Location: The Church of the Village, 201 W 13th Street, New York, NY 10011.

Journalist, historian, and photographer Elyssa Maxx Goodman, author of the newly released Glitter and Concrete: A Cultural History of Drag in New York City, joins us to discuss drag: its meanings then and now, its history in the city, its role in the development of the Village, its sociocultural impact, its future, and more. She’ll present a lecture and readings from her new book followed by a Q&A and book signing.

Goodman explores the dynamic role of drag, from the Jazz Age to Drag Race, in queer liberation and urban life. From the lush feather boas that adorned early female impersonators to the sequined lip syncs of barroom queens to the drag kings that have us laughing in stitches, drag has played a vital role in the creative life of New York City. But the evolution of drag in the city—as an art form, a community and a mode of liberation—has never before been fully chronicled. Now, for the first time, Elyssa Goodman unearths the dramatic, provocative untold story of drag in New York City in all its glistening glory.

Elyssa Goodman is a writer and photographer specializing in arts and culture. Her work has been published in Vogue, T: The New York Times Style Magazine, Vanity Fair, and others online and in print. Elyssa has also written about LGBTQ+ history and culture for Conde Nast’s them, where she was the site’s “Drag Herstory” and Queer Women’s History columnist. She has been a freelance writer for 19 years and in love with drag for 27 years, since the age of seven.