Texas Christian University (TCU) offered a course on drag during the 2023 spring semester, according to the syllabus.
Students in the course, titled “The Queer Art of Drag,” met with drag performers and created a “drag persona” to “create a virtual drag performance” shared during TCU’s Annual Night of Drag, according to the syllabus. The course is funded by an Inclusive Excellence Grant from the university’s Office of Diversity & Inclusion.
“Drag is an art form with a rich history of challenging dominant norms and systems of oppression; building queer community; and cultivating experiences of queer joy in a hostile world; but drag has also been deployed in service of violent ideologies and can sometimes participate in harmful normative logics,” the syllabus reads.
AUSTIN, TEXAS – APRIL 02: Austin, TX drag queen Cheri Lake (she/her) who performs under the name ‘Brigitte Bandit’ prepares to perform at the Cheer Up Charlies bar and nightclub on April 02, 2023 in Austin, Texas. Cheri Lake, also known as Brigitte Bandit, was born and raised in Northwest Austin. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
The class was offered through the Department of Women and Gender Studies and was led by course instructor Nino Testa, who has the drag persona “Maria von Clapp,” according to the syllabus. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Professor Says He Can’t Give A ‘Biological’ Definition Of A Woman)
Students in the class were required to “engage queer theories in relation to performance practice” and conduct a “one-to-two minute solo drag performance” that had to be “recorded, edited, and shared with an open audience at TCU’s Annual Night of Drag on April 21,” according the the syllabus. Students were able to opt-out of sharing the video at the show.
TCU, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion and Testa did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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