Whether from scar tissue formed many years ago or as recent in origin as this very morning, the personal struggles we carry with us inform who we are, and how we treat others. The wounds that never seem to heal are often the ones we keep to ourselves, rather than take the real risk of […]
“Where do you see yourself at this time next year?” wasn’t always such a loaded question. Before COVID-19, forward thinkers could confidently project ahead 365 days to find themselves seated in a restaurant booked to capacity, rubbing shoulders with fellow theatergoers, or making good on the “If I’m elected” promises that swept you into office. […]
BY MICHAEL MUSTO | Having done a list of “Celebrities I’ve Met” and included some drag performers in it, let me go full feather boa and do a rundown of just the drag queens—creatures who live their dream while enlivening the nightlife on a regular basis. (And yes, there will be nightlife again.) There are […]
BY MICHAEL MUSTO | I’ve always had a complex love/hate relationship with the art of attention-seeking. As a shy child, I always craved the spotlight, but since I was conditioned to feel unworthy of it, I got nervous about success and sometimes sabotaged my chances to seize it. My familiar pattern is that I’m dying […]
BY MICHAEL MUSTO | I love a good drag name because it not only encompasses clever wordplay, but it can also be refreshingly incorrect, because it’s only a name, after all, and drag queens are supposed to shake up societal norms. I’ve written for years about the best drag names, and now I’ve dreamed up […]
BY SCOTT STIFFLER | The mirror has four faces—in front of it, that is, as two maskless BFFs breeze through an ask-me-anything exchange with a worldwide audience, while gazing into a reflective surface as they apply the makeup that transforms them into NYC-based drag queens Jackie Cox and Chelsea Piers. Sitting shoulder-to-shoulder, the frequently-tested-for-COVID-19 bubblemates […]
BY PUMA PERL | The first time I saw Joey Paulina, he was clad in a tight royal blue dress and stilettos, executing perfect backflips down the center aisle of the Bowery Poetry Club. Once onstage, he hit more octaves than I could count and managed to be both operatic and hilarious. Whether at his West […]
BY MICHAEL MUSTO | In my many years of covering entertainment, I’ve met up to 2,000 celebrities, but who’s counting? I’ve adored a lot of them, was irked by a few others, and generally got a sense of what makes them sparkle, though some simply exploded and left a mess. In the following list of […]
Writing the Apocalypse is a weekly series featuring the poems, essays, and recollections of Puma Perl, with subject matter influenced by her experiences as a NYC resident during the COVID-19 pandemic. IN THE MAYOR’S HOUSE: In Commemoration of World AIDS Day | TEXT & PHOTOS BY PUMA PERL I had planned to leave the golden man’s […]
BY MICHAEL MUSTO | A compulsive workaholic, I’ve had jobs pretty nonstop since the 1970s. After graduating college, I had office gigs while freelancing on the side and eventually became a successful full-time writer. In 1984, I landed a column in the Village Voice, which lasted 28 and a half years. And that was hardly […]