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MITMH2022
Public Access

Solution to Your Name is a Song

The Ministry

Answer: VALLICELLIANA
by Justin Ladia

In this puzzle, solvers first determine the "names" clued by each script piece. Each script piece is accompanied by an enumeration, and the names are ordered alphabetically.

Name elements derived from script pieces
SCRIPT PIECES"NAME"EXPLANATION
This queen has the same name as one of the singers in tonight's playlist, although the song she chose is not sung by her. (5)ADELEADELE is one of the song artists.
This redheaded queen is known to be quite the doll although she's often described as being scruffy or tattered. (3)ANNRaggedy ANN is a well-known doll.
She might be seen hanging out with her friends Nancy and George. (4)BESSNancy Drew's two best friends are George and BESS.
This queen bee is known to be a killer when fighting on the streets, especially in her red beret and green leotard. (5)CAMMYCAMMY is a character from Street Fighter whose nickname is "Killer Bee" and wears a green leotard and a red beret.
Despite being a drag queen, she is known to literally drag things in, is famous for her pajamas, and often avoids inquisitiveness as it's known to be quite lethal for her. (3)CAT"Look what the CAT dragged in", "the CAT's pajamas", and "curiosity killed the CAT" are all idioms that contain the word CAT.
Her family is (archaically) famous for growing brassicas like brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower, and broccoli; who also sung that lipsync song referenced for another queen. (4)COLEA COLE is any brassica, especially, brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower, and broccoli.
This queen took inspiration from an actress who played the mother of a boy who famously goes on an adventure with an alien. (3)DEEDEE Wallace played Mary Taylor, the mother of Elliott Taylor, in the movie E.T.
This queen was partly inspired by another queen who lipsynced to a song about an "everlasting love" on a show she didn't win. (4)DIDADIDA Ritz famously lipsynced to "This Will Be", a song by Natalie Cole, on RuPaul's Drag Race season 4, where she placed 6th.
Her favorite drink is one you can get from Moe, the bartender. (4)DUFFThe beer in The Simpsons is DUFF and is served by the bartender in the series, Moe.
This Enchanted queen, or should I say "princess", will obey your every word. (4)ELLAELLA Enchanted was a movie about a princess whose "power" was to be very obedient.
She says that if anyone were to play her in a movie about her, she would choose either Anya Taylor-Joy or Kate Beckinsale. (4)EMMABronte's EMMA was played by Anya Taylor-Joy and Kate Beckinsale in two different movies.
This Old English queen is particularly fond of giants, particularly one that Tolkien had made more verdant. (3)ENTENT in Old English translates to "giant", which is a term that Tolkien used as the name of his tree creatures in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.
She's been described as having a force that draws you in, and others say she consistently earns a thousand dollars each night. (1)GG is short for the force of gravity, and for grand.
Although she can't travel, she can definitely entertain guests or house a parasite (4).HOSTTo HOST is to entertain guests and a parasite requires a HOST to live.
This queen was inspired by a famous Black journalist and activist who co-founded the NAACP. (3)IDAIDA B. Wells was a Black journalist, and a civil rights and women's rights activist who co-founded the NAACP.
She took a long break from posting her videos on the internet after losing her Marbles. (5)JENNARefers to once-active and popular YouTuber JENNA Marbles
When she's not performing here, she works as a Nurse at a Center where strange, yet portable monsters are treated. (3)JOYNurse JOY is the attendant in Pokémon Centers in the Pokémon series
This queen is known to give shelter to others especially when it's windy. (3)LEEA LEE is the side of something that provides shelter, especially from the wind.
This queen always manages to get people moving westward to see her show "Night After Night". (3)MAEMAE West starred in the film Night After Night.
Don't walk in on her as she's dressing, otherwise you'll have egg on your face, in short. (4)MAYOMAYO, short for mayonnaise, is a type of dressing made with raw eggs.
When this queen walks down the streets of Madrid, the people on the street call her "honey". (4)MIELHoney in Spanish is MIEL.
This legendary Hyrulean princess is often linked to a specific kind of cap. (6)MINISHThe MINISH Cap is a game title from The Legend of Zelda.
She bears no relation to a famous Julianne, Mandy, or Roger. (5)MOOREThe three famous people in the clue can share the same last name: Julianne MOORE, Mandy MOORE, and Roger MOORE.
It may look like she took inspiration from one of the letters of the modern Filipino alphabet, but her name is not pronounced in the same way. (2)NGNG is a two-character digraph in the Filipino alphabet, pronounced "nga", but it's also a common last name of Chinese descent that is pronounced closer to "ing".
This queen is known to serve "Italian grandmother" realness. (5)NONNANONNA is Italian for "grandmother".
This sporty queen was inspired by a Hall of Famer who first played in Boston, moved to Chicago after a decade, then retired a couple of years later. (3)ORRBobby ORR played for the Boston Bruins for ten years, the Chicago Blackhawks for two years, and was inducted in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979.
In one of her former jobs, she straight up judged aspiring pop stars every week in a cold hearted way. (5)PAULAPAULA Abdul sung "Straight Up" and "Cold Hearted" and judged contestants on American Idol in earlier seasons.
The name this brunette queen uses in The Office is the same name she uses when she performs and in real life. (7)PHYLLISThe character PHYLLIS in The Office is also the real first name of the actor who plays her. Angela is another character that fits that description, but is blonde.
She loved this Hawaiian staple food so much she named herself after it. (3)POIPOI is a traditional staple food in Hawaiian cuisine.
Often seen encircled by her trade, Mark, this queen is known to also enjoy the three fundamentals of learning. (1)RA registered trademark symbol is the letter R in a circle, and the three fundamentals of learning are also known as the three R's: reading, writing, and arithmetic.
This queen might shoyu her shio love for a specific dish that you can't miso out. (5)RAMENShoyu, shio, and miso are flavours of RAMEN.
This queen is known to be of hope, light, or creation. (3)RAYRAY of hope, RAY of light, RAY of creation.
She gives "space witch" realness and is often seen fighting a group of colourful teenagers in disguise. (4)RITARITA Repulsa was a space witch and a villain in Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers season 1.
Contrary to popular belief, she does not come from multiple fishy-sounding families of western deer that only have males. (8)ROEBUCKSROEBUCKS are Eurasian Roe Deer, "roe" are fish eggs, and "bucks" are male deer.
She likes showing a bit of leg, but only the front part. (4)SHINThe front part of a leg is a SHIN.
In one incident, someone literally slayed at the club and despite that she asked the DJ to "not kill the groove" or she'd commit arson. (6)SOPHIEThe chorus of SOPHIE Ellis-Bexter song "Murder on the Dance Floor" goes "There's murder on the dance floor, you better not kill the groove, DJ, gonna burn this god damn house right down".
This queen will be "rooting for you" and angrily ask you to "be quiet" and "take responsibility for yourself". (4)TYRATYRA Banks' infamous "Be Quiet, Tiffany!" speech from Cycle 4 of America's Next Top Model included the lines "We were rooting for you, we were all rooting for you, how dare you!" and "Take responsibility for yourself!"
"There is a queen in China" who wears "a coat" to honor her family who have been stuck in "purgatory" since the "Byzantium" era. (5)YEATS"There Is a Queen in China", "A Coat", "Purgatory", and "Byzantium" are all works by WB YEATS.

