By Danny Acosta Jr.****[ A note from Michael Barbieri: Danny Acosta Jr. is a good friend of mine and another big admirer of the art of drag. In 2017 and 2018, he attended DragCon NYC simply as a fan. From one year to the next, I saw how big the convention was becoming and felt I’d have an easier time covering it with an assistant. Danny became that assistant and was invaluable to me! On the final day of the convention, I asked him if he’d be interested in writing a piece describing his experience of being a part of DragCon— but from the inside this time, as a member of the press. This is his article. And, thank you, Danny!]
Oh, Honey, DragCon NYC is the place to be if you want to see all the EXTRA and feel the love!
The art of drag has been reaching new heights each and every day, with its ability to inspire millions and bring people together for great causes. For New York City and Los Angeles, RuPaul’s DragCon brings together many different factions of the drag community and invites everyone to have a good time, while spreading love to everyone in attendance. Whether you want to watch the queens “werk that puss” or “werk” it yourself, DragCon is the place to show diversity and creativity in more ways than one.
DragCon began life in L.A. in 2015. In 2017, NYC was invited to join the party. That year, I had the pleasure of taking myself to the Jacob K. Javits Center to witness the drag community unite for another weekend of fun and fabulousness. This third year of the NYC convention allowed me to change up my usual VIP experience and see it all in a whole new light, assisting my friend Michael Barbieri as a member of the press. I had the chance to speak with many queens, meet delightful vendors and exhibitors and even take home some really good hot sauce! If you want to know how much fun I had, then just keep reading!
On the first day of the convention, many of my adventures took place simply walking around the show floor. One of the first stops was an area set aside for colorful Drag Race themed photo-op backdrops. If you were not getting all up in Club 96, then you were missing out, Honey! I mean, nothing is better than knowing you’re sitting in The Hive—the “pop-up club” where Manila released the bees! We also met the Drag Race U.K. girls on the Pink Carpet during an open meet-and-greet. This is the first time in herstory that I’ve met any Drag Race queens before their season premiere—quite a personable experience. As I wandered, I was able to scout out many other Ru Girls and get fully comfortable with the convention floor layout before Saturday arrived and kicked us all into high gear. All of the panel discussions were held at the south end of the convention hall, with white tape marking the panel waiting lines. The panels were well organized, keeping attendees in their proper lines and making room for each panel accordingly. I felt this year’s convention was held with consideration to many comments and concerns made by patrons of last year’s event; they had the perfect amount of space to hold all of the fun! There was even a family friendly Kid Zone near the Main Stage, where various queens and other entertainers came out to do little shows and story hours for many of Drag Race’s youngest fans.
Saturday, the second day, was a big day for all the queens, vendors, staff, press, children, pets and even the air! All hands were on deck and every nail, lash and wig were on fleek! Many of the show’s best-known queens congregated on the Pink Carpet to watch RuPaul cut the ribbon that would officially open DragCon to the public. Not long after, those same queens would walk, one by one, onto the Main Stage runway and down the length of the Pink Carpet, strutting their stuff for everyone to see! From there it was time to explore and socialize some more. I got myself up to the Press Room and was introduced to a number of fabulous, fascinating people, including designer Diane Von Fürstenberg and Angele Anang, the winner of Drag Race Thailand Season 2. Many stories were shared and the fanboy in me was internally screaming until my lungs shriveled, but this felt like much more than a fan meeting his idols. There were so many amazing personalities and outrageous outfits presented that weekend, that if you didn’t find some sort of artistic inspiration, you needed to be looking harder! During Saturday’s big rush, I also had the pleasure of meeting such fabulous queens as Nina West and Shuga Cain. I came to understand and feel the passion they share towards drag and presenting their characters for the public’s entertainment. This wasn’t merely about the convention and bringing their Drag Race image to the people—it was about having fun with the fans who idolize them and being able to express gratitude for the love shown by their admirers around the world.
Sunday was a day to get more familiar with the vendors displaying merchandise around the convention floor. Big names like Mike’s Hard Lemonade and smaller indie brands like Shaquanda’s Hot Pepper Sauce were on full display, along with product pamphlets, business cards and websites to inform patrons of their products. I even got to sample some of the products myself! If you wanted to grab a hand fan or a plush toy taxidermy head, there were plenty of those as well! Each vendor had great energy behind their merchandise and you could tell that this was a place to do good business and make great connections. And all of this took place while listening to RuPaul’s awesome DJ set list. This wasn’t just a convention, Honey. It was a PARTY!
Overall, I feel DragCon NYC 2019 was a big hit. The convention was well organized and everyone involved brought a lot of love and energy to the proceedings as in previous years. I’m hoping next year’s event will be even better, especially after the premieres of the newest seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race. There’s always new talent coming to the table and I’m sure DragCon NYC 2020 will bring a higher love for drag, trans and queer communities around the world.
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