Latrice Royale from 'RuPaul's Drag Race' to dazzle South Africa with two-city tour

Latrice Royale, best known for her unforgettable appearances on “RuPaul’s Drag Race”, is returning to South Africa after 13 years for a two-city performance of "Terms and Conditions May Vary". 

If the energy she was giving during our recent chat is anything to go by, the Cape Town and Joburg shows are going to be one for the books.

Reflecting on her first visit, she said: “I had my hopes and expectations of a magical moment, and it did not disappoint. I immediately fell in love with the people and culture. I felt like, even though I had never been there before, that I had been there before. I felt like I was home, I felt so embraced and loved.

“The children were calling me mother, and it just felt magical. And to be submerged in the culture and go to the local markets and just see things of how the normal day-to-day life is, get into the food, learn some of the history and see Table Mountain, it was magical.”

Although she’s yearned to return since, the timing didn’t work out until now.

In the drag scene, she is celebrated as an OG. Looking back at how the landscape has evolved, she chuckled: “We are talking 33 years that I’ve been doing drag now. So that is a lifetime for people.

“Times were very different then, just in the vein of access to things and resources. We did not have the tools that we have now, where drag is so accessible to anybody. You can get pre-fabricated style wigs and garments, fully-stoned, and ready for the stage. You can order it online and have your instant drag kit, whereas in my day, you had to be self-sufficient and creative. 

“We had to make our own garments; we didn’t have designers designing for us. Everything came from our DNA. Our DNA was in every bit of our drag, so even though it might sometimes be rough around the edges, it was ours.”

He chuckled, “We have a thing in the drag community with the OGs that say if you didn’t go through an ugly phase, you aren’t really doing drag. If you didn’t suffer, baby, you’re not your drag, you’re just a dress up, girl.”

With Latrice’s SA tour, she is joined by her hubby, Christopher Hamblin, as well as three of South Africa’s most celebrated drag performers: Manila Von Teez, Kat Gilardi and Stella Rosé.

She shared: “Well, the South African audience has never, ever seen Latrice this way. A lot of people didn't know that I could sing; I’ve been doing so for over a decade now, and there's a live vocal show. 

“This is a full cabaret, live theatre show, and it's interactive. You're gonna be able to connect, really get to learn what made me, me, and how I got to be where I'm at. I get to share my love story with my loving husband, who is my musical director and accompanist. 

“And it really is a journey, and we're gonna laugh, we're gonna cry, we're gonna do all the feels.”

Of her line-up, she added: “Yes, these girls are the girls that I met, obviously, 13 years ago, they were turning it down. They were doing their thing, they were a girl group, they were touring, you know what I mean? So I was really impressed with them then. 

“But then to see the growth and how they've all kind of come into their own individuality and have evolved, and the drag scene has definitely expanded and grown and gotten fiercer. 

“So I'm really excited to share the stage and have these local divas come and be a part of the show as well. I always tell people that is like church and therapy, like you're gonna feel some feelings, and it's all going to be good when you leave.” 

Cape Town 

Where: Barnyard Theatre, Tygervalley Shopping Centre, Bellville

When: Wednesday, November 19, 8pm. 

Joburg 

Where: The Lyric Theatre, Gold Reef City.

When: Friday, November 21, 8pm.