The Top Three: 2nd runner up Alexea Breeden Kelly, winner Zakia Jamaceye, 1st runner up Monica Duvall

Hey there Race Fans, your pit crew signing in to deliver the last update on Esta’s Drag Race Season 2.

Yes folks, we have finally reach the end. Believe it or not, these past eight weeks flew by and now we are at the final three. But before we get there, allow me to update you on what happened at the semi-finals.

Two weeks ago it was down to Zakia Jemaceye, Monica Duvall, Candy Pantzzz and Alexea Breeden Kelly. The most memorable moment of the night was Miss Duvall making her triumphant return to the race. Pulling out her “Cell Block Tango” from Chicago, she gave the audience exactly what they wanted. The bottom two, Alexea and Candy. And at the beginning of the lip sync for the lives, Candy walked off the stage and disappeared to the back. Defaulting Alexea to the finals, while we all tried to figured out what happened… I guess Candy Pantzzz will be the only one to know why she left.

Now to the finals.

The guest performers definitely made the big statement needed for the finals. Victoria C. Snow worked the crowd with some very extended numbers, fabulous but extended none the less. Stormie Saunders, 1st runner up of Season 1, reminded us why she made it so far in Season 1. And Millenium C. Snow made her last performance as crown holder of Esta’s Drag Race, closing her reign with a gorgeous performance of “I Will Always Love You” that could have brought a tear… but who are we kidding, it’s not that serious.

The girls were asked to create “Go Green” outfits, and these ladies did not hold back. Kelly pulled a little Project Runway magic, Jemaceye created a full on evening gown and Duvall looked fierce (but was sure to stay away from any lit cigs, cause the tall grass could have sparked into a huge burn out).

The ladies then performed a number of their choice, but lets just get to the part you are all waiting for. Drum roll please.

We have the three ladies lined up on stage, after they have pulled out everything they could for this season. First to walk away, winning 2nd runner up is…. Alexea Breeden Kelly. Now that anticipation is building, we have Duvall and Jemaceye waiting on stage to hear who worked it harder.

And the 1st runner up is…….. Monica Duvall. Making Miss Zakia Jemaceye the grand winner of Esta’s Drag Race Season 2. After eight weeks, countless outfits and reveals, fabulous guest performers, shocking line change ups and a few cocktails later… the checkered flag is finally waving in the air.

So Race Fans, be sure to make your way out to the reunion shows this week and next week. See all the girls come back to the stage one last time together as the girls of Season 2, as they finally get the chance to comment back to the judges and speak their mind. Flashback to Jemaceye not holding back at last years reunion, we can only hope there is something as juicy this year.

Your engines are now cooled down and shut off, this is your pit crew signing off.

Esta’s Drag Race is an 8-week competition each Thursday at Nations on 2729 W. Broad St. Photo by Eric Russell.

Hey there Race Fans, your pit crew signing in to give you the turn by turn of what happened at Esta’s Drag Race in Week 5…

If you missed it last week week, then sorry to say you missed a good one. Or at the very least an outrageous one. Starting the show this week, was a twirling metallic pink tornado that was Miss Esta Bunny. Audience members made sure not to get in the way of her coat tails as she whooshed them around on the runway.

Gracing us with her presence this week as the guest performer was Natasha Carrington. The last time this pit crew saw her perform was during the comedy night after Season 1 wrapped up. Now thinking back to her, “Thin and Gorgeous!” number it was nice to see her again giving us some country glam.

Now… let’s bring on the race drivers. The five ladies took the stage, and were given the task of performing the Spice Girls… together. Some demanded the attention, while some let their spotlight get taken away. One girl stepping (even so much as to do so in the group photo) was Alexea Beeden Kelly. Her bold move let the audience know she ain’t here for friends, but for the win. Kudos to you Miss Kelly for making the first big move in Heat 2!

Next was the interview portion of the evening, and to keep the audience’s attention the ladies were given a task to bring a man on stage shirtless. We had everything from a husband, to Michelle D. Livinge, to employees of Nations… no man was safe from this task. And why were these men asked on stage, well of course so the contestants could give them a good spanking.

To wrap everything up, the ladies then performed their theme of the week: 80’s music. Now we definitely had a great flash back because this pit crew was jamming out like no one’s business. We had everything from a virginal Madonna to an outfit from Miss Candy Pantzzz that left very little to the imagination down below. Even Hedwig Von Goth tamed it down a little and sported a newly painted fabulous face with the help of Livinge.

So who won and who was told to sachey away? Well leaving little to the imagination and being a crowd favorite proved to be a successful equation for Candy Pantzzz, because she walked away with the trophy for the night yet again. Oh, and of course her bottle of Bud Light… way to hold it down girl!

