In Coney Island, a 'Drag Race' watch party becomes a radical act of community * Brooklyn Paper

"On a winter Friday night in Coney Island, just steps from the boardwalk and far from Brooklyn's better-known queer enclaves, a crowd gathers around a screen. There are sequins and jeans, families and first-timers, teenagers sitting beside retirees. When "Rupaul's Drag Race" begins, cheers erupt, not just for the queens on screen, but for the sense of togetherness in the room."

"Produced by Ibadov's company, Tawk Productions, the weekly viewing party recently entered its third season and moved to a new home at The Red Door on Surf Avenue. The shift marks a significant expansion for an event that began three years ago at the Freak Bar inside Coney Island USA and has grown into a vital gathering space for southern Brooklyn's queer population in an area long underserved by LGBTQIA+ infrastructure."

Maxim Ibadov is a southern Brooklyn native, drag performer, producer, arts educator and Community Board 13 member whose Drag Race viewing party has become an inclusive queer gathering. The weekly event, produced by Tawk Productions, recently entered its third season and moved to The Red Door on Surf Avenue after starting three years ago at the Freak Bar. The gatherings attract families, first-timers, teenagers, retirees and foster strong togetherness. Southern Brooklyn lacks LGBTQIA+ infrastructure below Prospect Park, with no community center or gay bars despite a sizable queer population. Ibadov was born at Victory Memorial Hospital, raised partly in Russia, and returned to Brooklyn at 15, shaping their anti-authoritarian politics and commitment to queer visibility.

Read at Brooklyn Paper