Mitzi Macintosh
The man behind Mitzi is anything but a drag, as Andrew Georgiou discovers
Nestled on the third floor of the Imperial Hotel lies the city's unofficial drag museum. Inside this tiny room, almost two decades' worth of costumes made from chiffon, lycra, lamé - a smorgasbord of unnatural fibres and highly flammable materials - greets you like some camp lost ark. "Excuse the fucking mess, boys." The man behind every last stitch of these glimmering gems apologises for the state of disarray. The room looks as though Bob Mackey himself has thrown up in it. Colourful, vibrant, brilliant. Graeme Browning has sub-consciously collated the history of Sydney's drag scene in a single room.
As the lovable, ever charitable Mitzi Macintosh, Browning has been performing and producing some of the city's best drag for over 15 years. With every vogue, shimmy and high kick, Mitzi Macintosh has kept the authenticity of the genre beautifully intact. The man behind the make up however came from a creative culture of a different kind.
"My parents were missionaries so I was raised in a very Christian environment," says Browning. "What I did like about that lifestyle was that we were always encouraged to be creative. My father had us make our own belts which had our names on them," he recalls. "That came in rather handy actually. When the kids at school bashed me with my belt they could at least call me by my name and not just poofta."
While Browning enjoyed participating within the Blue Mountains tight-knit Christian community and volunteering as a Sunday School teacher, his sexuality began to create various conflicts for him. "It was church by day and cock by night so I had to ask myself the hard question; did I want to be fully involved with the church or fully involved with dick?" When Browning's sexuality came to light, the church made the decision for him.
Free of his religious commitments, Browning focused his attention on his creative pursuits by enrolling in a three-month fashion course. "In those three months, I learnt everything to do with sewing, fabric, design and it started me on the road to fashion."
Able to spot an over-locked hemline from 50 paces and inspired by the flamboyant designs of Stuart Membrey, Browning found himself equipped with the skills needed to take on the Big Smoke.
In 1989, Browning moved to Sydney and it wasn't long before the budding seamstress landed a job as a costume designer at the Imperial Hotel, the iconic home of Sydney drag (currently closed for rennovations but set to re-open in the spring), and soon found himself juggling a night job both behind and on the stage as Sydney's newest drag personality. For the last 14 years, Mitzi has been one of Sydney's most iconic drag queens.
"To find something current in pop culture and make a comment on it through drag can be a great thing to do," says Browning. "I don't think I will ever be able to walk away from that fully, but I am always ready for a new challenge."
See Mitzi drop her balls every Tuesday at Bingay, the camp version of Bingo, at The Sly Fox: 199 Enmore Rd, Enmore 2042. (02 9557 1016). 8pm-late; and Ho Town, Mr. Mary's, 106-110 George St, Redfern 2016. (02 9690 0610). Saturdays. 10pm-late