#tdrcs2

[tdrcharmschool2]

Condragulations Lady Dee! We expect to see great things from you in Cycle 8, and each and every single one of the deans want to thank you for your persistence in getting better in your craft and applying the critiques week after week. Don’t let us down girl!

As for Sugar, it may be a bitter sweet feeling to come in second, but please do not give up! You have grown just as much as Lady Dee and you should be proud of your accomplishments in such a short amount of time. You are a part of the TDR family regardless of making the cycle or not, we love you and hope to see great things from you soon!

[tdrcharmschool2]

Are you ready to see the final report card and meet the winner of TDR Charm School Cycle 2?

The winner of Charm School Cycle 2 is....

[tdrcharmschool2]

Lady Dee and Sugar Monroe, please step forward…

You ladies have submitted impressive videos for your final test, and you have shown us Deans that you are both able to grow week after week given our critiques. Looking back at your auditions, there has been amazing progress and we could not be prouder of you both, however only one queen can be crowned as the winner of Charm School. After reviewing your portfolio’s and your grades for each of the tests, we have come to a decision. The winner of Tumblr’s Drag Race Charm School, the girl who is guaranteed a spot in Cycle 8, is………….

going to be announced at the start of Tumblr’s Drag Race Cycle 8. You all must have known this was coming! You’re gonna have to sit back and take a breather from all the hard work that you have done and stay tuned for one more week as we crown the winner of Charm School!

[tdrcharmschool2]

Test 5: Mastering the Mixtape

This week’s test was to provide us an alluring lip sync based on the tips and tricks given by our Dean of Lip Syncing | Harper Valley Let’s see how they did!  

(please click each student’s name to watch their videos)

Lady Dee

Welcome to Pawnee! This week I was inspired by one of my favorite fictional characters of all time, Mona Lisa Sapperstein from the television show Parks and Recreations. Mona Lisa is trashy, skanky and crazy, and that’s what I tried to convey in this look and sync. The choice of “Blah blah blah” reflects mona lisa’s don’t care, sex crazy, self obsessed attitude, which I REALLY identify with.

Harper: FABULOUS choice for a mix. Mona Lisa is a very original and genius character to incorporate into a drag routine, and I think you did a great job there. The only glaring error with your video was the fact that it was filmed vertically rather than horizontally. But with that being said, you were he appropriate distance from the camera, you were well lit, and you did a great job lip syncing. I could tell you knew the words and your acting really added to the mix!

In regards to your look, you've made a lot of progress and it shows! Things are definitely looking more symmetrical and the shapes are getting refined! A few recommendations: continue your nose contour up to your eyebrows, as it just seems to abruptly stop in the pictures. I'd also recommend a darker brow. A good rule of thumb is to match your roots, but you don't have to. Personally, I think nude lips with nude eyebrows washes you out a little bit. If you want to keep them light, try lining the bottoms a darker color for some more depth. I think you could take your eyes to even bigger proportions with bottom lashes and a thicker crease, but that's just my style! I think your outfit was great, you really nailed Mona Lisa! Overall, great work! I'm really proud of your growth during charm school, and I'm here to help you in any way I can moving forward! Congrats!!!

Sugar Monroe

For this week, aesthetically, I was going for rock candy. Still Sugar, but badass and edgy. And I achieved that. I made the faux leather skirt and paired it with the cropped blazer and light purple shirt. The asymmetrical purple/silver bob, paired with the combat heels and fishnets brought the edge to this look that I needed to get from cute to badass.

Harper: Yes, mama! I can tell you are feeling yourself this week, and I am feeling it, too! Great mix, although I would have liked to see the clips more integrated throughout the songs. Realistically, I know that's a bit more advanced so I'm not counting it against you! You did a great job moving and showing enthusiasm, as well as showing off what Boxxa taught you last week! One thing I did notice is that your hair kept getting in your face, and it seemed to distract you a bit. Make sure you are using hairspray/pins to keep it in place while you're dancing! Another tip would be to move closer and farther from the camera during the mix just to make it a bit dynamic, although you were a perfectly fine distance during the video. I appreciate you listening to critique and adding the overlay, as well as the other technical stuff. Framing and lighting are both great here! You came into this competition with a more refined look than some of the girls, but that hasn't stopped you from learning and growing every week! I see it and appreciate it. That wig is super hot (I want one), and the makeup looks right. I love the bolder brows on you, but I'd make sure you are thinning and tapering them a bit towards the end. Make sure that under brow highlight is nice and smooth, and that it complements the shape of the brow. I liked the outfit, but the jacket was a little too business casual for this choice in song, imo. A leather jacket or even some studs added to this one would help the badass vibe you're giving off! Overall, very nicely done! I have no doubts that you are going to kill it moving forward, and I'm very proud to see everything you've done so far in charm school. I'm here for you if you ever need anything! Congrats!!!

[tdrcharmschool2]

Test 5: Mastering the Mixtape

For your fifth test here on Tumblr’s Drag Race: Charm School 2, you’ll be creating a mix and a lip syncing music video to accompany it. The mix must contain audio from at least three different sources, including one spoken word selection. The video must be shot in ONE take, but everything else is up to you. I want to see you at your most creative!

This is the final test before Finals, hennies! In addition to evaluating you on the skills you learned in this week’s lip syncing lesson, we will be looking at your hair, your makeup, your acting, your wardrobe, and your general performance. This is a great opportunity to show off what makes you unique, so make sure to choose a performance where you can really show off what you’ve learned so far. For extra credit, incorporate your audio clip from the homework assignment into your mix! 

