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===Female impersonator===
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The term ''female impersonation'' refers to a type of theatrical performance where a man dresses in women's clothing for the sole purpose of entertaining an audience.<ref name="SQ"/> The term ''female impersonator'' is sometimes used interchangeably with drag queen, although they are not the same.<ref name="SQ"/> For example, in 1972, Esther Newton described a female impersonator as a "professional drag queen".<ref name="newton_3"/> She considered the term ''female impersonator'' to be the one that was (then) widely understood by heterosexual audiences.<ref name="newton_3"/> However, feminist and queer studies scholar Sarah French defined a clear separation between these two terms. She defined drag as an art form associated with [[queer identity]] whereas female impersonation comes from a wide a range of [[gender identity]] paradigms, including [[heteronormativity]]. Additionally, many drag artists view drag as a lived form of self-expression or creativity, and perceive drag as something that is not limited to the stage or to performance. In contrast, female impersonation is specifically limited to performance and may or may not involve an LGBTQI point of view.<ref name="SQ">{{cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Staging_Queer_Feminisms/gvKqDgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22female+impersonator%22+%22drag+queen%22&pg=PA94&printsec=frontcover|title=Staging Queer Feminism|page=94|publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan UK]]|isbn=9781137465436|first=Sarah |last=French}}</ref>
Female impersonation can be traced back at least as far as ancient Greece. There was little to no gender equity then and women held a lower social status. This meant male actors would play female roles during theatrical performances.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gewertz|first=Ken|date=17 July 2003|title=When men were men (and women, too)|url=https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2003/07/when-men-were-men-and-women-too/|access-date=10 February 2022|website=The Harvard Gazette|archive-date=11 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211052711/https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2003/07/when-men-were-men-and-women-too/|url-status=live}}</ref> This tradition continued for centuries but began to be less prevalent as motion pictures became popular. During the era of [[vaudeville]] it was considered immodest for women to appear on stage. Due to that circumstance, some men became famous as "female impersonators", the most notable being [[Julian Eltinge]]. At the peak of his career he was one of the most sought after and highest paid actors in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Goodman|first=Elyssa|date=6 April 2018|title=Drag Herstory: This Drag Queen Was Once the Highest Paid Actor in the World|url=https://www.them.us/story/julian-eltinge-drag-queen-history|access-date=10 February 2022|website=them.|archive-date=11 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211051829/https://www.them.us/story/julian-eltinge-drag-queen-history|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Andrew Tribble]] was another early female impersonator who gained fame on Broadway and in [[Black Vaudeville]]. <ref name="Kentucky">{{cite web |title=Tribble, Andrew A. |url=https://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/items/show/59 |website=Notable Kentucky African Americans Database |publisher=University of Kentucky |access-date=February 3, 2024}}</ref>
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