Member-only story
I emceed a college’s commencement ceremony — oh, but in drag!
This past spring, I did something really cool and I may have been the world’s first to create such an experience for myself and a global academic community.
My drag persona, Juhnay Arabesque (phonetically pronounced “JUH-NAY”), was the Emcee of the 114th Commencement Ceremony at San Francisco’s California College of the Arts, honoring the Class of 2021! As the Mistress of Ceremonies, it was my duty to werk, dip, twirl, entertain, and give the Class of 2021 — our now and future artists, designers, craft makers, writers, business owners, and the like — a gift they know oh so well: the gift of story — the crux of art & design. And thanks to CCA’s Marketing and Student Life’s film production staff, it was a story with one hell of a twist.
Before I elaborate on how this project came to fruition, here’s the tale of how I met Juhnay Arabesque — my inner superhero who saved my life.
When I moved to San Francisco from Los Angeles 8 years ago, I was thrust into the artist and nightlife entertainment scenes; I organically found my footing as a backup dancer and choreographer for many queer parties and drag shows. In April 2015, I was…
