Qween Jean has fast become one of the most admired and in-demand costume designers in New York, racking up over eighty credits to her name across theatre and film. Honored at the 2023 Obie Awards, she has received nominations from the Outer Critics Circle, Lucille Lortel Awards, and Drama Desk Awards. She is also a dedicated human rights activist and an essential community leader and organizer, inspired by the mission of her heroine Marsha P Johnson. She is the founder of Black Trans Liberation, which aims to end homelessness and food insecurity within the trans population, and contributed to the book Revolution is Love: A Year Of Black Trans Liberation.
Earlier in her career, she sought to separate her dual vocations, but now sees her design work and activism as inextricably linked. “I can’t leave one part of myself outside and I would not ever try to do that”, she tells The Queer Review. That approach is evident in the productions that she choses to devote her time to with such intentionality and passion, including those with the power to uplift humanity and create social change like Wig Out!, Saturday Church, and Liberation. It is also true of her current creative occupation in bringing Ballroom culture to Broadway with the eagerly-awaited transfer of Cats: The Jellicle Ball with will see legends like André De Shields, Junior LaBeija, and “Tempress” Chasity Moore reprising their roles, while the wonder woman of vogue Leiomy, B Noel Thomas, and Bryson Battle are among those joining the new cast.
In our five-star review of Cats during its Off-Broadway run at the Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) in 2024, we hailed it as an “inspired, exhilarating reinterpretation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1981 musical theatre classic as the worlds of Broadway and Ballroom merge for an unforgettable experience.” One of the highlights of the original run was Jean’s exceptional designs, bringing a riot of color and opulence to the stage with what she refers to as “feline ferocious fashion”.
With Cats: The Jellicle Ball beginning preview performances on Wednesday, March 18th at Broadway’s Broadhurst Theatre, ahead of the show’s official opening night on Tuesday, April 7th, Qween Jean speaks with The Queer Review’s editor James Kleinmann about the transformative power of the way we dress, both on and off the stage, what inspires her own sense of style, creating the iconic looks for André De Shields as Old Deuteronomy and “Tempress” Chasity Moore as Grizabella, and her relationship to New York’s Ballroom culture. With exclusive photography for The Queer Review by Steven Menendez. Makeup by Desireé Easton.
James Kleinmann, The Queer Review: when did your interest in clothes first emerge and was there anything specific that sparked your passion for design?
Qween Jean: “I’ve always had an affinity towards clothes. I’ve seen how what we wear can inform so much about a person’s overall disposition; their energy, their personality, the way they express themselves; all of it. I’ve always seen clothes as an opportunity for someone to become their best self. Clothes are a tool for survival, a tool for independence, for liberation. Clothes allow people to transform. I personally have experienced that energy and that transformation in my own life. Now I get to do the same for our artists and collaborators, to transform them in a unique way.”
“In terms of theatre and storytelling, what has unlocked for me is that you can really be anyone you want to be and that’s a freedom that has always been, and will continue to be, wildly attractive. As a designer for stage and film, I have an unlimited access to storytelling and what we’re doing with Cats: The Jellicle Ball stretches beyond people’s assumptions and expectations. I love that we’re not following any rules.”
When did you learn to sew and was that an important moment?
“It was. I think part of that freedom and independence with clothing comes from being able to create patterns and images and silhouettes that excite you and that open you up in a different way. Growing up, being a curvy person—a fuller figured femme fatale, if you will—I had to learn how to make my own clothes due to the lack of options, which I think a lot of people can relate to. But I also wanted to have my own unique sense of dressing. A lot of my early years were about understanding and learning how to create. It was about discovering the fundamentals of dressmaking and tailoring which then bled into the myriad of other related areas like jewelry making, millinery, footwear design, belts, handbags, and other accessories. That has been a magical journey.”
“I started working professionally as a stitcher and then as a draper. I love sewing. You get to glide and drive with the sewing machine to create something. To begin with, I was making other people’s garments and that was thrilling. There was a sense of ownership and pride in being able to look at a picture or a reference and create something. It was a thrill to llook at a Norah Waugh book, for instance—who is a fundamental writer on historical dress and the ways that we have manipulated fabric throughout time—and then lay out my toile and drape it and cut it. That has always been empowering to me and I’m proud that’s what I get to do now. I moved up very quickly inside of draping professionally and it was a really great skill to have because I was draping for entire productions or sometimes even an entire season. Then you have to think about the business side of things, which is also crucial, in particular budgeting and supplies for an entire season of productions.”
