Best-kept secret
There's something inherently ironic about winning the contest for Boston's best hush-hush thing or event: it attracts the attention of any number of readers and puts you out of the running for next year. All the King's Men Drag King Performance Troupe is the secret that must consider itself out of the bag and ineligible for this honor next year. As a select - and growing - group of you knows, since April 2002, seven women have donned men's wardrobes, boots, and facial hair for variety-show-style evenings of song, dance, and comedy at various venues, including the Milky Way and the Midway Café. As this paper goes to press, the troupe is in the process of working out a regular schedule for its show, in which the players take on everything from stand-up comedy to boy bands to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video. Think of it as a contemporary sequel to the cross-dressing of Shakespeare's time.

All the King's Men Drag King Performance Troupe, www.atkm.com.