The “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Season 15 finale just aired, with the four finalists — Anetra, Luxx Noir London, Mistress Isabelle Brooks and Sasha Colby — vying for the crown, $200,000 dollars, and the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar.
Here are 5 moments you didn’t see:
Trippy Start
Irene Dubois was the first queen eliminated on the show and the first to take the stage at the Theatre at the Ace Hotel on finale night. What you didn’t see is that Irene tripped slightly as she was coming out. We don’t blame her, as her lunar moth costume was one of the most intricate of the night.
Irene recovered beautifully and when she reached the front of the stage, the statuesque queen released paper moths that flew into the audience. Take that, Asia O’Hara!
We’re Super Fans
Just a few moments later, Aura Mayari made a powerful statement, opening a huge fan that read: Drag Is Not a Crime. Her dramatic reveal drew an ovation that lasted longer than seen on screen, and she became visibly emotional.
Aura is from Nashville, Tennessee the Republican governor recently signed into law anti-drag legislation. During the reunion, Aura admitted to being afraid to drive to her club in drag and expressed concerns about her personal safety.
“RuPaul’s Drag Race,” World of Wonder and MTV have all donated to the ACLU Drag Defense fund to fight anti-LGBTQ legislation. Click here to learn more.
Dancer Down
Anetra was the first of the semi-finalists to perform her solo number.
She took the stage with six back-up dancers. During the second lift in the song, either due to a miscue or slip, both she and the dancer took a spill.
The music stopped and a medic attended to the injured performer. Unfortunately, he was unable to continue, which meant all four routines — Anetra’s, Luxx’s, Mistress’ AND Sasha’s — had to be rechoreographed at the finale with only five dancers. This is especially challenging since each routine incorporated lifts.
This extended the filming, but huge kudos to the queens and dancers for making these choreography changes under such pressure and still delivering a fantastic finale. And we wish a speedy recovery to the injured dancer.
Did She Forget the Lyrics?
“Wigloose” composer Leland and musician Orville Peck performed the protest anthem “Built on Drag” in the latter part of the show.
Although they filmed this entire performance twice in person, Sugar NEVER lip-synced during the entire song. Either take.
Maybe she was caught up in the moment.
Missing Mistress
Sharp-eyed viewers will note that Mistress did not initially take the stage with the other queens when Miss Congeniality was awarded.
She quickly slid into place between Amethyst and Luxx Noir London. No explanation was given, but Mistress appeared in a different outfit than the one she performed “Delusion” in, suggesting she may have had a wardrobe malfunction.