Did you know that there is a monthly, one-of-a-kind drag show held in Yucca Valley?
In late January, I had the opportunity to attend the monthly HORSE GIRL: a monthly, theatrical, and wildly fun drag show held at the Tiny Pony Tavern.
The event was created by OBSIDIENNE OBSURD and her wife, Jill Hill. After moving from San Francisco to the Morongo Basin last spring, OBSIDIENNE OBSURD says a trip to the Tiny Pony prompted the idea to curate a drag show that matches the unique spirit of the Hi-Desert community.
“In San Francisco, it’s very difficult to carve out your own niche. I won’t say all of [shows], but a lot of them tend to be what you would expect from a drag show. But I’m a weirdo, and I like doing weirdo drag, and I think that there’s an open-mindedness out of the desert that allows for these types of niche things to develop.”
HORSE GIRL had its first show last April and has been held monthly since then; its name was chosen to play with that of its hosting venue. OBSIDIENNE OBSURD is the front-facing host, while Hill runs many behind-the-scenes operations, including video and animations. While each show is different, the event features theatrical makeup, avant-garde performances, and eccentric themes. Many of its performers are based in Southern California. The founders try to keep the talent as local as possible, though some have been keen to travel from San Francisco for such a unique show: one that, as Hill expresses, has also garnered significant support from the local community.
“It’s incredible. Every single show we’ve thrown since the first one has been packed. There’s such a need for queer art and queer presence out here and we’ve made such an amazing community of folks.”
The January show I attended was titled BACK TO THE FUT-HORSE, a tribute to the classic 1980s franchise Back to the Future, complete with a Christopher Lloyd lookalike contest and a “Plutonium Shot,” proceeds of which were donated to support Los Angeles fire relief. The late-night indoor show had a sizable turnout, with both tourists and locals crowding to leave only narrow pathways for the artists. While the events are technically free, a $10 to $20 donation is suggested, which attendees eagerly paid via tips to performances of popular, crowd-favorite tracks by Cher and Chappell Roan. All earned enthusiastic applause; the audience’s appreciation for both the art and the atmosphere itself was palpable.
“What we’re trying to do is show people that this is art, drag is an art form, and it does play with gender, it does play with queerness, but it is at the end of the day art. So the vision is to grow it into something of that variety and to keep bringing in amazing artists that represent the things that we align with, and to just be unapologetic. We’re not going to go anywhere.”
Tonight’s drag show is HORSE FEATHERS, billed as a “celebration of the obsurd.” The event will begin at 10:00 p.m. at the Tiny Pony Tavern.
