Drag Race Philippines has provided the Drag Race Cinematic Universe with some of the most incredible drag artists on the planet. Thus far, only two queens from that reality franchise have been invited to compete on the global stage. First, it was Marina Summers on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs the World 2. Then there was Eva Le Queen on RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars. The Filipino dynamo may have had a short run on the global stage, but her time proved just how exceptional of a drag artist she is. For Eva, this journey to Global All Stars wasn’t just about her. She said, “I wasn’t just there for myself. I was there not just for the drag queens. I was there for all the amazing designers. Everyone that’s been part of my journey for Global All Stars. And I think by the end of the day, we are really proud of what we’ve shown.”
RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars celebrates the world of drag as 12 international drag superstars compete for the title of Queen of the Mothertucking World and a cash prize of $200,000. Hosted by RuPaul with judges Michelle Visage and Jamal Sims, the season’s queens showcasing their charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent include Alyssa Edwards (RuPaul’s Drag Race), Athena Likis (Drag Race Belgique), Eva Le Queen (Drag Race Philippines), Gala Varo (Drag Race Mexico), Kitty Scott-Claus (RuPaul’s Drag Race UK), Kween Kong (RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under), Miranda Lebrão (Drag Race Brasil), Nehellenia (Drag Race Italia), Pythia (Canada’s Drag Race), Soa de Muse (Drag Race France), Tessa Testicle (Drag Race Germany), and Vanity Vain (Drag Race Sverige).
Eva Le Queen Came a Long Way to Compete
Drag Race Philippines has been considered one of the best international franchises in the flagship series. The celebration of drag and the Filipino has been on full display in each of its three seasons. With her platform on RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars, Eva Le Queen had the opportunity to showcase this celebration on a grander stage. “I came a long way from home just to show everyone that there’s drag excellence on that side of the planet,” she exclaimed.
While she may not have been familiar with all of her new sisters’ original franchises, she was eager to check their seasons out after getting to know them. But when it came to the US’s own Alyssa Edwards, Eva compared her to Beyoncé competing on American Idol. With such high praises for the queen, she also felt nervous competing against RuPaul’s Drag Race UK 3’s Kitty Scott Claus. On Kitty, she said, “Because Kitty is more on the camp side of drag, and I can also get a little more camp at times, I think we do share quite a similar drag.” No matter what, she was able to hold her own within the group of international drag superstars.
Eva Le Queen Paid Homage to Her Original Season
The season kicked off with a two-part premiere as the twelve competing queens were split up into two groups to present their talents. On Eva’s night of the variety show, she brought one of the most original routines across the franchise. She said, “I was conceptualizing it when I was thinking, ‘what will I do?’ I’ll leave the dancing to people who really dance. I will probably skip that.” She continued, “One of my good friends, Baus, told me that you know what, you should do something that you’re already doing. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You just have to look at the shows you’ve brought. That’s already been an original act that I’ve been doing around here. That storytelling kind of gig. I just had someone compose a song. Get it Global ready because the original version was in a different language. I’m glad that I was able to show it. It’s so me, and it’s so Filipino. I couldn’t have thought of a better talent show to show the world.”
Fans of Drag Race Philippines know that the first season gifted the world with one of the best girl group challenges in the history of the show. “Pop Off Ate” made the Filipino charts and Eva was a big part of why. When it came to her time on RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars, she was fortunate to reach this challenge again and paid homage to the challenge that helped catapult her to stardom. “If you’ve watched my season, you know how nervous I get when it comes to anything that, you know, involves movement of the joints. I’m not always really very confident when it comes to dancing and all, but I was happy that I got the right support system.” She says that she was able to be there for her “bestie” Miranda Lebrão as she was there for her. Alyssa gave them everything. And “Tessa was also there,” she joked.
Unlike almost all the other international franchises, Drag Race Philippines has their own separate Untucked that is not jammed into the regular episode. On Drag Race Philippines Untucked, the drama was always at a 10. But Eva noted that it was a bit spicier over at Global All Stars. She believes this is where some language barriers came into play. She noted that misunderstandings arose because of how things were said. “They want to say something else, but it sounds differently because they use a different word like ‘privilege’ or whatnot. It’s crazy. And because you don’t know them, you don’t know how they react,” she revealed. Also, like no other franchise, on Drag Race Philippines, the queens eat during Untucked. I asked Eva what infamous Filipino “bar chow” she would want to share with her new sisters. She said, “I would have them try the famous balut, which is a duck egg. They eat ducks just for the fun of it. Because for me, it’s really tasty. It’s an acquired taste. I think it’s delicious, but I would like to see Alyssa Edwards’ face when there’s a beak and some feathers up her nostrils. She acts like a lady! I want to see her choke on a balut!” Eva laughed.
The Acting Challenge Got the Best of Eva
The fickle fingers of fate broke the remaining queens into three groups for the “Boobies: The Shequel” acting challenge. As fate would have it, she was placed in a group of four in a parody of Frankenstein. With the other teams only having three members each, having a fourth member proved it was harder to stand out. Eva played a nosy neighbor character that was inspired by a “Karen.” She took the direction Michelle Visage and Jamal Sims gave her, but in the final product, the judges didn’t see enough levels in her performance. It all came down to splitting hairs. Eva said, “From day one, right off the bat, I already knew it’s going to be a strong competition. These girls didn’t come to play. There ain’t no filler queens. These are like finalists from their own respective seasons.”
The team in the Jurassic Park parody just so happened to be the English-speaking queens that originated on RuPaul-hosted franchises. When pushed to answer if she felt that the team was at an advantage, Eva Le Queen was quite diplomatic. “I don’t think so. I don’t think acting is exactly about the language that’s spoken. It’s about getting into character. Acting challenges in Drag Race, they’re not looking for the next Meryl Streep.” She gave credit to her competitors, “I think they were hilarious.”
While competing on RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars, Eva was referenced on the most recent season of Drag Race Philippines, having an entire design challenge inspired by her infamous “trash” moment from Season 1. As she said, “How many times have we seen that in other franchises, right?” Despite her time on the show falling short of her ultimate goal of victory, Eva has much more to share. And she wants to see the world. She said, “I have been working my ass off trying to build the drag community here in the Philippines. Trying to apply my business knowledge, elevate Filipino drag, make things more business and professional and whatnot. And now that I have reached Global, I think I want to take time for myself this time.” She continued to say she wanted to “Explore what’s drag in Brazil, in France, tour the world. I don’t even need to tour. I just really want to experience and live the amazing drag that I’ve heard from my sisters at Global All Stars.”