Few Aussie drag artists are as respected and multi-talented as the self-proclaimed “glamour bug” Etcetera Etcetera. We caught up with her as she gears up for a huge one-woman theatre show as part of Pride Amplified in Sydney WorldPride 2023, to talk about all the glitz, glamour and gaggery that await us all, and how to survive the theatrics of Mardi Gras.
Sydney WorldPride 2023 is almost among us — an exciting and beautiful time for queers to get out there and connect with their community in a multitude of ways. Naturally, with the world looking to Sydney for a gay old time, there’s a whole smorgasbord of events you can attend during.
One such event is Etcetera Etcetera’s one-woman show titled “Big Screen, Small Queen (Everything I Didn’t Learn at Film School)”.
“The title really just alludes to the fact that I spend a lot of time doubting myself as an artist and as a person,” Etcetera told PEDESTRIAN.TV.
“Going to film school and trying to break into the industry, I was like, I’ll never get there. And I felt so small.
“So I’m really just kind of poking fun at that idea that, as people that work in entertainment, we all look up to this monumental, giant, big screen as the pinnacle of achievement.”
Apart from being an incredible moment in Etcetera Etcetera’s career, seeing an Aussie drag artist having a one-woman show is absolutely remarkable. Drag — the art of subverting expectations and twisting the ideas of gender, which for many years has been underground — is finally being elevated to a level of respect some would only grant to fine art and stage shows. After all, what is drag if not art and theatrics?
While this isn’t the first drag theatre show to ever hit the stage (hell, Etcetera has already been a part of a national theatre tour), it just means so much as a queer person to see Aussie queer artistry level up and evolve to new heights.
Etcetera told us that the show will explore “the trauma of going to film school”, as she creates a movie on stage in which she plays the main character: herself.
An appreciation of film and all its fantastical elements will absolutely play a part. After all, movies inspire drag.
The films that informed the Etcetera Etcetera we see today? Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Muriel’s Wedding.
“I think that that film (Muriel’s Wedding) is just so, so funny, but also so sad and so beautiful, but also so tacky,” said Etcetera.
“It’s fact that two conflicting things can be true at once.
“Like you can live in an absolute shithole and still be the most glamorous, fabulous person in the world. Or you can be a giant cockroach but also be an incredibly commercially successful drag artist or you can be a queer person and be happy.”
Etcetera also shared some tips for surviving Sydney WorldPride 2023, including a handy guide for those who will be celebrating their first-ever Mardi Gras at one of the biggest queer events on Earth.
“I think you really have to be aware that this is going to be such a joyful, special memory for yourself,” she said.
“So take care of yourself, hold space for yourself, and try to find those moments and that connection and that community that you find special, and really try to live in that moment. Because I mean, we don’t get many moments where we get to celebrate ourselves as queer people.
“This is your chance to find out what makes you special and to connect with people like you. Wear sunscreen, stay hydrated, eat lots of food, test your drugs, have safe sex, get tested before and afterwards and just be kind to yourself.
“And also come see my one-woman show. That’s non-negotiable.”
Either I’ll see you at the Oxford Street Oporto or at the KXT theatre to witness some non-binary finery. Regardless, it’s going to be a gay old time.
