“My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard” — the iconic first line from the song “Milkshake” — blasted through the speakers, and the audience replied with thunderous cheers. Milk, a former contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race, strutted and sashayed to Kelis’ provocative hit, to conclude Pride Union’s 14th annual Totally Fabulous Drag Show.

Courtney McGuire was named this year’s winner, performing to a mix of songs beginning with “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend.” McGuire’s performance included 10 background dancers and multiple onstage costume changes, at one point going from a black two-piece to a flowing, red dress.

McGuire said it was especially fun having her friends up on stage with her, performing together.

After her performance, judges praised her choreography, costumes, music choice and crowd engagement.

“That felt like a Broadway production,” one judge said.

Judges praised each performer, assessing them based on four criteria: lip synching ability, charisma, crowd engagement and professionalism.

The audience appeared to enjoy the show as well. During each act, audience members ran up to the stage and tossed money at the performers, showing their appreciation for the performance.

McGuire had a large contingent right below the Goldstein Auditorium stage, but the entire lower section was filled with energetic spectators. During the intermission, the area around the stage turned into a form of dance floor for the wild audience.

Kitten N’ Lou, a burlesque performer and drag king, respectively, also performed, making it the second straight year the duo appeared at the show. During both of their performances, outfits were unzipped and, piece by piece, were tossed onto the stage, revealing nude two-piece costumes.

Runners-up EMillz and SB rocked out to “Dirty Little Secret” by The All-American Rejects, substituting tennis racquets for guitars, and “Kiss You” by One Direction. Toward the end of their performance, they brought two members of the audience up on stage and as the song concluded with “and let me kiss you,” they kissed them, earning roaring cheers and wild applause.

The three other performers, Ms. Jasmine Tea, Luck Cherie and Loveontop, also earned much admiration from the crowd, as each shimmied, shook, sashayed and gyrated to songs, including “Pass That Dutch” by Missy Elliot and “Flawless” by Beyoncé.

McGuire, the show’s winner, said she wasn’t focused on winning or losing.

“I’ve always watched ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ and it’s always been something I’ve wanted to do,” she said. “I was just doing it for fun. I mean, it’s exciting (to win), but I just wanted to do it for a good time.”

Milk echoed those sentiments, praising all the student performers for their commitment and complex numbers.

“They put in some motherf*cking work,” Milk said of the student performers. “I didn’t realize there was going to be so many backup dancers, I didn’t realize the mega mixes, all the choreography, all the costume changes. It was really rad, I loved it.”

Published on February 27, 2016 at 11:57 am

Contact Danny: dmantoot@syr.edu