genderfluid. You almost feel like you kind of border this line. I was doing drag a lot this summer, not necessarily being booked, but I was just practicing my makeup and getting in full regalia and going out and you kind of feel this like… I don’t know if its dysphoria, just kind of ‘who am I?’, and I feel like everyone probably experiences that once in their lifetime. But once I pushed through that, I feel like I really know who I am now.”

The Old-School Hollywood Beauty

“Just let me throw this robe on,” said Dita Von as we passed through the threshold into the dressing room directly to the right of Matt3’s. 

She quickly draped a seafoam colored floral robe around her shoulders; down her back fell the kind of dramatic curls you’d find on the head of Brooke Shields. Dita had spent the last few hours preparing for her fourth time performing at the UWM Drag Show. Two of Dita’s favorite drag queen-approved makeup brands are Mehron Makeup and Ben Nye.

“Theater makeup is heavier,” Dita explains, “So once you’re hit with lights, it doesn’t wash you out.”

Dita can typically be found captivating the audiences of Milwaukee’s gay bars every weekend. Tonight, the change of scenery is a real pleasure. Originally from Manitowoc, Dita has been an active member of the Milwaukee drag scene for five years now. Dita first sparked an interest in the art of drag before she moved to the 414; a former fellow cast member in a community theater production began performing in drag. Dita recalls being fascinated by the photographs of her cast mate in drag.

“I used to do musical theatre,” Dita says, her heavily lashed eyes alight, “And now, drag is my outlet. I just love to perform.”

Dita’s drag aesthetic is inspired by the timelessness of Old Hollywood. She prides herself on making many of her own costumes. Dita would later take the stage in a sequin-adorned, legless playsuit that looks like it was pulled straight from a costuming room on Broadway.

“Yes, it’s odd!” Dita exclaims when asked if she feels more comfortable in drag. A full-time florist when she’s not clad head to toe in Hollywood majesty, Dita finds it easier to interact in larger social situations when she’s in drag.

“Confidence, it’s a demand,” Dita says, “When you’re going out to perform for people, they want to see a good show. The confidence is a must when you hit the stage.”