Rooted in Dignity: Inside Temple’s NCOW Drag Show

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Temple chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Each year, Temple’s Office for Institutional Diversity, Equity, Advocacy, and Leadership (IDEAL) celebrates National Coming Out Week with a lineup of events honoring the LGBTQ+ community. The grand finale? The annual drag show! A vibrant and energetic celebration of art, identity, and pride, this year’s show brought together Temple students, dance groups like BAMN and Dare To Dance, local drag icons like Xiomara Villa, Calliope, Ceviche, and more, for an incredible night that shimmered with authenticity, artistry, and unity.  

As the doors of the Temple Performing Arts Center opened at 7 p.m., a buzz of excitement filled the air. Attendees were warmly greeted with cards detailing the history of drag, an ode to those who helped establish the community, and a reminder that drag is, at its core, an act of self-love and liberation. Each year, the activities of National Coming Out Week (NCOW) revolve around a central theme, and this year’s was “Rooted in Dignity.” Through the drag show and other events held throughout the week, the celebrations underscored how embracing who you are can nurture a community where everyone feels seen, valued, and free to express themselves. 

Nu’Rodney Prad, Director of Student Engagement at IDEAL, highlighted how the team comes together to create a thematic approach based on what’s happening in the current climate, or the areas that they want students, staff, and faculty to really think about. He also dove into the inspiration behind this year’s theme.  

“It really goes to the fundamentals of the beginning, in that our ancestors did a lot to get to where we are today. Every person deserves to be dignified and to have dignity and to be shown care and to be shown love. So, it really is talking about the rudimentary and the rooted area of dignity and where it starts in the beginning,”  

The show had an electric energy from the very beginning, bringing people together unlike anything else. The crowd let go, embraced the fun, and celebrated the creative, unique parts of themselves in the true spirit of pride. The performers, from dazzling drag queens to Temple’s own dance groups, lit up the stage, and the venue filled with cheers. The sound of togetherness echoed loud and proud as Temple’s community came together to enjoy a raw expression of art rooted in authenticity, identity, and joy.  

Among these electrifying performances was BAMN (By Any Means Necessary), Temple’s first minority hip-hop dance organization. Performing alongside drag artists, the group brought high energy and a powerful sense of representation to the night. Saige Hollis, a senior dance major and co-president of BAMN, emphasized the significance of performing on such a platform. “As a minority organization, being able to present ourselves here is incredible,” said Hollis.  

The other co-president of BAMN, senior psychology major Sam Perez, also reflected on how the group’s performance connected with the themes of pride and identity. She emphasized that, with the overall theme of authenticity and a diverse team of queer, Black, Latinx, Afro-Latinx, and Asian dancers all performing together, the goal was to represent everyone. Through their vibrant set, BAMN embodied the spirit of the theme, celebrating individuality and the power of being unapologetically yourself. 

“I think that’s what the whole theme of this year is about, to make sure everybody’s represented in that audience,” Perez told Her Campus.  

It is so important to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and queer identity openly and freely on a college campus, especially in today’s world, where hope can often feel scarce. Creating intentional spaces, such as the drag show, and facilitating conversations about belonging and identity are key parts of fostering an inclusive campus environment and promoting a sense of belonging and psychological safety among Temple’s rich and diverse student body. These discussions not only encourage critical thinking about who we are, what it means to be part of this culture, and how people’s unique identities must be celebrated in a world that often shames them, but also create the support and solidarity that many students may need. 

Isabella Fresneda, a sophomore political science and sociology major, attended the event to learn more about queer culture and become more involved. They emphasized how it impacted their sense of community at Temple.  

“I feel like it’s really great for the community, especially at a time where it’s so difficult to be queer, especially trans,” Fresneda told Her Campus. “It just brings a lot of light to the community, and it’s very unifying and empowering.” 

Another attendee, Luna Long, a sophomore criminal justice and psychology major, also recounted how these events impacted the culture of inclusivity on campus. She believes that public events like this show acceptance and reinforce support for the queer community.