Local enters Drag Race
Orlando has produced some notable reality television contestants of late. Who can forget UCF graduate and former Miss America Erika Dunlap’s spoiled rotten rages on the most recent edition of The Amazing Race? And next week, local actor and designer Jesse Lenoir (and Tampa’s Ben Chmura) debuts on the much-anticipated seventh season of Project Runway. But Tyra Sanchez may end up stealing the spotlight. The regular performer at Pulse and other Orlando area nightspots will compete for the title of “Top Drag Queen of the Land” on the second season of Rupaul’s Drag Race. The battle among “the nation’s most outrageous, cutting-edge, talented and stunningly gorgeous drag queens” premiers on Logo in February. And even amongst contestants with names like Jujubee, Sonique, Pandora Boxx and Shangela Laquifa Wadley, our fiercely beautiful local representative may stand out. Here’s how Logo describes her: “Tyra swears she’s ‘America’s Sweetheart’ but you better watch your back, ‘cuz Miss Thing’s objective is clear: obliterate and annihilate. This crafty queen knows how to work a runway and her competitors’ nerves, and she’ll stop at nothing to win.” Watch for a profile of Sanchez and a preview of Season 2 of Rupaul’s Drag Race in our upcoming Winter Arts Issue, available Jan. 21.
Radio day
Radio may seem retro these days, but one local show is building a small but loyal following. And if you’re at work on Friday afternoon, it may be the perfect bridge to get you to your gay weekend. According to its Facebook page, Outloud Orlando: The Homo Happy Hour is two hours of “lighthearted talk about real life, real people and real events, with news and information for the GLBT community.” Hosted by local personality ‘Justice’ and his crew, the talk focuses mostly on, well, Justice. Guests are often introduced and then ignored while Justice and friends are distracted by stream-of-consciousness banter. When two Watermark staffers appeared recently, the only question Justice asked them was: “Why didn’t your newspaper give me a WAVE Award?” But that’s his charm, and part of why the two hours from 2 to 4 p.m. on Friday pass so quickly. Tune into The Homo Happy Hour on the Rollins College radio station, WPRK 19.5 FM, or at WPRKFM.com.
