By Joyce Remo
DRAG has always been political, at least according to Drag Race Philippines contenders Marina “Divine” Summers and Eva Le Queen, as seen in their fashion-political statements at Vice Ganda’s #UnkabogaBALL2022 held in Cebu City on Sunday.
Summers’ party attire was inspired by former first lady Imelda Marcos at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, according to its designer Paul Sese. However, the drag queen put an unexpected twist in her take on Imelda’s fashion statement.
What seemed to be a simple white Filipiniana dress at the front had intricate symbolism at the back. Red and white sequins that formed handprints adorned the gown, as if the dress was blood-stained. Summers was also wearing a glove in her right hand with sequins arranged like dripping blood.
Marina Summers via Twitter
Summers’ garments also had a speaker inside that played a “haunting” melody.
“The GAG is the dress has an attached speaker sa loob tapos while she’s walking down the red carpet may nagpplay sa audio ng mga taong umiiyak. Di lang narinig because of the background music,” Sese disclosed in a tweet.
To further emphasize the message, he said Summers was also wearing an authentic diamond necklace and earring set worth P 1.5 million.
Summers hoped to remind the Filipino people to not be swayed by misinformation and never forget the story of martial law.
“This is the part of Philippine history that they are trying to conceal with glamor and misinformation. This is the story that should never be forgotten,” she said in a tweet.
The brilliant outfit won Summers the #UnkabogaBALL2022 Star of The Night and she took home a P 100,000 cash prize.
Meanwhile, Le Queen’s costume garnered attention as she walked on the red carpet in a black head-to-toe bodysuit inspired by Kim Kardashian’s Met Gala 2021 look.
However, what took people’s interest was the red, green, and blue halo worn by the drag queen, symbolizing the ABS-CBN logo.
Eva Le Queen via Instagram
Styled by Job Dacon, Le Queen said her look was based on the network’s shutdown in 2020.
In an interview, she revealed that the shutdown of ABS-CBN made a huge impact on her.
Le Queen also believes this part of history should never be forgotten.
This is the second #UnkabogaBALL event spearheaded by the Vice Ganda.
The sophomore ball’s theme was “Herstory” and aimed to showcase Philippine history through glamorous outfits of various LGBTQIA+ celebrities and influencers.
Banner photo credit: Paul Sese Twitter
