More than a show
Glitz, glam and most importantly fun are three key components drag performers Art Simone and Pashion Couture hope to bring to Horsham in the future.
The renowned Australian drag performers planned to be in the region on Friday last week, before Victoria’s extended COVID-19 lockdown forced Wimmera Pride Project to cancel its annual Pride Night event.
Despite the cancellation, the LGBTQI advocacy group was keen to rebook the performers when viable to bring a premier drag event to the Wimmera.
Simone, a runner-up in season one of Rupaul’s Drag Race Down Under, said performing drag in Horsham was part of a bigger plan to create safe spaces for LGBTQI people in rural and regional Australia.
“When I first started doing drag, I was one of the rare drag queens that actually had their licence and knew how to drive – that opened me up to opportunities outside of the city,” she said.
“It allowed me to take drag to places I had never been before, where I realised how important it was for local communities.
“My big mission was to create safe spaces and be a part of events where people could come and truly be themselves.”
A sense of isolation living in regional Victoria is what led to one of Simone’s family members taking their own life.
Simone said their death was a big motivation for her to create safe spaces for LGBTQI people in regional and rural Victoria.
“They felt isolated in regional Victoria and didn’t feel comfortable to live as their authentic self,” she said.
“They felt so isolated and it was too much for them to go on. You can feel trapped when you’re not accepted, so it’s quite personal to me to go out there and create these spaces and have representation.”
Simone said she admired the work the pride project was doing to help LGBTQI people to feel comfortable living in the Wimmera.
“Having groups like Wimmera
Pride Project around is so important to be able to connect these people,” she said.
Simone said her interest in drag started at just 15, when she convinced her mother she needed make-up to transform into characters from horror films.
“That’s how I managed to sneak wearing make-up without having to explain why, and it just sort of snowballed from there,” she laughed.
But she said while the aesthetics of make-up and horror films were major sources of inspiration for her, drag also gave her the ability to transform herself into another person.
“Drag for me is like my armour, it’s what gave me my secret identity so I could find that confidence and bring it into my life,” she said.
“I wasn’t happy with who I was in high school, so being able to change myself into someone else was really appealing to me.
“You chuck on make-up and you can become someone different and forget about your own life for a little bit. I really liked the escapism of it.”
It was not long before Simone built the courage to approach venues and started cutting her teeth in Melbourne’s drag scene.
Simone now has accolades as ‘Queen of Australia’, was Drag Performer of the Year for the past two years, and has played roles in Australian feature films, theatrical shows, television programs and commercials.
“It didn’t just happen overnight, I’ve been working so hard over the past 10 years,” she said.
“If I was to go back and tell that 15-year-old boy that I’m going to be a drag queen it would be a shock to see the level and amount of stuff I’ve done and the joy I can bring to people.”
Helping others
Simone said she hoped her performances would encourage others to become comfortable with their authentic selves.
“When I first started drag it was self-indulgent and I was doing it to make me feel a certain way,” she said.
“I realised there was so much more I could do with my drag in helping other people.
“For people seeing me being so confident and true to myself, I hope that can ignite that in someone else.”
Pride project vice-chair Charee Smith said she hoped the group could attract Simone for future pride events.
“It goes without saying that we are keen on having Art and Pashion as a headline event for another pride event, whether that’s for next year’s Pride Night or maybe even a little sooner,” she said.
“She has been so gracious and our relationship with her will hopefully grow.”