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Though it might appear so from the new wave of drag seen in the media, the culture and history goes much deeper than this. To understand how widespread it has become, it is important to reexamine the history of the art of drag. An accurate history of drag is one that includes the origins dating back to the 19th century and not only the examples we see today.

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Jose Sarria began his career first as a soldier for the US military, where he was stationed in Berlin after their surrender. Sarria was immersed into the LGBT community’s bustling culture in Germany and formed a relationship with an opera singer named Andre. After his arrest for flirting with another man in a bar, Sarria was not able to fulfill his dream of becoming a teacher and began working at the Black Cat Cafe in San Francisco as a server and host. The Black Cat Cafe became a safe haven for members of the LBGT community, with its reputation of being a spot for artists and activists. There, Sarria slowly began performing. He recalled, “I would sing a song now and then... I started performing more, and I started doing female impersonation. I began opera parodies. I became very popular. I became the Black Cat" (National Parks Service). In an interview in 1996 with Paul Gabriel, Sarria describes becoming fascinated with the costuming of women in movies at a young age-notably the dresses worn in Little Women. This fascination carried on throughout his life and was sparked again when he began work at the Black Cat Cafe. Sarria explains how his mother used to make him dresses for performances and made a living from the money that he would get from dressing up and singing operas. With such a diverse and complex story, the life of Jose Sarria is one to be remembered. Put simply by writers for the National Parks Service, “San Francisco has many overlapping histories. Military history, LGBTQ+ culture, immigrant stories, and much more make up its roots. For José Sarria, a LGBTQ+ activist in San Francisco, all the above applied.”

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Born male, Aleshia Brevard was a pioneer for trans people in America, as she became the first woman to undergo sex reassignment surgery in 1962. Brevard performed drag under the name of Lee Shaw in her 20s and was known for her incredible acting and impersonation of Marilyn Monroe, which Monroe came to see herself (Nashville Queer History). In an interview done by LGBT activist Susan Stryker, Brevard recalls her first time performing at a drag show. She narrates, “I stood up, and got applause for the way I looked. And Lucien said these magic words: Isn’t she beautiful. I had never been called ‘she’ in my life…It was Brer Rabbit in the briar patch.” This quote describes how empowering it was for Brevard to be recognized the way she identified. She goes on to describe how being called a woman was what enabled her to pursue ways to be herself, as she looked further into sex reassignment surgery. Drag was not just a creative outlet for these performers, it was a way that they could celebrate being nothing but themselves

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Pioneer Drag Queens: The Jewel Box Revue

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Pioneer Drag Queens: The Jewel Box Revue

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The Jewel Box Revue was a group of drag queens that traveled around America through the 1940s and 1950s in the post-war era (Kucharski, 3). Started by boyfriends Danny Brown and Doc Benner, the Jewel Box Revue was the first group of racially inclusive drag performers (Anderson). Brown and Benner would recruit queer performers from around the country to travel and perform at famous venues for over three decades, including the Apollo Theater in New York, where they would earn a standing ovation (Kucharski, 3). Ex-Army LGBT activist Wayne Anderson writes in his article, The Jewel Box Revue: America’s First Gay Community, that “the revue fostered one of the first gay-positive communities in America, if not the first. It was a place where ‘gayness’ was accepted before the concept of gay-identity had even been fully conceived.” The Jewel Box Revue was undeniably revolutionary in their positivity and inclusivity towards gender expression and the art of drag while inspiring queer individuals to be their most authentic selves.

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Drag originated through a variety of cultures, spanning through Ancient Greece, Japan and the Shakespearean theaters around the world in the 19th century. The actors in the theaters at this time were men, meaning that they would have to dress like women to portray them in their shows. This continued into the 20th century, but eventually morphed into an art and form of self expression, rather than being used for female characters. As drag began to emerge, performances would be almost exclusively held in gay bars in order to protect performers and members of the community from the outside. These bars served as a space where these people could be their raw and authentic selves, without the judgment of the world (Kucharski 2-3)

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Primary sources:

Gabriel, Paul. “Jose Sarria Interview Transcript (1996).” Digital Transgender Archive , GLBT Historical Society, https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/files/w3763697h. Accessed 4 Apr. 2023.

Stryker, Susan. “Aleshia Brevard Crenshaw Interview Transcript (1997).” Digital Transgender Archive , GLBT Historical Society , https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/files/2f75r8188.

“Film of a 1960s Drag Performance .” 1968, https://diva.sfsu.edu/collections/glbt/bundles/238722.

Secondary sources:

Sidi , William. “‘I'm so into Voguing Right Now’ An Exploration into Drag Culture's Shift from Fringes to Mainstream.” University of Leeds, 2018.

Kucharski , Kyle. “The Gentrification of Drag .” City University of New York (CUNY), 2018. CUNY Academic Works, https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1320&context=gj_etds.

Meyer, Leisa, and Helis Sikk . “Introduction to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) History in the United States (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, National Park Foundation , 2016, https://www.nps.gov/articles/lgbtqtheme-history.htm.

Sanders, Sam, and Josh Axelrod. “How Drag Queens Have Sashayed Their Way Through History.” NPR, NPR, 27 June 2019, https://www.npr.org/2019/06/27/736320026/how-drag-queens-have-sashayed-their-way-through-history.

Anderson, Wayne. “The Jewel Box Revue: America's First Gay Community? (.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 2 Feb. 2016, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-jewel-box-revue-americas-first-gay-community_b_2228790.

“Aleshia Brevard.” Nashville Queer History, 3 Nov. 2021, https://nashvillequeerhistory.org/glossary-main/aleshia-brevard/.

“Jose Sarria.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 27 June 2022, https://www.nps.gov/people/jose-sarria.htm.

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A common misconception about drag in America is that it did not become widespread until the early 21st century, with its rise of popularity in the media resulting from shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race. However, the most accurate memory of drag includes a rich history that can be traced all the way back to the ages of Ancient Greece and William Shakespeare.

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Anderson, Wayne. “The Jewel Box Revue: America's First Gay Community? (.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 2 Feb. 2016, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-jewel-box-revue-am

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The art of drag is a creative outlet allowing for forms of self-expression, gender identity, celebration, and entertainment in LGBT culture. While drag is still relevant and controversial in the media today, it is important to understand the deep and incredible history that comes behind it.

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Anderson, Wayne. “The Jewel Box Revue: America's First Gay Community? (.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 2 Feb. 2016, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-jewel-box-revue-am

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“Jose Sarria.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 27 June 2022, https://www.nps.gov/people/jose-sarria.htm.

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“Jose Sarria.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 27 June 2022, https://www.nps.gov/people/jose-sarria.htm.

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Anderson, Wayne. “The Jewel Box Revue: America's First Gay Community? (.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 2 Feb. 2016, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-jewel-box-revue-am