From our cellphone screens to headlining the Ultimate Drag Experience in one big venue, the Divine Divas, Precious Paula Nicole, Brigiding, and Viñas DeLuxe, have come a long way!
Just like you, I’m short-circuiting right now, thinking about how they worked for their dreams that led them to this moment. Pre-Drag Race, they were already standouts in the scene, the most admired and respected among their peers. Ask anyone who they wanted to see on the inaugural season of Drag Race Philippines, and their names will always be mentioned first. They are strong on their own and can mesmerize a crowd and take them on fabulous adventures through captivating performances. But as a trio, it’s like taking a bite of the perfect peanut butter and jelly sandwich; fireworks of flavors emerge.
Precious Paula Nicole, Brigiding, and Viñas DeLuxe got together and created the Divine Bar, a virtual hangout venue born out of the pandemic when clubs were closed and we were all cooped up in our houses. It became a two-way support structure that benefitted the performers and the viewers during that time of great upheaval. Fast forward to 2023, and we are at a thrilling time when we are taking drag from the clubs and onto a 2500-capacity theater.
Fire & Ice Media production, the newly formed company of LGBT powerhouse couple—singer-songwriter Ice Seguerra and wife, actress, and former Film Development Council of the Philippines chairperson Liza Diño, will be staging a pre-Valentine extravaganza that showcases the Drag Race Philippines season one winner Precious Paula Nicole, Viñas DeLuxe, and Brigiding.
Fresh from their multiple wins at the Aliw Awards & Musical Direction for Seguerra’s anniversary concert, Fire & Ice media wants to shine the spotlight on the art of drag through Divine Divas: The Ultimate Drag Experience. The concert promises to elevate and will feature performances of original songs and impersonations of music superstars like Beyonce and Lady Gaga.
This is a pivotal time in Philippine drag as our local queens are headlining a show at a bigger venue, thus opening opportunities for a broader set of audiences. “Local drag queens are finally there on the main stage. You see their names alongside mainstream artists and concert performers. For me, that’s a big thing because drag has always been on the sidelines,” Ice Seguerra says. “This is an opportunity for drag queens to be seen on the main stage and to be considered as mainstream artists. Through this concert, we hope that more people will appreciate these drag performers and help normalize drag as a form of entertainment,” producer Diño adds.
Tickets for Divine Divas: The Ultimate Drag Experience are now on sale at TicketNet (visit www.ticketnet.com.ph or call 89115555). This event is co-produced with Nathan Studios, a production company co-founded by veteran actress Slyvia Sanchez.
