Tim Murray says Calvin Klein underwear boxes & Drew Barrymore’s ‘Scream’ wig were formative gay experiences
Wicked on Broadway, he had no choice but to make Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, his entire personality.Years later, he’s touring the country with his hilarious one-man show, Tim Murray Is Witches—just in time for the Halloween season—which is all about the impact Elphaba, Sabrina, and other cackling, broom-handling, and frequently green women had on his life as a young gay man trying to make sense of his identity.In other words, Murray is well aware of the ways pop culture can shape and define who we are, which is precisely why we invited him to make his picks for The Queer Time Capsule, our ongoing project where our favorite LGBTQ+ stars select five items from the culture that they feel are worthy of being preserved for future generations.Subscribe to our newsletter for your front-row seat to all things entertainment with a sprinkle of everything else queer.Now in the middle of his second national tour for Tim Murray Is Witches, the seasoned comic is more comfortable than ever on the stage—and in the green face-paint—and it shows, because this show sings.
Literally. It’s the perfect blend of original music, stand-up and a heaping dose of crowdwork.To Murray’s delight, all kinds of audiences are howling along at Witches, from the queers and the witchy girlies, to the notoriously hard to please gay guys, and even the straights!“The show is about me growing up queer in a small town in Ohio and feeling like a witch because of it,” Murray shares. “But it’s also about making the audience feel good—we’re welcoming you in, making you comfortable, and just letting everyone have a little fun.”He-Man, Gaston, WWE wrestlers… all of Tim Murray’s childhood crushes have one thing in common.In Murray’s view, the fact that he’s been able to throw himself into a show that’s so specific to him, yet one that allows for anyone to see themselves in his story, is a sign that the culture is moving in the right direction.“It’s getting so much better,” he adds.
