Drag Performers

"It's important to remember that you're born naked, and the rest is drag."

Edda has a large queer population, and to many cultures the concept is entirely normalized for all manner of sexualities, gender identities, even biological oddities. However, social climates change, and sometimes the powers that be get a real stick up their spine about what is proper or not, or what is true to the cultural identity or not. In that case, even among the queer idenities, gender noncomfority has been a stick in many a curmudgeons craw, as not acting how you're expected is a heinous crime for them.
Spawning out of the extravagence and fashion of queer ballroom culture in various locations around Edda which started as secret gatherings of queer high-society before being reclaimed by queer people of all kinds, Drag takes the transgressive part of typical gender non-comformity and cranks it up to 11, with the main point being an extreme performance of femininity or masculinity, often the opposite of the artists typically identified gender. It's a spit in the eye to that restrictive line of thinking, saying "Oh, I wasn't performing my gender well enough for you? How about this!?" and having a grand ol' time while doing it. 
While it's roots and common practice lies in gender noncomformity, Drag is for anyone in any combination, as even if your drag style matches your commonly presented gender, the difference is in the extremity and performance of it, and even if it's a different type of transgressive, it pushes back against the world all the same. 
In the modern day queer communities have become tighter than ever in the wake of the Border Wars and a more open-minded social climate finally spreading after decades of increased conservatism, with thousands of drag institutions and ballroom houses being formed around the nation. It's a rennessaince for Drag artists all around the world, and from the beginning to the end they're going to wear it out proudly, and make it look amazing.

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Naming Traditions

Family names

When a drag artist takes a stage name if they're part of a proper house, big or small, then often they add the house name into their title. Sometimes, however, it's more important to stay on theme, and so it'll be a subtitle of importance.

Culture

Culture and cultural heritage

The biggest cultural touchstones of drag artists are Performance, Freedom, and Shamelessness.
The first has been mentioned previously, with the home of drag being in the often satirical hyper-performance of gender and quite literally performance in the case of ballroom culture. It should be stressed that Drag is not the only culture involved in the ballrooms, as various transgender, non-binary, and gender non-comforming people find their place among the balls.
The second arose relatively recently, especially in the years before The Border Wars. Despite Edda having a large and out queer population just about anywhere, the specific stylings of drag and of the ballroom as a whole, the sheer unabashed glamour and extravegance of it all, was something often shamed. When the pre-border war national attitude began to shift more towards the conservative, it became a clear point of contention for a variety of reasons. People would claim that ballroom performers were too much, too full of themselves, too noisy, to in-your-face about "things that should be private information" according to such hardasses. In places of high poverty, these performers would be looked on as wasteful and immature, the traditionally minded saw their embracing of modern habits as sinful or damaging to the cultural identity, so on and so forth. Of course, this just emboldened performers to go even more extreme, and worked against the conservative favor as it made the community band tighter together into the subcultural cornerstone it now exists as.
The third touchstone arose around the same time. If you're going to be out and proud of who you are, which everyone should be, then you can't let yourself flinch away from every hard-nosed fuddy duddy who thinks they have any right to tell you how to live your life. You can be polite, you can read the room, you can play cards close to your chest, but never let yourself be ashamed for who you are and what you do.

Shared customary codes and values

Depending on where you are, who you know, and what day it is the fine boundaries and lines of any given drag community are going to be different. But, the most common values are rather easy to remember. 

• Don't tell anyone how to be who they are, be that their gender, sexuality, drag style, or any other part of their core identity. It doesn't cost anything to not be a dick.
• If you're going to spread drama, make sure it's honest drama. No one likes being spun along for a tall tale. (And tragedies of miscommunication are so last century)
• Never steal someones style. No matter who you are or who they are, two artists might have similar aesthetics, but if you're so devoid of creativity that you steal from others? As the young say, just get good.
• and lastly, Don't take it too seriously. While Drag and it's surrounding cultures are very important and key parts of queer life, it's first and foremost a performance, a celebration, a community bit of joking and playing for all to enjoy. If someone burns too deep, take it outside, if a flub-up happens roll with grace, and if competition gets heavy and you just don't get the gold, don't make it everyone elses problem.
• Also tip the bartenders and waitstaff as well as the artists, seriously it's not hard!

Common Dress code

In general: The only dress code is to own yourself and crank it up to 11. Some parties and shows will have more or less formal expectations amidst that, and ballroom events will have their themes, but for the everyday drag artist? The world is your oyster! Wear the gaudiest dress you can find, the biggest heels, wear the longest glittery beard, paint the largest lips and eyes on your face, do whatever the hell you want and do it as extreme as you want!

Art & Architecture

Drag itself is an art form. Makeup, hair, fashion design, textile work, singing, performing, acting, hell even the art of business management is highlighted in the art of Drag. Of course, much art has been inspired by drag as well, even outside of the immediate community, with various painters and artists devoting entire galleries to popular houses.

