Werq The World - General Discussion

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WERQ THE WORLD is an unprecedented backstage pass and intimate portrait into the global phenomenon of drag. This docu-series follows ten of the most famous drag queens in the world as they bring their sickening performances to ravenous fans across Europe.

 

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I know that this show can seem like a half hour commercial to go see the tour, but I love anything that shows backstage/behind the scenes stuff so I'm here for it!

S2.E1: Asia O'Hara

I really felt for Asia when she said that the stage in San Francisco was too small to accommodate her act (it was the Warfield). As someone who has performed in SF, I know exactly what she's talking about because some of the venues here have really small stages. It's one thing if you're only going to lip sync because you can take out any sort of gymnastics (like back handsprings) and still do your thing. But when you have large props that you're working with (like the giant light up cube that she spins around herself) or even an LED staff, you need a certain amount of room to make sure that you aren't going to hit a wall, an audience member, the equipment that's onstage, or the backup dancers.

I was shocked when she said that people at the meet and greet have specifically asked her to GET OUT OF THE PICTURE so that they can pose with all the other queens but her. Who the fuck does that?

I understand the difficulty in looking out in the audience and not seeing a lot of POC, especially since it's not like she can go out and specifically recruit people to be her fans. It's out of her control who watches RPDR and who comes to the WTW shows.

I laughed at her extremely specific Starbucks order (venti quad soy skinny vanilla latte no foam - hot). I loved her LED outfit!

Edited June 11, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

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S1.E1: Aquaria

Although this episode was supposed to be about Aquaria, it was just as much as about as Sharon Needles. I don't follow any of the queens on social media so all I know about them is what's on RPDR, which is why I enjoyed hearing about Sharon and Aquaria's friendship prior to RPDR. There really is a stark contrast between newbie Aquaria during her first days on tour and vet Sharon talking about how things used to be when she started doing drag. Ha, Sharon's tips about not bringing your favorite dress or most expensive shoes on tour were the kind of thing you learn after you do it.

It was also jarring to see the difference in the production value of the docuseries (not the tour) between S1 and S2. I'm glad they put more money into filming S2 because at the beginning of this episode I thought oh, gawd, is the entire episode going to be yelling at a bar and shaky camera work?

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S2.E2: Yvie Oddly

Even before Yvie brought up her EDS later in the episode, I was kind of cringing at the footage from the show because I remembered that she had a painful medical condition. I wanted to give her a squeeze and tell her to be gentle with herself.

A lot of dancers, gymnasts, acrobats, and other performers have to deal with a similar dilemma: how long do I keep doing this to my body? It's not a simple question because when it's something you love that gives you joy and is part of your identity, of course you don't want to give it up. And there are people who will push their bodies until they give out because they want to keep doing it as long as they can. But in Yvie's case, being flexible and doing flips is just part of her act. When she asked what she'll do without those skills, I wanted to tell her that people will still love her for being the freaky weirdo that she is. It's so hard to watch someone be in that much pain. I hope she realizes that she doesn't have to rely on flips and flexibility to be an amazing drag queen.

I felt bad for everyone involved in that tulle debacle. Yvie never explained why she had to make a new outfit for the closing (did something happen to the costume she normally wears for that number?) but I agreed with Kim - it's your responsibility to rehearse with your costume to make sure that it works properly. Obviously Yvie had no bad intention and was upset that her costume malfunction meant she had to run offstage to fix it, but it really sucks that Kim Chi fell because of all that extra tulle on the stage. As embarrassing as it was for her to fall in front of everyone, I'm just glad that no one got hurt.

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S2.E3: Detox

Seeing Detox go back to Pulse had me in tears. It's heartbreaking to think about how many lives were lost and how many people who were lucky enough to escape are still traumatized by the experience.

I'm glad Detox's mom is such a supportive fangirl now. I could relate when Detox said knowing she was in the audience made him perform better. I live 500 miles away from my hometown so I usually go home to visit my parents, but the year before my dad died (we knew he was sick), my parents drove up and my dad got to see me perform one last time. It was super bizarre getting an old person in a wheelchair into a night club but I was glad that I was able to make it happen.

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S2.E4: Plastique Tiara

Awww, I love that Naomi took Plastique under her wing and taught her to say no to people. That's a really hard thing to learn especially in the early days of your career.

I loved the rehearsal footage of all the queens in the dance studio. That's one of my favorite backstage things to see! I also love seeing people's dressing rooms.

Ha, I love that her pre-show meal is bread and Red Bull. Carbs, sugar, and caffeine!

Really sad that her mom can't accept that she does drag. It was very sweet to hear Plastique say that she understands that it's heartbreaking for her mom not to have the son she wanted.

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S2.E5: Kameron Michaels

Yvie: Don't wash your dick in Listerine. It will leave you disappointed.
Kameron: I don't know any of you anymore.

An important part of being a performer is knowing what is just not possible, and one of the things that you have to be aware of is the way you look. You can't spend your entire career trying to achieve something that isn't possible, so I like that Kameron said he knows he'll never have tiny supermodel arms like Naomi and that's okay.

