Go to Content Go to Navigation Go to Navigation Go to Site Search Homepage

Doing drag and being transgender are not the same thing. Drag is a type of performance art. Transgender is a type of gender identity.

Drag performers make the act of expressing gender — through their stage name, clothing, makeup, hair, and how they perform on stage — highly creative, exaggerated, and/or theatrical. This is often (but not always) done through a theatrical style of cross-dressing. Many drag artists perform on stage as a character who has a different gender identity than their day-to-day life. 

Artists who perform in drag are often called drag queens, drag kings, or drag performers. Drag queens perform in hyper feminine costumes — often with glittery, colorful makeup. Drag kings perform in hyper masculine costumes — often with added facial hair.

A person of any gender identity can be a drag performer. Drag is known for being an art form that comments on gender norms in imaginative ways.  Sometimes this is done through lip-syncing, skits, comedy, impersonations, or dance. 

Being transgender, however, is not a performance. Transgender is a gender identity. Identifying as transgender is about who you are every day. Transgender people experience their gender in a way that’s different from the gender the doctor gave them on their birth certificate when they were born. In daily life, trans folks express their gender just like anybody else — through their name, pronouns, clothing, hairstyle, how they talk and move, and more. 

Mixing up doing drag with being transgender can be hurtful because it's a form of transphobia. Understanding the difference is a way to challenge transphobia and make our communities more welcoming for everyone. Learn more about how to support someone who's trans or nonbinary.

Tags: gender expression, drag 101, drag FAQ, drag dancer, drag entertainer, drag race, drag show, drag singer, drag story hour, drag storytelling, female impersonator, male impersonator, queer community, ru paul, sexual orientation, nonbinary

Explore more on

We and our third partners use cookies and other tools to collect, store, monitor, and analyze information about your interaction with our site to improve performance, analyze your use of our sites and assist in our marketing efforts. You may opt out of the use of these cookies and other tools at any time by visiting Cookie Settings. By clicking “Allow All Cookies” you consent to our collection and use of such data, and our Terms of Use. For more information, see our Privacy Notice.

Cookie Settings

We, and our third-party partners, use cookies, pixels, and other tracking technologies to collect, store, monitor, and process certain information about you when you access and use our services, read our emails, or otherwise engage with us. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences, or your device. We use that information to make the site work, analyze performance and traffic on our website, to provide a more personalized web experience, and assist in our marketing efforts. We also share information with our social media, advertising, and analytics partners. You can change your default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of required cookies when utilizing our site; this includes necessary cookies that help our site to function (such as remembering your cookie preference settings). For more information, please see our Privacy Notice.

Marketing

On

We use online advertising to promote our mission and help constituents find our services. Marketing pixels help us measure the success of our campaigns.

User Feedback and Session Replay

On

We use qualitative data from LogRocket, UserZoom, Hotjar and AB Tasty to learn about your user experience and improve our products and services. LogRocket allows us to view session replays.