Glamour, romance in the air of ‘Love Is Crazy’
Justin Vivian Bond made a name as Kiki Du-Rane, the fictional aging alcoholic lounge singer of the drag cabaret duo Kiki and Herb. But Bond’s latest show, “Love Is Crazy,” is all real and all personal.
“I show up and start talking,” says the Tonynominated transgender singer, author, actor (“Shortbus,” “High Maintenance”) and performance artist. “It’s not like I don’t think about what I’m going to say. I don’t like to just regurgitate past moments when there are so many interesting moments happening in the present.”
“Love Is Crazy” is part of the new season of Lott Entertainment Presents, which brings acts from the renowned New York City venue Joe’s Pub. The show takes place at the Alley Theatre on Thursday and Friday.
It’s a kind of uproarious cabaret you’d never expect at the Alley, but Bond says the show goes deeper than pure fun. “Love Is Crazy” is a concert inspired by deep, personal truths. Bond spoke recently about the show’s origins.
Q: “Love Is Crazy” originated in Paris. What was your inspiration?
A: I first did it at Théâtre National de Chaillot in Paris on Valentine’s Day around three years ago. I always thought of Paris as a wildly romantic city. I’ve had some pretty wild romantic experiences there. That’s why we centered the piece around love and glamour and romance, the mistakes we find ourselves making, and the crazy risks we take when we’re under the spell of love. That’s how the show got started. It turned out to be one of my favorite shows ever.
Q: So you had fallen in love in Paris?
A: No, I went to Paris with, the first time was with one of my exes. I didn’t know he lived in Paris. We had been together for several years. I was performing in London, and he took me to Paris on our days off. I was suddenly aware that he spoke fluent French. So he took me around.
Another time, when I had broken up with that person, I was meeting a lover in Paris who was from London, and I was from New York. And we had several intoxicants. It was a full moon, and we jumped into the Seine at two in the morning and swam out to the middle of it and had a moment. That was probably the most crazy thing. I always say, if I die young, it’ll be from ingesting radioactive isotopes from the Seine at two in the morning.
Q: You can just say you were intoxicated by life, love and the Parisian air.
A: Something happens when I’m there. There’s no getting around it.
Q: I know this is kind of a stereotype for Paris, but is there an element of certain places inhabiting different kinds of romance?
A: That must be it. It’s also because Paris, the way it’s laid out, is so beautiful. There’s only so many things you can do. Look at art, eat food, or drink good wine. All of those things lead to a flight of fancy.
Q: Does it feel different to perform in different cities?
A: The set list is pretty predetermined. But my philosophy is, show up and start talking. There are certain stories I can always call on. I live pretty much in the moment. What I may or may not be going through with my personal life is something I’m always going to address. At this particular juncture, I’m single, so that will affect things differently. I went through a breakup a few months ago. I haven’t really talked about it on stage.
Q: I’m sorry to hear that. A: I’m fine. Some things are for the best.
Q: But sometimes there are positive things that come out of breakups? I don’t know where you are with the breakup.
A: I’m just fine. Just fine. And by fine, I mean barely.
Q: I was watching your talk on PEN America, where you give advice to young artists, and you talk about knowing yourself and who you want to be. How did you come up with that mantra?
A: You should always speak your truth but realize that the truth changes. It’s a big mistake to allow yourself to calcify or ossify where you’re so attached to having decided something that you’re no longer able to be what you need to be. That’s why I show up and start talking. It’s not like I don’t think about what I’m going to say. I don’t like to just regurgitate past moments when there are so many interesting moments happening in the present.
Q: You must go through life knowing that someday you’ll tell this story or that story.
A: I don’t know if that’s a motivating factor for why I do things. That’d be a little scary. I mean, I love a story, and I will make decisions based on what makes a good story, but that’s me thinking more, I’m talking to my girlfriends than to an audience. Of course, oftentimes it does work its way to the stage.