As a costume designer, how would you describe your approach to how you dress yourself and present yourself to the world?
“As Qween, I feel unstoppable. There is a direct lineage from my upbringing, of being around Black women, matriarchs, grandmothers, church leaders, adorning themselves every Sunday, wearing what’s aptly referred to as their Sunday best. I’ve always looked to that as my own personal benchmark of style and grace. There’s a universality to that type of clothing, to that standard of dress. What’s really beautiful about it is that there’s an understanding about shaping the form, but it’s not hiding or ignoring femininity. It actually frames it and uplifts it. That’s something that I firmly identify with and feel affirmed by as Qween and it continues to light my inspiration. Whether I’m going to a rehearsal, organizing for the community every week, or leading a protest against fascist imperialism, I feel that I’m dressed for whatever may happen. And, as we know, child, the revolution is inevitable and because the revolution is inevitable I show up in my armor every single day. That is what allows me to feel confident and to feel beautiful.”
“When it comes to my theatre and film design, I want the collaborators who I am blessed to be able to create for to have that similar feeling, whether or not it’s menswear or womenswear. I mean, people wear clothes! Over time clothing has become very regulated. There’s this regimen of how to dress, but we don’t have to adopt these things just because we were told this is what we have to do.”
“I grew up Catholic, and I remember when I was seven years old I was deeply upset that I wasn’t able to wear a white dress, lace gloves and a rosary for my First Communion. I have spent my whole life trying to get to a place where I can wear exactly what I want and to have no fear or reservation about it and to know that I can step into any space, into any room, and feel that I belong there.”
Let’s talk about Cats: The Jellicle Ball, which I’m thrilled is coming to Broadway. I remember the wonder and excitement I felt when I first heard about the Off-Broadway production from my friend Jonathan Burke. When did you initialy hear about it and why did you want to be part of?
“I echo your exact sentiment. I’m in the community, so there was a buzz. I’d heard that they were trying to reimagine Cats in this way. I said, ‘Oh, honey, can I talk to them?! This is right up my alley.’ A couple of days later, I saw an announcement online about a workshop that was happening and that they were bringing all these illustrious people together as a catalyst moment to commence this production. I was like, ‘Hey, it’s Qween. I’m available!’ I was very audacious about that and the universe blessed me with an interview with the directing team and it felt right. That’s the only way I can explain it. It just felt right that I would be contributing to something that is absolutely monumental and historic, but that speaks to people, to humanity, as an artist. I do that in real life and so why not take it to the stage?”
“At the very beginning of my work as a human rights leader, I was trying to separate the two. So there were people who only knew me as an activist and people who only knew me as a designer. Now, it’s just me and I can’t leave one part of myself outside and I would not ever try to do that. I can’t. That means that I show up with a fierce sense of conviction. I am deeply seated in my purpose and I walk in my truth every day. I know that this production is doing that as well. It’s uplifting humanity in the most original, brave and necessary way and that is literally giving people space and letting them shine. I am proud to be contributing to that. It’s about adorning the royalty in this show and it’s a dream come true.”
“I didn’t know anything about casting at that interview stage because that conversation happened very early, back in 2020 or 2021. But I kept dreaming and singing the tunes to myself the entire way, and the picture became clearer after every workshop. By 2023, we knew that we were going to take it. When I say, ‘take it’, I pull from the icon, the Broadway deity André De Shields, who said, ‘We want to take people to Mars.’ And I’m excited to take people there.”
This reimagining of Cats is a tribute to and a celebration of Ballroom culture. What was your experience of New York’s Ballroom scene before you started working on this show?
