I sat down with actor Drew Droege poolside in his backyard to record the seventh episode of my new podcast, The Fayme Report. During our interview, gays hating other gays, his upcoming one man show, representation in Hollywood and his thoughts on Pete Buttigieg all came up.
On gays hating other gays:
Drew Droege: That’s something that we all do. What’s great about us is that we celebrate our women and we celebrate our drag queens, but so many gay men have an issue with other gay men in terms of, they don’t want them, they don’t respond to them in a way.
Chasten and Pete Buttigieg (image via Instagram)
On Pete Buttigieg:
DD: Adam Lambert is a star… a mother fucking genius. Who deserves the respect and to be bowed down to. I just think the world of him and his talent. And it’s like we [gay men] kind of go, “Ugh,” but I don’t know what that’s about? We are having that right now with Pete Buttigieg where it’s like, only gay men are the ones saying: “Well America, isn’t ready for a gay president.”
Alexander Kacala: Or he’s not the “right kind of gay.”
DD: There’s also that stupid argument, and it is stupid. absolutely stupid the fact that we have all fought so hard for our own representation, like we said, to be seen. That is who he is so let him be that. How about born this way? That’s how he was born, so shut up.
On gay representation in Hollywood:
DD: It’s on us in the name of being the open minded diverse people to let ourselves into the equation, allow ourselves into the pictures as opposed to saying, “Well, you’re not going to like us because I’m a big queen so you’re not going to understand me or you’re going to judge me.”
That’s what you’re doing to yourself boo. That’s what we’re all doing to ourselves. So much of my work is I love playing horrible people. I love playing horrible gay people because, in my mind, comedy’s function is to tell people to not be this person. I think being fabulous and adorable is kind of boring.
AK: What is preventing studios from writing better gay characters, having more things be about…
DD: I think it’s a very complicated topic but I do think a lot of it is gay men in power, at these studios who are saying exactly what we are saying. Who are saying, “Well, they will never accept a gay lead.”
Droege in ‘Bright Colors, Bold Patterns.’
His new one man show:
DD: It’s called Happy Birthday Doug. It’s the flip of my first show Bright Colors, Bold Patterns. In that I was one character talking to multiple people, in this show I am multiple characters talking to one person. I am talking to this guy Doug at his birthday party and it’s set in a wine bar in Silverlake.
It’s less about me showing off a million different characters as much as sort of exploring what is similar about all of us. It’s more about how these men all different and different walks of life and ages and shapes, they all sort of represent parts of me and things inside of myself that I don’t love or things that I do love, you know? It’s also an amalgamation of people I know so we’ll see how it goes. I’m in a state right now of pure terror but that’s what it’s like to be creative, I guess.
The importance of intergenerational queer relationships:
DD: My first show was teaching and learning from the next generation. You know? We have a lot to learn from them and we have a lot to share with them and taking care of each other. I’m always very interested in the multi-generational aspect of our community where you kind of have to find your family. You have to find your queer aunts and uncles and you find the kids that you can sort of help out in return.
Happy Birthday Doug comes to Dynasty Typewriter in Los Angeles on Tuesday, June 11th, and Soho Playhouse in New York City on Saturday, June 29th.
