Cabaret company behind BDSM-themed events for babies also scrubbed website and social media presence.
The UK cabaret company behind drag queen events aimed at infants has reportedly cancelled future shows after receiving fierce public backlash in the wake of a recent performance that was recorded.
Footage of the last event, organized by Caba Baba Rave, showed men dressed in drag outfits performing lewd and suggestive acts in front of children.
For reference, this is one of the screen recordings I was sent from this organisation called Caba Baba Rave, that targets BABIES.
Absolutely abhorrent. pic.twitter.com/Fn8Tv9NJGx
— Dominique Samuels (@Dominiquetaegon) March 1, 2023
Drag queen baby raves?
Why nearly naked men who enjoy drag are not for LGBTQ+ equality
Organizers of the group said in an email that they have cancelled shows due to online “trolling” but suggested they will return after the controversy blows over.
From the Daily Mail:
As the backlash continues, the pair have cancelled a sold out show in Waterloo, London but the organisers insist it was aimed at parents sick of ‘the f****** Wheels on the Bus’, not babies and children.
In an email to those who bought a £23.50 ticket, the organisers Gemma Daubney, 38, and Liz West, 37, said: ‘We just wanted to say a huge thank you for buying a ticket for one of our upcoming events. Your support means the world to us.
Blaming online ‘trolling’ and the media – without touching on the many critical parents, they went on ‘Sadly we have made the very hard decision to cancel out upcoming show.
‘We think a small breather for our mental health is the right thing to do. We aren’t a large company set up for this kind of attack – just two mums trying to spread some joy and love.
After confirming everyone will get a refund, the organisers said: ‘Not goodbye forever – but just for now’.
The group’s Instagram and Facebook have been removed after the public outcry.
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The group’s website, which has also been taken down, said, “We wanted to create the type of event we ourselves as Mums would want to go to. There’s only so many times you can listen to the f**king Wheels on the Bus. We wanted to give parents the experience of a ‘big London night out’…cabaret, drinks and dancing…but one you can bring your baby to and still be home for bedtime.”
Fortunately in America, 15 states are considering legislation to bar children from attending adult-themed drag events, which have become a frequent occurrence over the last several years.
Shared from https://www.newswars.com/drag-queen-show-for-babies-cancelled-after-public-backlash/
The mother behind ‘drag act for babies’: Businesswoman set up show with performers gyrating in thigh-high boots & thongs in front of tots
because parents were ‘sick of f Wheels on the Bus’
- Gemma Daubney, 39, has sparked outrage with a drag show for babies
- Ms Daubney has had to cancel upcoming shows due to the enormous backlash
This is the businesswoman behind the controversial show in which dancers dress in bondage gear and thongs to perform handstands in front of babies and parents.
Gemma Daubney is one of the co-organisers of the CabaBabaRave show which has sparked outrage for its raunchy content including one dancer balancing upside down on a chair while wearing nothing but stilettos and a thong.
The 39-year-old mother declined to comment on the row at her London home this afternoon.
The CabaBabaRave show, which Ms Daubney founded with her friend Liz West, 38, brands itself as a ‘little slice of afternoon delight’ that intersperses cabaret with ‘captivating baby sensory moments’ before ‘ending in a rave’.
Ms Daubney and Ms West who describe themselves as ex-performers – have since made their social media presence silent due to trolling.
In new pictures, Ms Daubney can be seen posing naked on a bike holding a sign reading: ‘Get Naked.’
As the backlash continues, the pair have cancelled a sold out show in Waterloo, London but the organisers insist it was aimed at parents sick of ‘the f****** Wheels on the Bus’, not babies and children.
In an email to those who bought a £23.50 ticket, the organisers Gemma Daubney, 38, and Liz West, 37, said: ‘We just wanted to say a huge thank you for buying a ticket for one of our upcoming events. Your support means the world to us.
Blaming online ‘trolling’ and the media – without touching on the many critical parents, they went on ‘Sadly we have made the very hard decision to cancel out upcoming show.
‘We think a small breather for our mental health is the right thing to do. We aren’t a large company set up for this kind of attack – just two mums trying to spread some joy and love.
After confirming everyone will get a refund, the organisers said: ‘Not goodbye forever – but just for now’.
Clips and promo shots for Caba Baba Rave showed one cross-dressing performer, who has a drag name that is a pun on anal sex, doing a handstand on a chair in a leopard-print thong and gloves.
Another performer, who has a similarly rude name, is seen in a bondage-style outfit performing acrobatics from a swing suspended from the ceiling. One picture showed a topless woman with rainbow hearts on her nipples and wearing only a red thong holding a toddler in the air.
Shared from https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11816627/Mother-drag-act-babies-forced-cancel-pictured-time.html
REVEALED: Drag Queen banned by London’s National Theatre after joking that children should be taught to ‘open their LEGS’ during X-rated act in front of ‘disgusted’ mothers and babies
- A parent condemned the comments made at the drag show as ‘inappropriate’
- The comments were made by a drag queen known as Sharon Le Grand
- River Stage festival was described as having ‘activities for the whole family’
- The National Theatre has said the act will not be performing at future events
- Do you know more about this? Get in touch alastair.lockhart@mailonline.co.uk
The drag queen banned by the National Theatre for making a sex joke about children in front of horrified parents has been revealed.
Ms Sharon Le Grand was performing to a crowd at the free River Stage festival in South London when the performer started speaking about inclusivity.
