“The Diva Saga: The Legend of the Worst Drag Queen” is a one-woman live drag performance work that incorporates multi-channel music videos and other media design elements. This work questions constructions of sexuality, gender, and identity in a digital age and examines how Veronica Bleaus became the self-proclaimed “worst drag queen of the midwest.” Lampooning normative and restrictive constructions of sex, artistic judgment, and popular culture, “The Diva Saga” draws heavily from numerous visual and aural storytelling mediums like comic books, Japanese anime, video games, music videos, and high fantasy.

A series of campy confrontations between a live Veronica and the avatars of drag—digital identities projected on stage (also played by Veronica)—the live and digital Veronicas clash in their respective interpretations, battling each other in a fantastic, campy visual and sonic narrative. “The Diva Saga” uses live and digital performance to gesture toward and capture the importance of camp and divas in queer processes of self-making and alternative identity construction. Divas portrayed in the performance are inspired by Stevie Nicks, Whitney Houston, Nomi Ruiz, Rósín Murphy, Kylie Minogue, Grace Jones, and Kate Bush.