Drag your family and friends to Collingwood's Royal Canadian Legion, because the venue will be hosting its first-ever drag show this month.
Drag Me to 2023 will take place at the Collingwood legion on Friday, Jan. 20 and will feature two performers who were born and raised in the southern Georgian Bay area, along with two Toronto-based drag queens.
Leo Gallacher, a transgender man who uses he/him pronouns, performs under the stage name Themme, who he describes as a non-binary character who goes by they/them pronouns.
Gallacher grew up in Nottawa and attended Collingwood Collegiate Institute.
“I came out during high school. At the time, it wasn’t really an openly diverse school. I was one of a handful of gay kids that were out in the open,” he said.
“I faced a lot of discrimination and bullying,” Gallacher added, noting a specific incident when he was 16 during which a slur was used to address him. “It was a lot.”
After high school, Gallacher moved to Toronto to pursue schooling in journalism, and settled in the area of Church-Wellesley Village, a hub for the LGBTQ community.
“I’ve been a fan of drag forever. I had a safe space growing up at home. My mom was very open about queer things,” he said.
Gallacher’s first foray into drag was through his cousin, who performs as Lucy Whatyaget, who will also perform as part of the Drag Me to 2023 show.
“I followed her around. I was her hair person and the person to zip her up,” he said. “After starting in the community that way, I thought I’d like to try it myself. I’m a theatre person and I do makeup for fun.”
In April 2022, Gallacher performed for the first time in the Village as Themme. Since then, he has continued to perform and is elated to bring his character back to his hometown.
“It’s been so awesome to see the change in pace of where I grew up. Now, there’s a Collingwood Pride (Festival) and there are Pride events. It’s a lot more accepting now than it was when I was growing up,” he said.
Gallacher says the painting of a rainbow sidewalk at Simcoe and Ste. Marie streets in Collingwood had a major effect for him.
“This is a permanent part of this town now that shows that I’m accepted here and I am welcome here,” he said. “It’s refreshing. It makes me love where I’m from a whole lot more than I did before. I’m proud to say I’m from Collingwood now.”
Themme will be joined at the Jan. 20 event by drag performers Lucy Whatyaget (who grew up in Wasaga Beach) as well as Toronto-based performers Mira Fantasy and Regina DeVil.
“I’m so excited to do a show in Collingwood,” said Gallacher. “We’d like to add some sparkle at the beginning of a new year.”
There is a $20 entry fee for the event, which starts at 8 p.m. The bar will be open, with funds from the bar going toward the Collingwood legion.
More information, including how to buy tickets, can be found here.