For this assignment you are going to have to balance a couple challenges: creating a mix, developing a concept, executing a look, and creating a finished video product. If you don’t have software that will allow you to edit audio, I highly recommend checking out audacity. It’s a free program that you can use to create mixes and because there are tons of tutorials and walkthroughs on youtube, it’s relatively easy to pick up. I would also encourage you to think of how you would execute a look based on your mix prior to creating it! Sometimes it’s easier to start with a look or an idea in mind, and build a mix around that concept. Either way, I want to see you fully execute your interpretation of a song! 

Having a mix already in your pocket is a GREAT thing for a beginning drag queen. It’s always good to have a performance that you can perform at a moments notice that is uniquely you. In addition, creating awesome lip syncing videos is a great way to gain exposure, which is invaluable for someone looking to perform! The more entertaining you can be, the bigger the payoff. Keeping that in mind, 

For this week’s test, please include:

• Two headshots of the makeup (one must be front on)  • Three photos of your hair  (front, side, back) • Two full-body photos of your costuming • One Video of your lip syncing music to your new mix!  • A list of the songs/clips used in your mix, and a brief description of your concept.

Your tests are due no later than 6PM EST on Monday, January 25th.

This is your last chance to show us what you’ve got before finals, ladies: DON’T flunk it up!

[tdrcharmschool2]

TDR Charm School 2: Lesson 5-Lip Sync

First of all, my apologies for the late posting. Now that we’ve covered acting with Dean Boxxa Vine, we are going to incorporate those skills into every queen’s moneymaker: the lip sync. More specifically, the lip sync video! Using the skills that I picked up during my time on Lip Sync for your Life with fellow TDR alumni Erika Klash and CC Candypepper, I will walk you through my list of Do’s and Don’ts in this week’s video lesson. Take careful notes, because in Tumblr’s Drag Race a lip sync has the power to make or break you!

For this week’s homework assignment, we will be tackling spoken word. Students must choose an audio clip from a tv show, youtube video, commercial, podcast, etc., and film themselves lip syncing to it. The audio should feature one main speaker, and be roughly 1-2 minutes long. For reference, I’ve included an old lip sync video of roughly what I”m looking for here.  We are not requiring drag for this challenge, but it is always welcomed. The lip sync must be done in one take with no edits beyond trimming and audio overlay.  

For this lesson’s submission, you must include: • ONE video no longer than 3 minutes that shows you lip syncing to the spoken word selection of your choice. 

Your submissions will be due to this blog by Thursday, January 21th at 6:00PM EST. Good luck, have fun, and don’t flunk it up!

[ravennight14]

boxxa stole the life essence of the tdr charm school girls

soon there will only be one

[tdrcharmschool2]

Test #4: All Right, Mr. DeMille, I'm Ready For My Close Up.

For your fourth test here on Tumblr’s Drag Race: Charm School 2, it’s time for you to give us a fully-realized acting scene. You may recognize the scene from Season 7 of RuPauls Drag Race so theres a few examples out there of how this scene has been done! 

This exam is cumulative, which means we will be taking your makeup, hair, and costuming into account when giving out grades. We want to not only see you apply the skills you learned from Lesson’s 1, 2, and 3, but we also want to see actual progress for hair, makeup, and costuming since you’ve now been given sufficient feedback from both homework assignments and tests. 

The best way to shine in this test is to truly inject your character into the scene. Improv is your best friend. The script below is the most basic form of the scene to follow. Please improv, ad lib, and make this scene your own. Many of the tips from the homework will really help here too like making sure you're properly lit, where your placing your focus when filming, and making sure to be engaging and not going on for too long. 

Please give special attention to the feedback you were given for this week’s homework assignment. If you choose to ignore anything specifically asked of you, that will be automatically reflected in your grade. The challenge of this lesson is not just speak the script, but to interpret the scene in your own way and show us your inner actress; if you want to succeed in TDR Charm School 2 and potentially on TDR Cycle 8, you need good basic acting skills and this is the best way to test them out. Feel free to contact Dean of Acting | Boxxa Vine at anytime for more acting tips, tricks, and to run anything by her you're thinking about.

Note: This scene has two characters and you will be playing both. The scene calls for one male and one female character. Make sure both characters are not you just simply speaking the lines but have some character to them in all the ways you've been taught before. Beat your mugs (for the male maybe think about facial hair), think about your hair in terms of the character you're creating, and costume yourself within the character. 

SCENE: (Example video provided by Boxxa Vine) Sissy: Charles! What are you doing here? Charles: I cam to take you back to (insert hometown) where you belong. Sissy: Belong? I don't belong there! (use this area to improv) Charles: If you can't love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else. Sissy: Charles! Have a drink on me (another good area for improv, original scene calls for a bottle to be thrown by Sissy at Charles but feel free to do it a different way) Charles: I can see now that (your drag name) is DEAD. Sissy killed her. So goodbye, forever. Sissy: Sissy, I'm sissy goddamnit (another great area for a improv. Supermodel of the WORLD! 

For this week’s test, please include: 

 • Two headshots of that beautifully improved mug  • Three photos of your fabulous hair (front, side, back)  • Two full-body photos that make us gag on your flawlessly executed look and rockin’ body  • One Video of your acting scene.  • A written description/reflection of the look and aesthetic you were aiming for for both characters. 

Your tests are due no later than 6PM EST on Monday, January 18th. 

No laziness with this test ladies, so these words ring truer than ever: DON’T flunk it up!