Drag queen

Drag queens are performers - usually gay men, sometimes transgendered women - who dress in "drag," clothing associated with the female gender, usually highly exaggerated versions thereof. Drag queens often do drag to perform, singing or lip-syncing and dancing, participating in events such as gay pride parades, cabarets, discotheques, and other celebrations and venues.

Drag Shows and Venues

A drag show consists of a variety of performances by a group of drag queens meant to entertain an audience. They range from amateur performances at small bars to elaborately staged theatrical presentations at venues created for the very purpose of said show. In many countries, these shows are known as travesty shows, and the performers not as drag queens, but "travesty" or "transvestite" artists. Though there are variants to a drag show, the following are almost always definite:

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• In most shows, the performing artists will lip synch to a song (or several songs) while performing a pre-planned pantomime. If the song is a ballad, a dramatic interpretation will accompany it; if it is up-tempo, the performer will dance. In shows where the performers actually sing, the accompanying show is usually less pronounced.
• In many areas, the audience is encouraged (or even expected) to tip each performer by approaching the stage perimeter and handing her a dollar bill (or more); this money rarely means a profit for the performer, who uses these tips to pay for costumes, wigs, make-up and more.
• The performers will be in elaborate costumes that are either comical, glamorous or specifically catered to resemble the ensemble of a specific performer whose song they are performing.