“As a Black queer person, I found my way to the piers. I found my way to vogue nights, which were an integral part of the city’s culture. That was Thursday nights, but Wednesdays were also pretty poppin’. I would go to Escuelitas on 38th Street, which happened to be on the same strip where our rehearsal studio is now, so that feels in deep alignment. The legacy of Ballroom is integral to my personal journey and to the work that we’re called to do with this production. Seeing people who looked like myself, but who were dancing and flying at moments, but most importantly who were telling stories, was monumental. It was undeniable to see people’s transformations from category to category. Sometimes you’d see this one femme queen show up and really captivate. You would see new faces who would leave a lasting impression. People’s journeys would begin right there at a Ball. Any night could potentially be your night and you just hope that you look great doing it.”
“The origins of Ballroom weren’t as joyful as the space came to be. We know the history of segregation, of discrimination, of all of the heinous laws in the 50s, 60s and 70s that were dictating and controlling people’s expression. Out of necessity, people had to create their own sanctuaries, as we do now in 2026. I’m proudly a founder of Black Trans Liberation and we have a weekly fellowship and a kitchen that feeds our siblings. So that work has continued decades later and the legacy of Ballroom continues and is now a global movement. People are cat canoeing , honey, to a little eight beat in every corner of the world! People are queer and people are discovering their gender expression all over this globe.”
“I believe that people were voguing all over, but the birthplace for this revolution happened right here, Ballroom started in New York City. Because Ballroom is sacred, this work is sacred to me and to the entire bloodline of families, of matriarchs, who gave their lives to be able to have a space of freedom and of love. That’s what we’re bringing to Broadway now and it feels right. I didn’t feel like I could do it when I first moved here, but that was only because I couldn’t quite see the full picture yet. There were trans women who saw Qween before I could openly declare it. There is something powerful in not only the manifestation, but there’s a spiritual fortification of who we are. Back then I’d hear, ‘Keep on coming to the Balls, you’re going to find your light! And when it’s your night, leave nothing else behind.’ And, as the people say, the rest is history.”
“The history of Ballroom has been the inspiration and the foundational bedrock for the culture. Cue every Madonna tour, Renaissance, and music from pop to rap and to R’n’B. We have been the undeniable mood board and the maps for people in this world and for society to feel free and to feel loved.”
What was your approach to creating the costumes for Cats: The Jellicle Ball and what were some of your inspirations?
“I fully surrendered to this process. I came into the design aspect after being a vigilant, focused observer in our workshops and rehearsals. The music is a masterpiece and so the assignment was, how do we visualize and contextualize a score that is in everyone’s bone marrow? Visually, how do we make that match with what we’re asking our performers to do and with how we’re condensing the length of a Ball. How what could easily be six to eight to 12 hours for a real Ball, we’re bringing to you in a two-hour set with an intermission. That in itself is genius. I want to uplift our directors, Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch. I respect their genius, along with Lord Lloyd-Webber.”
“That foundation, and that power, has allowed me to come in and to get really specific about the songs and to collaborate with our choreographers, Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons, to find areas of sheer visual explosions within the numbers. For me, that’s about creating costume moments—entrances and tearaways—but it’s also about each performer striving to give their best and to look their best in order to be deemed the Jellicle Choice by Old Deuteronomy. So I’m helping about 26 people vie to be the Jellicle Choice to get to the Heaviside Layer. I’m working to help everybody get closer to that, so visually, that’s what I’ve done with the design.”
“I wanted to honor each artist, each performer’s own unique and distinct style that each cat has. That’s spoken to us in “The Addressing of Cats” and in “The Naming of Cats”. There’s a legacy there that is married with what I’m bringing to the runway with our feline ferocious fashion. Within the feline fashion, we’re able to carve out archetypes that we know about certain cats and about how each category informs that. So when we have virgin vogue, realness, body, tag team performance, or runway, we’re celebrating the unification of the music and each person’s individuality with the fashion that is driving each moment forward.”
“There has been deep, vigorous research into knowing where it all came from. The origins of the music, the language of T.S. Eliot. I wanted to honor the beautiful descriptions of who all of these cats are. So when we think about Jennyanydots and this fabulous tapestry, it feels like that coat that you see once every lifetime. I wanted to proudly create that for each character.”
