This past weekend I was thrilled to attend the University of Connecticut Rainbow Center’s 2024 annual Drag Show that took place at the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts on March 2, 2024. I also had the immense pleasure of interviewing two student performers prior to the show, whose voices will be included in this article, for an inside look at what it means to get involved in the UConn drag community and break out of your comfort zone.
I have a tandem article to this one, in which I go over all of the night’s spectacular performances and the importance of the UConn Rainbow Center and their resources. Find it on my profile on the UConn University page of Her Campus.
Below is an interview with two student performers and RC employees Alexa Udell (she/her) and Summer Gaspard (she/her) who performed as Alexxxa W.F. Starlight and SMR Couture, respectively. Some answers have been edited for length and clarity.
MC: Interviewer, AU: Alexa, SG: Summer
MC: How long have you been doing drag for?
AU: This is actually my first drag performance. I heard about it because I work at the Rainbow Center which opens up a form for student performers and I just took the opportunity to apply. I was really excited to be chosen for it and I’ve always loved dressing up. One of my major goals for my senior year was to dress up nicely, or at least put effort into my appearance every day. I really like to do fun makeup and stuff like that. Especially with this being the first year that the show is in Jorgensen I feel really honored to be able to perform there.
SG: This is my first drag performance! I really enjoy doing makeup in my free time. I feel like in my more abstract looks I do summon a persona, and I think for the show I’m using that persona to really bring the performance.
MC: What went in to picking out your drag name?
AU: My drag name is the same as my name, Alexa, and then Starlight after the character Starlight. I wanted to have something chill and Avril Lavigne adjacent.
SG: I remember making a song last year, and I wanted a little name for myself. SMR is just derived from my name, Summer, but I also like how it sounds like “some more.” So like, “Do you want some more?” And then couture because I’m really interested in fashion. Then when I started making my playlist I kept hearing the phrase “some more,” so I was like it has to be SMR Couture!
MC: That’s so cool I always thought that would be one of the hardest things to decide when starting to do drag.
SG: Yeah totally, it either has to be funny or sassy but you just have to summon the persona and then it’ll come to you!
MC: With this being your first performance, do you have a method or creative process that has helped you plan for it?
AU: I do photography and I’ve done a lot of different projects and events on the side, so I have experience with event hosting and photography in terms of creative stuff. Whenever I approach things like a performance, I always try to go through piece by piece. First I picked out my name, then started thinking about what songs I wanted to include, what costumes could I wear to these songs, and finally what dancing to do. I’m also gonna try to put together a visualizer for the performance if I can. [Spoiler alert: she did and it was amazing.] Something that inspired my theme for this performance was a post I made on Instagram about a year ago where I had really dark makeup and striking blonde hair. I love to change up my hair colors, going from light in the spring to dark in the fall. I’m taking a lot of inspiration from that look.
SG: Definitely the playlist I’ve been making has helped me get into to the zone. I don’t know if I really have a process. I think that ever since I was a kid there was some part of me that loved attention.
MC: Ha! Same. Did you do theater?
SG: No! But I was stage crew, so I was in there you know. I really wanted to either act or sing, I did ballet for a little bit. I really do just like performing. I think because I’m a senior I’m probably not gonna be a singer as my career, so this is my chance to perform for a community.
MC: A lot of drag artists like to design their own garments, are you making any of your own clothes?
AU: I’ll have to see if I have the time! I don’t really have a lot of experience making clothes. I’m using a lot of pop punk, hyper pop-esque aesthetic with big jackets and accessories from places like Hot Topic, so I’m gonna try to really shine with that. I think Summer’s making some of her own clothes.
SG: That is a big claim. I have made one of my pieces, which I haven’t really done before. As a kid I was super crafty and loved to do things like sew accessories onto backpacks and try to make tops. But I wouldn’t say I make clothes from scratch, until like last week, I don’t have a sewing machine and it definitely took all day but I made it! I just funneled the energy that this needs to look good and it came together.
MC: Have you attended drag performances or been involved in drag community in the past?
AU: I attended the Drag Show last year, my friend Mariah C. Nash was a student performer then. I’m from the West Hartford area so I’ve spent time in the community around there, but I hadn’t really gotten into TV show drag because I don’t watch TV that much. This year I started to get much more into wigs and makeup and just really wanted to give it a shot!
SG: I’ve never made my way to a drag show, although I’ve definitely wanted to. I enjoy watching performances online as well as shows like Rupaul’s Drag Race and Dragula! It’s fun to connect with other fans online, but I’m definitely missing a bigger drag and drag fan community on campus.
MC: Do you have a favorite part of doing drag so far?
