Poison Waters

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Poison Waters
Born
Kevin Cook
NationalityAmerican

Poison Waters is the stage name of Kevin Cook, an African American drag performer.

Early life and education[]

Cook attended Parkrose High School in Portland, Oregon,[1] after relocating from Southern California in 1979 at the age of 11.[2]

Career[]

Poison Waters has worked with Darcelle XV (left) for three decades and has performed at Darcelle XV Showplace (right) since the early 1990s.

Cook has been a drag performer, emcee, and community activist since the 1980s. Poison Waters is a hostess at Darcelle XV Showplace and has worked with Darcelle XV for approximately 30 years, as of 2021.[3] She started working at the drag venue in the early 1990s,[4] at the age of 21.[2] She has supported many organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Cascade AIDS Project, and Habitat for Humanity.[4]

In 2017, Poison Waters was part of the cast of Darcelle Showplace XV's musical Pageant.[5] In 2018, she was featured in Multnomah County Library's "Drag Queen Storytimes" series, where she read books about diversity and inclusivity to children.[6][7][8] She and Darcelle XV performed at Salem's Pride in the Park in 2019.[9] Poison Waters also performed at Hillsboro's first official pride celebration,[10] hosted drag brunch at Stag PDX,[11] and participated in a fundraiser for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.[12] In 2020, she was a host for Vashon, Washington's online pride festivities.[13] Poison Waters was also recruited to be Oregon's "drag ambassador" by Drag Out the Vote, a nonpartisan national organization "aiming to educate, register, and turn out voters, while maximizing fun and some glorious looks in the process".[14] She continued reading to children at libraries,[15] performed at a Juneteenth block party,[16] and began hosting drag brunch at Darcelle XV Showplace.[17]

In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Poison Waters encouraged people to wear face masks on public transportation, as part of TriMet's public service campaign.[18] She also hosted a youth fashion show fundraiser in Portland, where she also modeled upcycled new designs with other local drag performers.[19] During the city's annual Pride Festival, which was mostly held online because of the pandemic, she provided entertainment as part of a film screening benefitting LGBT veterans.[20][21] Poison Waters also performed at a socially distanced outdoor entertainment venue at Zidell Yards.[2][22] In Hillsboro, she appeared at an outdoor pride concert as well as "Pride Storytime" for children at a local community center.[23] She also hosted drag bingo, fundraisers, and corporate events via Zoom.[17]

Poison Waters writes a weekly column for the digital LGBT publication Shoutout, featuring local drag artists, as of 2021.[24] In 2021, Cook taught a course at Portland Community College called "Histories of Drag Performance in Portland".[3]

In 2021, Eden Dawn, Lauren Carlos, and Jordyn Mayer of Portland Monthly called Poison Waters "a shining jewel in our city".[25]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Burris, Emily; Costello, Ian (June 11, 2021). "6 Questions: Poison Waters". KOIN. Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c Vondersmith, Jason (April 5, 2021). "Darcelle and friends take the (outdoor) stage". Portland Tribune. Pamplin Media Group. OCLC 46708462. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Ligori, Crystal; Camhi, Tiffany (June 23, 2021). "Poison Waters dives into the history, craft and politics of drag". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Pope, Cervante (November 26, 2019). "Poison Waters Says Volunteering Is the "Easiest Way to Enrich Your Soul and Help the Community."". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  5. ^ Williams, Lee (September 18, 2017). "Darcelle XV turns 50 amid a drag scene it helped go mainstream". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  6. ^ Dowling, Jennifer (September 8, 2018). "Drag Queen Storytime is a hit at Holgate Library". KOIN. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  7. ^ Carson, Teresa (September 11, 2018). "Drag Queen Storytime struts into Fairview Library Sept. 24". The Outlook. Pamplin Media Group. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  8. ^ Truong, Kevin (October 16, 2018). "From Brooklyn to Wichita, public libraries create LGBTQ-affirming spaces". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 8, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  9. ^ Harrell, Saphara (August 2, 2019). "Salem Pride in the Park materializes thanks to volunteer support". Salem Reporter. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  10. ^ Easlon, Janae (May 28, 2019). "Hillsboro to host first Pride event June 1". Hillsboro News Times. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  11. ^ Smith, Suzette (June 6, 2019). "The Unique Flavors of Portland's Drag Brunches". Portland Mercury. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  12. ^ "Portland drag queens raise money for cancer". KOIN. September 9, 2019. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  13. ^ Shepherd, Elizabeth (June 18, 2020). "Time for Pride, with online events including a dance party". Island Beachcomber. Archived from the original on August 6, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  14. ^ McCann, Fiona (August 20, 2020). "Poison Waters Gets Primed to Drag Out the Vote". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on March 2, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  15. ^ DeCosta, Nicole (June 18, 2020). "6 Things for Father's Day weekend 2020". KOIN. Archived from the original on December 20, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  16. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (June 22, 2020). "As Portland's Restaurants Reopen, the City Celebrates Juneteenth With Parties and Fundraisers". Eater Portland. Vox Media. Archived from the original on August 21, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b Hamilton, Katherine Chew (September 3, 2020). "A New Drag Brunch Is Coming to the Historic Darcelle XV". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  18. ^ "Portland drag queen Poison Waters promotes proper mask safety on public transportation". KATU. January 26, 2021. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  19. ^ Smith, Suzette (May 12, 2021). "The Hottest Drag Show in Portland This Week Features Outfits Made From "Trash" and Designed by Kids". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  20. ^ Stein, Rosemarie (June 7, 2021). "These live and virtual events celebrate Pride 2021 in Portland". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on June 9, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  21. ^ Johnson, Destiny (June 10, 2021). "8 things to do this weekend in the Portland metro: June 11–13". KGW. Archived from the original on June 15, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  22. ^ "Get Busy: What to Do in Portland This Week, Inside and Outdoors". Willamette Week. June 15, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  23. ^ Jankowski, Andrew (June 1, 2021). "A Portland Pride Events Guide". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  24. ^ Reed, Conner (February 16, 2021). "Shoutout Aims to Fill a Void in Portland's LGBTQ Coverage". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  25. ^ Dawn, Eden; Carlos, Lauren; Mayer, Jordyn (May 17, 2021). "Black-Owned Businesses: Service Directory". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on February 8, 2021. Retrieved June 27, 2021.

External links[]

External video
video icon Meet Poison Waters: MORE gets to know Portland’s famous drag queen, KPTV (May 11, 2018)
video icon KGW Carpool: Poison Waters with Brenda Braxton on YouTube (October 10, 2018)
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