Shining bright and loving it: Astoria’s new drag show hostess Jewel Marquee!
Thotyssey: Hi Jewel! How’s September treating you so far?
Jewel Marquee: September has been great so far ! Very busy, but the best type of busy… preparing for lots of, projects and performing a ton!
You’ve been exploding on the scene all over the city lately. How long have you been doing drag?
Just over a year now! It’s crazy how fast everything has been happening!
Can you tell us a bit about where you’re from, and how your drag journey began?
Oh where do I start with this, lol? I grew up in a suburb of Boston doing all different types of performance art. It all really started when I was eight or nine when my cheer coach put “Glamazon” by RuPaul in our music; I watched the music video and was instantly obsessed! It wasn’t until I saw a TikTok mid-pandemic of Jax doing a crazy dip that I decided I wanted to try drag. I moved to NYC walked into Icon Astoria about two weeks later where I met Purss’ophonie and Sherry Poppins, who were like, “just do it!” And now two years later, here we are… and I am, in fact, doing it!
Did you ever get to meet Jax?
Yes! And she is just the sweetest little flipper out there.
What’s great about being a drag up-and-comer in this city… and what’s not so great?
Oof, that’s a tough question. I’ve had so many wonderful experiences, and met so many amazing people. But I would say, something that I hate about the community is that unless you are a cis male drag queen, there will always be an extra hurdle for to you jump… especially for Kings and Things. Or, [you’ll get] a weird question asked by a patron. But then also the good part about that is, you walk into the dressing room, you turn to the other performers and go “what the fuck was I just asked,” and then everyone is like “yo, what the fuck was that,” and then it’s over, lol!
How would you describe the “type” of drag you like to serve, as far as looks and numbers go?
The little intro I have is “the Lesbian Broadway Pop Princess of Astoria.” I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from people like Paris Hilton, Cher and Christine Baranski when thinking about how I’d like to be perceived within my drag. So I guess very 90s / Y2K socialite? Lately I have been tapping into my comedic side more, which has been so much fun! Although a lot of people would perceive me as knock-off Chappell Roan, which I always get a kick out of!
Lol! Are you #TeamChappell, #TeamCharli or #TeamSabrina? Or #TeamSomeoneElse?
Oh, as much as I love Charli and Sabrina I am #TeamChappell through and through. I went to one of her first NYC shows after Covid, and it truly was the best experience. I got to meet her… love her so much! I do always tell people, though, to join #teammaudelatour; that diva is on the cusp of blowing up, I feel it!
Applaud Maude! You’re going to have a monthly solo show of your own at Icon starting this Tuesday: “Lavender Haze,” which you call “a sapphic centric party for all!”
Yes, this is such a full circle moment for me! Funny enough, Icon is actually the first bar I walked into when I moved to New York. I started going to shows a ton and became friends with the queens and staffers. Then last year at the end of June I did the debutant ball at [Icon’s sister bar] Albatross hosted by Angela Mansberry, then have been doing pop up numbers here and there ever sense! This show is gonna be the sapphic artists that you know and love already, but then some you’ve definitely never heard of before thrown in there! I’m not gonna just do Chappell every night. I also have one of my fellow sapphic performers coming in to do a few numbers every month; this month it’s Supernova, which is gonna be super fun!
What else is coming up for you?
On September 20, I’ll be at Wicked Willy’s in Manhattan for a Charli XCX night, and then September 26 I’ll be at Mad Tropical in Brooklyn for a sapphic party! Next month is my birthday, so I’m prepping some very exciting things for that! I also just started hosting a monthly open stage at Mad Tropical with Cheetahquila, so keep your eyes peeled for the next date of that!
Excellent! Okay lastly: what’s your favorite item in your drag bag right now, cosmetic or otherwise?
Ooh! My Definitely my earbuds and a pre-roll, half for the train ride to the show and half for intermission!
You rule, Jewel!
Check Thotyssey’s calendar for Jewel Marquee’s upcoming appearances, and follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
Thotyssey 