Acting Out: Out Front interviews Courtney Act of ‘Drag Race’

Courtney Act found it ‘refreshing’ that I haven’t watched any of RuPaul’s Drag Race this season. “You have an unbiased view, which is good,” she observed in that kick-ass Australian accent of hers. Still in the runnings to win at the time of this interview, she spent a relaxing hour on the phone with Out Front to discuss everything from gender identity to sex in drag. Though a rising superstar on the American drag circuit, the zen-inspiring lover of meditation offered none of the catty hijinks or barbed witticism of the famous drag acts she’s been a fan of for years, which I found (in its own way) quite refreshing.

Let’s go back. What was life in Oz like for a young Courtney Act?

Growing up in Brisbane, I would sing and dance around the living room, so my mom put me in singing, dancing and acting lessons after school. I fell in love with performing arts during childhood. When I moved to Sydney at 18, I kissed my first boy and discovered drag and the gay nightlife and it all took all from there.

And how about life at the moment?

In 2003, I was on the first season of Australian Idol and was (rejected) as a boy, but when I went in drag, I was put through to the finals. I got signed to Sony BMG and have had a fabulous career for the past 11 years in Australia. In Australia, I was able to make mistakes, but (in America) I get a second chance with much
bigger stakes.

Can you tell me a bit about what it’s like being on Drag Race?

I’m such a fan of the show. I watched it in Australia and I’ve seen every season. Just being there, to have come to America and landed on the show is very cool. To watch it on TV is such a fascinating experience.

I met Ru briefly years ago, but it was like a quick hello kind of thing. He’s such a striking man, in real life. He’s handsome and tall with this energy … and those cheekbones.

Is there any footage you hope the producers of the show don’t use?

I can’t really comment on that, but I can say that I felt really … focused [during the filming]. I felt that flow that comes from doing something you love. It’s been very positive, a wonderful experience.

There can be a serious amount of shade on Drag Race. Is a lot of it just for show or does it get crazy enough to drive the contestants batty?

There’s definitely some driving of crazy, but not (all of it). Bianca Del Rio and I have had a lot of rapport with each other — I’m the sweet, she’s the salty — and we’ll shoot looks and comments at each other, but it’s because we share a love of insults. We understood that, but when editing gets to it, it’s all insult and no love. There’s a bit of throwing shade, but as a group we’re really kumbaya in spite of the intense moments. And another thing: people are lovely to your face, but it’s in those interviews that the truth comes out. You’re in a private little room and it’s like, “Oh. Is that what she really thought?” That’s where the real shade happens.

Do you see the world differently when you’re presenting as a woman?

That’s funny. Chaz (Bono) and I were talking about gender expression until the wee hours of the morning. We often have lengthy talks about sexuality and gender. I feel like, in this world, we tend to view everything, not just gender, in black or white. It’s very binary. I think gender falls on a spectrum, sort of like the Kinsey scale. I think gay men and women might be meeting on an axis where gender and sexuality cross. I think the term “transgender” seems to signify becoming the opposite gender, but … I think gender fluidity is something relevant to a lot more people.

I love to make people think — especially straight men. They’re the ones who have the most rigid thinking in our society. When a straight man realizes Courtney is not a biological woman, he has to really consider that and think about it. Anytime you can make somebody think, that’s good. A lot of society motors along without it.

I’m gonna read you an internet criticism and you tell me how you’d respond: “Courtney might not win because, like Willam, successful people doing well for themselves don’t make for good TV.”

That’s one of my fears. I don’t have a television. I don’t watch TV, but when I used to watch ages ago, I’d say, “These people are fucking nuts! They’re irrational, overemotional, and I don’t think they’re teaching anyone how to act.” I do a lot of meditation and yoga and try to be as peaceful as I can, and I don’t think that makes for good television… but what I do think it makes for is good entertainment.

“To Russia with Love” … was that an intentional jab at the administration over there?

Well, it was kind of the opposite to a jab, in a way. I mean, the climate in Russia is what inspired it, but people can get so angry, and I think that anger should be a signpost for knowing what you do and don’t want. You have to focus on being the change you want to see, so rather than pushing back on the hate, I’m trying to inspire the love. Russia is a really different place from what we’re used to and we tend to judge it on our values, but it honestly isn’t a great place for LGBT people and it isn’t a great place for women. I wanted to send a message of love to everyone there — even Putin. Obviously he needs more love or he wouldn’t be acting this way.

You’re Putin me through a peace and love filter here, you’re so damn positive. Lemme in on some of your dark side!

You know what? I went crazy when I was 18 – 24. I was a tortured youth, like everybody else was. I always remember thinking, “There’s got to be something more.” So I went on a spiritual journey through books and yoga and meditation. I went on a ten-day retreat where you meditate for 11 hours a day with Buddhists. Ever since then, I’ve been really peaceful and lovely — even when I was in the middle of crazy shit. I felt like I was an observer, rather than someone caught in it. Like being on Drag Race. When things get tense and crazy, I step back and say, “I’m on a TV show doing what I love.’ I always just feel really great about everything. Even when I hang my hose up, I’m going to appreciate this time. As far as vices, I don’t consider them that. Like having sex in drag … some people think that’s perverted. For me, I don’t have any negative judgments and if I find myself having them, I realize that I’m not seeing things correctly. There’s a saying: “If you don’t seek heaven in the profane and the profound, you’re missing half the story.” Some people call things vices; I call them fun.

As the shows air and the eliminations start bottlenecking our contestants, the most I hear about Courtney is: “Fish is not art! It has no place in real drag competitions!” How do you respond?

Female impersonation is the backbone and origin of drag. Just as there are many facets to gender, sexuality or race, there is great diversity in drag. Female illusion, club kid, glamorous, clown, gender fuck … just because you look like a dude in a dress doesn’t make it art. Art is art. My looks and performances are my art and they have been conceptual, creative and glamorous. Just because something looks effortless doesn’t mean it is. In drag, as in life, the unseen is where the real art lies.

How’s your experience thus far with the show? You feel you’re properly represented with all the edits and what-have-you?

The experience on camera and in real life has been great. If I may use a Beyonce reference, I feel like I am riding a surfboard, the wave is getting bigger and bigger. I implore people to explore their favorite girls’ live and online work through YouTube videos, Facebook posts, etc. They really enrich insight and understanding.