Interview: Drag Star Monét X Change On Queering The Opera

Monét X Change is here to show up that the opera is for queer people. The iconic drag queen and first double crown winner from RuPaul’s Drag Race is making her operatic debut in Denver this November. Monét made history when she became the first queen of color inducted into the Hall of Fame after winning All-Stars 4. During her epic run on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars: All Winners, she shocked audiences with her operatic rendition of “Vi ravviso, o luoghi ameni” from La sonnambula. 

Ever since then, her opera career has taken off. This November 9-17, Opera Colorado will present Donizetti’s Daughter of the Regiment for the first time ever in Denver, featuring the drag superstar herself as The Duchess of Krakenthorp. We caught up with Monét X Change to talk about the changing face of opera and how queer people are revolutionizing the historic art form.

Interview by Void Graves

Are you excited for your upcoming opera in Colorado? 

I’m so excited! The fact that I get to come over to Opera Colorado and give them the fiercest Grand Duchess is very exciting. I’ve had friends who have sang with Opera Colorado before, so I’m ready to put my little mic on the company.

How are you feeling about the show?

The Duchess of Krakenthorp is not traditionally a singing role, so I love that we get to do something a little different. They aren’t just making this a cameo, but they actually want me to sing. I can’t reveal what arias I am going to be singing just yet, but I’m so excited. I can’t wait to see what my costume is going to be. There aren’t words to describe how I’m feeling. All the elements that come into these productions to make them iconic and legendary are going to come together very soon.  

Are there any performers that you’re excited about working with in this production ?

Listen, I’m just grateful that my opera-singing drag behind is being allowed to grace the stage with such amazing singers. Ever since I sang the aria on Drag Race, I’ve been invited to work with these amazing opera companies. When I walk in, I bow to everyone first and say, “Listen, y’all are true to this. I am still making my way.” I try to be as gracious as I can. I am so inspired by who I’m working with and the way they take up space on the stage. So I am very much a guest and just grateful to be a part of a production with such amazing voices. 

Have you done much opera besides busting it out for the Drag Race challenge?

I actually did an amazing show with Sapphira Cristál at the Lincoln Center, where we sang a bunch of arias. I even got to sing some of my own original music with a full orchestra. I’m doing a symphony show with the Nova Scotia Symphony next year. This past summer, I did classical Pride in London with a full orchestra, which was an amazing, beautiful queer night of opera singers and classical musicians. I also recorded a short film for Youtube with the New Jersey Symphony last summer.

So, dusting off the old cords and singing on Drag Race has afforded me some really amazing opportunities. When I was back in my undergrad learning how to sing with Dr. Sharon Sweet, I didn’t know what it would look like 12 years later. It’s nice to know that all those hours in the practice room banging my head against the keyboard have translated into this. 

I think it’s beautiful that you get to show there is more to the drag community than just moving our mouths to words.

Yeah, and even lip-syncing is such an under respected art form! To do a fierce and great lip-sync, you have to be really good at not only text but showing the emotion of the artist. You have to make the audience feel the drama, the sadness, and the love in that moment. So I think that lip-syncing is an amazing art form as well that I have also been doing for over a decade now.

How do you feel like this show coming up will spread your platform as a queer person in the community?

My main goal is accessibility with a lot of these classical gigs I’m getting. There are a lot of gatekeepers in the opera community who believe that opera is only for a certain type of person. I’m here to break that mold. I want to show that opera is accessible for everyone. Opera isn’t just for rich white people. It’s for everyone. As I come to Colorado and sing in all the other opportunities that are coming to me, I really want to push the needle and show that opera can be for every different type of person who wants to experience it. 

Do you feel like the queer community has been accepting of opera? 

The one thing I know about the gays is that we’ll give anything a try. Like the classical Pride event I did in London was such a big moment. We were in this rock concert venue, right? On stage is a 40-piece orchestra, and you have this drag queen coming out in a crazy bra and tucking panties singing Habanera. Then you have another queen coming out and playing a beautiful Chopin piece on the keyboard in this genderfuck kind of drag. 

It was this perfect melding of worlds: gender fuck(ery), queerness, and classical music. The audience was living for every moment. A lot of them didn’t know what to expect, but when they got there, they were like, “Oh my god. This is really fucking cool.” Classical Pride in London really nailed it, and it’s something that I’d like to see more of here in the States. There are ways that we can re-imagine opera to make it feel current and cool, and to reflect what culture is saying. There is no reason there can’t be a Pose meets The Magic Flute. I want to see it happen. 

Arias be damned. We can get Gen Z and young people interested in opera. You can create interesting worlds and infuse pop culture into opera to make it seem cooler for young people.

You can see Daughter of the Regiment feat. Monét X Change at Opera Colorado November 9-17. Use promo code COLFAX for 20% off tickets to any performance. Anyone who uses the promo code for the Friday night performance will receive an invitation to a pre-show Q&A with Monét.