Don’t Frock It Up!: SGS Exclusive with RuPaul Drag Race’s Manila Luzon

Manila Luzon is in the house!

Manila Luzon is one of the fabulous contestants on Logo’s RuPaul’s Drag Race, Season Three. She is the fourth to be interviewed in this season’s Drag Race with more interviews to come! Stay tuned for upcoming interviews with the other 8 contestants. And, don’t forget RuPaul’s Drag Race Season Three premieres Monday, January 24 on the Logo Channel AND you can watch it at Lobby Bar every week with hostesses Glamazonia and Lily Armani on hand, offering a wealth of drink specials from the fine folks at Lobby, the official RuPaul’s Drag Race viewing party in Seattle. Now, let’s hear what our next contestant has to say…Werk it, Manila!

Manila Luzon, where are you from?
I’m half Filipino and half German/Swedish born and raised in the Twin Cities of Minnesota! But the second I graduated from college, I packed my good wig and a pair of stilettos and moved to New York City to become an artist!

When was your first time in drag and what did it feel like?
I honestly cannot remember – I’ve been sneaking into my mother’s and my sister closets on since I was a child! But the first time I became Manila Luzon was the summer I came out in college. I thought, if I’m going to be coming out as gay, I might as well go ALL THE WAY and be a drag queen!!!

What makes you continue to perform and represent your community as a drag queen?
I love the art of drag! I’m a visual artist and drag is my medium! It’s my creative outlet despite that I work in a creative field. Manila is my muse.

What was your first reaction when you heard the news on becoming a RPDR contestant?
I got the call at my office at the graphic design firm I work at in NYC. I had to contain myself because it just isn’t the office decorum to jump up and down and scream “I’m gunna be on TV!!!!!”

How much tension was there in the hotel during the shooting of the show and were fremenies made?
Obviously some of us got close and some of us couldn’t stand each other, but by the time we dragged our padded asses back to the hotel at the end of the night, we were too exhausted to care about anyone.

If you learned something from this show, what would that be?
I learned that if you push yourself to do something you’ve never thought you could do, you can accomplish so much….even if the only thing you accomplish is having the satisfaction of knowing that you did something new…. like when RuPaul challenged us to perform double bypass surgery in FULL DRAG!!!

If you were stranded on a deserted island, what three items would you absolutely need with you in order to survive?
I’d bring a sketch pad and paper because I love to draw. I’d need my boyfriend (Sahara Davenport from RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 2) so I had someone to talk to and…well, you know… and I’d definitely need an international airport on that island, so Sahara and I can travel to our drag gigs!!!

Pick one – Lady Gaga or Cher?

That’s a tough one! I’m gonna have to go with Cher because I’d rather look at glittery Bob Mackie costumes than raw meat.