Exclusive with Eva Le Queen

Eva Le Queen, welcome to Spill the Tea gorg! Before you started drag you had a corporate job! What made you want to give that all up for drag?
I would say that it was just a series of unfortunate events that eventually led me to do drag full time, as if it was the Universe telling me that this is the path to go down. I went on a sabbatical from my corporate job back in 2019 for a year after I suffered a life crisis and just wanted to breathe and do what makes me happy. I did drag in local bars in PH, took part time jobs at MAC and did make up gigs here and there. When I was about to go back, the world closed because of Covid and I was eventually left with nothing but my wigs and drag. I founded Drag Playhouse and started the #KeepDragAlive movement by doing shows virtually. When things loosened up and I was about to go back again, Mama Ru announced Drag Race Philippines. Every time I try to walk away from drag, something happens that just keeps pulling me back!

After only 4 months of doing drag you were the runner up in a drag show! How did it feel to do so well in something you had only just started?
It was a revelation for me. I have always been a person who likes to dress up and always lights up the room and at 29, I thought that is all I will ever be — the life of the party, the bubbly officemate that everybody likes. It wasn’t until I tried drag and discovered that my personality can actually bring me to this world of drag where I can truly shine as a person and find happiness and fulfilment in it. And my journey in that competition, even with my lack of experience, was such an exhilarating ride that I knew there is no way on earth I will not do it again.

You founded the Drag Playhouse, tell us more about that and why you set it up?
It only started as an Instagram account to encourage my fellow drag artists to continue doing drag amidst the Pandemic and #KeepDragAlive. We started doing virtual drag shows on Facebook Live or Zoom and we collected tips via PayPal. We used that to purchase hazmat suits for medical frontliners or send goodies to displaced workers and staff of the bars we used to work for. Eventually we realised that drag was being embraced by more people and we could break out of the clubs and take drag wherever we wanted. Now we serve as an unofficial agency for local drag queens that bridge businesses with local drag talent for shows, campaigns, collaborations and more. It has now shifted to my dream of professionalising the art of drag and let more people outside the community to also enjoy drag.

How did it feel to be selected for the very first season of Drag Race Philippines?
The PH drag scene is just a small community and I knew that if there were only twelve slots to fill, I would make the cut. At first, I was scared and anxious because I know how drag fans and Filipino fans can be very rabid and unforgiving. Coming from two years of lockdown and with very limited time and resources to prepare, how am I going to keep up with the expectations of fans and how do I keep up with the global standard for Ru Girls? There was a slight panic to think that we are no longer performing for clubs but for the whole world and it’s mind-blowing!

Was the competition what you expected or totally different? How did it feel to get so close to the crown only to narrowly miss out?
It’s something of both, in a sense that you think you already know what to expect and have prepared for it because I’ve been watching Drag Race since Season One, but it hits you differently when you are already the one having to go through it. In one of my moments in Untucked, I prepared myself for a lip-sync for your life a million times in my head, but still it almost wrecked me a few minutes before going on stage.

It would have been nice to bring home a million peso, but I guess you know when something was made for you or not. I know that crown was made for either Marina or Precious to be honest. Not that I don’t believe in what I have to offer, but because as a fan of Drag Race and advocate of PH Drag, I want the First Filipino superstar to indisputably worthy of the crown. I, on the other hand, know that I may be destined for greater heights and was quite happy to know that I still ‘might’ have a shot for even bigger things from this point on.

If asked, would you want to return to take on a Philippines All Stars or Drag Race Vs the World?
I have already conquered the PH and bested eight of the country’s finest. A queen is always up for a bigger challenge and would love to have my first-ever badge on an INTERNATIONAL arena! Manifesting a call for Drag Race Vs. the World!

Let’s not forget losing is the new winning (as RuPaul says), getting on the show is a huge achievement. What do you hope the future holds for you?
I hope that more places and unchartered territories in the PH open up for drag, like fashion shows, mainstream media, brands and companies taking local drag to heights it has never been before. Regardless of our standing in the competition, opportunities come to us and all I can say is I am truly living my best life now. I hope we enjoy it long enough for more queens to also believe that it is possible.

Shout-out time! What queer performer deserves a shout from you and why? - This can be a drag King, Queen or anything in-between or simply a queer artist doing their thing.
Shout out to my ride or die sister Kris Nuevo! For helping pave the way to make things happen for me, Drag Playhouse, and lots of queer artists, DJs and performers in the scene. For always championing brag in all your endeavours and just being awesome. We will build this empire together! Love you to bits!

Drag Race Philippines is available exclusively on the streamer of all things drag, WOW Presents Plus. To subscribe click here.