With each episode filled with elaborate makeup, gorgeous costumes, hilarious innuendo and just a bit of drama for good measure, RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under has been showcasing talented drag queens for several seasons.
This year, we are thrilled to see a beloved regional Victorian queen not only represented, but strutting their stuff right into the finale.
A staple of the Ballarat drag scene, Miss Gabriella Labucci has been popping up on screens internationally over the past seven weeks as she competes on season 3 of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under. Gab has been loved for her ability to not take herself too seriously, showing new sides of her drag, and for her problematic-free vibes. (She gave handmade friendship bracelets to all the competing queens on day one… can you get more wholesome?!).
This ocker queen has been doing drag for 8 years and is an integral part of the regional Victorian drag scene. Regularly performing at the wonderful Piano Bar Ballarat, Gab had already amassed a loyal local fanbase prior to her time on the show, and the support has only grown as the episodes have rolled on. “The support has been so overwhelmingly positive and I feel truly honoured to represent Ballarat and regional drag”, Gab says. “It’s so weird getting stopped in Kmart or Woolies for Ballarat locals to talk to me and grab a photo, and tell me they hated my Kylie runway (they don’t do that, but I wouldn’t blame them!)”.
Gab explains Drag Race to people as “a mix of all competition reality TV shows, but done in heels, corsets and wigs”, and the challenges this year have seen Gab dressed as everything from a saucy sauce bottle to Emma Wiggle, working with dogs, and putting her faux-10 years of hula hooping experience to good(ish) use.
This season has included some stellar guest judges, including the one and only Adam Lambert, who provided critique alongside regulars Ru, Rhys Nicholson, and Michelle Visage, and even told Gab he liked her boobs (honestly, what a highlight). When reflecting on her other highlights from the season, for Miss Labucci it was “honestly my ability to adapt to the situations they throw at you. I surprised myself in that I didn’t get in my head too much, and just rolled with the punches”.
“I applied for Drag Race because I desperately wanted to be the dickhead that I am, on a global scale”, shared Gab. With a message to her supporters, Gab says, “I’d like to say thankyou so much for supporting the buffoonery that is my drag. I’m glad that the regional folk get it and love a laugh, and don’t take it too seriously. I love the love, and I can’t thank you all enough”.
The vibrant staff at Piano Bar Ballarat has been hosting weekly viewing parties, among their usual weekly event lineup, which have been drawing enthusiastic crowds each week, and giving people the chance to meet Gab and a fellow Drag Race queen. The venue is a fun and inclusive space that always guarantees a good time, good food, and plenty of laughs. Piano Bar is one of few safe spaces for drag in regional areas, and is loved for it.
“I think regional Victoria has so much fun with drag because they don’t exactly have as much access to drag as you would in the big city. The patrons love it so much and have such a good laugh with us”, Gab says. “It’s also really important because some places have never met a drag queen before, so it also becomes a very powerful moment to educate as well as have fun…[and] it provides queer visibility for areas that don’t have a queer scene. There may be a young queer youth in the audience that sees the glitz and the glam, and feels seen and validated in their own town”.
Drag Race also provides the opportunity for Aussie designers to have their work showcased. Jak Hocking-Vogele, known also as Srgt Yass Queen, has had their designs aired across two episodes this season. “The opportunity for the local designers to get their work out there and seen by the public is fantastic”, he says. “The fact we have such a platform like Drag Race is amazing; it gives a safe space for people to be who they are, from Queens, to Kings, to the crazy and dramatic, and everything in between”.
Having seen Gabriella wear Srgt Yass Queen designs in the infamous Snatch Game and Make Over episodes, Jak says it was “a little bit unreal to be honest. From looking at it for weeks in my sewing room, to seeing it live on TV and being worn by an actual human was crazy. It gave me the warm fuzzies”. Not only that, but seeing his designs on TV has “lit a fire for me to go hard” and to challenge himself, and we can’t wait to see what is next for Srgt Yass Queen.
Jak believes that Gab’s unique drag style, comprised of crazy faces and occasional spontaneous roller skating, is what gives her the “it factor”. “Her personality and performances are a bit strange, and for me, seeing that on stage, TV, or socials is something I wish was available to me as a young kid”. Jak adds, “there will be people out there that will see her and relate, on a level only she can give”.
“Heading into the finals I’m very excited, nervous, overwhelmed, everything all at once. I have no more secrets to keep, it’s all out in the open and you all know as much as I do. We film alternative endings to the show, so we have no idea what will happen, and we find out when you find out”, shared Gab. “Fingers crossed that I’m the first ever Aussie to win Drag Race”.
With only one episode left of this season of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under, we have our fingers crossed too for our local larrikin, Gab.
You can catch the latest episodes on Stan, with the finale airing Friday at 5pm AEST, and you can follow Gab on Facebook and Insta.