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S1.E2: Valentina

Valentina got an A+ for what she said at the very beginning of the episode. Even if you are having a shitty day, none of that matters when you get on the stage. Being able to turn it on and perform is what separates professional performers from everyone else. It sucks but that's what people expect when they pay for tickets to see performers.

I felt for everyone when they showed up at the venue and there weren't any towels so they couldn't shower. People like to mock the very specific riders that performers have, but THIS IS EXACTLY WHY. Every item that you see on a rider is something that wasn't provided at least once. Non-performers sometimes say, "Well, then why don't the performers just bring XYZ themselves?" and the answer is that when you're living out of a suitcase (and that suitcase is full of shoes, wigs, costumes, and other things that take up a lot of space), you do need certain things provided by the venue (like fresh clean towels).

But I definitely understood everyone else's frustration with her constantly being late. She admitted that people perceive it as her being inconsiderate of their time, but she still does it anyway! I'm not saying ignorance excuses all behavior, but when you're cognizant of the fact that you're always late and that it affects other people but you continue to do it anyway, that's what makes people think you're a selfish asshole.

As for when she and Violet got mad that the tour manager said they would have to do their meet and greet after the show, I was just rolling my eyes at her indignation. How is that EVERYONE ELSE on the tour managed to get themselves there on time without assistants to walk them to the stage? Oh, right, because they were being responsible adults. If you're half an hour late, then that's not fair to everyone else.

Violet's indignation about how there was no one there to help them get ready was ridiculous. You're perfectly able bodied so if you should be able to do 99% of that on your own. When you need someone to zip you up, there are plenty of other queens around who will take two seconds out of their pre-show routine to do it for you.

They were flat out lying when they told the fans outside that they weren't allowed to go to the meet and greet. GAWD. Take responsibility for the fact that you were late and that there are consequences for that. It's not fair for the fans to have to rush through a pre-show meet and greet because you're late and it's not fair to start the show late in order to not rush the fans through the meet and greet because you were late. The tour manager's decision to have them do their meet and greet after the show seemed fair to me.

I laughed when the tour bus driver described the queens as "wonderful people - just crazy."

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S1.E3: Kim Chi

Ha, I laughed when she had a fan waiting in line throw food up to her window.

I totally cracked up when all of the queens said that Kim Chi is the shadiest one.

I was mesmerized by all her gorgeous makeup throughout the episode.

Kim: Here's a little preview of how the Werq the World tour is going to go. Violet's going to be late for every meet and greet, and Detox is going to be mad that Violet is late for every meet and greet. Shangela will be drunk after the show.

I loved that while Violet and Latrice were going at each other, Kim just sat between them. I appreciated that she understands the difference between sitting quietly and maybe diffusing the situation versus being one of the bosses who actually has to deal with these divas.

But I also really liked that she said she makes an effort to be professional, prepared, and on time because she just wants to perform and get paid. I can totally respect that.

I enjoyed seeing the queens and the dancers out at night. It's nice to see them all hanging out. I don't think I would enjoy bus touring but I liked when Kim said she likes hanging out with everyone on the bus. OMG and a 5am ferry? KILL ME. The buffet wouldn't make up for that. I am definitely not a morning person, which is why it always amused me to see Kim Chi run outside to reenact Titanic when the sun was barely up.

Loved watching Kim trade merch with Valentina. That is the kind of stuff that you treasure when you get home.

I like that Kim prefers to get ready on her own. I've never been in a position to have people zipping me into costumes, buckling my shoes, etc. so I've never commissioned a costume that I couldn't get into myself. Plus I just figure you never know what the circumstances are going to be for a certain show so I'd rather know I can handle all of it myself in case I have no other option.

The stage in Copenhagen looks just like the symphony hall near me. To be fair, there's still a stage so in that sense it's a performance venue (and I've seen non-symphony acts there) but it is a little weird the first time you're there and I can imagine it's maybe not the ideal venue for a drag show.

I loved that when the queens were backstage in the pitch dark, I could still see all their sequins glittering.

I could totally relate when Kim said that she was the problem child even though her offenses were things like staying out past curfew or talking back to her mom. I had the same role in my family. My younger sister was the perfect/easy one and as the older sibling, I had to break my parents in and they somehow thought everything I did was The Worst (despite the fact that I wasn't doing drugs, getting pregnant, or anything traditionally associated with being a troublemaker).

Ooh, I loved all the pictures of Kim Chi from early in her drag days. I love seeing the evolution of performers and their looks. And wow, she worked in fine dining. I'd love to hear more about that too. Shangela's idea for Kim Chi to have a show about eating stuff was great. I would watch that!

Detox and Kim's minor gripes about being tired of small cups, no ice, and no Chipotle sounded like they were ready to go home soon. As fun as traveling is, at some point you just want your own bed and familiar things.

