Category Is: Reimagining a Capitol Hill Church into a Drag Performance Space

Abstract

This thesis explores how adaptive reuse can preserve and expand queer cultural infrastructure through the transformation of the former Westminster Presbyterian Church in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood into a drag theater, artist residency, and queer cultural center. Drawing from queer theory, Harlem ballroom culture, drag performance, and the camp aesthetic, the project investigates the relationship between ritual, performance, and architectural space. Particular attention is given to the spatial parallels between Catholic liturgy, ballroom culture, and contemporary drag performance, each of which relies upon procession, transformation, spectatorship, and collective gathering as mechanisms for producing identity and community. Organized around the interconnected programs of Live, Work, and Play, the design reimagines the church’s historic sanctuary as a performance venue while providing housing, creative studios, fabrication spaces, and communal amenities that support the cultural labor behind drag. Rather than treating drag solely as entertainment, the project understands it as a broader social and artistic ecosystem sustained through mentorship, production, and collective participation. Through this intervention, the thesis argues that historic buildings can remain culturally relevant by accommodating new forms of gathering and identity formation, positioning adaptive reuse as a process of cultural continuation and transformation.