Shushu Funtana and Scarlett Fever perform at Loud and Proud Logan, Kingston, 2024, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0021-0025.
The sass, sparkle and creativity of Queensland drag performers is captured in a documentary feature and photographic collection donated to State Library.
Producer Hugh Whitehouse’s award-winning short feature documentary Welcome to Queens’ Land is the centrepiece of a collection of video vignettes telling the stories of drag performers Freya Armani, Elle De Flower, Ladybird, Lulu LeMans, Wilhelmina Westwood and Helen Wheels. The Welcome to Queens’ Land collection also includes 288 of Hugh’s photographs documenting Brisbane drag events between 2022 and 2024.
‘Despite being an outsider in the drag scene, I was welcomed into this community with open arms,’ Hugh says of the making of Welcome to Queens’ Land. ‘I’d chat with performers at gigs and spent hours listening and learning about how modern Queensland drag was different to drag being presented in Sydney or Melbourne or Los Angeles.
‘Brisbane had a smaller scene, true, but it was far more inclusive and accepting and promoted non-binary performers, transgender performers, female performers, male performers, performers with disabilities – everyone – equally.’
Ladybird performing at Queer Sister Smackdown, Spring Hill, 2023, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0019-0026.
Ladybird trying on headwear at home, Brisbane, 2022, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0013-0008.
'Just people doing what we love'
Ladybird, one of the stars of Welcome to Queens’ Land, started practising make-up with a friend online during COVID-19 lockdown before trying drag performance in September 2021 for the first time. ‘I was in awe. It was magic,’ she says.
‘What makes the Welcome to Queens’ Land collection so important is it captures Brisbane drag through an honest and raw lens to show, deep down, we are all just people doing what we love and sharing it in our own unique way.
‘No two drag queens are the same and the vast diversity of performers in the Brisbane scene is what makes it so special.’
Hugh says the collection offers a unique insight into the people, personalities and modern history of Queensland’s drag and queer performance scene.
‘It demonstrates how Queensland has been a leader in redefining what drag is and reinforces that drag is for everybody and every body.’
‘After any screening of the film, people always express a deeper understanding and appreciation of Queensland drag. Then they want suggestions about where to go so they can see more for themselves.”
Content advisory: This documentary contains infrequent strong language. Viewer discretion is advised.
What people don’t know about drag
‘People often underestimate just how physical drag performance is,’ Hugh says. ‘There were nights during production when I felt like an AFL umpire running up and down the sidelines of a match trying to keep up with all the action these drag queens were performing on the stage in front of me. And this was just one gig. An in-demand performer might do 2 or 3 gigs per night. It’s an incredibly physically demanding job, especially in a full wig and heels.’
Henny Spaghetti taking part in Queer Sister Smackdown, Spring Hill, 2023, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0019-0017.
Power of live performance
‘For me, the best part of our local drag and performance scene is the tangible sense of community it creates – especially for the younger people who are used to engaging and interacting online,’ Hugh says. ‘The power of being together in the same room, watching the same performance, having the same experience, is something that the digital natives often miss out on. But live performance brings them all back together.’
Helen Wheels performing at Queer Sister Smackdown, Sportsman Hotel, Spring Hill, 2023, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0019-0008.
Zelphia Mann with telephone bag at Loud and Proud Logan, Kingston, 2024, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0022-0009.
A sense of community
‘Brisbane’s drag and queer performance scene is so vibrant and diverse that there really is something for everybody,’ Hugh says. ‘There are traditional drag gigs like brunches and bingos, a rotating roster of production shows (The Wickham, The Sportsman Hotel), specialised events produced for children and families (Queer & Here), board games extravaganzas, competitions (Queer Sister Smackdown, Mx Sporties), themed game shows or musical theatre productions – the list goes on.
‘One of my favourites is the altimate.SHOWDOWN, a multi-week competition that showcases 60 to 80 acts across drag, burlesque, stand-up comedy, you name it. It’s the type of event where you mingle with the same crowd each week and see the tangible impact it has in creating and sustaining a sense of community among performers and patrons alike. It was at altimate.SHOWDOWN that I first met Helen Wheels (and her mum) and was inspired and awestruck by her commitment, adoration and deep domain knowledge of local drag.
