By Davi Jacobs
For years, University of Maryland students have filled the seats at campus drag shows, cheering on professional performers from across the DMV. But, there was no place for students who wanted to try drag themselves — until fall 2024, when Haus of Terp became the first student organization dedicated to drag performance at UMD.
“In high school, one of my best friends was really into drag and that drew me in,” said David, the club’s founder and senior neuroscience major. “There wasn’t a drag club or anything on campus despite clearly having a loving audience for it.”
David partnered with the UMD Pride Alliance, a student-run organization that supports LGBTQ+ students on campus, to form Haus of Terp and give students a space to learn, perform and create together.
Drag is a performance art that uses clothing and makeup to play with gender. While many may know drag from the show “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” the art form extends far beyond drag queens.
The term drag likely originated in 19th-century theater slang, referring to the sensation of long skirts dragging along the floor when male actors played women’s roles. But the practice of drag itself has been around for centuries, from ancient Greek theater to Shakespeare’s stage.
Modern drag culture took shape in the 20th century, particularly through Harlem’s ballroom scene, where Black and Latinx LGBTQ+ communities formed houses — chosen families that offered mentorship and support.
“It’s exaggerated on purpose and is a critique of societal expectations of gender,” David said. “It’s a freeing way of saying I’m not bound by my gender. It’s a rebellion against being told you are a man or a woman and you have to perform these roles.”
For member and senior psychology major Devin, that rebellion takes the form of Devona Delight — an alter ego she created when she was younger and brought to life in college. Through this persona, she’s found a way to express femininity on her own terms.
“[Drag] allows people to go beyond what society is deeming their gender to be, and allows them to unleash what they are feeling in their heart,” Devona said. “People who are born male can put on that dress and put on that lip liner, wear that lip gloss, and put on a nice fluffy wig.”
Drag is not limited to queens performing exaggerated femininity. The art form also includes drag kings who amplify masculinity. Drag performers can exist outside the gender binary, alongside alt drag performers inspired by horror, sci-fi or avant-garde fashion.
Drag King Danielle, a senior biology and Spanish major whose drag name is Sinistaire, said that they hope Haus of Terp can address the underrepresentation of other forms of drag.
“A lot of people first learn about drag through ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race,’ but that show only has drag queens and really only hyperfeminine versions of drag,” Danielle said. “There’s a lot more out there that goes unnoticed because it’s not on the biggest drag show in the world.”
The club meets regularly at the LGBTQ+ Equity Center in Marie Mount Hall and collaborates with the Indigenous Futures Lab in Susquehanna Hall. Their weekly workshops break down the art form to make drag accessible, including makeup tutorials, crafting sessions for costume-making, pre-show prep and drag history lessons.
“We did one workshop that was just, ‘How do you block out your eyebrows?’” Danielle said. “Breaking it down into simpler parts that you can add up over time can help people feel like it’s something they can actually try.”
The same goes for confidence, according to Danielle. They said it doesn’t need to be fully formed from the start.
“Outside of performing, I’m more of an introvert,” they said. “But when you’re performing, you get to command attention and bring out the most dramatic parts of yourself. It’s a lot of fun.”
Despite the prejudice drag artists face outside their community, judgment doesn’t get a seat inside a drag show.
”There’s an unspoken rule that you don’t boo at drag shows. It’s a very big no,” Danielle said. “People want to be supportive, and that is empowering because it’s a very personal thing to do.”
Alex Zhao, a member and junior computer science major, joined the club initially as a spectator but started becoming more involved.
“I started going to drag performances on campus and seeing how especially talented they are in dancing and the glamorous outfits,” Zhao said. ”I thought one day I wanted to try that myself.”
As a member of Haus of Terp, he’s no longer just watching from the audience. His advice to anyone else considering drag is simple: “If you want to express your art, you can express your art. Don’t let anyone take you down for doing that.”
Featured Image: Devona Delight at the Haus Of Terp Student Drag Showcase at the Adele H. Stamp Student Union on Dec. 5, 2025. Photo courtesy of Devona Delight.
Editor’s Note: To respect privacy, the students in this article are identified by their preferred names.