Mx. Heart-On 2025

First, I will quickly admit that I was a good hour late to the show due to my work schedule, but I wanted to visit and give my love to these incredible performers. I was only able to be present for the talent portion of the pageant, so that is all I will be able to review! Second, I want to give my sympathy and love to Feral Burnett, Crow Shay Gay, and Sher DeWealth, as all of these performers had to opt out due to illness. Between Covid, the increasing danger of bird flu, and various other illnesses, it is becoming more and more important to mask especially in such crowded spaces. I will admit I'm not the best at being consistent with masking, but please let this be one of many reminders to all of us to try harder.

Third, let me introduce our performers! Our hilarious hosts were Wanda Gag and Miss Ava Cado! These two lit up the twilight moments between numbers with delightful banter and audience interviews, easily bouncing off of each others personalities. But let's not forget our esteemed judges! Rose Nylon, Pistachio Creampie, Ty Torres, Rex Boyfriend, and Ivy LaVoix Principle. All of whom were sporting their own intricate outfits along with performing stunning numbers of their own, ranging from angelic beauties to downright sex appeal, truly some masters of the craft! And finally, the contestants! Valentino, Tiffany Tantrum, Ron Gender, Icarus Rising, Omnipotent Pain, Gothful Pain, Estee Rhettie, and Tri Sarah Top! Again, I was only able to see their talent portions, but what I have seen of their other events looks absolutely incredible. All names here link to their individual instagram accounts, so please go check them out!

Mx. Heart-On is an annual pageant hosted by Drag Me With a Spoon at the Lush Lounge and Theater, with last years winner being the amazing Hellen Heaven. This year, our winner was Omnipotent Pain! It's performance was captivating, doing a contemporary dance duet to a song I do not remember the name of, forgive me. With precise movements and rhythm, it was able to convey the meaning of the song while not lipsyncing at all. It was a creative switch on the usual drag formula, which really emphasized the talent being displayed. The first alternative as Estee Rhettie, who's talent number was clearly handcrafted to be the funniest shit of the week. Before she even came on stage, a spliced together video of internet memes and news clips played on the screen. She prepped the audience to be delighted, and she delivered. I truly believe trying to explain the joke would deteriorate it, so just go watch her in person someday. Second alternative was Gothful Pain, who's talent number was...fascinating. As a horror fan, the creative dive into bringing a fake body onto stage to dance with and threaten was just incredible to witness. Any expectation I had got thrown out the window every other second.

Now in order of how I saw them, Valentino was a primarily ballroom performer who made the stage his own. His talent number was clearly dedicated to the love he has for the journey they've been on, as the screen behind them displayed a collaged documentation of his journey with ballroom. What made it all the more meaningful is the uproar from his family in the crowd, who outpoured their love for him both during the number and after when Wanda interviewed them. Tri Sarah Top also put the screen to good use, showing off different presentations of themselves to highlight their experience with transness. They showed true dedication by making mirrored images that all timed together with the in person choreography and music. Speaking of music, the mixes that Tiffany Tantrum comes out with have a pattern of being incredible. I saw them once at Tooth and Nails, and they once again showed up with a mix that swerved expectations by completely changing the vibe, along with their outfit. Also, am I right in assuming they had a final fantasy music video on screen? Ron Gender also showed up to change the vibe, by giving us live vocals and seemingly a homemade animated background video! His vocals were stellar, and the forest sprite-like outfit was absolutely adorable. I caught myself wondering what fantastical media could've been the inspiration. But with Icarus Rising's number, I could spot the inspiration a mile away. With a lolita style outfit and a massive syringe for a prop, Icarus Rising came on the stage to keep us weird Gen Z bitches fed. The glitter and cuteness perfectly contrasted the gore and violence of the choreography, it hit that perfect sweet spot of sickly sweet.

Now, I had a ton of fun with this show, even if I only got to see about half of it. The drag performers in this area are genuinely some of the most creative and talented people I've ever encountered, and I am so happy to be able to finally express my thoughts about them somewhere other than my own head. If any of the performers are reading this right now, I hope you know you were fucking incredible. Keep doing what you're doing, keep being weird and out there and beautiful.
And most of all...
Have a lovely evening~