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How Different Is Church and State (School)?

The Christmas season is here and with it comes a rush of festive entertainment options, from the Fort Collins downtown lighting ceremony, to children’s choir and band concerts, to the annual Nutcracker ballet at the Lincoln Center. This year’s local holiday entertainment scene includes a Drag Christmas Spectacular, described as “a fusion of theater, drag, and a queer retelling of the Christmas story.” The Christmas drag show is hosted this weekend by Fort Collins’ own Foothills Unitarian Church and is sponsored by local billionaire Pat Stryker’s Bohemian Foundation, PFLAG Fort Collins, Breckenridge Brewery, and others. The Christmas drag show is being used to raise funds to support Foothills Unitarian Church’s Rainbow Villages program, which provides temporary housing and “sanctuary for Trans and Nonbinary people relocating to Northern Colorado to escape anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and hate.” The Drag Christmas Spectacular co-created by local drag artist Krisa Gonna-L’Whor and Foothills Unitarian Reverend Sean Neil-Barron offers three performances this weekend. The Friday night and Saturday night performances are rated for ages 16+, and the church is offering a Saturday matinee performance for younger children, while the church has considerately provided an informed consent document for parents to review when considering if the performance is appropriate for their children. Parents are warned that the show features religious satire, includes themes such as coming out, drag artistry, and nonbinary identities, and highlights tension between LGBTQ children and their families. Foothills also encourages parents to prepare for thoughtful dialog around topics such as gender identity.