‘While the first tranche of Welcome to Queens’ Land focuses around the drag queen (performative femininity) scene, Brisbane also has an incredibly fast-growing and impressive drag king (performative masculinity) scene as well. I’ve started production on a follow-up project to capture and tell these stories, too.’
‘Some people even say that their child has a disability and how much I inspire them. That’s very uplifting for me because ... this is the reason why I do it. I don’t do it to spread any negativity. I only do drag to be positive and to prove to people that if they put their mind to it, they can do anything.’
Helen Wheels, whose TikTok make-up videos have up to 7 million views
'It’s pretty hard to have a dull day when you’re dressed with a purple wig and a rainbow-print outfit ... Being a professional drag queen involves probably, I’d say 18 hours of being in drag a week and probably about 30 hours of being out of drag, getting that person ready.'
Professional drag queen Lulu LeMans
Freya Armani put finishing touches to her stage eye make-up, Brisbane, 2023, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0011-0012.
Freya Armani on stage during Wicked Wickham, Fortitude Valley, 2024, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0023-0002.
Freya Armani: in her own words
‘I admired the spotlight at a young age, as many young queer people do, but it wasn’t until meeting my chosen family, having their love and support behind me, that I felt I, too, could be a joy-bringer in this world.
‘I fell in love with drag because it combined all of my favourite things: make-up, fashion, theatre, dance, music ... drag is so much bigger than self-expression or an art form. I’ve learnt drag is rebellion, drag is essential, drag is proof of the soul refusing to be invisible, especially in a day and age where censorship and political dogma prevail over critical thinking and truth.
‘What I love about Brisbane’s drag is that every single artist has their own perspective, which enriches not only their individual art and drag style but the collective. As a city our creativity shines bright because of all the colours and flavours of art we have. I’ll put it this way: I have never met someone who regretted going to a drag show.
‘If anything, drag is a demonstration that identity, creativity and joy cannot be mechanised, faked or hidden away.
‘Whether you want to experience that joy, live in that authenticity or simply watch and enjoy the sparkly glitter and pretty hair, Brisbane has some world-class drag/burlesque/creativity and it’d be an outright shame to miss out on something so beautiful and full of life that is right under your own nose.’
Ladybird: in her own words
‘Ladybird is a silly, camp little creature who is all about having a good time and bringing joy and a smile to everyone around her. She takes nothing too seriously and is not afraid of making a fool of herself. She is truly a heightened, more confident version of the person underneath.
‘I remember watching Priscilla: Queen of the Desert for the first time and being enamoured by their incredible costumes, massive hair, make-up and unapologetic attitude. My mum and I started watching RuPaul’s Drag Race, and I started to surround myself more and more with it. I have never felt so inspired and invigorated by anything.
‘In 2022, I entered Queer Sister Smackdown, a drag competition for newer queens at the Sportsman Hotel, and I won. It was the most surreal experience. Last year, I got to open for 3 international drag tours featuring some of my favourite artists, and I won Miss Sporties, Brisbane’s longest-running, most prestigious drag pageant.
‘I love that drag can be an escape and a safe haven. Its illusion and grace are completely serious and unserious at the same time. It intertwines history and honours those who paved the way for us to live with more openness, freedom and acceptance than once was ever dreamt of. I love researching Brisbane’s queer history because it shows how drag has been an outlet for so many generations before.
‘Drag is special to me because it allows me to be the person I have always wanted to be. I truly feel like myself in a plastic wig, massive lashes and an outrageous costume. Brisbane’s drag is unique because we are not afraid to take risks. Our drag scene is all about community and that is really what makes it special. And in Brisbane humidity, you really must love it to make it worth it.’
Photographs by Hugh Whitehouse
SWIPE TO VIEW PHOTOS
Vollie LaVont singing at Loud and Proud Logan, Kingston, 2024, Hugh Whitehouse, Welcome to Queens' Land, State Library of Queensland. Image 34924-0021-0016.
Explore the Welcome to Queens’ Land collection
Watch: A history of the Queens Ball, the world’s longest-running queer event
Read more about State Library's collections in our 2025 Highlights publication
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