'Night of the Living Drag' Takes Over Waterbury's Palace Theater Stage

By Nancy Sasso Janis

On Friday night, the queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race took over the stage at Waterbury’s Palace Theater for the 12th Annual Night of the Living Drag.

This year's lineup was billed as a scream and it was all hosted by the one and only Yvie Oddly as the infamous Rod Serling in a black and white costume. The enthusiastic attendees were invited to imagine that they were traveling through another dimension of The Twilight Zone as a preview to Halloween.

Finalists from MTV’s RuPaul’s Drag Race performed live on stage, dressed (and undressed) to the nines. The featured queens each performed a dance number with four talented dancers. There was plenty of high-tech projections, lighting and sound elements that enhanced the performance.

The audience got to witness the mysterious fates of Angeria, Denali, Icesis Couture, Jaida Essence Hall, Jorgeous, Plastique, Rose, and Tayce. The iconic Lady Bunny also performed two hysterical solo numbers.

There was only a bit of horror in the choreographed dances that were the highlights of the evening. The elaborate costumes, makeup and hair were all impressive and delighted the fans in attendance.

The curtain was held for thirty minutes for this one-time event in Waterbury and the show was presented with an intermission, making for a long night. No one seemed to mind. Those who purchased a separate VIP upgrade got to enjoy a private meet and greet with the queens before the show.

Thank you to my Clio “CJ” Janis for accompanying me to this fun event produced by Voss Events in collaboration with World of Wonder and MTV.

All photos by Katrin Moskowitz