“We have people that are showing up as their best selves and Old Deuteronomy, who is at the fulcrum, right at the center of this story, sets the tone for that. In my early consultations with Mr De Shields, when thinking about Old Deuteronomy’s presentation, costume and adornment, we arrived at this truth that this Ball doesn’t happen often. So people have had time to really thoughtfully prepare. Some folks have said, ‘You know what, I’m showing up and I’m going to give my best.’ Grizabella wasn’t planning on winning, however, her truth was undeniable. She was in a space where community was like, ‘Please come’. But also, there is pain there. There are things that we aren’t able to see, but that have manifested into her current attire. Yet, because of the power of transformation, her light shines.”
“Mr De Shields is a rare flower that blooms once every 100 years and in this moment, in the canon of Broadway music, Cats is unfurling itself and pouncing on this powerful landscape and we’re saying that, honey, we’re about to roar. Its purpose is paired with its power and that’s what this community is bringing. We’re bringing power to Broadway and it’s not exclusionary: come one and come all. It’s an invitation for us to be better humans, for us to to be more careful, but also knowing that we can be more caring.”
You mentioned Old Deuteronomy and Grizabella, could you talk in more detail about coming up with their looks?
“Old Deuteronomy is the head cat and they are also a respected leader. They’re instrumental because they decide who is going to ascend, quite literally, as they take up the mantle. So their power is being able to assess who’s ready. Each person has a great song, everyone is worthy in that regard, but sometimes as a leader you have to make a choice that is going to impact the future. We have to carry that power into the way that Old Deuteronomy shows up and more specifically the silhouette. We worked rigorously and proudly with Nikiya Mathis, the best hair and wigs on Broadway, to design a mane, hair, that is not only regal, but is also an impression of power. When you see them, you bow. That speaks to culture, it speaks to this lineage of Ballroom, but more specifically we pulled from Black leaders and deities that carry that shape and that silhouette.”
“We wanted to adorn Mr. De Shields as the royalty they are and that helped to inform the silhouette too. The textiles have come from all over the world, but they all have to be in conversation with and to support the weight that Old Deuteronomy has to carry throughout the entire night. That color palette centers Deuteronomy visually in the story, but we are also manipulating textiles in a very strategic way, and I’m honored that we’re collaborating with Eric Winterling. They dress the best here in New York City and so that was an immediate and necessary partnership. In order for this design to be achieved, we had to go to the best tailors, the best beaters and fabricators. I want to invite everyone to come and to be in the presence of greatness. That’s what these clothes are doing.”
“For Grizabella, I searched all over my heart because I really wanted to be honest about the ways that history, time, and society forgets our matriarchs, our leaders, our founding mothers, in every culture. They don’t get supported and oftentimes they are holding up the world and get glossed over. Over time, a new person emerges, a new young cat. For this production, we were very honest about that. But these women have always been powerful and are powerful, period. Grizabella returning is monumental and for the design we have the complete pleasure and are blessed to be in the presence of Ms “Tempress” Chasity Moore.”
“I remember being in a rehearsal and hearing her sing for the first time. I was gagged. This ferocious aria came out of this lady’s body and I was like, ‘Okay, we have to build this design the right way.’ It was important that we have a transformation. I say with deep appreciation and love, that I often see beautiful ladies moving about with their bags out by Port Authority or at a bus stop. If you really stop and look at them they’re quite stunning, but they’ve been mishandled and for whatever reason they’re in this position. No one wakes up and decides that they are going to live on the side of the street forever. No. Circumstances drive people into places of discomfort and sometimes danger.”
“Holistically, in this production, there is an undeniable truth that Grizabella is carrying. In the design we are displaying the truth of the severity of the pain that she’s had to endure. Creating that was about asking what does that look like on a person’s body after time? Things that she’s wearing have a worn, withered quality. Those things have informed the choices for the character, down to the detail with the boots and the design of her hair and its color. She’s still attempting to show up every day and we wanted to celebrate that.”
