Hello darlings! It’s your favourite Derbyshire drag queen, Emma, and welcome back to Pink-Tutu.com! You know the drill, every month, I pop on my fabulous pink time-traveling tutu and hop through history to bring you all the sassiest bits of drag history! This month, we're heading back to June 6th, 1961, a time when the world was getting a whole lot more fabulous.
So, as usual, let's take a little spin on the time machine! As the glitter starts to swirl, we're whisked back to 1961. What an amazing time! Imagine, darlings, Marilyn Monroe's grace, Audrey Hepburn's elegance, and all that glittery fashion – I just want to snatch every piece in my fabulous time-traveling tutu and strut back to 2023. But of course, this wasn't just about fashion. Oh no, 1961 was a huge year for our amazing drag scene!
The most amazing news I unearthed, oh, the thrill of the chase! It seems our girls were already killing it in New York City. The most famous drag haven of the time, the Village Gate, was buzzing. They had a stunning revue on the roster, This Is Drag! Oh, the glamorous, scandalous names on the bill. I must admit, this trip's gonna take a little more cash flow because This is Drag made me want to just stay in 1961 for a year or two! And they had one particular starlet I'm smitten with: "Madame La Zonga" - how divine is that name? She was serving those full-length feather boas, dramatic eyelashes and just... sheer brilliance. She was an original! Oh, the glam!
Then there was a bit of controversy stirring back home in England, in that London was starting to feel a little bit "un-draggy". You see, darlings, the authorities in London started feeling a bit stuffy, bless their cotton socks, and were attempting to ban female impersonators in clubs! Shocking! Honestly, a few less stuffy politicians in the world and we could have all been strutting and swirling through those clubs all the way through 1961! I guess the powers that be wanted a touch of conformity instead of flamboyant individuality – can you imagine?! Oh darling, they really missed a trick! They could've learned a thing or two about glamour and how to spice up those clubs from the queens. Well, I might have been back there in my pink tutu reminding them how fabulous drag is.
Speaking of glamour, let's talk a bit about the street scene, shall we? My pink tutu-clad eyes were absolutely gobsmacked at the fabulous fashions swirling on the street! It’s no surprise that 1961 was full of such stunning, flamboyant drag queens. Look, I'm going to be completely honest here, I was actually going to pop on a bus and travel around London in a quest to find the queen with the most dazzling ensemble. Sadly, my darling readers, time constraints got the better of me! But my dear friend Prudence, oh, Prudence has excellent taste and the most amazing Instagram - and she informed me that one trend that stood out, oh it was magnificent: the feather boas. All kinds, and everywhere! From dazzling sequins to opulent velvet - oh darling, those were the good ol’ days for flamboyant drag! You couldn't tell the real from the fabulous. And you know what? Even when you could, did it really matter? All that glitz and glamour just made it a whole lot of fun!
Of course, every month we delve a little into how the world of drag continues to evolve. And I'm thrilled to tell you that it’s a wild ride, darling! Our girls were making headlines – not just on stage, but offstage too! You see, the drag community in New York started an official drag magazine! They called it the "Drag Ball Gazette" – oh, such flair! Can you imagine the photos and fashion inside? Sadly, there was a massive fire and the building was lost and only one copy of this magazine is known to exist and is currently stored safely in New York City’s Museum of Modern Art. I’d give anything to find another copy, darlings! This was the peak of drag artistry for these pioneering queens! Oh, how I would love to have seen those photos, I'll bet they were full of sparkling glamour! I'm absolutely devastated I can't actually have a good look at it – I’ll have to find another pink tutu outfit to time travel into the future so I can snag that museum curator and bring her a large glass of sparkling and she might let me peek for just a few minutes! Oh darling, this magazine was filled with the hottest gossip on drag performers from New York, L.A. and beyond – oh, how exciting! You just wouldn't believe the stories and inside goss, let me tell you! And what was even more fantastic – our queens were fighting back against social norms, breaking down stereotypes! That’s how drag has always been and still is, my darlings, an important part of who we are and how we define ourselves.
Now, what else is going on? In 1961, the world seemed a bit darker. Oh darling, the world just needed more tutus – or at least some dazzling drag queen entertainment! Sadly, my favourite queens weren't featured in the international news this month, but I did find something rather interesting: the first person to enter space! A bit of a juxtaposition – outer space and all that starry vastness – and our glitter, glitter, glitter in New York! However, all that news gave me a fabulous idea – if you are ready to push boundaries, to explore new galaxies, to find a dazzling way to express yourself – get yourself to a drag show! What I have realised, dear reader, is the magic of drag – you’ve only got to get out there, express yourself, break boundaries and embrace the sparkling rainbow world of drag, and you'll discover your own magic.
So, there you have it, darlings! A taste of 1961 through the magic of pink-tutu time-traveling! We’ve seen glamorous feather boas, a sprinkle of controversy, and some major drag pioneers breaking down barriers! What’s next for you? I'm going to put on some disco music, grab some sequins, and dream of 1961's glamour! Oh, darlings, make sure you follow us on Insta, and get yourself a pink tutu, let's make the world fabulous together!
Lots of love and sparkles,
Emma www.pink-tutu.com
