Exclusive Interview - Beth
Congratulations on getting on the show, but before we get to that let's jump right back to the beginning with how and when did you discover that you wanted to do drag?
I started doing drag when I was actually in high school in theatre, I was cast as a female role for this monologue Hamlet's Mother talks back. So I started there and my teacher loved what I did with the role so much that I continued to do female characters throughout the school year and throughout my high school experience. Then after high school I started getting more involved with doing drug outside of theatre. I grew up in Nelson BC which is a smaller town where there's not a lot of opportunities to do drag, so it was kind of a once or twice a year kind of thing. When I moved to Vancouver that’s when I decided I really wanted to get more involved with the Drag Scene to see what I could do with that.
How would you describe your drag now?
I look at Beth as my confidence, you know, all the confidence that Roland's ever lacked Beth has! Sometimes my quietness can sometimes come off as a lack of confidence but Beth is my armour, she's every strong confident powerful woman that I’ve ever admired which I like to put into Beth because she's really special to me.
“If I were to describe Beth she is this body confident woman whose not afraid to show off her curves and can be a little sassy and isn’t afraid to say the joke that everyone's thinking but no one wants to say. “
What made you want to apply to be on Canada's Drag Race?
I was actually in drag doing a birthday photoshoot and I had auditioned for season one and I didn't even get a call back so I was in drag doing a photo shoot and it was a few days before the cut off and I was just like ugh I’ll do it like whatever, why not I’ll just throw it out there you know and then the calls kept coming and I kept getting further in the process and I was like is this actually going to happen?! It was honestly on a whim this year and I think it's because I didn't put any pressure on it that I was able to enjoy the auditioning and enjoy the whole process and that's what got me there.
I'm a firm believer in things happen for a reason and when it's your time it will happen. From your season two sisters who did you connect with most and why?
Honestly I connected with all of them, I know that's cliche to say but there's only 12 of us going through this experience so we all bond so quickly. I didn't expect to get so close to these people so quickly but I did and you know there's not one of them who I got closer with. There's people I’m surprised I got close to definitely. I love them all so much and i'm so excited to have these sisters for. I've always found it hard to make friends in the drag scene and they all made it so easy to get along with them and I’m so excited to see where our friendships go from here.
How was taking part in the show compared to your expectations of what it was going to be like?
It's very different, we all watch the show and say I would do that, I would do this. I was going in there going I’m never going to glue anything to a corset and lo and behold what do! Start gluing stuff to a corset!
It's definitely wild, being there in that moment it doesn't feel like you're there, I almost thought it was a joke, for a long time even during the auditioning process I’m thinking okay so when am I going to get the call to say this is a prank. When I actually watched the trailer back is when it first felt real for me. It feels so different being there versus watching it on tv but both were an amazing experiences. I've never trade it for the world.
Sadly your time on the show was cut short but what was your favorite memory?
My favorite memory was definitely… you know what, lip-syncing for my life, as scary as it is and I mean, it didn't necessarily work out for me in the end but there's something about performing that I just love doing and standing there in that moment… it's everyone's favourite part of the show, let’s be honest, we watch the whole episode waiting for the lip sync at the end. So being able to take part in a lip sync for my life was so exciting and I loved it. It turned out how it turned out, I'm not mad I still got to be on my favorite tv show.
How was it to have your drag be judged… well not really ‘your drag’ as you were in something you made on the show! But how was it to be critiqued?
I've been in competitions before and I’ve never always loved how it made me feel being compared to other queens so I try to take everything a judge has to say to me with a grain of salt obviously and take the good and leave the bad. The judges are there to help me grow as a performer and from what I remember I don't think they said anything horrible about my drag or how I looked. I'm grateful for any critiques that come my way and if I don't agree with it then I’ll let it go.
Yeah exactly like and it's all constructive isn't it. Having said that let's Spill the Tea…did you agree with the judges that they put you in the bottom and do you think that you should have gone home?
Yes and no. Do I think I looked the worst on that runway? No, I think I looked pretty good. I still love what I created. I still have it, I will hold on to that for the rest of my life because it's a memory. I wish I presented it differently I guess you could say. Do I think I should have been in the bottom two, no. Am I mad I went home, yes! Do i think someone else deserved to be there instead of me, not necessarily I would never want to put someone else in the situation I was, you know. Everyone did so amazing, I think these judges even said that, I think that was the issue. I’m sad about it obviously.
I was actually shocked you were in the bottom, I have to agree with you, I do not think it was the worst look up there. So what would be your advice to somebody applying to be on season three?
Stay out of your head, don't let everything going on around you distract you, don't compare yourself to what everyone else is doing, just focus on yourself because you got yourself there, none of these other people got you there. You have what it takes, just focus! I think that was my downfall, I got in my head.
Now, let’s not forget losing is the new winning, and of course getting on the show is a huge achievement which opens many doors, so my question is what do you hope the future holds for you?
I want to see the world, that's my main goal. I want to say yes to every opportunity that comes my way. I want to do as much as possible. I love drag and if I can be successful in that I've made it. No matter the outcome on the show I want to do as much as possible and do everything that comes my way.
Shout out time – Who would you like to give a shout-out to and why?
I will give a little shout out to my drag Mother Eva Scarlett who has been so supportive and so kind, really uplifting me throughout this whole experience.
Best of luck with the future hopefully we see you in the UK sometime soon.
Yes i'll hopefully be there soon, definitely come to my show.
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Photography - Courtesy of World of Wonder
Note: Some of this interview has been edited from the original transcript to help with readability.