“When Grizabella decides to come to the Ball, it changes the world for them. “Memory” shifts the atmosphere. It is one of the most powerful songs in American musical theater. That melody is hummed by all of us, it’s in our bone marrow as humans. I wanted to elevate the design and to bear her truth when she reaches out her arms and she says, “Touch me. It’s so easy to leave me”. I built the design around the text and around the legacy of “Tempress” Chasity Moore who has been the reigning face for decades and won a Grand Prize at the Coldest Winter Ever Ball in February. So she is still that face. She is still the melody that has the power to heal the community. She unites people and her design in this show is the epitome of that. There are shards of reflection in it, because sometimes we say we’re holding up a mirror to life with art, and she’s the mirror reflecting back to all of us, asking ‘What do you see when you see me?’ So there’s a metaphor there, but there’s also an invitation for us to check our biases and to see the beauty in this community, to see the divinity that is uttered in every line of the song. It’s one of the greatest things I’ve ever had the pleasure to do.”
“I’m deeply proud to be able to contribute to Cats: The Jellicle Balll on Broadway. This is a vision and a testimony. Both that moment in this story, but also in our lives and we get to do this eight shows a week. Our curtain call offers an extra special treat that we wanted to share with the audience. What’s on the Heavyside Layer? Well, we’re showing you what’s there and, baby, it feels like love all over.”
What does it mean to you to be bringing your work on this production from Off-Broadway to the Broadhurst Theatre on Broadway?
“The gift of being able to come to Broadway is that we as a production, as artists and as designers, are all committed to this story. This is the Olympics for us. The highest form of storytelling is going to be on stage at the Broadhurst Theatre. We’ve all taken our time and we’ve prepared intentionally for the last two years to bring this home to Broadway for the world to be able to experience what Andrew Lloyd Webber has created, that’s withstood the time and evolved and transformed. Producer Michael Harrison shared with me that they had a religious experience watching the show and I think part of that is just about giving people space. That’s power. Supporting people is a revolution. We have listened to each other and my collaborations as an artist have deepened with our performers. We have worked in tandem to create something that we’re really excited to share with our first audience on March 18th. Some people, even within our community, didn’t get a chance to see the show at PAC NYC, so we really want to get this right and I know we have. We are beyond thrilled to share this history, our history, with the world.”
What is your mission with Black Trans Liberation?
“Black Trans Liberation is a community covenant that centers feeding our people. We are there weekly, not only to provide resources, warm, nutritious food for folks of all diets—including vegan community members—but to have a place of sustained fellowship that feels like church, but that doesn’t force you to hide all of the beautiful parts of yourselves. Black Trans Liberation is a family that shows up for each other and we show up for all humanity. We exist on a myriad of intersections, faiths, and cultural backgrounds. It is our way of saying thank you to the people who provided for us to be here. We are working towards a new generation, but we also want to work towards a world where people no longer have to hide or to diminish their light. That’s Black Trans Liberation. We hope that people will come and support us at blacktransliberation.com.”
Lastly, what’s your favorite piece of LGBTQ+ culture, or a person who identifies as LGBTQ+; someone or something that’s had an impact on you and resonated with you over the years?
“As a young person, I was at the library one day going through photography books and I came across the Andy Warhol Polaroids 1958-1987 collection. I was completely captivated by its queerness and by this audacious spread of humanity. I came across a lady that had this gorgeous blonde updo and a smile that felt like home. I felt like I was seeing myself in them. That woman was Marsha “Pay It No Mind” Johnson. It was a sign that I had to get home. The legacy of queer history is embedded in the living grace, splendor and leadership of Marsha P Johnson, who worked in tandem alongside Sylvia Rivera to provide for and to care for and to feed youth—queer and trans youth—people who were displaced, forgotten, ignored, rejected, and provided a place to call home. That for me has become my mission in life.”
“Marsha did not hide that she was queer, it actually empowered who she was. Unlike a lot of other people, she stood 10 toes down for all humanity and worked alongside the Black Panther movement, women’s fight for liberation, queer women’s fight for liberation, and immigrants’ fight for liberation. Her work has deeply inspired me as a human and as a leader who also aims to dismantle any notion that we have to subject people to violence in order to feel control or dominion. There is no need for dominion if we genuinely, truly, wholeheartedly care and love each neighbor as we do ourselves.”
By James Kleinmann
Cats: The Jellicle Ball on Broadway begins previews on Wednesday, March 18th, 2026 at the Broadhurst Theatre, 235 W 44th Street, with an official opening night on April 7th, 2026. Tickets are available now at catsthejellicleball.com.
Follow Qween Jean on Instagram @qween_jean.