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The
Houston International Festival holds a Carmen Miranda
talent show at Rich's
The
Houston International Festival is doing drag this year,
and on April Fool's Day, no less. That night, the I
Fest is staging a "Carmen Miranda celebrity tropical
fascination contest" (i.e. talent show) at Rich's, with
the best Carmen awarded a trip to Rio. With Brazil as
their focus country this year, the I Fest is going bananas
with the Carmen Miranda theme.
Out
of 20 performers at Rich's, the top three get to perform
their song at the I Fest itself to determine who wins
the trip to Rio. All this fruit-crazy drag will be taking
place on the festival's "cabaret" stage, nestled in
the courtyard of the old library building, on the north
side, in the "Chase Road to Rio" area. The only place
in the festival to serve alcohol, the cabaret will have
waiters who will also be wearing Miss M drag. In addition,
all the Carmen impersonators will be invited to ride
atop a giant Carmen float in the International Carnival
Parade on the opening afternoon of the festival.
Drag
right there on the steps of the library? Apparently.
It's part of the International Festival's "gay outreach."
"They've
been trying to find the right hook," says Alan Davidson,
who is acting as liaison between the I Fest and the
gay community, "-something that's respectful of the
gay community but is also fun." Davidson came up with
the idea for the Rich's talent show, and he's coordinating
the event. "Carmen Miranda is one of those Hollywood
icons that many gay men associate with. She was a very
elegant glamorous woman. For men who love to do drag,
Carmen Miranda is an easy target--the fruit basket on
the head, it's identifiable and fun."
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"Carmen
Miranda is one of camp's enduring icons," writes
Gary Morris, in a review of a 1996 documentary
about the Brazilian icon, Bananas Is My Business,
"the flamboyant outsider who makes us love her
through sheer force of personality."
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In
her day, the entrancing Miss M was the highest paid
female star in Hollywood. A smart charismatic performer
and splendid musician, she'd been a mega-star for a
decade in Brazil before coming to the U.S. However,
there was a darker side to her success, as she was forced
to play more and more caricaturish Latin stereotypes,
and her native country spurned her as a sellout. But
her flashiness had authentic roots. "The gaudy turbans,
bangles, and exposed midriffs were based on the costumes
of the Baiana, the poor black women who sold fruit in
Bahia," according to Morris.
Brazil
has apparently changed their mind about their effervescent
icon. The I Fest is flying in two male Carmen Miranda
impersonators from Brazil, along with two accompanying
musicians and a singer; they will be performing half-hour
sets three times a day on the cabaret stage. There also
will be a Carmen Miranda "museum" on display in the
library.
It's
not too late to enter; just contact Kaylor Williams
at the I Fest at 713/654-8808. "If you have an old fruit
basket in your closet," Davidson urges, "dust it off
and enter." All the money raised from the Rich's talent
show will go to the gay theater project, Unhinged Productions.
The celebrity MC will be Ernie Manouse, co-host of Channel
8's Weeknight Edition. Celebrity judges at Rich's
include owner of U.S. Construction Joe Hlavac, I Fest
executive director Jim Austin, and yours truly, OutSmart's
glamorous exotic editor. - Ann Walton Sieber
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