Performers and audience find bigger, brighter, braver selves in kids’ show Parents Are a Drag
Carousel Theatre for Young People brings back Zee Zee Theatre’s hit celebration of drag that juggles song, education, dress-up, and play
Parents Are a Drag
Carousel Theatre for Young People presents Zee Zee Theatre’s Parents Are a Drag at Performance Works on November 22 and 23
DAVE DEVEAU NEVER planned to be a drag queen. As a playwright, producer, and lifelong lover of the art form, he was content to write and produce drag shows featuring his husband and creative partner, Cameron Mackenzie. Sharing the stage simply became an experiment that kept on working.
“I write plays by day and I produce events, but drag lets me tap into the last piece of Dave who went to theatre [school], the last piece of Dave who wanted to be an actor,” Deveau says in a Zoom call. “I really do think drag lets people be their most authentic selves, because it’s armour, right? It’s almost like yourself in Technicolor—bigger, brighter, and braver.”
After being widely celebrated in 2019 and 2022 at the Vancouver International Children’s Festival, Parents Are a Drag makes its return to the stage on November 22 and 23 at Performance Works on Granville Island. The show is anchored by popular local drag artists Peach Cobblah (Deveau, who is the co–artistic and managing director of Carousel Theatre for Young People) and Isolde N. Barron (Mackenzie, artistic and executive director of Zee Zee Theatre). For Deveau, co-creating a drag-theatre experience for families was a natural fit with his extensive background in producing shows in Toronto and Vancouver.
“A drag show for young kids is the same structure as a drag show for drunken adults,” Deveau teases. “People are going to get up onstage for no reason, someone is going to heckle you, someone must go to the bathroom. My looks will not look like Drag Race, but I will keep that audience laughing and feeling safe and seen, and that’s what our show is all about.”
After they moved to Vancouver, Deveau and Mackenzie spearheaded the East Van drag movement, taking local shows beyond their downtown weekend confines and creating new queer spaces in the city. Although Deveau never intended to share the stage, Peach Cobblah became the perfect component of a show that juggles song, educational themes, dress-up, and play. When the Vancouver International Children’s Festival approached them to create a drag show for kids and families, the timing seemed right for them as new parents. Today, and Parents Are a Drag continues to be an inclusive family affair that brings connection and joy to kids and parents alike.
“What I had not anticipated, doing the show in 2019, is how much it would affect queer families,” Deveau recalls. “We had families who would watch the show and just sob, and they would say, ‘We’ve never seen a family like ours on a stage in a show for kids.’”
On paper, Parents Are a Drag is a natural extension of Carousel Theatre’s mission to empower young people and families through playful, imaginative, accessible theatre experiences. In 2023, however, a planned summer drag camp for teens and children was met with a barrage of protests and violent threats against staff members, sparked by a tweet from People’s Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier. This led to an outpouring of community support and a successful fundraiser to bolster security measures, enabling drag-inclusive programming to continue as one of Carousel’s offerings.
“There are films that are made for adults and there are films that are made for kids, and we don’t say that kids should never be around films. We know there are different styles of drag and different contexts of drag,” Deveau says. “We’ve been through our fair share of resistance to the work that I very much believe in, so we have our safety protocols. It’s not going to stop the work, because kids deserve safe, playful, fun spaces, so we’ll continue providing them.”
(From left) Peach Cobblah, Spike Boy, and Isolde N. Barron. Photo by Tina Krueger Kulic
Reflecting on the evolution of Vancouver’s drag scene, Deveau sees signs of progress for drag performers and drag programming, from increased diversity to a greater number of local events across the province. Just last month, the Museum of Vancouver hosted a viewing and panel for the web series Long Live Kings, showcasing the local drag king scene.
“Some of our drag children have created these incredible dynasties of drag and events,” says Deveau. “You can see drag any day of the week in whatever shape you want. There really is room for everyone for all these different expressions of drag. I think why drag continues to matter to grown-ups is because we forget how to play.”
To get the most play out of Parents Are a Drag, it’s recommended that families come “dressed to impress, or be ready for some dress-up time.” This year, Deveau and Mackenzie will again be joined onstage by their eldest son, Dexter, who’s grown up performing alongside his parents, bringing his own flair to the family act. Although the show has evolved over time, its message remains rooted in the importance of play, no matter what age.
“An article of clothing is some fabric sewn in some shape to go on some part of a human body, and everything else we have imposed on it,” Deveau says. “So let your kids dress up, let your kids have fun. Don’t forget to play with your kids.” 
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