‘Queens of Drag’: Like ‘Housewives,’ but with Better Wigs

LOS ANGELES—Award-winning gay adult producer-director John Rutherford describes his new docu-series as “like a Housewives show, but our cast has better wigs.”

Queens of Drag: NYC, set to debut on Gay.com Sept. 8, was developed by Rutherford and co-executive producers Larry Kennar (The L Word, Barbershop, 50 First Dates) and Jack Mackenroth (Project Runway, Season 4). The eight-episode series focuses on the lives of 10 of New York City’s most fabulous and ferociously funny drag divas.

“The whole idea came to us last year when we were in NYC shooting a gay ‘housewives’ series about ‘A-List’ gays,” Rutherford said, adding that he, Kennar and Mackenroth are longtime friends. “One of the cast members from that pilot was Steven Polito [aka Hedda Lettuce], and we were developing his character of being a man during the day and a superstar drag queen performer at night in NYC and beyond.

“We shot the pilot in November of 2009, and during our time there shooting we peeled back the makeup and wigs and found there to be kind-hearted, hardworking and highly intelligent gay men who all had a very interesting journey of making it in the big city of Manhattan,” Rutherford continued. “Anyway, the rest is history and we found a home at Gay.com. We are seeing a huge fan base already on our fan page at Facebook and our new web teaser page at TheQueensOfDrag.com.”

Legendary drag diva Lady Bunny leads the all-star cast, which includes the ageless and evergreen Hedda Lettuce, uber-glam Sherry Vine, vivacious Bianca Del Rio, sexpot songstress Peppermint, and the classless and campy Mimi Imfurst. Breakout performers Epiphany, Logan Hardcore, Dallas DuBois and Acid Betty join the divas for their outrageous adventures.

“What makes Queens of Drag: NYC so exciting is that it’s not a simplistic show about drag queens performing at bars,” said Gay.com Editor in Chief Rick Andreoli. “These webisodes feature the genius comedy you’d expect from top-tier performers, as well as offer unique access into their lives by showing how they live, work and interact with one another on a professional level. It’s the most fascinating and funny series to ever air on Gay.com.”

According to Rutherford, “The webisodes are a new concept for television broadcasting. Like HULU, Gay.com wants to start creating programming for online members only, and this was a great way to start the ball rolling, so to speak. What better way to wet your whistle than by a whole bunch of loud and über-talented men in heels?”

Each webisode focuses on an individual diva as she navigates life as a drag superstar in the world’s most amazing and unforgiving city. The series unearths the real grit of the drag queens’ lives, both in and out of makeup, as they struggle to conquer the New York nightlife scene.

“The fascinating part is how they all lead dual lives, both of which are incredibly challenging,” Mackenroth said. “Most people think of drag as glamorous, fun fluff.  But it’s actually an underappreciated art form that requires an enormous amount of talents and guts. These queens are at the top of their game in the most competitive city in the world, and each has a unique story to reveal underneath the wigs and makeup.”

More information is available at Gay.com.