A documentary film produced by Robbie Hopcraft, about the lives of several different and unique Drag Queens living, working and performing on stage and off, at the 801 Cabaret Club, in the little Island paradise called Key West.
Key West is a small city in the great state of Florida, located at the southernmost point of the Florida Keys Island chain. It’s actually closer to Cuba than it is to Miami. Key West is a jewel of a city with a rich history, diverse people of different culture and traditions, beautiful scenery, with one of the largest historic districts in the country, and a “come as you are” attitude that makes it a place that people from all over the world want to come and spend some time to relax and enjoy. The “Keys”, as their nicknamed, is home to the only living Coral Reef in North America. It’s bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Gulf of Mexico on the other. It has world class fishing, sailing, scuba diving, snorkeling, power boating and absolutely beautiful weather on a year round basis.
But let’s get to the heart of the subject matter. The characters in this film are all very real, very talented, quite unique and very different in both lifestyle and personality. Drag Queens make up a very small genre of our society. What is a Drag Queen anyway? Drag Queens are men who dress in woman’s clothing, wear lots of make up, wear very high heels, have outlandish hairdo’s and amazing wigs. Some wear tight fitting corsets to mold their shapes to look like a female. Some wear fitted bras with molded breasts in them, some wear tight fitting dresses, and most wear gaudy and outrageous jewelry. Some of them have had breast implants and others have undergone partial or even complete sex change operations. Some are very beautiful and look enough like a woman that you really can’t tell the difference. Others are not so beautiful!! Most refer to themselves as a “she”, but there are a few that refer to themselves as a “he” I have found that they are all ”gay”, and most have had problems within their families as the discovery of being “gay” unfolded at some point in their lives. Many of them have been treated badly at different points in there life and carry the scars of this with them. Key West is a very open-minded community with a large gay population and they are free to maintain their lifestyle in the community. There is still discrimination that goes on, but on a much smaller scale than the rest of society in general.
Drag Queens are a very talented group and they all have a strong desire to perform onstage. Many of them have come from different theatrical backgrounds, either growing up performing as kids in school or with different types of performing troupes. One thing I’ve discovered is that you have to be good to be chosen as a Drag Queen performer in Key West. They don’t just allow any Drag Queen up on stage; you have to prove that you’re good before you’re allowed on stage. You have to audition and be approved by the stage director, who is named Sushi, to go on stage in front of a live audience.
How in the world did I get involved with a group of drag queens? I’m an independent filmmaker who’s lived in Key West for the past 16 years. I’ve completed documentary films on different groups, special events and festivals all around Florida and in Key West. I’ve seen the Drag Queens perform and seen them on the streets for many years, and I was filming the New Year’s Eve celebration a couple of year’s ago. It’s a pretty well known New Year’s Eve celebration that’s attended by several thousand people, and is shown on CNN all around the world. The highlight of New Year’s Eve is this gorgeous drag queen gets lowered from the top of a building in a giant Red Shoe at the stroke of midnight. Before filming that evening, I thought to myself, I’ve never had a conversation with a drag queen and was curious and wondered what their like. I wanted to meet the drag queen who was going to be in the giant red shoe. So I inquired about meeting her, or him, in this case I found out he was a she, and was given permission to go to her home, which in itself is quite an accomplishment. I wanted to ask her some question while shooting film footage of her before she started getting ready for her performance in the red shoe. I found her to be a most interesting, very attractive and an incredible talented person. She showed me to her sewing room and the absolutely beautiful gown she had made and hand painted for the New Year’s Eve celebration. I told her I had an idea and that I’d love to meet with her after the New Year’s excitement had subsided. I called her a week or so later, reminded her who I was, I mean it was new year’s eve when we met, and there was Champagne flowing, and people tugging at her and vying for her time and attention. So I thought it wise to remind her that I was the guy who came to her home to film. She remembered and we talked for a few minutes. I told her I had this idea for a project I wanted to discuss with her and she agreed to get together for a meeting. I discussed the idea with about making a documentary film about her life, and the lives of a few other drag queens. She was up for it, and told me that others had talked about it but no one had actually done it. So we agreed on the way it would be done and the terms and I put an agreement together and we began the film shoot. Her name is Sushi, and she’s by far the most famous drag queen in Key West, and parts beyond, as well as being the most attractive and the most talented. She’s also a very caring person who takes care of her momma, who now lives with Sushi, and the rest of the house full of Drag Queens. Thus began the documentary “Audience with the Queens”. It’s now more than a year later and I’ve completed the first segment of what I hope will become a series of episodes. It’s a fascinating film that will both entertain you and make you want to know more about these talented, complex and caring individuals. I hope you see the film.
Filmed and Produced by Robbie Hopcraft in Key West, Florida.
For information about the film and to find out more about the drag queens who star in it and the lives that they live,
Go To www.keywestdragqueens.com
The film has its own website:
www.AudiencewiththeQueens.com
And a Blog
http://www.keywestdragqueens.com/drag
