“When Change May Seem Impossible”: Forestburgh Playhouse Celebrates LGBTQ+ Expression at Second Annual ‘Drag Me to the Catskills’

The Forestburgh Playhouse in the Sullivan Catskills is hosting its second Drag Me to the Catskills, a weekend-long series of events focused on celebrating drag, from June 13 to 15. Featuring a renowned cast of drag queens, many of whom have been critical to the modern drag movement and drag’s rise in pop culture through hit shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race, the theater is bringing them to Sullivan County to perform for local audiences and visitors.

A night of drag comedy on Friday, June 13 will kick off the weekend , followed by “Wigstock in the Catskills” on Saturday. The second event is a revival of the historic drag festival “Wigstock” that was originally organized by legendary drag queen Lady Bunny, who will be performing on Saturday, and had taken place annually in New York City’s Tompkins Square Park from 1985 to about 2000. The three-day celebration will end on Sunday with brunch and a show led by the queens. Despite Wigstock’s significant hiatus, the Playhouse, which has been showcasing drag and other artistic forms created by the LGBTQ+ community in the 78 years it’s been open, is aiming to continue the festival’s legacy, said director Franklin Trapp.

“Wigstock wasn’t just a party,” Trapp said in an interview with Radio Catskill. “It was addressing the AIDS crisis in the United States, so it’s a pride festival as well. Wigstock was a very important coming together for the community, but it also has a fun tie in with the Woodstock concert, which happened up here in Sullivan County just miles away from the Playhouse in 1969 I believe. So having a drag version of Woodstock happening on our stage, tying us into Pride Month with a connection to the music legacy in our area is an incredible thing.”

Drag Me to the Catskills is the result of collaboration with the Sullivan Catskills Visitors Association and Drag Me to the Stage — an entertainment company, co-owned by longtime drag queen and featured performer Mrs. Kasha Davis, that produces events specifically to showcase drag performers. Commonly referred to by her persona as “international celebrity housewife” and known for her mix of dad jokes and positive messaging, Mrs. Kasha Davis will be performing in all three of the Playhouse’s events.

Since competing on Season 7 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Mrs. Kasha Davis has been teaching at SUNY Brockport as an adjunct professor on a course about drag theory, history and performance and has authored multiple children’s books and TV shows. She said to Radio Catskill that her persona was borne out of a combination of both personal exploration and political expression, having come into their sexuality in the 80s during the AIDS crisis within a family environment that feared the implications of her queerness.

“It means the world to me for two reasons,” Davis said. “One, when I was a child, I was encouraged to actually suppress my femininity. I was told that that was not acceptable, so as Mrs. Kasha Davis, I get to be all of my gender. Two, when I first started and created the character of Mrs. Kasha Davis, it was a time before marriage equality, and I wanted to put that out into the world that, yes, it’s possible for there to be same sex relationships that are marriage-worthy.”

When it comes to drag, Mrs. Kasha Davis emphasizes authenticity — actively incorporating both her own experience growing up gay in Scranton, PA and her journey with sobriety in her drag performance. In its essence, Davis argues that drag is powerful because of its celebration of individuality, which, in many ways, has become an inherently political act.

“I think the honesty is important,” Davis said. There was a time back in Hollywood, where you weren’t allowed to come out. You would never be successful, and this wasn’t even that long ago. So I think it’s so important to do that because the more we are ourselves, we are being authentic, we are being honest […] Drag in general is a platform where I can talk about these things honestly, and drag is always a bit of a protest. And I will finally say that all drag is good. Good drag is great. Bad drag is even better. So get out there and just express yourself.”

In the midst of the U.S. government’s increasing hostility against the LGBTQ+ community, including but not limited to attacks on gender-affirming care and trans inclusion in history, Trapp said there needs to be emphasis on empowering drag artists — including financially — for the work that they are doing. He explains that drag as an art form has long served as a subversive voice, making it that much more critical to preserve as a means of counteracting the decisions being made.

“Now, even more than ever, showing these types of events and celebrating Pride Month and the LGBTQ+ community, is important because of the world that we live in,” Trapp said. “We need to laugh, but we also need to be proud and we need to be strong, and the only way you can do that is by coming together and knowing that there’s a community. That’s how we can accomplish change in a time where change may seem impossible.”

Image: Promotional poster for Drag Me to the Catskills, featuring drag queens Mrs. Kasha Davis, Thorgy Thor, Lady Bunny, Ambrosia Salad and Aggy Dune from left to right. (Photo Credit: dragmetothecatskills.com)