Sara Pugh: Never Seen, Always Felt.
Skene Staff
Props designer and artisan whose work anchors stories to time and place through the objects audiences feel but rarely consciously notice.
Props designer and artisan whose work anchors stories to time and place through the objects audiences feel but rarely consciously notice.
Rodolfo Robles Cruz is a Mexican American director and playwright whose work roots oral history and community memory in live performance.
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Theatre artist and Executive Director of the Broadway Mental Health Foundation on survival, advocacy, and rebuilding the performing arts industry.
Gary McCann is an Irish scenic and costume designer whose work for opera and theatre builds immersive worlds rooted in architecture and emotion.
Khaotica doesn’t just do drag—they shape-shift into visions that blur the line between creature, sculpture, and living art. Based in the borderlands of Las Cruces and El Paso, this drag performer and makeup artist began their journey from the discovery that transformation itself could be liberation. What started as a craving for visibility soon grew into something far more powerful: a channel to process grief, confront injustice, and embody the resilience of queer identity through every brushstroke and performance.
Known for fusing the familiar with the uncanny—marble gilded with centipedes, gowns inspired by sand snakes, makeup that morphs human into humanoid—Khaotica thrives on tension, balance, and contradiction. Their artistry is equal parts chaotic improvisation and meticulous detail, simmering until the vision feels inevitable. Their inspiration flows from avant-garde fashion designers to the natural savagery of bacterial infections, reminding us that beauty and horror often coexist.
At a time when drag itself is under political fire, Khaotica insists on art as defiance, community, and power. In this edition of PROFILES.
When I moved to the city of Las Cruces to study for my Engineering Degree, I felt like there was a part of myself I was missing that would allow myself to feel more complete. I never ever considered doing the art form of drag, until I was able to grasp a better understanding of the art form. That was to become a living piece of art, and to transform yourself into a completely different person or creature even. Then, when I went to my first few drag shows in Las Cruces and El Paso, I first thought, “Wow.. this form of entertainment is incredible. If these drag performers can express themselves this way, I surely can.” Eventually, I began to perform at my local college to get more attention than I didn’t deserve but I desperately craved. From there, my spark for drag evolved into something more empowering. Drag has allowed me to express all the hardships that happened in my life and translate those life experiences into my performances and makeup artistry.
One of my favorite creative works I was able to do was to create an outfit inspired by the victims of HIV. This concept was created for one of my late friends who had passed away from HIV. When I lost my friend, I was in a mental state of turmoil, frustration, and uncertainty of what the future had for my other friends and myself, especially with how heavily HIV impacts us people in the LGBTQIA+ community. However, even with the uncertainty of what may come next, I knew there was one thing for certain, and that was I have the power to share that story with others. With that in mind, I decided to put all of my emotions into creating a look and performance that would allow myself to help better process the emotions I held on for so long. Coincidentally, this work was the first step in finding myself as a drag artist.
If I am being completely honest, just like my drag name, my creative process is very chaotic. However, what I like to do is focus on an idea or concept I am fixated on bringing to life. From there, I find myself listening to upbeat music while walking around my apartment to help spark all of my inspirations and adding on the extra details. It’s like letting an idea simmer in a boiling pot until the idea is formed just right. For instance, when I began my ideas of a sand snake gown, I would begin focusing on the properties of a sand snake, elements and components of a gown, and how to infuse both ideas to create it to life. My creative process takes a bit longer to complete, but with time, this will allow my concepts to flourish better than if I were to rush myself.
Comparing oneself to another drag artist. This is easily the biggest challenge I have faced (and still do at times) throughout my drag journey. When I began doing drag, I always felt like I was in a constant battle of bettering myself as a drag performer. I felt like (and still feel like) even though I have been doing drag for 3 years, I needed to be on the same level as drag artists who have been doing this art form for years on end. In addition, when I would see other drag artists in my area get such high praise from audiences and other drag artists themselves, I felt like I was overlooked. I felt like if I did not get that attention, then my drag did not have the same value as others. When I got into that headspace, I took that as a way of providing space for myself mentally and physically from others to remind myself that everyone’s personal growth will always be different from one another. Comparison to another artist is very common in any field, but having to focus more on my personal growth has allowed my creativity and technical skills to excel even further than what I believed I was capable of in the first place.
Some of my notable inspirations that show up in my work are from a drag artist named Hungry, Sasha Velour, Bianca Del Rio, Iris van Herpen, Ganit Goldstein, Ryan Burke, Yin and Yang, adapting to environments, infections, bacteria, and many more. The main concept of my drag and makeup is creating a humanoid creature that resembles the form of a human while taking on physical features that are more supernatural or overexaggerated. In addition, I also love combining concepts that most would not think would go together, but when finding the right balance between the two can come together in harmony. For instance, one of my makeup looks involves combining the beauty of gold and white marble with the complete opposite of centipedes. Even though the combination initially sounds incompatible, the pairing can be executed well when having the base of the centipedes to be gold to blend in with the look.
I believe the most exciting thing about my field as of late is seeing all of us drag artists resist how the government and politicians try to use their platform to dehumanize Trans people and Drag Artists. Ironically, instead of shifting away from serious issues going on in today’s political climate, such as ICE raids, school shootings, inflation, authoritarianism, just to name a few. However, what I love about the art form of drag is that many drag artists use this art form as a way of activism; to address these political issues through performance and to show others that it is never too late to stand up against those that are willing to take away those rights, and to help make a change in this world. Drag gives us POWER!
Quit. Just kidding lol. If one does not take on that first piece of advice, I would have to say do not be afraid to explore and be open to trying different styles of makeup, fashion, hair styles, and ways of expressing yourself and your art. Even changing the color scheme of your art could mean the biggest difference in the direction your art can take you. Art is influential, so hopefully another person’s art can influence how you take on future creative projects.
Emotion. That is it. If my art and performances can grasp and bring out the slightest bit of emotion wherever it may be lingering, then that is when I know I have made my impact on a person. Even if it is for only a singular person, then I know I did my job as an artist, and that is when I am the most proud.
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