SUNY Oneonta presents Shangela
OH SO … You wanna know the T on Shangela?!? Ok, well here it is … (and for ya’ll that aren’t drag lingo saavy, “T” means the info, the bizness, the low-down … you know, the T!) THE STORY STARTS with a lil’ boy with big personality and even bigger hair. A native of Paris, Texas (yes, that’s the second largest city of Paris in the world!), I grew up as an only child with a single Army vet mom, a hard-working aunt and the most lovable ‘church-every-Sunday’grandparents you can imagine. My grandpa was a pig & cattle farmer ranchhand (yes, my roots are THAT country), but luckily I didn’t follow in the family biz … I mean, Louboutins don’t exactly stomp well through pasture mud. I spent my childhood singing in the church choir, kicking butt in Atari Pole Position and tracing dresses from the bridal section of my granny’s JCPenney catalog. I WASN’T OPENLY GAY in high school, but trust me, I was GAY. I went to senior prom with my best friend (shout out Miss Sono!), and I used to dress in drag to get A’s on my creative English projects (For my book report on Huck Finn, I re-wrote the lyrics of Proud Mary and performed it to my class as Tina Turner … who was I foolin’? LOL). THE NEXT YEARS FLEW BY … graduated high school, graduated college (Go Mustangs!), got my first taste of gay clubs, tipped a many drag queen, danced back up for the pageant girls, studied abroad for a year in Madrid, worked for a year on the Hill, fell in love, fell outta love, worked in PR (shout out T.G.I. Friday’s!) … and then I moved to LA to follow my dream of becoming an actor … but after a few small music video roles, I landed back in a cubicle at a PR firm. ENTER SHANGELA … In early 2009, I choreographed three guys to do ‘Single Ladies’ in drag for a sober charity event at the HERE Lounge in LA. The night before the show, one of the guys backed out and the other two asked me to fill in. I didn’t have makeup, a wig or even tucking panties!…but the Drag Gods (shout out Ron, Brad & Ricky) descended and the show went on! The club’s promoter offered me a booking the next week … and thus, Shangela was created. Five months after performing shows in LA, I was cast on Season 2 of Rupaul’s Drag Race! I quit my job and set off to become the next drag Superstar…but I was sent sashaying away after only the first episode. I was left jobless in the middle of a recession, and unsure about what to do next. BUT I DIDN’T GIVE UP … I followed my dream, and today I host, perform, and death-drop the house down as a drag entertainer across the U.S. In 2010, I stirred some laughter in Downelink.com’s ONE NIGHT STAND UP! on LOGO (shout out Andrea Meyerson!), and later that year performed to a sold-out crowd of more than 1500 in the Drag Queens of Comedy showcase alongside legends Lady Bunny, Jackie Beat and Coco Peru. On the big screen, I recently starred in the short film Body of a Barbie, which aired on BET and was recognized as a Top 7 National Finalist in its ‘Lens on Talent’ series. AND THE FIERCE GOES ON …
Admission is FREE with SUNY Oneonta ID and $3 for all others (available online at oneontatickets.com or in person at the Hunt College Union Information Desk daily from 1-10 PM.)
