You might be asking yourself, how is tonight's theme any different from almost every other Trannyshack, right? Well, there's a particular breed of male rock star all too absent from today's gaggle of icons, but who at one time flourished throughout the '70s and '80s, and into the '90s too I suppose – The Man in Make-Up! Perhaps it all started with Bolan, Bowie and Roxy, but who can really find the source of anything when it comes to pop culture. All we know is that at sometime in the early, early '70s, the male peacock/rockstar leaped onto the charts, and created his own look to go with the now-glamtastic hit sounds of amp-ed up glitter, sequins and cocaine. Aside form Glam Rock, the '80s brought us the New Romantics and the Gods of Hair Metal, who, if you asked me, really perfected the whole notion of 'men in make-up'. I can only surmise who we'll be graced with this evening…The Human League? Adam Ant? Kiss? Marilyn Manson? Poison? Gary Numan? The only sure thing this evening is that it'll be a drag-queen free show – tonight, everyone's a boy! Or at least DOING a boy.
Tonight's theme is co-hosted by the very queen who first brought us this legendary night back in 2005 – our very own Syphilis Diller! Syphilis first performed at Trannyshack via the 5th Annual Star Search Pageant back in December 2003. In no time, Syphy was a more-than-welcome regular on our stage, possessing a wondrous gift for concept and humor that immediately fit with the age-old precepts of Trannyshack. Syphilis went on to compete in the 9th Annual Miss Trannyshack Pageant in November 2004, the exploits of which are incredibly documented in Sacha Aiken's award-winning documentary "Blood, Sweat & Glitter". Syphy's epic performance to Prince's often-overlooked masterpiece "Let's Pretend We're Married", is the stuff of Trannyshack legend, though at the time (as is documented in the movie) it was much-debated; at one point in the film during the judge's deliberations, Syphilis was actually the winner! In my opinion, any number that incorporates a bride wearing a 15-foot wide wedding dress (that also fits her synchronized dancing bridesmaids at the same time), and said bride turns into a 60-foot(?) tall (by means of a cherry picker) priest with floor-length satin gown…well, I thought it was, as the kids say these days, hella fierce.
Aside from her pageant number, Syphilis has graced with some truly memorable and extraordinary numbers over the last 4 1/2 years. She tackled the terrible Taliban with A Flock of Seagulls' "I Ran"; she's done spot-on impersonations of Madonna ("Dress You Up") and The Go-Go's ("Vacation", complete with pink tutu-clad back-ups and water-ski tow ropes); Michael Alig & Co. fell victim to Syphilis' warped imagination with a truly haunting, fogged and flashlit number (was it Radiohead?) from "Club Kid" night. Syphilis even managed to create one of the few, literal drag mash-ups I can think of, by performing The Cure's "Lovesong" AS Michael Jackson, turning Robert Smith's lovely, melancholic lyrics into something altogether pederastic and hysterically disturbing. Syphilis Diller's been a fantastic performer all these years; her wonderful, dark sense of humor, and her commitment to 'doing something different' have endeared her to all of us at Trannyshack. Come down tonight and join us in thanking Syphy for all the remarkable and often side-splitting memories.
Next week is Heklina's birthday. It's David Bowie Tribute Night, co-hosted by Kiddie. Need I say more?
- Bobby Barber