Violetta J’Adore
1) Please introduce us to you and your creative practise(s)
My name is Violetta J’Adore, an international drag performer who started her career in
Madrid, Spain, then continued in Athens, Greece, until I moved to the UK, initially in
Brighton and now in London. I have performed in six different countries (Spain, Greece,
Belgium, UK, Cyprus, and Netherlands) and in many more different cities around Europe.
Even though I am originally from Cyprus, my art incorporates multicultural elements and
different styles (pop, rock, punk, musical theatre, drama, and comedy).
Overall, I am known for my glamorous and stylish looks, my musical theatre numbers,
dancing acts, spotless lip-syncs, my humour and wit and my versatility. I am extremely
passionate about my art and always try to build new platforms for queer and
underrepresented performance artists. I have volunteered as a student liaison in the
National Student Pride (UK 2015) and as an event organiser in Athens Pride (Greece 2021), I
have performed in the Cyprus Pride 2022 and this year, a few months ago, I was cast for the
European preliminary of Miss Continental, the Queen of the North in Rotterdam, where I
represented the UK and Greece.
2) How did you find yourself doing that and was there anything pivotal or important that has
led you to your creative practise.
Drag queens often get born during Halloween or Pride; for me, it was neither. My debut
took place in Chueca (Madrid) where I was looking for a part-time job and the opportunity
arose. During the first day of me doing drag, my job was to hand out flyers promoting clubs,
and then after a while I moved on to doing shows and performances. That was the turning
point, the point that made me realise that drag meant something more than a mere job that
helped me pay the rent. Instead, it was an emotional outlet, an opportunity to express
myself freely and artistically.
3) Is there a voice or narrative you wish to promote in your work?
As an international drag artist I have relocated and started again many times for many
reasons and thus, I realised that finding a stage in a new place, especially as an immigrant, is
at least difficult and troublesome. Meanwhile, the art of drag for me signifies the freedom
of expression, the bend of social norms, and the use of stereotypes to avoid the same
foreclosures stereotypes arose from, drag is an artistic, social, and political practice, a place
that owes to be open and accessible. Having a platform is an integral part of this and allows
for voices to be heard, which is why I have always tried to promote this narrative and
provide an artistic space for queer artists.
4) Who inspires you and why, and how do you incorporate this into your own work?
As a performer and as a person I am constantly inspired by powerful and strong women and
queer artists (real or fictional), and their images and stories as presented in musical theatre
productions, movies, and comics. I would say my inspirations are multicultural and
multidimensional and I strive to incorporate those inspirations through various means and
in various ways, be that the fashion elements and looks I create (through makeup and
styling), the performances I give (songs I lipsync, moves I perform, and the style of each
performance per se) or my persona herself which can be equally dynamic/powerful and sexy
or emotional.
5) Finally, what are your aspirations for the future?
Drag has been a very important part of my life for the past 6 years since in this art, I find a
way to express myself and succeed in ways that I feel that I could not do out of drag. I live
for the freedom and the powerful images I can present, the attention I draw, and the way
messages can be better transmitted, and my voice heard further away. This artform has
thus become integral to my personality and my aspirations. Regarding the later, my
aspirations are to keep advancing my art, developing new ways of performing and
finding/founding more inclusive and bigger platforms for myself and other queer artists, so
their voices can be heard even louder and prouder.