A performer tells so many stories, and the Got That Beat club continues to tell the stories of not just women but the young artists on campus, the GTB vice president said.
Student drag queen performers gave homage to many women in history and shared some “herstory” while also giving back to the community.
“We’ve been doing ‘Queens for a Cause’ since October 2023,” GTB Vice President Paige Noss said. “I kind of jumped in. I went to Stonewall, and then I was like, ‘Now we have to bring this to campus.’ I know a lot of drag queens on campus, and I was like, ‘Why don’t we just have a college show?”
Noss said they wanted this art to be more accessible for everyone on campus and create a community that supports newcomers dipping their toes in.
“I wanted to have local, rising queens come here and hone their craft,” Noss said. “I have a bunch of new drag queens, people who have never done makeup before, who want to dabble in performing. Our cause is both to give back to the community and give these young artists a platform to express themselves.”
This event raised funds for Branches, a domestic violence shelter in Huntington, and menstruation products for women at Marshall and the shelter.
“Branches is a local domestic violence shelter, and we’ve been working with them since we started,” Noss said. “We have been working with Branches for two years now, and I work on their student fundraising committee.”
The club has raised almost $1600 for the shelter since starting the collaboration.
The show was put together by a collaboration between the club and the Women’s Center. Alissa Rookard, the coordinator of the Women’s Center, said once she thought of the idea, she had to find a student organization that aligned with the values of the center, and once she saw the Got That Beat club, it was a yes.
“I saw this, and I was like, ‘Yes, absolutely. Who doesn’t love a drag show and also helping students hone their craft and get some stage time,’” Rookard said. “I also just knew that I wanted to be a part of it, and so I emailed, and I thought the worst that they can say is no, but Paige emailed me back almost immediately, I feel like, and was like, ‘This is the title; we’ve already got plans; we’re doing it.’”
The event was filled with excitement and various performances from the creative minds of the student organization that highlighted many influential women, such as Cher, Amelia Earhart, Mary Shelley and Mrs. Pac-Man. Rookard said the performances almost came naturally to the members of the organization.
“If you go and you talk to any individual, they can find someone in their life that has been influential, and with the creative minds in this student organization, I feel like it was a natural progression of peers to create that ambiance and to invite everybody in to see why they love those women and what they do,” Rookard said.
Noss said the organization has many plans and more events to come and even some exciting things on the horizon that are still in the works. She said she welcomes anyone to join, and it is an accepting place for anyone to have fun and relax.
Anyone interested in joining the organization can find them on HerdLink under Got That Beat or email them at [email protected].
Soleil Woolard can be contacted at [email protected].
