‘We Will Face You Head On’: Drag Artists Crash Trump’s First Kennedy Centre Show
Image: Photos: Julian Applebaum / The Advocate.
At the opening night performance of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center, four local drag performers entered the theatre to cheers and applause. In contrast, the arrival of President Donald Trump, was met with a mixed reaction, but noticeable boos.
The President, along with First Lady Melania Trump, and Vice President J.D. Vance, were booed, with some chants of “USA”, and some patrons yelling ‘Fuck Trump’. CCN reports that another patron was ejected after yelling, “Convicted felon! rapist!”
Dressed in full drag and mingling with right-wing figures such as Jim Jordan and Laura Loomer, the four artists — Tara Hoot, Vagenesis, Mari Con Carne and Ricky Rosé — represented a growing movement of protest against President Trump’s anti-LGBTQIA+ agenda.
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Kennedy Center tickets organised through drag activism network Qommittee
The drag performers secured their tickets through Qommittee, a drag activism network which has called on Kennedy Center donors to suspend funding in protest of the president’s changes. The group received donated tickets from season pass holders boycotting the event.
Trump assumed control of the Kennedy Center in February; appointing himself chairman, dismissing existing trustees, and banning “DRAG SHOWS, OR OTHER ANTI-AMERICAN PROPAGANDA”.
Despite this, Les Misérables, a musical about revolution and state repression, remains on the program. Video from the opening night showed rows of empty seats, reflecting what staff have described as a steep drop in attendance and subscriptions since the takeover.
Qommittee, which includes survivors of hate crimes such as the Club Q and Pulse nightclub shootings, said the protest was about visibility and artistic freedom. “This is about who gets to exist in public spaces and whose stories get to be told on America’s stage,” a spokesperson told Entertainment Weekly. “We’re not going anywhere. Americans don’t have to agree on everything, but we should be able to speak our minds and perform our art without bans, retaliation, or intimidation.”
Motivated by political and personal concerns
Mari Con Carne, a drag queen and immigrant, said her motivation was both personal and political.
“As a drag queen, I wanted it to be known that you can prevent us from performing on your stages, but you can’t erase us from your presence,” Con Carne told The Advocate. “As an immigrant, I wanted it to be known that we aren’t going anywhere and we will face you head on with every ounce of courage that we have.”
Tara Hoot, who regularly performs at children’s story time events, told NPR, “We wanted to support the artists and bring attention to the drag ban by showing up and being gorgeous” and that “I often read books about being brave, being strong, and being true to who you are … showing up to the Kennedy Center with my fellow drag stars allowed me to live those words and lessons for all to see.”
Vagenesis emphasised that their presence was intended not to disrupt the show, but to affirm their right to public space.
“Hopefully this lets that fool and his whole administration know that we will always exist no matter what kind of narrative he wants to spin,” she said. “And we aren’t here to hurt or groom or manipulate anybody. We just wanna enjoy art.”
Kennedy Center locked down for event
While Hoot stated that “The regular Kennedy Center staff were really warm in greeting us and thanking us for being there and telling us how gorgeous we were” NPR reports that there was a large police presence, including police dogs and drones.
The performers were initially unsure whether they would be allowed in – “I was nervous because we just had no idea what the reception was going to be, if we were even going to be allowed inside—even though there’s no official dress code for the Kennedy Center and we were ticketed,” said Hoot.
NPR also reports that several streets were blocked off, all patrons were subjected to security screens, and only ticket-holders were allowed into the building.
While the drag protest was a peaceful act of sitting and watching a musical, “the simple act of going out in a face of drag makeup is in and of itself a protest,” Vagenesis told The Washingtonian. “The ‘we’re here, we’re queer, get used to it’ mantra is cliché, but it has a lot behind it.”
