Royal Matters

A king is a king,

no matter the gown.

A king is a king,

with or without a crown.

I have a fancy gown…

A second-hand shirt, a suit from the streets;

shoulders too wide, tight at the hips.

It barely fits.

Picked one of my dad’s old ties.

It’s a look! No lies.

Oh shit, I need to go,

there’s just one hour left till the show.

A king is a king

and he looks fine.

A king is a king,

with or without a jawline.

My jawline is poor

but with some magic of contour

I look quite masculine, for sure!

And here’s my tip:

The key to look more than just fine

is a nice, thin, blended line,

above the eyebrows, with the highlight.

You can never go wrong with clown white.

A king is a king,

on stage to be seen.

(or not)

A king is a king,

with or without a queen.

There I am, again on stage,

another new performance, another page

in a chapter of my drag story.

My glance meets the crowd

and I search for your soul.

Of all the eyes observing the show,

only by yours I wish to be seen.

Longing for you to become my queen,

with or without the paint on my skin.

By Arctos Fabearlous

Bio: Arctos Fabearlous (he/him) is a drag king based in Dresden, Germany, in the House of Drävolution. He started his drag career about a year ago and has performed in Dresden and Chemnitz as a hopeless romantic, slightly awkward bisexual gentleman, occasionally ripping off his pants for the pleasure of fellow drag artists and, of course, the audience. Arctos enjoys reading poetry and sometimes writing it for performances or just for his soul. Follow Arctos at:

Instagram: @arctos.fabearlous

📷: Luki Stuewe: @luki_stuewe

{Image description: drag king, Arctos, is sitting on a stage with a red curtain in the background. Arctos has short blond hair, blue eyes and a lot of makeup. You can see the mustache and beard drawn with eyeliner, contouring lines on the cheeks, temples, around the nose and on the forehead, which create an illusion of a more traditional masculine face shape. Arctos is wearing a white shirt, gray vest and a red tie. The jacket is halfway off his shoulders as if he is getting undressed. He has a serious expression}