Roy Haylock

Roy Haylock , better known by the stage name Bianca Del Rio, is an American drag queen, comedian, actor, and costume designer best known for winning the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race. New York magazine named Del Rio number one of the top 100 Most Powerful Drag Queens in America in June 2019. Haylock grew up in Gretna, Louisiana. He is of Cuban descent on his mother's side and Honduran descent on his father's side. He is the fourth of five children. He started acting and designing costumes for plays at West Jefferson High School. After high school, he decided to move to New York City, where he worked at Bloomingdale's for nine months before returning to Louisiana. Haylock has primarily worked as a costume designer. In 1993, he won a Big Easy Entertainment Award for Best Costume Design for Snow Queen at the age of 17. He has been nominated for 13 Big Easy Entertainment Awards for costume design, winning six. Haylock has also made costumes for New Orleans Opera. In New Orleans, Haylock started performing as a drag artist in 1996 in the play Pageant. The local drag queen Lisa Beaumann saw him in the play and later cast him in shows at the nightclub Oz. Haylock won the New Orleans Gay Entertainer of the Year for three years as drag queen Bianca Del Rio. In 2001, Bianca Del Rio was selected as co-grand marshal, with Pat "Estelle" Ritter and Rick Thomas for Southern Decadence XXIX. Haylock moved to New York City after Hurricane Katrina and worked as a costumer for Broadway shows, ballet and opera, having worked for Barbara Matera, Ltd. He also performed in drag as Bianca Del Rio, including in cabaret with Lady Bunny at XL Nightclub. Notable events included a roast of Patricia Krentcil, better known as "Tan Mom." Haylock starred in the first regional production of Rent (following its initial Broadway closing) at Le Petit Theatre in New Orleans, playing the role of 'Angel' opposite Christopher Bentivegna as Collins. Del Rio was featured in the web series Queens of Drag: NYC by gay in 2010. The series featured fellow New York drag queens Dallas DuBois, Hedda Lettuce, Lady Bunny, Mimi Imfurst, Peppermint, and Sherry Vine. In 2011, Del Rio appeared on One Night Stand Up: Dragtastic! NYC by Logo TV. The episode was filmed live at the Bowery Ballroom and was hosted by Pandora Boxx. He appeared on the cover of Next for their Summer Yearbook 2012 issue. Del Rio appeared on the variety show She's Living for This, hosted by Sherry Vine, in 2012. In December 2013, Logo announced that Bianca Del Rio was among 14 drag queens who would be competing on the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race. She quickly became a front-runner among the contestants and a fan favorite, eventually reaching the top three. On May 19, 2014, Del Rio was crowned the winner of the sixth season over runners-up Adore Delano and Courtney Act. She was the second winner and fourth contestant to reach the finale without having to lip sync for her life, and is the first contestant in the history of the series to make it through the entire competition without ever placing low or in the bottom of a challenge. Del Rio is also the first Hispanic winner of RuPaul's Drag Race. In 2013, Del Rio was announced as the lead in the independent film Hurricane Bianca, written and directed by Matt Kugelman. An Indiegogo campaign was created to finance the film and was sponsored by Fractured Atlas, a non-profit art services organization in New York City; the campaign raised over $30,000. A sequel, Hurricane Bianca: From Russia With Hate, was released in 2018. Following her success on Drag Race, Del Rio has written and toured several stand-up shows, including The Rolodex of Hate (2014), Not Today Satan (2015-16), Blame It On Bianca Del Rio (2017-2018) and now, It's Jester Joke (2019) , which also made her the first drag queen to headline Wembley Arena. She has also performed as a host on the Werq the World Tour alongside other Drag Race queens.