Melbourne Drag Icon Art Simone is heading to Aotearoa this October to perform at Palmy Drag Fest. She talks to Oliver Hall about how to make it as a drag queen, with or without the Race.
“I definitely would!” Art replies when I ask the fateful question of whether she would sign up to do Drag Race again.
“If you’d asked me that two years ago, I would have said ‘definitely not’, but I have a lot more confidence in myself now,” she explains with a conviction that makes me wonder if she has already secretly been cast on an international season.
Art’s journey on Drag Race Down Under Season One was an odd experience to watch. A shock early elimination led to many memes of Art dressed as a sea witch, telling a producer that it meant ‘nothing’ to be cast on the show and not make the final – only for Art to be brought back by Ru with no justification as to why she was being chosen to return over the other eliminated queens.
“When I did the first season, I had a lot of expectations to live up to. But now I’ve already lost, so what’s the worst that could happen? I lose again? Boring!” she laughs.
Talking to us over Zoom from her drag room at home, Art exudes happiness and warmth. She describes her life since Down Under as ‘fabulous!’
“It’s opened up a new set of opportunities for me,” she explains.
“There’s nothing better than the seal of approval from Mama Ru. You don’t get everything handed to you. You still have to work really hard. But it means there’s a few more doors that you can knock on and go, ‘Hello, there’s a drag queen here!’”
While the Drag opportunities in Australia may be more plentiful, the country is yet to produce a Drag Race winner, while New Zealand has already chalked up two!
“It’s just the way the cookie crumbles,” Art says, shaking her head in what seems like disbelief. “Look, we’ve had two fierce Kiwi winners, and we’ll claim Spanky [Jackzon] as our own because she lived in Melbourne for like 10 years!” she laughs, before poignantly pointing out, “At the end of the day, the winner isn’t the person with the crown. The winner is the person that takes the platform and does what they can with it.”
While Drag Race Down Under’s (DRDU) platform has catapulted our queens to stardom and its second season received critical acclaim, many fans have questioned if its casting accurately portrays the antipodean drag scene. Art believes it will take time for the show to truly achieve that.
“The cast is so small. Seven Australian queens and three from NZ. I don’t think we’ll have accurate representation until we’ve had four or five seasons.”
Thus far, the franchise has only cast AMAB (assigned male at birth) drag queens, but Art believes that diversifying this will only improve the show.
“We’ve got so many fabulous AFAB (assigned female at birth) artists and Drag Kings, and trans women who are amazing showgirls…. If it was me casting, I’d be listening to what the wider audience is saying. They want to see Kings and new types of people. We’ve had AMAB drag queens for 15 years. Our drag world and scene is so much more diverse than that,” she says passionately.
For those drag artists not currently getting cast, Art offers advice on how to stand out from the crowd.
“Do things that other people aren’t doing, and don’t be afraid to take drag to places it hasn’t been before. There are only so many gay bars, but so many people love drag, so take it outside of those venues. That’s where I had a lot of success early on. I was travelling all throughout regional parts of the country doing drag events to audiences that never got it. That not only helped me pay the bills, but it also built up my talent and confidence with crowds,” she says.
Art’s wise words echo the actions of Henrique Beira, aka Rhubarb Rouge, the Palmerston North-based drag queen who began NZ’s first drag festival, Palmy Drag Fest, which coincidentally is bringing Art to our shores.
Talking about her plans for Palmy Drag Fest, Art says audiences can expect ‘the classic, camp, colourful drag that you love!’
“I’ll be adding in one of my silly stand-up sets and telling a few jokes to make everyone laugh. I don’t feel like I have connected to an audience unless I’ve gotten on a microphone and barked at you!” she adds.
Art’s sense of humour and expert comic timing is perfectly showcased on Kick Ons, a companion YouTube series Art produced to coincide with DRDU Season Two. Kick Ons saw Art joined by a guest drag artist to critique the show, ala The Pitt Stop for Drag Race US.
“We really wanted to do something that actually had an Australian voice to it, because Down Under was still hosted by a team of Americans, and even the bigwigs calling the shots are still the American production team. Kick Ons is our way of highlighting what makes our humour special,” she explains proudly.
Independently produced by Art and fellow Melbourne drag queens Lazy Susan and Mum, Kick Ons has thus far struggled to get funding despite being a hilarious must-watch for fans of Drag Race and Australian humour in general.
“We built the set ourselves. I was paying all the guests. So, for this next season, we’re really hoping to get a sponsor on board to help cover the costs because, with the hours of editing, it’s a labour of love,” Art divulges while confirming that Kick-Ons will continue to run parallel with the up and coming third season of DRDU.
To see Art Simone perform live at Palmy Drag Fest, grab your tickets from Ticketek. Catch up on Art’s shows Kick Ons and Art Therapy on YouTube and Highway To Heel on WOW+.
Article | Oliver Hall. Photoshoot | Peter Foster.
