Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 performs at the Howard Theatre in DC on Oct. 29, 2022. (Photo by Katherine Gaines)

“I’m not lip syncing!” laughed Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 into the handheld mic she was just handed in her recent appearance at the Howard Theatre in DC. Her headset mic wasn’t working properly, but she hardly missed a beat in the choreography.

The show dealt with a few technical difficulties, but leave it to a drag queen to make them even more entertaining than the script.

As expected from a high-budget drag show, there were more than a dozen outfit changes and several shirtless backup dancers at the Howard Theatre on Oct. 29, but Red 4 Filth is a full journey. It started with Alaska’s beginnings on planet Glamtron and followed her rise to global fame. This landed her at the Super Bowl where she performed a medley of some of her older fan favorites.

It was the perfect way to give fans everything they wanted without distracting from the main plot of the night. She was also joined by her opener Lagoona Bloo and extra special guest (just for DC!) Jan from Drag Race Season 12, to equal two-thirds of Stephanie’s Child (featured on Girlz Night).

Songs recorded by drag performers often tend toward kitschy parodies with little substance, but Alaska has always been more than that. Red 4 Filth is a full realization of all her power. There is still plenty of silliness but it manages to be touching and real at the same time.

Watch the official music video or “All That She Wants” by Alaska Thunderfuck on YouTube:

Whatever the perception of Alaska’s time on reality tv or what drag music normally is, the Red 4 Filth Tour proves that with or without drag, she would be an absolute superstar. Her voice has incredible range and richness and she uses the most unique and absurd vocal gymnastics. She has honed and perfected this technique to add just the right amount of punctuation to her lyrics, even when the lyrics are literally: “The words coming out of my mouth is just nonsense”

The rise of drag in popular culture has given some of the weirdest and coolest people in the country the opportunity to perform exactly how they want and Alaska Thunderfuck exemplifies this. At the end of the show, it was obvious: Drag like this makes people unbelievably happy.

Here are some photos of Alaska Thunderfuck performing at the Howard Theatre on Oct. 29, 2022. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Katherine Gaines.