Celebrating Our Kings, Our Craft and the Community That Brings It to Life
Boye Sivan: Australian Drag King Community Awards Ambassador, Photo credit : @itsfrankiesfinefigures
Celebrating Our Kings, Our Craft and the Community That Brings It to Life
The inaugural Australian Drag King Community Awards will celebrate the performers, producers, venues and community members helping drag king culture thrive across Australia.
There is something extraordinary about drag kinging.
It can make you laugh, challenge what you think you know about masculinity, move you with a story, or leave you wondering how one performer just transformed an entire room. It is bold, inventive, sometimes outrageous and always full of possibility.
But behind every unforgettable performance are people whose talent, hard work and creativity deserve to be celebrated.
It's time to give Australian drag king culture its moment in the spotlight.
I'm incredibly proud to introduce the inaugural Australian Drag King Community Awards, proudly produced by LOTL Lounge as part of the 2027 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival.
With ten award categories celebrating performers, emerging kings, King Craft, creative achievement, First Nations kings, producers and venues, these awards are about more than trophies. They are an opportunity to celebrate the people who make this art form thrive and recognise a community that has spent decades creating its own stages, audiences and opportunities.
"I want us to celebrate our King Craft, acknowledge the people who have helped shape our scene, and show emerging performers that they are part of a community with so much to be proud of."
A Community Worth Celebrating
Across Australia, drag kings are pushing boundaries, exploring masculinity and creating performances that entertain, challenge and inspire. From metropolitan stages to regional scenes, the talent is diverse, the creativity is extraordinary, and the people behind it are helping shape Australia's queer cultural landscape.
Yet some of the most important work happens without recognition beyond a local audience.
The performer who has spent years building a scene. The newcomer discovering their voice. The producer taking a chance on emerging talent. The venue that continues to open its doors and provide a space for kings to perform.
All of these contributions strengthen our community.
The Australian Drag King Community Awards offer a chance to bring those stories together and celebrate talent from across the country, not just the biggest names or the most visible stages.
This is about recognising where we've come from, celebrating where we are, and creating more opportunities for where we can go next.
The Vision Behind the Awards
The idea for these awards comes from a very personal place.
As a Sydney-based theatre professional, producer and award-winning drag king artist, I joined Sydney's drag king scene in 2004. Since then, I have remained passionate about creating opportunities for kings to be seen, heard and celebrated.
Through Drag King Corner at LOTL Lounge, I've had the privilege of sharing the stories of Australian drag king artists, playwrights, performers and authors. That work has strengthened my belief that our creativity, our history and our experiences deserve a larger platform.
Creating these awards is my way of taking that commitment further and giving something back to an art form and community that have given me so much.
LOTL Lounge is the ideal partner for this vision, with its ongoing commitment to supporting drag king culture and bringing queer stories to wider audiences. I'm incredibly grateful to the LOTL team for embracing the idea and working so hard to bring it to life.
For me, these awards are an opportunity to celebrate a community that has enriched the lives of so many people. They recognise the collective efforts of performers, producers, venues and supporters who have nurtured the art form, created opportunities for others and helped the Australian drag king community grow.
Most importantly, they allow us to celebrate what we can achieve when we come together.
"Every thriving drag king scene exists because someone took a chance, created an opportunity, opened a door or encouraged a new performer to step into the spotlight."
Who Will You Nominate?
With nominations now open, I'd like to encourage everyone to get involved.
For these awards to truly reflect our national community, we need nominations from across Australia that recognise different generations, performance styles and contributions, both onstage and behind the scenes.
Think about the king who inspired you to perform.
The producer who gave someone their first booking.
The performer who welcomed a nervous newcomer backstage.
The artist who challenged conventions or made you see yourself differently.
The local venue that continued supporting drag kings when times were tough.
Who has made a difference in your community?
Who deserves to know that their work matters?
Awards can sometimes feel like a competition, but I hope these awards will be about something more meaningful: taking the time to celebrate one another.
We can honour established artists while encouraging newcomers, recognise our trailblazers while making room for fresh voices, and celebrate achievements that might otherwise go unnoticed.
You don't need to be a drag king or an industry insider to nominate. Performers, producers, venues, supporters and audience members are all welcome to put forward someone they believe deserves recognition. Self-nominations are welcome too.
Every nomination helps tell the story of Australian drag king culture and the people who make it special.
I'd love to see these inaugural awards reflect the full breadth of our community: its talent, diversity, generosity, creativity and heart.
Don't wait. Nominate someone who deserves to shine, or put yourself forward.
Let's celebrate our kings, our craft and everything we've built together.
The Australian Drag King Community Awards 2027 are proudly presented by LOTL Lounge as part of the 2027 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival.