From moving performances to their homes (Logan Hardcore, Holly Dae, Fifi DuBois) to crafting full-on sitcom recreations (Sherry Vine, Mario Diaz, & Jackie Beat), drag performers have been beyond resourceful during the pandemic. They have been able to find ways to have their art seen & at the same time, elevate their own craft, upping their game for our eventual return to nightlife. New York City’s Pixie Aventura is already one of the premier performers in New York City, but she has now managed to find a new way to fuse together her love of drag with telling some pretty important (and personal) queer stories.
During her new limited series Drag Me Out, Aventura spoke with Broadway star Telly Leung about his parents dramatic and personal departure from communist China to Hong Kong, chatted with comedian Mateo Lane about his passion for the iconic Maria Callas, and dished with DJ Larry Peoples (aka DJ 2Face) about how he got his start as a DJ in the competitive market of New York City. Aventura gave each of these performers a patented Pixie makeover during their conversations, keeping them intrigued until the moment they each saw their face (consistently to rave reviews)!
Pixie Aventura told me exclusively “When I first came up with the idea of creating ‘Drag Me Out’, it was mostly a way to release and express myself artistically throughout this past year of not doing much. As I started to break it down, yes, it was a collaborative effort of creating the ideal drag persona for each individual, but what came out of it was an incredible opportunity to interview all of these different people and see what their take on drag was and a chance to tell their own queer stories.”
Aventura went on to say “Leaving the finale for my dad was a very special one, I didn’t know what to expect – both from the makeup and what he would say, but it was very exciting. As I mentioned in the video, I hadn’t truly come out to him before the transformation. It wasn’t because I didn’t care about what he thought, but because I never felt I had to. I know that’s not very common, so I took this opportunity to put it out into the world. No matter how many steps we take forward, there can still be someone that needs hope, or at least, a glimpse of good. This project tested my skills in makeup but also started gearing me towards my dream project of creating a table talk platform Queer Latinx individuals.”
Aventura’s dad/muse Oscar Gonzalez Jr exclusively told Instinct “The main thing is- why not? When I got asked to do it – I was ready to do it. I knew it was important because I wanted to show support for the LGBTIA+ community. Showing my support adds a little more to the cause of fighting for the rights that you deserve, same as any straight person like myself. I’m here for all of you. I’m very confident in my manhood and I saw this as an experience that any actor would go through. I haven’t cared and won’t care if someone has anything negative to say, I’m very unbothered and happy. Most importantly I did it for my son, because I will support him and help him in any way to achieve his goals.”
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