Dolly Parton tribute at Glastonbury: beards, red lipstick and blow-up boobs

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jun/29/dolly-parton-drag-tribute-glastonbury-jonny-woo

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A post-storm afternoon backstage at NYC Downlow in Glastonbury's Block9 is a riot of neon, shading and the flutter of false lashes. Jonny Woo's troupe of drag artists are in a trailer prepping for Friday night's show. "Contour, more contour," says Woo, brandishing a palette of eyeshadows. Welcome to the festival's glamour HQ.

Woo and friends – Jacqui Potato, Jonbenet Blonde and James Hillard – are rehearsing their tribute ahead of Dolly Parton's Sunday "legends" slot. "She's the reason we're all here," says Hillard. "It's high camp – wigs, heartbreak and her own theme park. What more do you need?"

There are no Dolly clones here, though. The Downlow troupe take inspiration in their own way. Blonde is wearing a flat cap and false eyelashes; Potato has black shadow and will be wearing a blue wig later. Hillard – a DJ who says he only dabbles in dress-up – wears sunglasses, a beard and a straw cloche hat with flowers. Woo is dressed down in a neon cagoule with a bit of last night's glitter in his stubble. "All you need to do a face is 10 minutes, a black eyeliner and red lipstick," he says. "We have the same attitude whether in a city or a field," adds Potato. "I'll wear a heel whatever."

Woo says Parton's presence brings their adventures in Glastonbury full circle: "We started with Shirley Bassey the first year, so we've gone from icon to icon." Now a stalwart of night-time Glastonbury, NYC Downlow began in 2007. "There wasn't anything gay at Glastonbury before," says Woo. "We had a bit of resistance at first, but mostly from the gay community – they didn't want a dedicated space." Turns out they didn't get one – Downlow has become a favourite with the Glastonbury masses, who queue to receive the fake handlebar moustache required to gain entry. Woo's drag shows are central to the disco debauchery, which takes place inside a set designed to look like a Manhattan block. They started with 15 members of the gang and now have 35, "too many for the dance routines".

Part of the charm is the way they play with gender – beards and red lipstick is a standard look here, not the glossy perfection seen on RuPaul's Drag Race. "The contestants all tend to look quite similar," says Woo. "Our drag is about energy, falling apart and giving others permission to do the same." With RuPaul under fire this year from the transgender community for the use of the word "tranny", the Downlow gang are typically nonplussed. "We use it as a term of endearment," says Blonde. "It's a sexier, freer, looser word than drag queen," adds Woo. "And that suits us perfectly."