Namibian and Kenyan performance artists are set to showcase their talents across the world as ‘Drag & Vogue Beyond Borders (D&VBB): Queer Culture is African Culture’ heads to Berlin, Johannesburg and Washington, DC.
A transnational and creative collaboration between Equal Namibia, Drag Night Namibia, Nadharia CBO (Kenya), Reframe Kollektiv e.V., Berlin Ballroom Pier (Germany) and VNJ Ball (South Africa), D&VBB is a response to intensifying anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, queer/questioning, intersex, and other (LGBTQI+) hate and discriminatory laws around the globe, and is described as a celebration of queer resistance, art and solidarity.
The project aims to strengthen LGBTQI+ advocacy through visibility, artistic capacity-building and policy engagement while offering queer artists tools for economic sustainability and digital safety. D&VBB is supported by the Capital Pride Alliance, Grindr for Equality, and the GALA Queer Archive.
At the co-production’s launch at the House of Democracy last week, Equal Namibia co-founder Omar van Reenen expanded on the five phases of the initiative.
“We are proud to announce the launch of Drag & Vogue Beyond Borders, a bold new international artistic collaboration that reclaims drag and ballroom culture as powerful tools of expression, resistance and visibility for the global LGBTQI+ community and for African queer youth and creatives,” said Van Reenen.
“Launching in June 2025 at World Pride in Washington, DC, Drag & Vogue Beyond Borders will travel through Berlin during Berlin Pride, to Johannesburg during the ILGA Pan-Africa Conference, to Nairobi for International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia and culminate in Windhoek during Namibia Pride 2026 and the Africa Drag and Ballroom Convention.”
The project brings together drag performers, ballroom artists and queer cultural organisers to curate a selection of performances, workshops, residencies, exhibitions, catalogues, advocacy discussions and policy round tables centering African queer voices on the continent and in the diaspora.
“In these times of uncertainty, budget cuts, executive order announcements, fear-mongering and hateful attacks on our community and what feels like regression, we are taking a stand,” said Equal Namibia co-founder Patrick Reissner.
“This is a historic moment. Historic in the sense of the challenging times we’re living in, and historic in the sense that this initiative is not just queer, but youth-led on a global scale.”
D&VBB is currently producing a documentary detailing the experience, as well as the perspectives and people the multinational team encounters along the way. “We’re not just creating art – we’re archiving a movement,” says D&VBB documentary producer, Julia Runge.
To mark their collaboration and commitment to the initiative, representatives from Drag Night Namibia, Equal Namibia, Reframe Kollektiv e.V. and Nadharia CBO recently signed a Declaration of Transnational African Queer Solidarity and Artistic Collaboration.
“In the face of mounting anti-LGBTQI+ legislation, shrinking civic space and erasure of queer African expression, we recognise the urgent need for cultural exchange, creative defiance and collective care,” said Drag Night co-cief executive Lize Ehlers, reading from the declaration’s preamble.
“Through this agreement, we commit to working across movements, identities and borders – centring queer artistry as a vehicle for storytelling, advocacy and systemic change,” said Ehlers.
“We pledge to use this project to spark dialogue, educate publics and embolden the next generation of queer African artists to resist with beauty, power and pride.”
Speaking at the launch event, Nadharia CBO founder, Androgynous Alpha highlighted that D&VBB is far more than just a celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community’s creativity.
“At its core, Drag and Vogue Beyond Borders is not just a celebration of queer artistry; it’s a bold, transgressive act of resistance and unity across the continent. As Nadharia, we are proud to be a part of this movement that connects queer communities across Africa, particularly through youth-led cross-border collaboration,” said Alpha.
“Our work is rooted in creating safe, affirming spaces where queer voices, especially youth, can thrive, meet and imagine the future. That’s why this partnership means so much to us … It reflects what’s possible when African queer youth take charge of the narrative, connect across borders and build coalitions that are both political and deeply creative,” said Alpha.
“Working across borders reminds us that queer liberation cannot be confined by geography. From Kenya to Namibia, South Africa to Germany, we share not just struggles but dreams, strategies and joy.”
– [email protected]; Martha Mukaiwa on Twitter and Instagram; marthamukaiwa.com
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