One might say WHAS is doing this for November sweeps or for simple sensationalism, but what WHAS accomplished here was a thoughtful report on a very interesting sliver of Louisville culture: Drag shows at the Connection Complex in downtown.

What I liked most about this piece was the intimate portrayals of two drag queens as real people with real lives doing real jobs. They have stresses, issues and joys just like the rest of us. This report was very good at lifting the curtain, so to speak, to reveal a very interesting part of Louisville culture, which amazingly some area residents still may not know about or fully appreciate. After all, it's the #1 drag show in the country, and its audience is frequently majority heterosexual, so many may now be newly interested in checking it out. The thumbs up from a corporate news outlet could mean the taboo is finally lifting, so those last few individuals who thought they might be embarrassed being seen near the Connection Complex on Floyd Street need not worry any longer.

What I found especially humorous about the piece was how the news anchors treated it. They seemed to treat the phenomenon of this show as something that is brand new, even though this show has been going strong in various incarnations for decades. It was like "Imagine our surprise that we have a very popular drag show going on in our little city". Too funny. At any rate, oddly enough (and even proudly), these shows do indeed put Louisville on a cultural map, as no other city, big or small, seems to be able to match the quality of Louisville's shows. Louisville isn't just Derby City; we're Drag Queen City too.

Any thoughts? Have you been to the drag shows at the Connection, and what was your experience?

On edit: I updated a wiki-link.

Steve Magruder — LouHI Administrator and web programmer


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I thought it was a good piece, too.

"The Best is Yet to Be"
—Curt Morrison
Real Estate Broker/ Highlands Resident/ Candidate for Jefferson County Judge/Executive

Rick Redding at Louisville Mojo is covering this story as well. He is wondering whether the new level of exposure of these shows will kick up the dander of some local politicians, who may not like what they're seeing. Of course, this is always the other side of the coin of fame: criticism.