As expected, we were treated to an incredible premiere of Drag Race España. It was a ‘caliente’ opening that left viewers elated on social media. A more diverse Pit Crew included non-toned men and a gorgeous trans man. When compared to the first season, the debut of season two doubled the number of viewers in Spain.
One of the best moments of the episode was when Marina, praising Ocaña, an iconic Spanish performer who shocked Barcelona in the 70s, provided the franchise with a historic moment that will not be easily forgotten when she showed her genitals on the main stage. Since its beginning, Drag Race España has supported non-binary and gender non-conforming artists that bring a modern approach to drag.
Onyx won the first maxi challenge with a reinterpretation of the only monument to the devil in the world. Her avant-garde version of the monument of the Fallen Angel, located in Madrid, left the judges amazed by the disturbing figure brought to the runway.
Although the lip sync wasn’t as memorable as it could’ve been, the episode was worthy of a grand debut. We have just talked with the first eliminated queen of this season. Marisa Prisa, who spills the T on the judges’ comments, reveals which other challenge would’ve saved her from getting the pork chop and shares her plans for the future.
Hey Marisa, how are you?
I’m fine, just feeling a little emotional. But I’m okay.
You are the first Galician queen on Drag Race. How is the drag scene over there?
I don’t have much idea about Galician drag. I was living in Madrid and I only went back to Galicia because of the lockdown. I never had many friends in the Galician drag scene, although I know one drag queen that is very Galician that does performances inspired by local products like peppers and other rural things. There is also a group in Vigo that has a small theatre. There was never much of a scene, but it is changing.
You started doing drag at a party where everyone dressed as a girl. How was this?
It was a very tacky summer party. It was my first time and my friend told me that all the boys would be dressed as girls, which turned out not to be true. After some beers, I gradually lost my embarrassment and started to develop the character just for the laughs. I was dressed as a village lady and won the title of ‘King of the Ball’. From there on, I began to develop my drag.
Let’s talk about Drag Race. Could you tell us a little more about your entrance look?
My entrance look is inspired by Galician culture and by the gala regional Galician dress, which is completely black and very expensive. I wanted to make it drag, so I kept the upper part, like Tanxugueiras – a group that was a finalist in the competition to choose the artist representing Spain in Eurovision). In my attempt to make the Galician suit prêt-à-porter I added some volume, included the leaves in silver and embroidered all the rhinestones and the fringe. I wanted to make the skirt stiff, so I could take it off and leave just the stockings underneath instead of the traditional underwear of the Galician dress. I didn’t want to be vulgar, but a little more sensual and draggy.
What was going through your mind when you were told that you were going to lip-sync?
At that moment, I was a little fuzzy. The contest starts the day they tell you “you’re in”. In all this period you do not have time to think about anything. You are thinking about the looks, the shoes and the wigs. Suddenly you’re on the show, and they tell you’re going to lip-sync. I thought, ‘Should we rewind? Should we start again? Was this a test? Is this really happening?’ I was in complete shock. I did the lip-sync and I didn’t even notice. I was in another world.
After listening to the judges’ comments, do you think you had problems executing your ideas or were the jury unable to understand the concept?
One of the critics was that they could not get to know Marisa with both looks. I have mixed feelings about this. They are indeed two different points of view, but Marisa is a very random character because I don’t have a very specific style. Other contestants were told: ‘We already know you, but we haven’t seen you here.’ Not knowing me, they don’t know how random I truly am.
If you had another chance, what would you do differently?
I will tell you the truth: my initial idea was to change the entrance look for the Symbol Of My Hometown, but I was eager to keep that outfit as my entrance look. I would have changed many things, but there was no time to execute them in any other way.
Is there an outfit that you were especially excited to show on the runway, and you couldn’t do it?
Yes, there are so many looks. While sewing it I was thinking, ‘Gosh, this is going to take so many hours.’ I’m very attached to some of the looks that were hand painted. One specific look will be seen on social media, as all my looks will, and I was really excited to display it. It was a super cool proposal.
Did you do everything by yourself?
Absolutely everything that I brought was done by me. The wigs and the costumes. It took many hours of my sleep.
What other challenges do you think could have saved you from being the first to be eliminated?
Once it all has already happened, you start to think a lot about what could have happened. For this first maxi-challenge, that was not a real challenge, you had everything prepared from home so in the end you didn’t have the chance to show anything. Had it been the design challenge, it would have been different. There is no way I would be sent home in a sewing challenge. I have no doubt I would still be there if the first challenge had been a designer one, as in last season.
We have to talk about something very important that you mentioned in the show: how the pandemic has affected the LGBTQ+ community and returning to your hometown after years in a big city.
I had been living outside my hometown for 10 years. You grow up, you get to know yourself better, and because of the pandemic I had to go back. When you arrive you see how everything has changed and so have you. I’m not 17 anymore and it takes time to get used to things you don’t like anymore, like my dad calling me constantly. It is like, ‘I don’t have to tell you what I’m doing with my life.’
On the other hand, it was important for LGBTQ+ people to have someone like you, doing drag, who had come from there. A real reference for LGBTQ+ people who do not live in big cities.
Yes. When I arrived in my hometown, I found a totally different place. That caught my attention, positively. Children stopped me on the streets, because I used to do a lot of stories on Instagram, and they told me, ‘We adore you, continue with this because you help a lot.’ They were super young girls who suddenly introduced me to their girlfriend. The bad experiences I had growing up there do not seem to happen any more.
The official tour of Drag Race España (Gran Hotel de las Reinas) has just been announced…
Yeah, we have been preparing for the tour. But it has not been made public until now. And I’m very excited. It’s something fascinating and new, and it’s going to be really cool being part of it.
What plans do you have now that you are internationally known?
As for the future, I don’t know yet. All of this is still very new. I have to experiment first and exploit the whole social media thing as much as possible. I might dedicate myself to fashion later on, which is really my thing.
Has it been worth it?
I’ll take everything positively. I had the opportunity to meet people that I would not have been able to meet had I not been there. We all have helped each other to grow. In the end, everything contributes to continuing my learning and as a drag artist.
Drag Race España S2 continues every Sunday on Atres Premium in Spain and exclusively on WOW Presents Plus everywhere else. Subscribe via: https://uk.wowpresentsplus.com
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