STREAM QUEEN

PREPARE FOR THE

CAMPY, VAMPY HALLOWEEN SPOOKTACULAR TO GAG US ALL

Not every drag show on TV needs to be about a competition. Hulu’s upcoming Huluween Dragstravaganza special is fired up and ready to deliver some pure drag entertainment from start to finish. The premise, according to the trailer, follows All-Stars Monet X Change and Ginger Minj as they land themselves trapped in a television. Their only way out is to host a special joined by other A-listers like Manila Luzon, Monique Heart, Jujubee, Selene Luna, Lady Bunny and Jackie Beat.

Beat, who also serves as a writer on the show alongside gay comedian Justin Martindale and Trace Slobotkin, spoke with The RAGE Monthly to fill us in on what to expect.

“I am absolutely thrilled to not only be starring in it with all these young kids and Lady Bunny, but I actually helped write it,” Beat said. “People are already freaking out over the trailer, so you can imagine how fun the actual special is. Just when you think it can’t get any better, they announce that Kesha is the special guest performer, and she turned it out.”

Gathering a cast of well-known queens whose schedules also lined up for filming was a challenge, especially with how popular the art of drag has become for viewers at home.

“As writers, we’re not really in charge of who’s going to be in it,” Beat said. “I definitely had some input because I felt sort of like I was the ‘drag liaison’ or ‘drag creative consultant,’ and they were really great about admitting that they don’t know the world of drag as much as someone who’s done it for three decades. I’m glad they asked my opinion on so many things, including the casting.”

The cast represents the diversity that drag has become nowadays and shines a light on some of the most popular kings and queens in the industry.

“There’s something for everyone. If you hate Lady Bunny, then I’m there. If you find Manila Luzon annoying, look over at Monet,” Beat said.

With the rising popularity of drag entertainment, the Hulu executives wanted to make sure that the show focused more on the queens singing, dancing, being funny, doing sketches and being goofy. “So that’s what we gave them,” Beat said. “Also, drag plus Halloween is a match made in . . . heaven? Maybe for Halloween we’ll say it’s a match made in hell.”

Outside of the Huluween special, Beat’s also recently premiered a new comedy show on OutTV titled Dr. Jackie Unlicensed Psychotherapist. That show also serves A-listers including Katya, Alaska Thunderfuck, Ben de la Creme, Elvira, and Margaret Cho. It premiered on OutTV in September with episodes running weekly through October 24.

As for the Dragstravaganza special that Beat helped mastermind, Hulu subscribers can stream that when it drops on Saturday, October 1 (which means if you are reading this at any time — go!)

And, in parting advice from Beat, as she says to new queens, “Drag is thankless and hard work. It’s exhausting and there are no guarantees, so you shouldn’t do it. If you’re meant to do it, you’ll ignore everything I just said. And that goes for anything and everything.”

hulu.com

photo courtesy hulu