Drag Queens Descend On Sydney For RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under Season 2 Premiere

It was a night of glitz and glamour at the State Theatre in downtown Sydney on Thursday night when all ten of the Queens competing in season two of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under gathered together for a swanky soiree to celebrate the world premiere. 

The blue carpet was the hottest spot in town, and the Star Observer had a prime seat to speak with many of the Queens for the first time since the cast was announced July 6.

But it was not just the season 2 queens making waves on the blue carpet. The other celebrities in attendance included Spiderman: Far From Home and Crazy Rich Asians actor Remy Hii, music sensation DJ Tigerlily, supermodels Samantha Harris and Simone Holtznagel, popstar Jack Vidgen, singer and The Voice Australia winner Alfie Arcuri, NOVA FM’s Kent ‘Smallzy’ Small, comedian and radio host Lucinda ‘Froomes’ Price, and trailblazer and former AFL star Dani Laidley.

Down Under Queens Season 1 queens, including Art Simone, Coco Jumbo, Etcetera Etcetera, Jojo Zaho and Maxi Shield also came out to show their support.

Absolutely Petrifying

Hannah Conda told Star Observer being part of the RuPaul family was “overwhelming and exciting and thrilling.” Being cast on the show she said, “Is absolutely petrifying. You are testing absolutely every part of your skill set. So you have to be ready to rock and roll.”

So how does she plan to steel herself against the slings and arrows of the often challenging Drag Race fanbase?

“I’m well aware of my flaws and all the things that make up who I am,” said Hannah. “It’s not engaging in it. It’s kind of going yeah, you can point it out, but I know what my flaws are. I’m very much about acknowledging that and taking that into stock in my life and making sure I live the best life I can and be a positive influence in my community. I just don’t read the comments. It’s, you know, who cares?”

‘I’m In A Dream’

Faúx Fúr was positively gleeful about being cast in the new season. “Oh my God, I feel like I’m in a dream still…I’m so excited.”

Faúx said being on Drag Race “Is very nerve wracking because there isn’t a manual to this, so you gotta learn how to do it on your own…take the blessings and grow from that.”

When Molly Poppinz walked into the werk room for the first time, it was  “really overwhelming.”

“I remember the first day I was there I was like ‘Oh my God, Is this actually happening‘? Like pinch me; fever dream. It was so great. I hope the fans love it. I hope they love all the girls as much as I do,” Molly said.

As for her family’s reaction, Molly told the Star Observer, “They were really excited but I don’t think they realised how much of a big deal it was. My sister did, but my dad was like ‘oh yeah, cool. Go do it.’ I’m like ‘no, no you don’t understand; like this is big.’” 

Everyone Watches RuPaul’s Drag Race

When asked why we should root for her, Beverly Kills responded, “I’m the first drag queen from Brisbane to ever be on RuPaul’s drag race. And I’m like, I don’t think you should root for me because I’m the youngest, but I represent this younger era of drag that was fully inspired by the recent years of RuPaul’s drag race. 

“Everyone watches RuPaul’s Drag Race nowadays. It’s part of the modern culture but there’s this new wave of drag that, especially over COVID, all these people found drag as their escape, and I’m one of those people.”

‘NZ Is Happy For Me’

Yuri Guaii said that everyone back home in New Zealand is “so supportive and just very happy for me.” She also said she had reached out to season one Kiwi Queen Anita Wigl’it, when she realised she wasn’t sure what was going to be expected of her.

“I’ve actually spoken to Anita. ‘Anita, what am I supposed to do? I don’t know what I’m doing.’”

“It’s like honestly, no one knows what they’re doing. You just go and have a great time,” Anita told the fledgling reality star.

“I was getting ready to come here and I was like ‘it’s fine. It’s no big deal. But then I got here and I was like ‘Oh my God,” Guaii said.

Kween Kong said, “The scariest part was letting go of your own ideas of what you are and just like abandoning and surrendering to the process…the thing I wanted to be was happy, proud and represent my communities as best as I could.”

‘I’ve Only Been Doing Drag For A Year’

For Aubrey Haive, being cast on Drag Race was a massive achievement because prior to doing the show she was relatively new to the drag scene. “I’d only been doing it for a year at that point. I auditioned out of a whim. We’re in lockdown. I was like, ‘Oh, I may as well audition. It will be fun.’” 

So how does a neophyte Queen end up gathering enough skill to make the cast of the biggest drag show in the world? “We were in lockdown for a very, very long time in Melbourne. And you can do a lot in that time.”

Because she was so new to drag, Aubrey says meeting her Drag Race sisters was the scariest part of the experience. “I’m pretty new and I knew that none of them would know who I am. I was a little bit intimidated that they’d be like, ‘what’s she doing here?”

‘It’s Not Scary’

Pomara Fifth told the Star Observer she went into Drag Race with the intention to be “authentically herself…and just be in the moment.”

“It’s not scary. I really went in with the mindset of like, ‘I’m just gonna take it in. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I’m not going to stress the small things.’”

RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under premieres on Stan on July 30, 2022. Star Observer will be dishing the dirt with the eliminated Queens each week in ru-vealing interviews.