The drag queen told the audience: ‘We need to teach our children to open their hearts, teach our children to open their minds… and to teach our children to open their legs.’
A parent watching the show said they were ‘disgusted’ at the punchline, which they claimed ‘was said with the same tone as if it was a risque joke’.
MailOnline has contacted Sharon Le Grand for a comment but is yet to receive a response.
Sharon Le Grand is a drag queen, performance artist and Cyndi Lauper impersonator from Liverpool.
The performer has performed in a number of venues across London and been featured in several magazines including i-D and Wonderland.
The drag queen is also available to book for karaoke parties at The Karaoke Hole in East London.
Le Grand has around 8,000 followers on her Instagram account. The account’s description is a two-star Times review of a show the performer appeared in which says: ‘Sharon Le Grand spat venom, flung her handbag high into the balcony and then demanded it back.’
One wrote on the Mumsnet internet forum that ‘lots of babies and children were there’.
They said the drag show was: ‘Fine in a club, not at a festival literally targeted as being good for families. Sexualising children in that way is all shades of wrong.’
Le Grand performed between 6pm and 7pm on Saturday at the festival outside The National Theatre.
River Stage is open to anyone passing by on the Thames riverside promenade, with deckchairs set up to encourage people to watch.
The festival’s website says it features ‘performances from drag artists, dance performances, livestreamed theatre and plenty of activities for the whole family to enjoy’.
Le Grand has since been found to have breached the festival’s guidelines and been banned.
A spokesperson for The National Theatre said: ‘The National Theatre’s River Stage festival includes a wide range of free performances and activities across five weekends – from dance workshops to DJs, striving to foster an atmosphere of positivity and inclusivity.
‘Many events are suitable for all ages, and the National Theatre works with programming partners to ensure acts are scheduled for the most appropriate time of day.
‘The National Theatre is aware that a comment, which goes against the festival’s content and performance guidelines, was made on stage during the first weekend of the festival; the performer will not appear again at the River Stage.’
Drag queen story events for kids are dropped by Rochdale Council after protests elsewhere
Council bosses have not given a specific reason for indefinitely proposing the events – but story sessions elsewhere saw protesters ambush the library.
Rochdale Council has been accused of ‘pandering to bullies’ following its decision to drop a drag queen book reading event at local libraries.
Performed by children’s author Aida H Dee ‘The Storytime Drag Queen’, the event was due to take place at three libraries across the borough next week, with readings in Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton.
It formed part of the Drag Queen Story Hour UK tour, offering ‘inclusive storytelling for all ages’, with the aim of promoting diversity and acceptance from a young age.
Council bosses have not given a specific reason for indefinitely proposing the event, but it comes after sessions up and down the country saw angry protests from people claiming they were harmful to children.
Police were called after protesters stormed a library in Reading last month and there have also been attempts to disrupt events in Leeds, Portsmouth and Bristol.
But Councillor Andy Kelly, leader of Rochdale’s Lib Dem group, says bosses should not have been cowed by such behaviour.
“This is a really disappointing decision from the council,” he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
“Any threats of violence is just bullying and needs dealing with for what it is. Cancelling panders to those bullies.
“I have had dozens of messages about this today- all from mothers wanting to bring their young children. I’m minded to remind people that Rochdale is the borough that brought us Norman Evans- arguably the original story telling drag queen – and we should be proud of diversity and stick up for difference in our borough.”
Coun Kelly said he hoped to see the events rescheduled soon.
“And if you don’t like drag queens telling stories- don’t buy a ticket,” he said. “And don’t bother buying a ticket for panto at Christmas either.”
A statement from Drag Queen Story Hour UK said the council had ‘unilaterally shut down’ the event without any discussion, adding that the ‘one-sided decision’ was given to them less than 30 minutes prior to publication.
“The action is not only a breach of our contract, but a breach of the trust with the whole LGBTQ+ community and across the UK,” it adds.
While Drag Queen Story Hour says it is ‘sympathetic’ to the council’s concerns of potential protesters, it insists there are ‘many more supporters than opposing voices’.
“All other councils and library groups have maintained this event through the UK with two-way communication and planning,” the statement adds. “If these libraries across the country can host Drag Queen Story Hour, so can Rochdale.”
The statement also urges the council to remember its commitment to ‘promoting equality by knowing our diverse community and understanding its changing needs’.
It adds that the decision will cause ‘lasting damage’ to an ‘already marginalised community’ – not least because it was taken by people in authority.
On a more conciliatory note, Drag Queen Story Hour says it now hopes to have an ‘open discussion’ with the council on how the authority can improve its communication with event organisers.
The council insists it is a ‘strong supporter of LGBTQ+ rights, pointing to the fourth Rochdale in Rainbows event which took place across the borough in late June and early July.
A spokesperson said: “We recognise that it’s important that we have a continuous programme of activity to celebrate equality and inclusion and respect for everyone. As a council and a borough there is a strong commitment to support inclusivity and celebrate diversity.
“We’ve held a number of drag queen story sessions in our libraries through the Rochdale in Rainbows programme and these have included stories which encourage the understanding of differences between people and diversity. The feedback from families has been really positive.
“It is unfortunate that we’ve had to postpone the drag queen story events scheduled for 16 August. We have been in contact with the performer and will be discussing alternative options with them.”
Email Rochdale Council, let them know they did the right thing. feedback@rochdale.gov.uk.