Violetta J'Adore (legal name: Vasilis Theodoros Kyriakou; born 19 December 1996) is a Greek Cypriot drag queen and model based in London, United Kingdom.[1][2] She has represented the UK and Greece in the Queen of the North Continental, a European preliminary of the Miss Continental.[3][4][5][6][7]
Violetta J'Adore | |
|---|---|
 Violetta J'Adore at the Greatest Drag Show, Social Convention London, 2023 | |
| Born | Vasilis Theodoros Kyriakou 19 December 1996 |
| Nationality | Greek Cypriot |
| Occupation(s) | Drag queen, model, make-up artist |
| Years active | 2017–present |
| Website | violettajadore |
Career
editVioletta J'Adore has been a drag queen for six years. Her first job was to distribute flyers in Chueca, Madrid, back in 2017, where she was part of the Erasmus+ scheme.[3][1] After a few months she was performing live in Athens.[3][5][1] A few years later, during the COVID-19 pandemic she took part in the first ever Greek Drag Fest, a nation-wide online drag event for the support of the art of drag in Greece, an initiative that was inspired by the movement Support Art Workers.[8]
Her career continued in Brighton where she performed in various events[2] and worked as a manager of the Funnyboyz Brighton (2021), a drag cabaret event taking place in various cities around the UK.[1] The popular Brighton drag scene has been according to her an opportunity to feel more confident and develop her art.[3]
In September 2021 Violetta competed in the Miss Hellas Drag Pageant in Athens, a drag pageant organised by the greek drag queen Doukissa and judged by the fashion designer Lakis Gavalas, the dancer Marios Miltiadou (stage name: bimboy), and the queer model and performer Reject (also known as Lex).[9][10][3] During the same year she and her husband moved to London, where she continued her career in the queer scene of the capital.[11]
In 2022 Violetta J'Adore performed at the Cyprus Pride 2022.[3][12][13] Notably, she performed live with Katerina Stikoudi a duet on the main stage.[5]
In March 2023 she was selected to represent the UK and Greece in the first European final of the Miss Continental, the Queen of the North Continental pageant (part of the Continental Pageantry System founded by Jim Flint), organised by the first European winner of the Miss Continental, Vanessa Van Cartier.[5][3][6][7] The pageant took place in Rotterdam, Netherlands on 10 June 2023.[5][11]
Violetta has been characterised as an 'international drag queen talent' by QX Magazine,[3] as 'popular across the scene',[4] and 'a drag artist who's on the rise'[6] by Gay London Life. Her shows and events have made it to the top ten of the Gay London Life best LGBTQ+ cabaret events lists for October 2023,[14] November 2023,[15] and December 2023.[16]
Personal life
editVasilis (stage name: Violetta J'Adore) was born in Limassol, Cyprus. Since then, she has lived and performed in various other cities around Europe including Athens (Greece), Madrid (Spain), Brighton (UK), and lastly London (UK) where she currently resides.[3][4][5][8][17][1]
In interviews she has stated that she is married and that her partner has been supportive in her career journey.[6][3][1]
She has worked as a make-up artist, notably for MAC Cosmetics where she was also a Viva Glam Ambassador.[11] She is currently studying psychology.[6]
Violetta is member of the Haus of Duchess (drag house), her drag mother is Doukissa and her drag sister is Tammy Tsanaka.[6][3]
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Prestige Awards | LGBTQ Entertainer of the Year - London and South East England | Herself | Won | [11] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f Ndoka, Joana (26 March 2021). "Violetta J'adore.: "Drag was a revelation for me that I stumbled upon by pure accident. Now I can't live without it."". GiGi Magazine. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ a b Grand, Gareth. "Violetta". ReVamp. ReVamp Magazine. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "QX interviews international drag queen talent Violetta J'Adore". QX Magazine. 26 June 2023. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b c "PRIDE MONTH SERIES: Violetta J'adore". Gay London Life. 21 June 2023. Archived from the original on 3 July 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f "Η Violetta J'Adore θέλει να γίνει η επόμενη "Queen of the North Continental"". Antivirus. 21 March 2023. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f "Gay London Life | Dec '23 & Jan '24 Issues". Gay London Life. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b "PRIDE MONTH SERIES: Pabs from The Bridge Bar Clapham". Gay London Life. 6 June 2023. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b Thanopoulos, Vasilis (30 May 2020). "Τρεις drag performers εξηγούν γιατί χρειαζόμαστε ένα Greek Online Drag Fest". Antivirus. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ "Αυτές είναι οι "queens" που θα διαγωνιστούν στα πρώτα Miss Hellas Drag Pageant". Antivirus. 8 September 2021. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ Maragkidou, Melpomeni (14 September 2021). "ΔούKISSα, Λάκης Γαβαλάς και Show: Φωτογραφίες από τα Drag Καλλιστεία της Αθήνας". Vice (in Greek). Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Violetta J'Adore Named LGBTQ Entertainer of the Year 2024/25 for London and South East England". London Daily News. 27 February 2024. Archived from the original on 1 March 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
- ^ Philippou, Eleni (15 September 2022). "Nine days of events to mark Pride 2022 | Cyprus Mail". CyprusMail. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ "Cyprus Pride: the After Party at DownTown Live on September 25". philenews.com. 13 September 2022. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ Reid, Jason (3 October 2023). "Our pick of the Ten Best LGBTQ+ Cabaret Events: October 2023". Gay London Life. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ Reid, Jason (3 November 2023). "Our pick of the Ten Best LGBTQ+ Cabaret Events: November 2023". Gay London Life. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ Reid, Jason (6 December 2023). "Our pick of the Ten Best LGBTQ+ Cabaret Events: December 2023". Gay London Life. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ "Violetta J'Adore | Social Convention". socialconvention.org. Archived from the original on 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.