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Deaf drag queen dazzles audiences

Posted at 8:05 AM, Jul 08, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-10 16:31:12-04
When you come to Las Vegas, when you dance on the Strip, the music is almost all you hear.
 
One performer takes to the stage in high heels and a tiara hearing absolutely nothing. 
 
Jolene is a drag queen who lives in Las Vegas. She is also fully deaf. She may not speak, but she is not quiet. 
 
"A lot of people can't believe that a deaf person can do it," said Jolene, through an American Sign Language interpreter.
 
She's been doing drag for three years and has never met another deaf drag queen. This may not be the job that pays the bills, but she loves signing songs and apparently crowds love it too
 
"Oh yeah, people are really surprised, people are really shocked. People announce that I'm deaf and it shows; people clap like this they say yay!" said Jolene.
 
When she's performing, she follows a screen and feels the vibrations of the music with the help of a hearing aid.
 
Even though she's one of many performers in Las Vegas for the Deaf Nation World Expo she stands out, and a few inches taller, than the rest.
 
You can catch one of her weekend shows at Charlie's Las Vegas on Arville Street.