The career of BenDeLaCreme has skyrocketed since she appeared on Season 6 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. About to embark on the Battle of the Seasons tour, GayCalgary caught up with Ben over the phone to discuss all things drag.

"Everything has changed," she said. "Things have gone from being here in Seattle, working really hard on my projects and trying to get anyone to focus on them, to traveling constantly," she said of life since Drag Race. "I have been meeting all sorts of cool people and collaborating with artists I have admired for a long time. It has been incredible."

There are months between the end of filming and the taping of the finale. While Ben admits it is challenging to keep quiet, she wanted to see how things played out prior to talking.

"Definitely you want to talk to people about it, but they definitely put the fear of Ru in you. You don’t want to cross anyone at the production company! But you also don’t know how the show is going to play out once 48 hours have been edited down to 40 minutes. You don’t know what version of the story you are going to be seeing. I didn’t want to talk to anybody because I wanted to see what the story would be for them, and it worked out well."

Between the show and Untucked an hour of footage airs out of each episode. There were aspects of the show that were left on the cutting room floor that she would have liked to have seen more of.

"I wish that there was more of the friendships that were formed on camera. We saw a lot of little miffs with me and Darion being blown out of proportion. We missed a lot of stuff like Adore and I getting close, and my friendships with Trinity and Gia. There are a lot of girls I became close to and you don’t really see that on the show. That is what I was most surprised by when I watched it was; you didn’t see the connections we all had that much."

The show’s portrayal of Trinity made her appear someone out of her element, who constantly made excuses, but Ben saw a different side of her both during the taping and post-show.

"I think that a lot of us had frustrations with Trinity early on for that same reason. Getting to know her, she is an incredibly sweet and kind person. Even though, in those moments, we are focused on the challenges, so much of being in that situation with people is just generally what they are like to be around and their demeanor. When she turned it around – she turned it around! There was that moment, going into the comedy challenge, but we saw more of her progression. She was out of her comfort zone and fought to do the best she could anyway. By the end of it, she was strong and shining, and had shed all of that self-doubt. Now you see her on stage – she gets up there grabs that mic and starts chatting with the audience. She is one of the most charismatic queens I have ever seen and can just slay a lip sync. She is a really incredible performer."

With five prior seasons, Ben researched the show heavily, but was still often surprised by the challenges.

"If you are going into the show you have to be studying what has happened before. You always know the first challenge will be some kind of costume construction, and that Snatch Game is coming, and all these other things. As soon as I started thinking about applying, I was also preparing for all those challenges and what I would do in those scenarios. The dual opening was really crazy with just the seven girls. They were trying to hit up an adversarial ‘two teams’ thing, which sort of worked. Almost getting eliminated – and then not getting eliminated – threw me for a loop as well."

There was a lot of surprise and disappointment generated by Ben’s elimination in episode 11, however she was crowned Miss Congeniality, which helped ease the sting.

"It was incredible! When we filmed the actual show and I was eliminated I was really sad and disappointed. I had a long time to make peace with it and feel good about everything that had happened. By the time it aired, I was ready for it. When people reacted by being taken so aback by it, it gave me a sense of Hey yeah! That was messed up! It was nice to get over it, in my own time, and then be sort of affirmed by everybody else."

With the Season 7 queens announced, Ben imparted some wisdom for the competing drag queens.

"It is really important to be into it. There are so many people who are starting to get into drag because of Drag Race, which is really awesome, but I want to encourage people to find the voice and way to express themselves individually. Part of what makes the whole thing so special is [that] you get to meet all of the performers that came into it, because they wanted to express something important to them. Don’t worry about what looks cool, or [what] you have seen succeed in the past. Decide what you need to do and want to do. The ones that have done it hardcore that way are the ones that make a lasting impression."

"I don’t know any of the new queens personally. These girls are all new to me and it is really exciting. I can’t wait to see it. I was personally invested in Season 5 – because Jinkx is an old friend – and my season was like riding a rollercoaster to watch it. I am excited to sit down and watch a show I love again without any personal attachment."

BenDeLaCreme has been in Calgary before and is excited to return to Alberta on the Battle of the Seasons tour.

"It is always nice to know the energy. Audiences and drag, locally, is different everywhere. You never quite know what to prepare for, and [what] people will respond to. When you get to go back, you have your finger on the pulse, and know the local people. It is nice to return to something familiar. I love getting together with the girls. When you are shooting something like that – it looks like a lot of drama – but it’s like college or summer camp. It is a microcosm where, even with the bad and the good, you really bond with people. Whenever I see the girls it is really happy and fun, and you can see that energy on stage when we are doing a show together, because we are having such a great time backstage."

Playing a large club like Flames Central or Encore is a different experience for performers and fans.

"I do a lot of cabaret and theatre and burlesque. There are different kinds of energy... in different spaces. It all plays into what you want to put out there and the energy you can harness. I love that we can do these huge venues with all the tech and people packed in there, because you have to bring all of this big energy that fills the space, and get so much back from the audience. I have always loved variety shows. I come from a background of cabaret and vaudeville. Even though it is all drag, it is a variety show kind of vibe. There is circus art; then you see someone do a flawless lip sync; and then bawdy comedy. It keeps it so fresh – all these different styles and people who are really good at different kind of things."

The VIP pre-show cocktail party allows Ben to connect with the fans that voted for her as Miss Congeniality.

"I love it; it is one of my favourite things. Whenever you go somewhere new and are getting on stage you can feel the energy, but when you get to interact and talk with people – that is when you get to really know the place. I always have such incredible interactions with fans. People are really kind and excited, and I have had some really touching and fun interactions, and I really look forward to it."

Boasting an all-star roster – that includes Courtney Act, Raja, Manila Luzon, Ivy Winters, Alaska and Sharon Needles – the Battle of the Seasons shows promise to be astonishing.

"It is going to be incredible. It is so many performers with different strengths bringing their A-game. We get to bring our best, and we are there to support each other and give 100 per cent. The whole show is going to be bombastic and a sensory overload."