A Fort Worth bar called Red Goose Saloon hosted its weekly drag show, which was open to all ages this weekend.
The bar hosts “Moondance Drag Brunch” every Sunday starting at noon, according to Sickening Events’ website.
The site suggests kids are welcome to the show, stating, “We recommend that our audience stays 16+, only due to some language, music content, and suggestive humor. However, we pride ourselves on being an all inclusive brunch; if you want to bring your children, please do so at your own discretion.”
The Dallas Express attended on Sunday and observed that venue staff were not asked to produce ID at the door.
The Moondance Drag Brunch featured a lineup of drag queen performers, including Logan, Cherise, Devotion, and Bradina, with Salem Moon as the host. Salem Moon was also part of an all-ages Six Flags drag show last year, which prompted public backlash for its sexual dances and nudity-suggestive costumes, as reported by the Texas Scorecard.
Such performances have also drawn criticism for purportedly being misogynistic due to how performers often depict women in an exaggerated manner.
“I’m concerned about how this impacts children’s view of biology and reality, but also these men — and in this case a woman — who dress up in these outlandish costumes that present to children this very pornographied view of women where it is these insanely large prosthetic breasts and clownlike makeup with huge hair,” said Michelle Evans, a Republican activist in Williamson County, speaking with The Dallas Express last month. “How insidious can this be? If we normalize this for children, we are normalizing that misogynistic view of women.”
Sunday’s show had performers ask for cash tips from the audience. The dances were sexual in nature, with performers dressed in lingerie outfits. One performer took a shot of alcohol in front of the audience and spoke in a sexual tone. The venue was mostly empty, with only 11 people showing up for the drag brunch.
DX reached out to Chris Hutchinson, the owner of the Red Goose Saloon, and asked if he was going to make the show an adult-only event and if he himself was a misogynist, as some critics have suggested drag inherently is. He did not reply by press time.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Red Goose Saloon has faced public scrutiny by some non-profit organizations, including the Texas Family Project.
“Not only is the Red Goose Saloon intending to continue to allow children at their event, but they’ve also responded to requests to simply restrict these explicit shows to be 18+ with anger and disdain. Although it is sad and embarrassing that we must pass legislation to stop perverts from grooming children, it is essential that the 5th Circuit uphold Senate Bill 12 and stop this evil,” Brady Gray told the Texas Scorecard.