Drag Race RuCap: "The Mother of All Balls"

For the next few months, Nick Taylor and Cláudio Alves will be following and recapping RuPaul’s Drag Race season sixteen…

CLÁUDIO: Dear readers, it feels only polite to apologize for the delay in posting this much belated RuCap. Although the next Drag Race episode is almost upon us, there are still 42 runway looks and a whole episode full of shenanigans to discuss. Then again, the Oscar nominations were just announced, so there was a lot to do this past week, when awards fever reached its boiling point. So excuse us and let’s move on to “The Mother of All Balls,” a rather smashing hour of drag competition that overcomes the hurdle of coming too soon in the season. 

NICK: Yeah. Sorry we’re late, the Oscar noms happened. I just woke up from a medically induced coma, and when I saw Margot Robbie missed I immediately went back under in sheer distress. Don’t believe me? Good. Go fuck yourselves . . . .

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Drag Race RuCap: "Queen Choice Awards"

Bukkake, but make it BARBIEcore.

NICK: There’s nothing like a timely, provocative recap published several days after the episode aired, amirite? The second half of season 16’s split premiere has come and gone, providing us with another talent show and, most importantly, another chance to see Derrick Berry. I wouldn’t say this batch of bitches is categorically stronger than the first group, but they’re all distinct drag artists who I cannot wait to see interact with the other queens. Two contestants stand out from the pack as ones to watch, albeit for very different reasons, but before we get into all that, how did you feel about this episode, Cláudio?

CLÁUDIO: First of all, thank you for not making any hollow promises of succinctness on our part. We love to see such self-awareness, personal growth… 

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Drag Race RuCap: “Rate-a-Queen”

Paraphrasing Alyssa Edwards, the RuCaps are back back back back back again. For the next few months, Nick Taylor and Cláudio Alves will be following RuPaul’s Drag Race season sixteen…

Since Queen Bey won't do it, Sapphira Cristál provides her own RENAISSANCE visuals.

NICK: Okay, let me just say this to the readers right off the bat: These will not be as lengthy as they were last year, god willing. This is a challenge, a plea, a threat made to us, by us, for us. We are back, and we promise that no matter how long it takes us to finish, we’re gonna go over these episodes with so much depth, such thoroughness, that your heads will spin off your fucking necks. At least the split premiere means we don’t have to jump out of the gate evaluating fifteen queens. I for one enjoyed meeting half of this season’s contestants, all of whom seem entertaining and eager to be there. What did you think of season 16’s debut?

CLÁUDIO: First of all, I make no such promises cum threats. I know us and our propensity for verbal diarrhea so that just seems like an invitation for disappointment. We’re two size queens at heart, and we might as well accept it…

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Queering the Oscars: "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert"

For Pride Month Team Experience is looking at queer and queer-adjacent moments in Oscar history...

by Cláudio Alves

It was the night of the 67th Academy Awards when a Vera Wang-clad Sharon Stone stepped on stage to present the Best Costume Design Oscar, the second category in an evening most remembered for its Forrest Gump lovefest. And yet, amid celebrating that epic of political passivity and proto conservatism, the Academy found time to tip its metaphorical hat at two classics of 1990s queer cinema. The second such picture, Trevor, would have its moment later when the Live-Action Short race resolved itself in a shocking tie. For now, slotted after a resplendent Dianne Wiest accepted the Supporting Actress trophy, it was time to honor The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert…

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Drag Race RuCap: "Grand Finale"

CLÁUDIO ALVES: It’s over. RuPaul’s Drag Race has finished its fifteenth season, crowning one of its best winners yet while putting on a show full of musical interludes, political messaging, and gorgeous gowns. Though the excitement of lipsync tournaments à la season 9 is somewhat missed, the queens seem happy with a repeat of the season 14 format, where each finalist presents a solo number before Ru picks a top two to lipsync for the crown. Anyway, that’s a matter for later. First, dear Nick, tell me your general thoughts on the finale...

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