| Aren Adamian | |
| Nationality: | Canadian |
| Occupation: | Drag queen |
| Years Active: | 2021-present |
Aren Adamian, better known by their stage name Anoush Ellah, is a Canadian drag performer from Toronto, Ontario. "Anoush Ellah" is an Armenian saying meaning "let it be sweet".[1]
Anoush Ellah's first public drag performance occurred in April 2021 at a virtual Cher-themed fundraiser for the Armenian victims of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, entitled "Cher the Love for Artsakh".[2]
In December 2022, Anoush Ellah performed in San Francisco at a show entitled "Try, Hye!" ("Try, Armenian!")[3], part of CounterPulse's "Performing Diaspora" artist residency program.[4]
In September 2023, Anoush Ellah performed at GALAS LGBTQ+ Armenian Society's twenty-fifth anniversary gala in Glendale, America.[5] Their performance, which included traditional Armenian dress, caused outrage among anti-LGBT+ Armenians.[6]
In October 2023, Anoush Ellah was featured in Stories Untold: Meet Queer SWANA Sex Workers and Drag Performers, a documentary about queer SWANA sex workers and drag performers, which debuted at One Institute's "Circa: Queer Histories Festival".[7]
Anoush Ellah has performed at Pride Toronto,[8] and is a regular performer at "Hoebibi", an event featuring Middle Eastern drag artists in Toronto. Reflecting on their art, they have noted that "part of what I wanted to do was bring the culture into the queer spaces and in a way kinda shove it down everybody’s throat…you can’t walk down church street and hear Duduk sounds blasting from a club like it's just not gonna happen…but that’s the vision that I have when I walk down [Toronto’s LGBTQ] village.”[9]
Anoush Ellah uses the pronouns he/they out of drag and she/her in drag.[10]