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 Taylor Mac
To sum up the New York-based performance artist Taylor Mac is no easy task. Entertainingly described as “born in the crucible of gay nightclub basements”, Mac has steadily established himself as a world-class performer through a long and successful series of deeply political shows.
From the moment he arrived, wide-eyed, in New York City back in 1992, he knew he was destined for a good deal more than his Nevada upbringing had ever offered. Mainly because the first thing he saw was a naked woman with pink hair and a monkey on her head, sitting in the snow on 7th Avenue, and no-one paid her the slightest bit of notice. “Well, what do you say,” Taylor says with the first of many cheeky giggles that punctuate proceedings, “It’s a reminder that anything’s possible, and that was all I needed!”
From the outset, Taylor’s solo shows have been archly politicised. He deplored the running down of social services under Ronald Reagan, that saw the mentally ill displaced from their homes and onto the streets. Clinton fared a little better, but the hard labour of George Dubya, whom he sums up as an “anti-intellectual religious fanatic”, has been, for his kind of show, a gathering of the clans. “I must admit he’s been quite influential in most of my work for a few years now,” Taylor acknowledges, “And the show I’m bringing to Adelaide, The Be(A)st of Taylor Mac, grew out of several other shows I’d put together. It’s word and song, but I wouldn’t call it cabaret!” Surely not.
Mac’s appearance is as much a source of amazement as his stirring subject matter. Drag, for sure, but seen in one of those side-show mirrors that makes things go all wrong. The frock looks like it might just be on backwards. “They’re fabulous,” he laughs, “they’re just what you need for social commentary. And a ukulele.” Oh yes, we forgot about that. Taylor’s original songs punctuate the performance, complete with unconventional accompaniment.
The Be(A)st of Taylor Mac wowed the audiences in Sydney last year. I wonder how much the show has changed.
“It’s always changing in some way,” Taylor explains, “because of its subversive nature, I guess. And some things will have to change with the US election coming up. You can’t believe how much there is about American politics that’s truly sad. You’ve got a situation where one half of the country is horrified at the Government and the other half is thrilled. But at the same time, so many people are afraid to have anything other than what they know right now. The shows in Adelaide will be only a month before the US election, so I guess I’ll be thinking about new material for November!”
“I had the most amazing time in Sydney.” A pause while he laughs, and laughs again. “I had just the best time. I was in the Opera House for heaven’s sake. There’s nothing like leaving work and looking up at the sails of the Opera House as you walk away. Every day I was flabbergasted, and everyone was so kind to me. It made me want to come back to Australia and to see more of it.”
And what about the invitation to come to Adelaide. “I’ve actually been hoping to come to Adelaide since 2006 when I did the Edinburgh Festival,” says Taylor, “I was sitting near someone who was on the phone and mentioned my name so I jumped up and said “That’s me!” and we got talking. I already had Sydney planned for the next year but that wasn’t at the right time for Feast, but we’ve kept in touch and here I am. I’m actually in Adelaide for about a week and I’m really pleased about that, because it means you get to meet so many people and you get to know them. I’m looking forward to that.”
Taylor Mac presents The Be(A)st of Taylor Mac at Nexus Cabaret for four shows only – November 16, 19, 20, 21 at 7:30pm. Tickets: $25 and $35 book at BASS on 131 246 or www.bass.net.au . Tickets on sale now.
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