‘We’re Here’ on HBO: Cast and Crew Spill the Tea on Bringing Drag Excellence to Idaho

If you tuned into the uplifting series premiere of We’re Here last week, you were no doubt left wondering if this transformative docuseries could turn the party two weeks in a row. As if you could doubt the power of Bob the Drag Queen, Shangela, and Eureka O’Hara! The queens’ trip to Twin Falls, Idaho was packed with moments both gaggy and teary, the exact right combination that we want from this show.

Just like in Gettysburg, the three Drag Race alums were paired with locals in need of the emotional catharsis that can only be provided by getting your mug right and lip-syncing to a hot jam. This week, Shangela gave Brandon and Mikayla a ceremony they’ll never forget while Eureka turned a man’s man into a hard rocking diva. And Bob had their hands full with a trio of local drag queens searching for a strong, queer community in their Idaho town.

Now that you’ve seen the story of Twin Falls and met the town’s new queens, here’s an inside look at how the show ended up in Idaho and how the lead trio made magic happen. Here’s everything you want to know about Twin Falls, Brandon and Mikayla, Clifton, the local queens, and—of course—grandpa.

When it came to casting Twin Falls, production had to rely on more of the town’s vibe than its size.

Jeffrey Marx (casting producer): I think Twin Falls is probably our biggest [town] at 48,000. Gettysburg was 7,000, so it just depended on if the town needed us. At first we had a benchmark [population] to look at. But as we toured—not only from the desks in the office, but physically toured—certain cities really spoke to me, like, “We need this experience.” And that’s what I started building off of. So if a city has 40,000 people in it, like Twin Falls—I think Twin Falls is at 48,000. But going to Twin Falls, it feels like a small town [of] 15 or 20,000. That main street is so empty there! We really just asked ourselves, does the town feel claustrophobic for queer identity? Being an out, loud gay man, I don’t know how to function in places that require you to be closeted. [Laughs] So I really feel like I had an automatic temperature check, just on my own self, to be like, “Oh, I’m definitely getting side-eyes from the person at the coffee shop.”

Shangela (star, consulting producer): One of my favorite things was in Twin Falls, Idaho, and we went to a local diner. Eureka and I went early in the morning, and who eats at a diner on a weekday early in the morning? Old people. So here come Eureka and I, fully glittered and ready to rock, into this diner at 10 a.m. in the middle of Idaho. Honestly, it was like a scene from a movie, when you walk in and the forks just hit the table, and then just silence. That’s what it was. But connecting with [them] was actually really fun. They had no clue about drag. When that lady said, “Honey, if it ain’t bull ridin’ or a football, we don’t know what it is!” And when the guy said, “Oh yeah, I know a lot about, um, gays. I have a lot come through my business.” I’m like, “Well what kind of business is it?” He’s like, “Oh, I have a coffee shop.” “Oh, well, gays love coffee!” [Laughs]

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The queens didn’t arrive in Twin Falls (or any other town this season) ready to go it alone. No, they had a whole team with them, ready to turn out looks.

Bob the Drag Queen (star, consulting producer): Okay, let me tell you what happened, mama. We roll into town with all these teams. We transform these hotels into basically design suites. Everything is made right there. You have to get measurements and all this stuff, so everything is made within the time that we’re in this town. So we didn’t roll up with some costumes from a costume shop. We rolled up with some sewing machines and some fabric. And by the time the show happened, especially when you have episodes like Twin Falls—I had three drag daughters, my teammates all [made]—not three but four [looks], including myself. All four of those outfits, including the outfit that I’m wearing that week, were all made right there.

For the Twin Falls episode, Bob the Drag Queen was paired with three queens that call Idaho home: Lucid Dreams (@dreamsareshadows), Lavender Beauchamp (@lavender_beauchamp), and Amelia Blayke (@a_meliablayke). We’re Here sought to unite this community, and Bob was up for the task.

Johnnie Ingram (co-creator): We really want people that can get along, that have that spark.There is that sense of bonding that comes from these queens and their daughters, but not always. Even with the local queens in Idaho, they were struggling internally because I think a lot of their community is competing against each other versus joining together.

Bob: Whenever we do local shows, we work with local queens. So a lot of times before Drag Race, you’ll be booked in a bar and then you’re by yourself with “local queens.” And because me, Shangela, and Eureka are so used to traveling around the world and performing, none of this feels particularly foreign to us. There was some culture shock, but not a whole lot of culture shock in regards to doing the show.

The real surprise came when Bob met Lucid’s super supportive grandfather. 

Bob: Lucid didn’t tell me about her grandpa’s heart attack or anything that he was going through beforehand. Things got pretty emotional, because I was telling the producers and Lucid, I never had a grandpa. My mom’s dad was dead before I was born and my father’s dad just didn’t talk to us. So that was insane to see a connection between a queer person and a grandpa. I had never seen anything like that before then, and it was a love that I’ve personally never experienced. And it got me emotional.

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Eureka was paired with Clifton, a macho he-man up for transforming into a glamazon. And then Eureka met all of Clifton’s family and friends in a very rural party setting. Things could get awkward…

Eureka O’Hara (star, consulting producer): When I showed up, I was a little bit like, “Uhh, I know these parties, okay!” I think what helps me, honestly—I’m very lucky because even though I’m overly flamboyant, I am also six-foot-four and 450 pounds. I am a very large human being. So I’m very blessed with large male privilege, no matter if I’m gender fluid or whatever. So I think that’s where I’m able to disarm some people that might normally react to me a little intensely. I can be a little intimidating myself. So I think that helped.

Eureka: Not everyone was jumping up and down [about me being at the party], but nobody was specifically really rude to me. And I was taken in, actually. They drank with me and everything. We didn’t show it on the show, but [Clifton’s friends] brought me in and let me drink from the bottle and everything. One of the special moments, for me, was when they were like—they had this circle of guys and they were passing around this big gallon of Jager—you can imagine—and they handed it to me to drink out of. I was like, “Do you have a cup?” They were like, “Nah, man, just drink from the bottle! You’re one of the guys, blah blah blah!” And it was just a special moment for me because I remember growing up, it was always so, like, “Oh don’t drink after me, I don’t want to be gay!” We all had those moments as kids.

For the drag show, Shangela was charged with giving Brandon and Mikayla a redo on their wedding ceremony, an extravaganza to really celebrate their romance and their journey as a couple.

Shangela: For Brandon and Mikayla, they were very committed [to performing] but I wanted to give them a moment. So every drag number doesn’t have to be high kick, split, death drop—although I love that, trust me. Trust the death drop, I live! Shangela’s got some solo numbers, she’s gonna dance, okay? But a big thing about drag is, whatever you’re doing, create a moment. And for my type of shows that I like to put together, [they’re] pleasing on stage, but also you take away a message with you. That’s what I love. And I was able to work with my good friend, long time collaborator Joelapuss to create what she’s always done for me, creating moments through music. And we would put together those numbers and come up with a concept for the show, and it would have—what I like to say—a beginning, a middle, and an end. It takes you somewhere, and when you’re finished, you’re like, “Yes ma’am!”

We’re Here airs on HBO on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET.

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