Rita D'Lavane, Dr. Lady J and more to headline Hostess City Hoedown

The stage at Club One will soon be alive with burlesque, drag, cabaret, dance, and other performing arts entertainers from across North America for the return of the Hostess City Hoedown, May 25 through 27.

“I kind of created it out of this love that I have for all the people here that are working in the same industry as me,” said producer Rita D’LaVane. “Whenever I travel, because I travel very often, I'm always talking about where I'm from. I'm always talking about my home venue. I'm always talking about other people from here.”

The Hostess City Hoedown is a three-day festival showcasing talent from around Georgia as well as introducing performers from other areas to Savannah. For some, this will be their first time in this city, but Rita explained they have plenty of returning performers who audiences will recognize, such as Sallie Just Sallie, Liam Laughin, and Dax Exclamation Point. In fact, the artwork being used to promote this year’s festival is by Dax, making the festival, as the poster reads, "powered by the community."

Stellar stars from the drag universe

Rita said this year’s festival features even more amazing talent. One of the new-to-Savannah performers to watch is Dr. Lady J from Cleveland, Ohio, an historian specializing in the history of drag.

“I met them in Cleveland, and I was telling them about [Club One]. I was like, have you ever heard of The Lady Chablis? And they were like, of course! I'm like, this is the home of the Lady Chablis where I work. I would love for you to come to see it.”

As we talked, it was obvious that Rita is very excited to introduce Dr. Lady J to Savannah audiences. They explained that, on top of being the person to talk to about the history of drag performance, Dr. Lady J is also “a really dynamic performer with a really interesting aesthetic.”

Another performer hailing from the Buckeye State is Bella Sin, who will headline Saturday night.

“They’re voted in the top 50 of best burlesque performers in the entire world.”

This year’s Hostess City Hoedown also has a legacy burlesque performer, Sepia Jewel. Rita explained a legacy performer is someone over the age of 50. They’re excited to further diversify the level of entertainment with each new festival, and being able to include legacy performers is part of the goal.

“We have drag performers who aren't your traditional male drag performers. We have drag kings too. We have people who identify all over the gender spectrum coming to perform.”

Each night has a theme, starting off with Thursday’s Local Honey, which will feature performers from across the Southeast. Friday is Southern Glamour Get-together which is what Rita describes as everyone giving their most over-the-top performances. Saturday night is the competition night where we find out who will be named this year’s Supreme of Savannah.

“I am really interested to see how this plays out this year. I can tell you for sure that all the performers who are going be on the bill for Saturday are definitely going be bringing it.”

Single-day passes start at $30, weekend passes for all three days are $80, and there are VIP day and weekend passes available as well. During the festival, tickets to win all sorts of prizes from local sponsors will be raffled off. The proceeds from the raffle will go to the ACLU’s Drag Defense Fund working to ensure that performers continue to do what they love.

Whether you make it to one night or all three, Rita D’LaVane promises a show like nothing you’ve ever seen before.

“I feel like people who come should definitely be prepared to be thoroughly entertained.”

If You Go >>

The Hostess City Hoedown

When: May 25-27

Where: Club One, 1 Jefferson St.

Tickets: $30 - $100, Must be 21 and up to attend.

Info: HostessCityHoedown.com

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Hostess City Hoedown set to ‘thoroughly entertain,’ May 25-27, at Club One