Bottom two? Fiona Cartier and Adriana Monique. Now it was a close call when it came to them lip syncing for their lives, but Cartier commanded that stage a little harder than Monique. And as stated by the judges, while Monique is a beautiful drag queen it seems her performing may need just a little tightening up. So sadly, Miss Adriana Monique was told to sachey away and joined the other crash victims of the race.

So that leaves us with four, yes that’s right folks four ladies left of Heat 2. The laps are dwindling down to the final four, where it’s going to be an all out drag race for the big checkered flag at the end. So stay tuned cause I’m here to keep you updated, but you should probably just come check it out yourself…

For now, your engines seem good to go… this is your pit crew signing off.

Esta’s Drag Race is an 8-week competition each Thursday at Nations on 2729 W. Broad St. Photo by Eric Russell.

The competition was bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S.

Hey there Race Fans, your pit crew signing in to give you the turn by turn of what happened at Esta’s Drag Race in Week 3…

This week turned out to be a crowd favorite with the ladies given the challenge of:
1.) An Elvis cover number.
2.) Suicide Cher performance.
3.) Impersonating any singer.

With those three options… how could anyone go wrong?

The four remaining ladies started the show by performing covers of Elvis songs, and we had everything from Celine Dion to Elvis hair. I apologize now for the cheesy pun, but the ladies left the audience “all shook up.”

Millenium C. Snow of course made her appearance pulling out her “Single Ladies” performance, which some may remember saved her from elimination in Season 1. What can I say, if you’ve got a good thing… milk it for all it’s worth. Even though I’ve seen that performance before, she made me a fan of it all over again.

Race Fans got a special treat this week with Angelica Spaulding gracing the runway with her fierce self. The big finale moment… a jump that appeared ten feet off of the ground and down into a full on split. Okay Miss Spaulding… don’t let me catch you doing a floor routine in the next Olympics.

Now. Let’s chat about this suicide Cher performance, cause suicide for some of the ladies is exactly what it was. Of course it’s Cher, and yes we all know she is a staple of the gay community… But even I will admit, I don’t know every word she ever sang. While there were great costumes, high energy performances and the crowd waiting for someone to not know any of the words… let’s just say there were parts where mouthing the word “watermelon” probably could have saved someone.

So while the Cher performance, for some, may not have blown over too well, the singer impersonating segment of the show certainly made up for it.

Let’s bring Monica Duvall on deck. Duvall stepped completely out of her norm and graced us with the presence of Liza Minnelli. She even tempted the Laws of Newton climbing on top of a chair that was on top of the runway, but she held her footing and made her statement. Now, spotlight on Michelle D. Livinge. She came out dressed as a nun, and ripped it off to reveal Miss Gwen Stefani. Livinge even brought her very own banana to dance with, the scene was “B-A-N-A-N-A-S”. Flash to Zakia Jemaceye. Jemaceye gave us a little Whitney Houston. Many were left in withdrawal when Duvall did not pull out a mashup but thankfully Jemaceye saved the day and not only gave us a a mashup, but a Whitney through the years mashup. Finally, Porsche Ferrari brings it on into the garage. Ferrari winded the evening down bring Barbara Streisand to the stage and performing her powerful ballads.

So now that all of the performances in the first heat of Esta’s Drag Race was completed, it was time to send two girls home and two into the semi-finals. The girls took a seat on the couch, while Miss Esta got the crowd’s input on who should continue. The first elimination was Miss Porsche Ferrari. Yes, the rookie drag queen was asked to sachey away but was given a lot of respect for lasting this long.

The final three girls sat, wondering who was going to win the night and who would be joining Ferrari on the crash site. Would it be Duvall’s defying gravity number in her cabaret, Livinge and her banana or Jemaceye time warping us through Whitney?

Esta announced the winner of the night was…. Michelle D. Livinge.

After the bottom two tore out that runway battling for their lives. After three weeks of solid performances from both ladies. After both ladies put out their very best. After a long anticipating silence from Esta. After I finish this whole build up I’m attempting here. Zakia Jemaceye was declared safe and Monica Duvall sadly had to sachey away.

The first heat is done, and the first two into the semi-finals are Michelle D. Livinge and Zakia Jemaceye. Ladies in the next heat… better bring you’re A-Game. Cause you have seen the crash victims of heat one, and no one will be spared in your heat either. We’ll see you ladies this Thursday on the Nations runway.

For now, your engines seem good to go… this is your pit crew signing off.

Esta’s Drag Race is an 8-week competition each Thursday at Nations on 2729 W. Broad St. Photo by Eric Russell.