As Arizona Republicans Introduce Anti-Drag Legislation, Will Musicals Suffer Collateral Damage?

Republicans in the state of Arizona have introduced three new bills that would limit or restrict drag performances in the state. Arizona Senator Anthony Kern is proposing two of the bills which would prevent drag shows from happening in public.

A second bill limits the days and hours at which these shows can be performed, also setting more specific zoning requirements for where these shows can happen.

One bill introduced by Republican Senator John Kavanagh would limit the use of any public funds for drag shows targeting kids.

With legislators setting their sights on drag, could musicals be caught in the crossfire? There's a long history of gender-bending performances in the theatre - the British pantomime has long popularized performances of characters in drag for family audiences. On Broadway in recent years there's been a plethora of shows such as Tootsie, Mrs. Doubtfire, Kinky Boots (recently revived off-Broadway), and Head Over Heels that featured characters in drag.

Could new legislation in Arizona affect family-friendly musicals? ASU Gammage, a performance hall belonging to Arizona's public college Arizona Stage University, is set to present the national tour of Hairspray in June - which stars Andrew Levitt (best known as Nina West from RuPaul's Drag Race) as Edna Turnblad.

Since 1992, its estimated that ASU Gammage through its Broadway series brought in nearly $1 Billion of economic impact to Tempe as well as the rest of the Valley. Pre-pandemic, ASU Gammage's Broadway season created an estimated $100 million economic impact on the greater Phoenix metropolitan area.

Scottsdale Desert Stages' upcoming season includes Rent, a musical that features the genderqueer character Angel and a number of LGBTQ+ characters. Their website notes the production is appropriate for audience members 16+.

While none of the legislation has yet to come into law in Arizona, this is certainly something that both local regional and touring productions are going to be considering when planning on programming for future seasons should the legislation be passed.

Elsewhere in the country, lawmakers are proposing legislation in Texas with broad language that would classify venues hosting drag performances as a 'sexually oriented business' as and have far-reaching implications for the transgender community.