Kim has a great attitude about doing meet and greets and how it's part of the job, which is true. I think the queens recognize how important letting the fans meet them is, but some of them seem to do it a lot more willingly than others.

Her Sailor Moon costume change was fun to watch. I loved watching her in a green face mask running around the studio hitting the other dancers with cardboard tubes. That's the silly kind of behind the scenes stuff I love.

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S1.E4: Latrice Royale

Oh, damn. Brandon was definitely wrong to lump Latrice in with Violet and Valentina (and he even admitted that they, not Latrice, are the problem children of the group) but what really got me was how he kept interrupting Latrice, not letting her finish, and arguing with her. Look, you had your chance to talk and now you won't give that same courtesty to someone else. Regardless of who's right or wrong about missing rehearsal, the very least you can do is STFU when someone else is talking.

Hahaha, I'm with Latrice on getting ready. I had my pre-performance hair/makeup/getting ready routine timed down to the minute and I always made sure I showed up on time. One of my pet peeves is that a lot of gigs have a call time that's two hours before the show starts and I always showed up with my hair and makeup on and in my costume (because you never know what the dressing room situation will be - one venue had a community dressing room for all the performers and just two $20 closet mirrors for everyone to share) and then I'd end up sitting backstage for TWO HOURS while everyone else primped and preened and got into their costumes. You can't tell an event organizer, "I'm going to show up half an hour before the show because I come prepared."

Ugh, I felt so bad for Latrice when the airline lost her luggage (I felt doubly bad since the bus with Epiphany Mattel and the flags for her act got a flat tire at the previous show and didn't arrive until the show had already started). That is one of the most frustrating things that can happen because it's totally out of your control and you have NO CHOICE but to take your chances.

And as the other queens pointed out, there was no way that they could have gotten tights in her color, shoes in her size, or anything else useful to get her in drag in Helsinki. I totally appreciated her attitude - there was nothing she could do about it, and getting mad wasn't going to change the situation. I loved that she went out on stage anyway and played a game with the audience so that they got to see her, even if they didn't get to see her usual act.

Edited July 8, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

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S2.E6: Naomi Smalls

I love that Naomi has always had such a supportive family and I also love that she knows she's one of the few queens who was fortunate in that was so she doesn't take it for granted.

I found it interesting that she has the information on her birth family and they want to get to know her but the feeling isn't mutual. I wonder how much of that is due to the fact that she had such a loving family so she isn't searching for answers from her birth family.

"My kink: being prepared" - ha, that made me laugh, which was all the more hilarious by the fact that she was running late for her entrance.

This was a perfectly pleasant episode but of all the episodes I've watched so far, I feel like I learned the least about Naomi.

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S2.E7: Monet X Change

It was interesting to hear everyone's reasons for why they like to be ready for a show way ahead of time. I'm like Plastique - I like to be ready ahead of time because I'm paranoid. Obviously the tour is being booked in real theaters with real dressing rooms, but if you're a performer you've probably been book in a venue at least once where the dressing room was basically a closet without a mirror. I don't want to rely on the venue's facilities so I just do my hair and makeup and get into my costume before I leave the house because it's less stressful for me to know that I'm ready to go regardless of what the dressing room situation will be. But at the same time, I'm like Monet in that I like to wait until the last minute. I time the whole process so that I'm done like five minutes before I need to walk out the door. I hate getting ready and then just sitting around waiting to go.

I was surprised that Monet described being tagged in a picture of a monkey with a crown as a microaggression and then she corrected herself and said that stuff like that was a MACROaggression.

Ha, I loved when Aquaria said she could watch Monet take off a wig to reveal another wig just like it underneath forever because it still amuses her.

I'm so jealous that Monet has a whole room for her drag stuff! I remember a friend of mine turned one of the rooms at her house into her costume closet and I was like OMG YOU LUCKY BITCH! Meanwhile I have all my  costume stuff in plastic tubs shoved under my bed.

Her Uber driver getting blocked in by a fire truck and an ambulance was classic.

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S2.E8: Aquaria

I totally agree that being able to collaborate with other artists really helps everyone change and grow. Just being able to see how other people practice the same art that you do can give you so many little tips and ideas about makeup and costumes to full on inspiration for a new act.

It's sweet that Aquaria's mom goes to see so many of her shows. Aquaria is lucky that her mom has the freedom and flexibility to travel so much.

If there's anything that fans take away from watching this show in general (not specifically this episode), I hope it's realizing that doing meet and greets can be emotionally exhausting. It requires a lot of energy.

Ha, the look that Vanjie gave the camera while Aquaria was freaking out and trying on a million outfits cracked me up. I get Aquaria's frustration, but she needs to learn to take a deep breath and calm down. Having a temper tantrum doesn't fix anything. And then after all that, she just gave up which meant that everyone who wanted to meet her at the meet and greet didn't get to see her. And then Vanjie said that Aquaria actually grabbed Detox's hand and that's how the drink incident happened? GURL.

It seemed weird that this was all they got out of Aquaria's footage. Does that mean she's actually kind of a boring queen?