Building numbers for Ballarat drag bingo

THE Ballarat Leagues Club will soon play host to a different kind of event as part of a local drag star’s aim to expand an entertainment offering in the region.

This Thursday, Ballarat drag queen Gabriella Labucci will bring drag bingo to the venue along with Melbourne-based entertainer Xena Ghost.

Labucci said her goal with the event is to bring more drag opportunities to Ballarat.

“Piano Bar has been wonderful in giving us a platform on a Wednesday but not everyone can do that so we want to provide more opportunity and create more work for the regional girls,” she said.

“Essentially Piano Bar is the only place offering drag events so we want to branch out and take this to a different audience while still having fun with drag at the same time.

“There’s absolutely a need in the scene for more work and more opportunities.”

A drag performer for nearly a decade, Labucci has been hosting bingo events in Ballarat for roughly three years.

With tickets at $20, prizes to be won include vouchers with Ballarat Leagues Club, and Black Label Tattoo Collective, as well as a Ballarat Wildlife Park family pass, and an $80 bottle of gin from Red Duck Brewery.

Next week’s event looks to be the first of many monthly drag bingo nights at Ballarat Leagues Club, with follow-ups slated for Thursday 23 November and Thursday 21 December.

Labucci said co-host Xena Ghost will bring an exciting element to next week’s event.

“Xena is one of the girls I’ve worked with from Melbourne. It’s always good to have that perspective in a regional setting,” she said.

“You get a bit of the city drag and the country drag to give people the best of both worlds.

“The Melbourne scene can be quite competitive where the girls are trying to one up one another. Here, I think we’re a bit more laid back and silly so we feed off each other and learn from each other.”

Visit bit.ly/3ZM6ar9 for tickets to next week’s drag bingo.