Hello, folx.
It has been over a year since I last updated these ramblings. What happened? 2020, that’s what happened.
I was at the Rogue Festival in Fresno, CA, when the pandemic lockdowns began. Every one of us performers watched their income, a year’s worth for some people, dry up in a matter of days. All of it, even the “back-up” jobs. When you’re a talker, you gotta be near people. Talkin’ to yourself, while a pretty common occurrence in my life (what with having an external processor, so to SPEAK ha HA!), just doesn’t pay the bills. Group that with an unstable home environment (read as, I needed to GTFO), and parental health issues, and I’ve found myself back in my hometown of Lake Jackson, TX. It’s meant to be temporary, but at this point, who knows….
I wish I could tell y’all that I’ve used all of this unemployment time to work out everyday and create tons of new material.
I wish I could…
…but I can’t. And ya know what? That’s O.K.
I did have some good things grow out of this manure year. This year has seen the birth of my newest show, “Rosegold”.
“Rosegold” debuted in March at the 2020 Fresno Rogue Festival as a staged reading (because of the concussion… did I mention the concussion? I gave myself a concussion… on stage… miming being on a ship and crashing into an iceberg… *sigh*). Over the summer, I had an opportunity to adapt it for streaming performance thanks to Fringe Live Stream. It’s scary. On purpose. “Horror” is not an easy genre to capture in a live show, much less a solo show, but so far it seems to be effective.
Set at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, Jamie speaks up for the first time to tell her “how I got to here” story. We soon learn that she was what horror films call a “Final Girl”, the one that got away, but her demons still haunt her, quite literally.
Is your interest piqued? Well, you can see this show from the comfort of your own home! It will be part of theSpaceUK’s online season 2, running January 8th through 31st (2021). This Edinburg-based theatre is offering over 50 shows from artists across the globe for free, so you can stream to your heart’s content. (For more info, click HERE)
Also, this show will be part of Fresno Rogue Festival’s 2021 line-up, and possibly Boulder Fringe and others (depending on the *makes sweeping gesture* EVERYTHING).
But, let’s say you don’t want to wait a week to start seeing my mug in action. And you’re nostalgic for a little holiday hangover, 2019-style. Well, do I have a bargain for you:
Last December, Frank SHEnatra made an appearance at the Renee’s Queer Cabaret holiday special, “The Island of Misfit Queers”. Filmed in those pre-COVID days of yore at Curious Comedy Theater, this showcase certainly lives up to its name. A celebration of queer culture, it’s chock full of music, burlesque, comedy, drag, and beauty. And “puppies”. And honesty. And strong opinions. Very strong opinions. Opinions that are still valid, if not more so, one year later. You can watch it on YouTube by clicking here. SHEnatra makes his appearance in the middle, but make sure you stick around to listen to the beautiful song, “Oceanside”, by the titular Renee Muzquiz. I dare you to not cry. In the good way.
Well, there we go. A year’s worth of time noted in a few paragraphs. See you in the new cycle.