THE EQUESTRIAN WORLD and the world of drag queens would seem to have almost nothing in common, except these two people: Tracy Patterson and Shay Fox.
Shay is a drag queen of over two decades. She was new to the horse world after marrying her husband who is a riding instructor. Tracy and Shay met when Tracy’s daughter began to ride with Shay’s husband. Tracy and Shay quickly connected and became close friends. In 2021, they went into business together and started ‘Divas of the Northwest’ as co-owners of TPAT Productions, a drag production company that produces shows throughout Kitsap and the greater Seattle area.
“We were overwhelmed by the support of the community,” Tracy said.
In the spring of 2022, they sold out their first drag show in downtown Bremerton at the Roxy Theatre. They have had three successful shows in that historic Bremerton venue since, and their next show is a Halloween Extravaganza on Oct. 25 at that same location.
“We bring a different type of drag to Kitsap,” Shay explains.
Shay’s first experience with drag, like many other queens, was for a Halloween costume when a group of friends wanted to go in costume as the girls from “Sex in the City.”
She started performing in Texas, which has a long history with pageant drag. Drag pageantry is modeled after beauty pageants for cis women. The queens compete against each other in a series of categories, and one comes out the winner. Seattle has a long history in the punk and grunge scenes, which significantly influences much of the drag here. As one might imagine, this area’s drag looks a little different than Shay’s style of pageant drag, which is full of beautiful gowns and big hair.
The Divas Of The Northwest group has seven performers, each with their own style, including two queens local to Kitsap: Kingston’s Miss Clara Voyance and Bremerton’s Bombshell Barbie Hannah MiaJoint St. James.
They do a wide range of events, from the feature shows at the Roxy to drag brunches at various bars and restaurants to cabaret shows at Julia’s on Broadway — Seattle’s longest-running drag dinner theater cabaret which has hosted over twenty years of award-winning drag. In addition to public events, The Divas also do private events, and soon, they will be hosting regular monthly shows at Cafe Hitchcock on Bainbridge Island.
Last spring, I had the pleasure of attending a show at the Roxy. The energy from the performers and the crowd was contagious. One of my favorite performances of the night came from Clara Voyance, who performed multiple songs in a beautiful dress that was made to look like a flower. Performers danced on stage, as well as throughout the audience. Everyone was dancing and singing along. The show took place right as anti-drag bills were being brought up in states like Texas, Florida and Tennessee. With all that going on, the show served as a reminder that there is still space for LGBTQ+ people to come together and have fun.
“I found my place in the community through drag,” says Shay, speaking of the LGBTQ+ community. “I think there’s a misconception around joining the community and finding your place in the community.”
While many believe when a person comes out, they automatically join a community. The reality is they only truly join the community when they find their people within it. Young LGBTQ+ people often struggle to find their place in the community. Queer spaces are often unavailable to younger queer people. Drag shows that are open to their age group can serve as a place for them to find the community they are looking for. Divas of the Northwest are helping to hold that space while others are trying to destroy these spaces.When asked how they dealt with the anti-drag legislation, Shay said, “We really held close the safety of our performers.” The queens are available for hire, but it was important to them not to put any of their queens in a situation, such as a drag story hour, where they would be in the middle of any controversy. When I asked Shay her opinion on kids’ exposure to drag, she said, “Hate is taught. Children don’t see us as men in dresses. They see us as princesses.” // KEELY RIGGS
TPAT PRODUCTIONS HOSTS Divas of the Northwest Halloween Extravaganza at 6 p.m., Oct. 25 at The Roxy Theatre, Bremerton. Tickets and more at tpatproductions.com and on the socials.
