1. jmh105

    jmh105 Active Member

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    How old do you have to be to be employed at bars as a drag queen?

    Discussion in 'Research' started by jmh105, Oct 23, 2016.

    I would like my character to get involved with drag and drag performances, but he's a high schooler. In what scenarios would he be able to perform at his age?
     
  2. BayView

    BayView Huh. Interesting. Contributor

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    You need to be more specific about your jurisdiction for the answers to be meaningful. Where would this be taking place?
     
  3. GingerCoffee

    GingerCoffee Web Surfer Girl Contributor

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    Drag queen has nothing to do with it. You have to be of legal drinking age to serve alcohol. Where food is the main item on the menu, you can work where alcohol is served, but someone else has to take the alcohol to the table.

    State drinking ages range from 18 to 21, often with 18 yr olds only allowed to drink beer and maybe wine.

    Canada the drinking age is 18, I believe.
     
  4. jmh105

    jmh105 Active Member

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    Sorry about not being specific about that! My character is attending high school in the United States.

    So as long as the character is within working age, they can do whatever so long as it doesn't involve alcohol (if they're too young)?
     
  5. Laurin Kelly

    Laurin Kelly Contributor Contributor

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    Are we talking about a bar/nightclub? It would depend on the particular state (Wisconsin), but I know in my state you can't be in a nightclub under 21 years old unless your parent or guardian is with you. They card at the door, generally. Also in WI, you can serve alcohol at 18 as a server but have to be 21 to bartend. If it's a restaurant like Hamburger Mary's where they serve food but also have a drag show, potentially they could be a server, but would still need them to be at least 18 so they could serve drinks.

    I actually have a friend who does drag, and another that stage manages drag shows. When a queen is first starting out in our area she usually has to start at amateur shows working for tips. Many of these are held on college campuses and at LGBT community events. We used to have a wonderful venue called the Milwaukee Gay Arts Center that held amateur nights on a regular basis, but it closed down sadly. There are some queens that are hired to MC shows or as featured performers at clubs, but they normally will have paid their dues and have a lot of experience under their belts. It might depend on the area, but I can't imagine a club in my city where a high school student would be able to get a paid gig as a drag queen. You really have to start at the bottom, hopefully find yourself a supportive drag mama, and work your way up.
     
  6. GingerCoffee

    GingerCoffee Web Surfer Girl Contributor

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    No, you missed this part of what I posted: Where food is the main item on the menu, you can work where alcohol is served, but someone else has to take the alcohol to the table.

    That does not include nightclubs and bars because food is not the main item on the menu, liquor is. In other words underage employees can work in restaurants that serve alcohol. And not too many restaurants that serve liquor would have high school age employees.

    Give your character a fake ID. I had one when I was in high school and with today's printers it should be even easier to make a fake ID. Back in the days before color printers and when everyone's pic on their driver's license faced forward, I cut numbers off my old license and pasted them on my new one changing my birth year. Then I laminated it. There was only one place it failed to work, the door guy used a flashlight at an angle and you could see the letters were slightly raised.
     
  7. BayView

    BayView Huh. Interesting. Contributor

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    It's going to depend on your individual state, but there may be exemptions for entertainers under 21 to work in bars.

    Try googling something like [minor working entertainer bar [state name]] - for California, people 18-21 can work as musicians as long as it's not a strip club, but they have to stay in the entertainment area and no one can drink in that area. I didn't see anything about other forms of entertainers.

    Or, yeah, let him break the law.
     

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