The drag queens who want to change how we think about gender roles and dressing up
- Reality show Ru Paul’s Drag Race brought drag to the mainstream, but some think it’s too pretty and sexualised
- Hong Kong fashion designers Gabor Zsoka and Wilson Li believe everyone should be able to do drag, no matter their gender
With thick foundation, glossy blue eye shadow and what looks like confetti sprinkled on his cheeks, Gabor Zsoka, a German fashion designer in Hong Kong, is halfway through his “light make-up” routine. The 33-year-old – whose stage name is Zsa Zsa Who? – slips out of his T-shirt and shorts and into a skin-coloured dress before putting on a pair of black high-heeled boots and a blonde wig.
Everyone can do drag, no matter how you define your identity or sexuality, says Philip Howell-Williams, director of Pink Season.
“It’s a very broad spectrum. So it really enables people to just try something different, whether they are being themselves and just trying on different styles of clothing, or being a completely different personality – almost like acting.”
Howell-Williams says that many Hongkongers are usually reserved and quiet, but when dressed up in drag, they have completely different personalities: “It’s about empowerment, and being able to express different parts of your personality.”