We are disappointed to hear about the abrupt cancellation of Raquel Blake and Daphne Rio’s Red Lounge Revue Drag Show this week.
We moved back to Dallas during the pandemic and were thrilled to see that the Round-up Saloon had embraced drag as a way to keep the doors open. It feels like ages ago, but we haven’t forgotten how horrible it was to go out back then…virus fears aside, going to a bar with capacity limits and distancing/seating requirements felt like drinking in a sad, dark restaurant (without real food).
Drag shows really were really the reason to go out and why we started Dallas Gay Nightlife. Without drag shows during the pandemic, us and many other people would have kept ourselves and our money at home. 💸💨
After Texas stopped caring about the pandemic and capacity limits were lifted, tourists and drag performers started coming to Dallas from cities across the country that were still locked down. Rose Room was closed, so the Red Lounge quickly became a nationally-known drag venue, which takes years in any other circumstance. (And contrary to popular belief, younger people in other cities don’t know the Round-up by reputation — drag helped the venue get national exposure with a whole new group of potential tourists).
It looks like the venue is throwing away the goodwill it developed during the pandemic for unknown reasons (it can’t really be about billiards tables and strange coin games). It’s a shame because the Red Lounge was a fabulous reimagination of an underutilized space that brought in a different crowd to spend money at the bar.
Hopefully they reconsider this decision before other venues snap up these great performers.
Head over to Daphne Rio and Raquel Blake‘s pages to support and hit up their Venmo/PayPal accounts. Loyal employees shouldn’t be treated this way after everything they did for the business.