The Gender-Sexualities Alliance presented GCAA’s first ever Cosplay Cabaret! The event involved the performances of professional cosplayers and drag kings and queens. It also included a few student performers.

The Cosplay event has reportedly been in the works for about two years but had to constantly be pushed back due to COVID-19 restrictions and missing school.

The show also faced trouble because of the false judgements against drag queens and cosplay artists by administrators.

“[They} were kind of iffy on letting us do this,” said Sophomore and GSA Vice President Drew Meyer. “Because that ‘heterosexual male cisgender’ thinks when they hear drag stuff. They think burlesque, they think naughty, they think ‘oh they’re gonna show y’all their bits and pieces’ that they’re going to be very lewd and which it was not. This was a very friendly, family friendly event.”

But through conversations and the lifting of the mask mandate the show fell into place and was given the green light.

The cabaret had included about 10 professionals, some of whom came all the way from Columbia, Missouri and three student performers. The show was also hosted by professional cosplayer “Mama Cosplay”, who also produced and performed in the show.

Some other performers included “Lou Kiss,” who did an anime cosplay act, “Nadia McMichaels,” a 17-year-old drag queen who has won actual drag pageants, and “Sophie de Sade,” who performed in old 50s drag singing songs and dancing.

There were also student performers like Junior Link Bell, who danced to a favorite of theirs, a song called “luka luka night fever.”

They reported that though their nerves were high they still went on and enjoyed the experience.

“I was extremely nervous towards my ending act coming up after seeing the professionals then my peers go,” said Bell. “There is a lot of unspoken pressure to be one of the last few acts. But in the end my own self expectations for myself made me have to let the act go on.”

Meyer, the GSA Vice President, said the event was about teaching kids about drag and that they can be themselves.

“I think a lot of kids are afraid to do drag because they’re afraid the people are gonna be like, ‘Oh, they’re drag wasn’t all that.’ Drag is such an umbrella term, drag can be interpreted anyway. You can be artistic with your drag, you can be playing with the drag, you can do anything with your drag, and that’s what a lot of people will know, and I think that’s what we showed.”