Following identifying all of the names from the script pieces, solvers must then put them together to form full drag queen-like names that are also puns.

Along with the associated years, these full names form a new set of clues that lead to titles of singles released by the artists in the playlist.

Compiled drag queen names matched to song title
ENDS OF EACH SCRIPT (ORDERED BY LAST NAME)FULL DRAG NAMEPUN
Performing a song from 2017, please welcome to the stage (7 6 4)!PHYLLIS SOPHIE COLEPhilosophical
Performing a song from 2014, please welcome to the stage (5 4)!ADELE EMMAA Dilemma
Performing a song from 2017, please welcome to the stage (5 5 1)!NONNA PAULA GNon-apology
Performing a song from 2010, please welcome to the stage (3 3 4)!MAE CAT HOSTMake a toast
Performing a song from 2011, please welcome to the stage (4 3-5)!RITA LEE-YEATSRetaliates
Performing a song from 2001, please welcome to the stage (4 4)!ELLA MAYOLMAO
Performing a song from 2001, please welcome to the stage (3 6-2)!DEE MINISH-NGDiminishing
Performing a song from 2001, please welcome to the stage (4 4 1 5)!TYRA DUFF R MOORETired of armor
Performing a song from 2017, please welcome to the stage (3 3 3-4)!ANN JOY ORR-MIELEnjoy your meal
Performing a song from 2000, please welcome to the stage (4 3 3-3)!BESS IDA POI-ENTBeside the point
Performing a song from 2008, please welcome to the stage (5 5)!CAMMY RAMENCameramen
Performing a song from 2020, please welcome to the stage (4 8)!DIDA ROEBUCKSDid aerobics
Performing a song from 2016, please welcome to the stage (5 3 4)!JENNA RAY SHINGeneration

Indexing into each single's title by the number of tips earned divided by 10 yields a letter in the final answer, VALLICELLIANA, a library in Rome.

Table showing final extraction
TRACK LISTTIPS EARNEDDRAG QUEEN NAMEPUNSINGLE TITLEINDEX
1Britney Spears20TYRA DUFF R MOORETired of armorOVERPROTECTEDV
2Beyonce50JENNA RAY SHINGenerationFORMATIONA
3Ariana Grande50ADELE EMMAA DilemmaPROBLEML
4Adele110RITA LEE-YEATSRetaliatesTURNING TABLESL
5P!nk30MAE CAT HOSTMake a toastRAISE YOUR GLASSI
6Dua Lipa60DIDA ROEBUCKSDid aerobicsPHYSICALC
7Katy Perry70ANN JOY ORR-MIELEnjoy your mealBON APPETITE
8Alicia Keys40DEE MINISH-NGDiminishingFALLIN'L
9Kelly Clarkson100PHYLLIS SOPHIE COLEPhilosophicalMEANING OF LIFEL
10Jennifer Lopez50ELLA MAYOLMAOAIN'T IT FUNNYI
11Janet Jackson90BESS IDA POI-ENTBeside the pointDOESN'T REALLY MATTERA
12Demi Lovato60NONNA PAULA GNon-apologySORRY, NOT SORRYN
13Lady Gaga40CAMMY RAMENCameramenPAPARAZZIA

Author's Notes

VALLICELLIANA was chosen for this puzzle as it was both the draggiest-sounding answer and because, as RuPaul says, "reading is what? Fundamental". Additionally, it plays into the trend of drag queens reading to children in libraries, which seemed very appropriate for a book-themed Mystery Hunt.

I also wanted to create a drag-focused puzzle that did not focus on RuPaul's Drag Race to express the idea that drag culture is bigger than what Drag Race portrays on TV. For the female artists chosen for this puzzle, I was careful to not choose Taylor Swift as there already exists too many puzzles and references to Taylor Swift in past puzzle hunts.

Special thanks go to Peter Gwinn, Sandy Weisz, Mark Halpin, Shai Nir Hana, Aaron Feldman, Ben Smith, and Eric Berlin for the advice and assistance on this puzzle.