Foods & Cuisine

Despite drag being a social subculture, they do have some cuisine touchstones since the history of the art in Edda finds itself dating back to counter-culture movements within Atalanta, specificially the western swamp regions, with most of the founding drag artists of that time bringing over their popular seafood dishes and other hearty, large meals that're commonly made in that region. These were the meals brought to shows and potlucks and brunches and community events, so even though it has modernized and spread, many of them remain familiar touchstones of home.

Coming of Age Rites

When taken under the wing of a house, a drag artist who has finally found their footing to step onto the scene as a debutante of drag will often accent their first outfit with an accessory belonging to their houseparent, these accessories often being calling cards for the larger and more popular houses of Edda.

Funerary and Memorial customs

When a drag artist passes, their community comes to grieve them as much as any blood family would, if not more. Commonly, there is a somber gathering before whatever funerary arrangements take place, so that anyone who has any can air final grievances to let it all out before attending. Once those arrangements are done, the mood will pick up as all come together to celebrate the departed artist, with those close to them often donning their hottest past looks in an event called The Ferryman's Runway.

Common Myths and Legends

While the community of drag artists sprung from relatively modern counter-culture movements and the conservative reactions to them, the art of Drag has existed in many forms throughout many cultures. While the stories vary from place to place, almost all religious cultures have a tale of some gender non-conforming diety donning many colorful disguses, or playing their theatrical parts opposite their supposed gender. Even the non-religous often have tales of those who would be considered drag artists one way or another, making it a familiar concept world wide.

Historical figures

While the history of drag all over Edda stretches back a far distance, there are four names often regarded as the founders of the Modern drag scene:

• Lalli Hiacinthe Favager - An Atalantean Drag Queen who was one of the most vocal activists for the explicit recognition of queer life in the country, and lead many rallies, riots, and ragers in protest of the exceedingly conservative and classist Atalantean culture in the pre-Border War years, and despite suffering a crippling injury during one such protest during the wars, they're still out on the front lines whenever they have to be, as loud and bright as ever.
• Almas Afaf - An Afallonian Trans Woman and member of the desert culture who published a famous expose about the lack of respect and unfair treatment the Enlightened Class of Afallon gave its queer population, even other queer members of that enlightened class. Often called the Scholar of Sexiness, she's become less of a performer and more of an instructor in the modern day, but the day she isn't in the crowd is the day she dies.
• Haneul Im - A Dalsup genderfluid performer who grew up taking the role of the Onnagata in Kaguyan Theater and turning their fan following into a queer community and performers going against the common culture of subtlty and Kaguyan-supremacy in their dress, mannerisms, and especially in the donning of extreme and satirical theater makeup. They are often seen as an icon of the extreme makeup that many drag artists adore.
• Nollaig Silverbell - An Agarthan Dwarf and one of the biggest gay celebrities of Edda. He is a showstopper and MC extraordinaire, and when the likes of Lalli and other vocal counter-culture protestors spoke against the wave of conservativism and the horrors of the Border Wars, he was there with a microphone and the volume enhancing magic to raise their voices up. While he's sadly the only one of the four who has passed by the time of the modern day, MC's all around Edda look to him and his legacy for inspiration, as they lead the celebrations of queer non-conformity of all stripes.

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

While each King or Queen will have their own style and identity, when it comes to the ballroom the most important thing is the theme. Is the category Springtime Awakening? Leave those dull browns and reds at home. Winter Wonderland? Better not see florals! While the brave (or the dumb) can try to win appeal by going agianst the grain, it mut be done with class, cleverness, and charm or else it's just a tacky waste.
Overall, whether one does drag for themselves, for a standard show, or for the theme of the ballroom, the key point is extravagence! Not luxury, although many artists need to learn that sometimes what's more expensive is worse, but going to the heights of drama, fashion, creativity, and indulgence. Such is part of the heart of drag, after all.

Gender Ideals

One of, if not the, most key part of drag is Gender as a Performance, and one taken to the extreme. The extreme fashion and body contouring of the Queens and the hyper masculinity and absurdity of the Kings all reach these performative heights, giving a fun bit of absurdity to laugh at, but also appreciation for the base standards they emulate. Of course, out of performance, Drag artists are just themselves, whoever that person is, and so actual gender conformity is all up in the air.

Relationship Ideals

Most drag artists will tell you that dating another drag artist is just asking for drama and hard decisions to come. But, given that it's a very interwoven community, it happens a lot regardless. Despite the career concerns, a lot of relationships are built on the mutual support for one anothers specific branch of drag, whatever that may be. Of course, many drag artists are some variety of queer, so the exact dynamics, number, and intensity of these relationships all wildly vary.