[PHOTOS] A night out at NewFest with RuPaul & drag’s biggest stars

NewFest knows how to throw a premiere party!

Mark Mark
Jun 3, 2026 - 20:00
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[PHOTOS] A night out at NewFest with RuPaul & drag’s biggest stars
Marcia Marcia Marcia, Symone, Brooklyn Hytes, Jujubee, and Ginger Minj smile in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Crdit: @mettieostrowski

Stop! That! Train!, the first-ever film entry into the RuPaul’s Drag Race canon, might just be the gayest flick ever made… so it was only fitting that it made its East Coast premiere at NewFest.

The queer-centered New York City film program runs several events throughout the year, including its banner fall festival, although this year’s Pride lineup, which ran from May 28 to June 1, is going to be hard to beat.

With screenings of filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun’s Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, director Gregg Araki’s I Want Your Sex, and buzzy docs like The Brittney Griner Story and The Dads, NewFest once again solidified its status as the place where “LGBTQ+ stories are seen, heard, and celebrated since 1988.”

Of course, the buzziest night was Stop! That! Train!, which opened the fest at the SVA Theatre and featured appearances from queens like Ginger Minj, Symoné, Brooke Lynn Hytes, Marcia Marcia Marcia, and of course, Mama Ru herself — out of drag, but every bit as fabulous.

The film, which was directed by Hairspray‘s Adam Shankman, is just as unhinged as you’d expect, following two train stewardesses on the Glamazonian Express which is headed straight toward — gasp — a catastrophic “Stormaganza.”

We’re already seated for its June 12 release date, and trying to figure out how we can mastermind our way into NewFest’s next opening night.

Below, check out 20 pics from the NewFest screening and fabulous after party.

RuPaul stands holding a microphone in front of a big movie theater screen.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Ronan Farrow smiles in a tan suit in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @solelycreating
Alexis Matteo stands smiling in a white shirt and jeans in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Bernie Wagenblast stands in front of a black step and repeat in a pink shirt and floral skirt.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Brooke Lynn Hytes smiles in a small black dress in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Lana Ja'Rae smiles in a blue bikini top in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Marcia Marcia Marcia smiles in a black dress and hat and gloves in front of a step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Jeremy Crittenden smiles in a black suit in front of a step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Symone smiles in a red skirt and white crop top in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Jujubee smiles in a yellow dress in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Jackie Cox, Nicky Doll, and Kandy Muse stand in front of a black step and repeat in shirts that read
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Peppermint stands in a trans-flag colored dress in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
A group of well-dressed smiling queer folks smile under string lights at a bar.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Ginger Minj smiles with her hands on her hips in a blue dress in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @solelycreating
A man in a blue vest and a man in a red vest stand smiling at a party.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
A man in a red suit jacket and a red and white striped tie and shorts stands smiling in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Three men sit smiling on a black couch in front of a sign that reads "Newfest."
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
A man in a long white sleeve shirt and pants stands smiling in front of a black step and repeat.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Two men holding cocktails stand with their arms around each other at a party.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski
Two men in glasses smile at a party with their arms around each other.
Image Credit: @mettieostrowski

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