SG: I’m gonna say the makeup definitely. I think primarily I’m like a makeup artist, and I love pushing the limits and putting my spin on cool things that I see other people do. I think drag is supposed to be like a story, and I’m excited for my face to tell a story too. Unless I’m taking photos for social media I never really get a chance to go all out. I mean I could go to McDonalds like that, but this is like the moment.
AU: I think my favorite part was mixing the music. I’ve always really liked music and I think it’s really satisfying getting it to come together properly, so I’m really excited for that!
MC: Awesome! Have you ever done anything like DJing before?
AU: DJing is something I’ve never tried personally, but would definitely be interested in doing especially because I’m a fan of genres like EDM and pop punk.
MC: How long does it you to get ready? I feel like it would take me like four hours to get all the way done up.
AU: I don’t really think it takes me a ton of time, probably like one to two hours. I’ve been dyeing and toning my hair over the course of the week which has taken a while, but actually the process of getting ready is not too long!
SG: I love the process of getting ready, it’s like art to me, so yeah honestly up to like four hours if I’m able to take my time and if the look is complex.
MC: Do you have any drag inspirations or do you more so get that from the people around you?
AU: I kinda just do whatever I want. I don’t even really look up makeup tutorials, which is sometimes a bad thing, but I just like to freestyle it. Having done photography I tend to focus a lot on composition and leading lines. I really like certain tropes of makeup but normally I just end up seeing how it works out!
SG: I’m a big Drag Race fan! I really like a ton of iconic queens. I really like Sasha Velour, Peppermint, Sasha Colby.
MC: I saw on the RC instagram you were painted blue in your promo pic, was that inspired by Juno Birch?
SG: Yes! I love Juno Birch! Her base is unreal, it’s like plastic. I even considered that being my drag persona, but that’s her thing! I get so inspired seeing queens perfect their craft in aspects like that, it really excites me, it makes me want to perfect my own thing. I love a lot of lip syncs from Season 15, people like Anetra and Marcia Marcia Marcia, I’ve been like studying them for inspiration.
Do you have a support system to cheer you on through this?
SG: I’m super grateful to have a support system. Alexa has been a huge support, we’re both newbies so we’re bonding over that and figuring things out together. We’re even practicing our dances together and exchanging ideas. My roommates, my boyfriend, and some friends are coming to support me. I’m super excited to give them a show in a way that they haven’t seen me before!
AU: Summer and I have been practicing and helping each other a lot! I’m super excited for the day of because I’m gonna go out with my family for lunch and then spend the rest of the time getting ready. They’re gonna be at the show as well as lots of friends, I’m very excited and grateful.
MC: What would you say the drag community is like at UConn? Have you connected with a lot of people you didn’t know existed before?
SG: I think coming into UConn I wasn’t even aware of the Queer community on campus. And I think if I wasn’t a student employee of the Rainbow Center, if I would have become so passionate about doing the Drag Show, but as an opportunity for me to contribute, and as an employee I was so down. The only drag community I really know are people that have performed in the past. I’m excited to meet the other student and local performers!
AU: I don’t really think there’s a ton of people that do drag at UConn, but my coworker Aqua could help answer this question!
Aqua (RC student employee): For the average person drag is kind of inaccessible because the spaces are generally very particular such as bars and clubs, which we don’t have, at least queer-oriented ones at UConn. Next year leading up to the drag show it could be cool to try to arrange a space where people could explore and get a chance to try it out, which could lead to more student performers if people take an interest. Having the Drag Show be the first time you do drag is a lot, so making a space where people could try it out could be fun. Having a drag club could also be fun!
(Please note this was an idea from an employee and not yet a formal Rainbow Center event.)
MC: Do you have any advice to a UConn student who was thinking about starting to do drag and how to get started?
AU: I would just say shoot your shot honestly! It seems like its a lot looking at the end product, but honestly it’s a really fun process, you can really express yourself a lot and do a lot of really cool things with it. It’s just such a great opportunity to be able to do something fun, and I’m really happy that I went for it!
SG: Sign up for the Rainbow Center’s Drag Show at the next opportunity! Don’t think, just do. Outside of the drag show, summon your inner drag persona and expand the possibilities of queer expression, learn from others, be collaborative, and have fun!
Closing
I am so grateful to Alexa and Summer for allowing me to interview them for this article. It was lovely chatting with them, and I’m so proud of their incredible performances and the dedication it took to get there. To see more of them you can follow them on Instagram: @alexammudell and @summergaspardd.
Be sure to also follow UConn Rainbow Center on Instagram @uconnrainbowctr to keep updated on all of their incredible events and resources for the LGBTQIA+ community on campus.