This article was originally published in May 2023.

A little over five years ago, Tbilisi’s drag scene consisted of a few small nights here and there that played out behind closed doors. At Bassiani’s Horoom club nights, the likes of Victoria Slutina (Matt Shally) and Lucrezia (Luka Bitchikashvili) would stage avant-garde, experimental performances on the last Friday of every month, as they poked and prodded at the parameters of drag to create something all their own. 

Since then, though little has changed when it comes to the archaic, conservative attitude that permeates Georgian culture, drag has flourished in Tbilisi. Originally hosted by Shally in the back rooms of bars and at one point even a garage, a scrappy little DIY drag ball has become a sensation in the city, with thousands of tickets selling out in less than a minute when they go up for sale each month. 

It’s not just a new gen of queer youth that realise the power of drag, though. This season, at the first Tbilisi Fashion Week post-COVID, its founder Sofia Tchkonia invited the group behind the Drag Ball (Shally, Giorgi Cheminava, Vato Kerdzaia, and David Gogishvili) to take over the event’s enormous former Coca-Cola factory venue and stage a special ball to close out Saturday night (May 6). 

What followed was a powerful celebration of some of Tbilisi’s most vibrant talent. Kicking off with performers racing down the stage waving rainbow flags and signs emblazoned with ‘Queer Power’, the likes of Flora Kamikadze, Nikita, and Shally all put on a show – with host Shally throwing himself to his knees and lip-syncing tracks by Charli XCX and Tina Turner, and Nikita rapping a bunch of original tracks that the audience screamed back at them. 

Of course, this being fashion week, the looks came thick and fast, with the performers showcasing a bunch of their city’s most exciting designers, including God Era, Reckless, Aka Prodiashvili, and more. And though it wasn’t on the official schedule this time around, Tamuna Karumidze – Tamra designer and Troublemakerz model agency founder – got behind her sewing machine to create a flowing graphic gown for close friend and collaborator Shally. 

The big finale of the night came courtesy of local legend Madlena, who shut things down with three show-stopping songs, including the wildly catchy glitchy electro banger “Pussy Boy”. It was a night of resistance and a refusal to stay out of sight in the shadows, but also of art and joy and love. Having broken free of the darkened back rooms and cramped little garages, drag in Tbilisi is just getting started.

Click through the gallery above to see pics from the night, as shot by local photographer Dato Koridze.