Calliope Draper (They/Them) is a queer, transgender bartender based in Edmonton, Alberta and operates out of Bar Clementine. Calliope’s bartending career has been defined in large part by their queerness. In their first foray into bartending they became the first ever nonbinary competitor to advance in the Diageo World Class Canada competition, eventually winning one of the challenges at the national finals. Calliope’s overarching goal behind the bar is to create comfortable welcoming spaces for folks who otherwise are made to feel unwelcome or outright at risk. For Calliope, bartending is both a creative outlet and a place for progressive change as it provides them the opportunity to share the stories and experiences of their community and challenge prejudice through normalization.
In their time outside the bar, Calliope is often found with their fiance AJ and their two cats Lucifer and Soggy, out in Edmonton’s famous river valley looking at plants and birds, or searching for more vintage brass birds for their collection.
Find them on Instagram.