2008 Woodie Awards
Put on your dress: it's time for Dragtoberfest
Benjamin Rauhala
Issue date: 10/27/05 Section: Arts and Entertainment
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The elevator doors of the Tufte Production and Performance Center opened onto a mosh pit-like crowd of somewhere between 200 and 300 members of the Emerson community, all vying for one of 108 available seats for the enormously popular event "Dragtoberfest." A half-hour before the performance was set to begin, the lobby was so packed that entire elevators of people were turned away.
Many people said, as they were turned away from the door, that they were disappointed to find there were not enough seats available for the showcase.
With lavish choreography, raunchy humor and the click-clack of high heels, the Emerson Alliance for Gays, Lesbians and Everyone's (EAGLE) annual Dragtoberfest kicked off the 2005 Family Weekend. This year marked the first time the show had been promoted alongside Family Weekend. The drag show was one of the events planned by the student group to celebrate Lesbian and Gay History Month.
"I feel that EAGLE has done an amazing job putting on such a great event for our campus and community," said junior marketing communications major Michael Lucey, who performed.
Groups of viewers shut out from the Greene Theatre drifted in and out of the lobby to catch a glimpse of the decked-out performers on a small television monitor, with no audio, in the lobby of the theatre. "My son's in this one!" a father excitedly told the house manager.
In the wake of the homophobic graffiti on the door of a residence hall room last week, many members of the Emerson College community, families included, proved to be supportive of gay culture by embracing the cross-dressing performers. The audience was extraordinarily energetic, clapping along with the numbers and cheering the performers on.
Dean of Students Ronald Ludman wrote in an open letter to the Emerson community last Thursday, "The only way we can foster a welcoming and supportive environment for all people is if we challenge all acts of bigotry and incivility that may surface."
Many people said, as they were turned away from the door, that they were disappointed to find there were not enough seats available for the showcase.
With lavish choreography, raunchy humor and the click-clack of high heels, the Emerson Alliance for Gays, Lesbians and Everyone's (EAGLE) annual Dragtoberfest kicked off the 2005 Family Weekend. This year marked the first time the show had been promoted alongside Family Weekend. The drag show was one of the events planned by the student group to celebrate Lesbian and Gay History Month.
"I feel that EAGLE has done an amazing job putting on such a great event for our campus and community," said junior marketing communications major Michael Lucey, who performed.
Groups of viewers shut out from the Greene Theatre drifted in and out of the lobby to catch a glimpse of the decked-out performers on a small television monitor, with no audio, in the lobby of the theatre. "My son's in this one!" a father excitedly told the house manager.
In the wake of the homophobic graffiti on the door of a residence hall room last week, many members of the Emerson College community, families included, proved to be supportive of gay culture by embracing the cross-dressing performers. The audience was extraordinarily energetic, clapping along with the numbers and cheering the performers on.
Dean of Students Ronald Ludman wrote in an open letter to the Emerson community last Thursday, "The only way we can foster a welcoming and supportive environment for all people is if we challenge all acts of bigotry and incivility that may surface."
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