A Victoria drag queen is competing to be Canada’s first drag superstar on a Canadian adaptation of the hit show RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Jimbo, a designer, performer, drag queen and clown from Victoria, is one of 12 “queens of the north” selected from across the country to compete on Canada’s Drag Race, which premières on streaming service Crave on July 2.
Contestants take part in challenges in each episode, including runway walks and lip-sync battles, to advance to the next stage, until a winner is declared at the end of the series.
The winner will receive $100,000, as well as being crowned Canada’s first drag superstar.
Since premièring in 2009, RuPaul’s Drag Race has filmed 11 seasons with more than 100 contestants and won nine Emmy Awards. The show has also spawned a drag convention, RuPaul’s DragCon in Los Angeles and New York City.
Canada’s Drag Race is one of several international adaptations, including versions in Thailand, Chile, the U.K. and Australia.
The Canadian spinoff will combine elements of the original show with a dose of Canadiana.
In an Instagram post by the show announcing the contestants, Jimbo has a face of white make-up, sparkling purple lips and a silver headpiece, and is described as “bodacious, bizarre and intoxicating.”
Jimbo has been sewing for up to 14 hours a day during the pandemic to create hundreds of non-medical masks with partner Brady Taylor and fashion designer Sarah Runnalls. For every mask purchased, the group donates one mask to someone living on the street.
