USD drag show sees students strut in first performance since 'minors on campus' rule
The student group Spectrum: Gender and Sexuality Alliance at the University of South Dakota hosted its biannual drag show Tuesday night, complete with dozens of performances, costume changes, dance moves, cartwheels, flips and tips given out to the performers.
This show marked the first student-led drag show held on any public college campus in South Dakota since the Board of Regents passed a policy barring minors from attending events like this one.
That “minors on campus” policy was sparked by outrage from conservative lawmakers about a drag show held at South Dakota State University and hosted by the Gender and Sexualities Alliance, which initially promoted the event as being family-friendly.
At one point, lawmakers tried last legislative session to prohibit such shows from being held on public college campuses, but both bills failed by the end of session.
More: USD student group prepares to host first drag show since SDBOR 'minors on campus' policy passed
Multiple USD staff and students were checking attendees’ driver’s licenses and student identification at the door to prove they were 18 or older before they could enter the event.
More than 100 people attended the show, including USD students, professors and staff, as well as Vermillion community members. Many of them applauded and screamed as the drag artists revealed their outfits, flipped, lip synced to songs or did death drops. Some gave tips to the drag artists as they performed and danced through the crowd.
The show included first-ever performances from new student drag artists Catha Dor, Brandon Cattle and Marie Bell Peep and repeat performances from Pollie Esther, Kassie Kain, Brandi Sour, Vodka Lynn Shakers, Kyra Rose Shakers, Devin Shakers, Viola Velvet and Alessandra Jacobs.
Catha Dor, a USD sophomore whose drag name is a play on “catheter,” said their drag look is inspired by goth fashion and goth music. They wanted their first performance to make people question who and what they are.
“Drag shouldn’t have been in a negative political eye,” she added.
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Brandon Cattle, a USD freshman whose drag name is a play on “branding cattle,” said he got into drag on a dare and came up with his persona because he wanted to poke fun at his small town roots. He giddied up the crowd with a dance routine set to “Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” by Big & Rich.
Marie Bell Peep, a USD freshman, said they wanted to try drag out with their friends and their look Tuesday night was inspired by their love for “Beetlejuice,” which they recently saw in Sioux Falls at the Washington Pavilion.
Vodka Lynn Shakers, the drag persona of Judas Holmberg, started their drag career at USD before graduating in 2021. While at USD, Holmberg was an active member of Spectrum and served as the organization’s president for two years.
“When I first started, it didn’t make a big wave,” Holmberg said about the politics or public attention surrounding college drag shows. “By my second or third year, it was mentioned in the Legislature. In the last two years since the first anti-trans bills made it a bigger thing, (drag) has been lumped into the same issue.”
Once the SDSU drag show gained negative attention last year, Holmberg said USD started seeing more of the same “unnecessary hype.” The politicization of drag has made Holmberg and their fellow drag artists feel more restricted, they said, adding the policy change has left out high school students who wanted to see the show.
More: Taking aim at drag shows, South Dakota Board of Regents pass 'minors on campus' policy
Campus drag shows are more student-oriented, Holmberg explained, and it’s not the same kind of performance one might see at an LGBTQ+-friendly bar.
Elias Donstad, an English graduate student at USD and a Spectrum member for the last two to three years, said the politicization of drag has meant the student group takes more care in organizing the event because “we don’t want there to be any room for criticism.”
Martina Shakers emceed the event, as she’s done for more than a decade at USD. She said she’s also emceed for student-led drag shows at South Dakota State University and Augustana University. Throughout the event, she offered humorous social commentary about the performances.
More: Political activism is not 'seeping' into SD universities, Regents say
Student organizations at SDSU, USD and other colleges in South Dakota have hosted drag events for decades on campus. USD’s Spectrum group has held drag shows at least once each semester since 1991.
Spectrum’s drag show is part of its event schedule for LGBTQIA+ History Month, including a trivia night, movie showings, history night, and an appearance in the Dakota Days parade.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: USD Spectrum: Gender and Sexuality Alliance hosts fall 2023 drag show
