SFist Interviews Kirk Read

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Branded "the literary equivalent of Rufus Wainwright" by the Chron - oh, Chronicle, you kill us! - Kirk Read is putting on a show, folks! And it's jammed packed with multimedia sorcery, poignancy, music, bon mots, hilarity, and a real live penis. (Check out a clip of the show right here why don't you?) We chatted with Read recently, demanding to know more about him, his show, his love of SF, and his drinking habits.

(Oh! And at tonight 10 p.m. show of This is the Thing, Kirk is offering free tickets to the first four respondents. Email kirkread@earthlink.net with "Ticket giveaway for This is the Thing" in the subject line, and you might get on the list!)

Here's what went down:

OK, how long have you lived in San Francisco?

I moved to San Francisco 10 years ago from Virginia. I was editing a monthly queer newspaper a mile away from Pat Robertson's media empire. So it was a big move. I live in the Mission and my landlady feeds hundreds of pigeons. I've come to appreciate the pigeons. It's a waste of energy to scorn pigeons.

Good Lord, what makes you stay here so long?

I love the scale of San Francisco. I tried living in New York but it stressed me out too much. I think of New York as an angry father. I think of San Francisco a comforting mommy. I grew up in a small southern town in Virginia, so I love the fact that it's a big city with a smalltown vibe. San Franciscans have access to the natural world that's unbelievable. I love going camping on the Yuba River. I understand when people romanticize previous eras of San Francisco. It's easy to believe that you were born too late when people start talking about how great things were in the 70s or the early 90s. But as far as I'm concerned, each of us is responsible for creating a new golden age right now.

Now, tell us about your new show?

This is the Thing is a 70 minute multimedia extravaganza. I work with Jeffrey Alphonsus Mooney, who plays live music on a banjo, electric guitar and keyboard. I tell stories about being a hooker, the Brady Bunch, computer addiction and other stuff. I do evangelical lip synch. It's very homemade -- I made the props and costumes myself. There's some trippy, funny as shit video by Liz Singer. There's a lot of laughing and a lot of touching moments and a bit of "What the fuck is he doing?"

What inspired This is the Thing's unfurling?

I got a grant from the San Francisco Arts Commission and decided to spend every penny of it building my first show. I'm not a regular pot-smoker because it makes me even speedier than I already am. But I got stoned a couple times in one week and started writing down a series of really strange ideas in my notebook. I write compulsively in a notebook. That's where everything comes from.

I've been moving away from reading my work off paper. Now I memorize pieces and improvise and do lip synch and use weird props. It's so liberating. Performing at Porchlight Storytelling series and going on the Sex Workers Art Show tours has really stepped things up for me as a performer. For years I've been doing 10 minute slots on bills with lots of writers. That's where I come from. So this was a chance to really shake out some ghosts and grow as a performer.

(SFist does not condone drug use, Kirk. We digress.) Now, tell us something people may be surprised to hear?

I have some really embarrassing music on my ipod. Motley Crue, Journey, 38 Special, KISS. You shouldn't be ironic about everything. I genuinely LIKE the Bob Seger song "Night Moves." I think the secret of being cool is releasing yourself from the paranoia of being uncool. It's hard to do. But wouldn't everyone be happier if we all just gave up the game of cool?

Will the homosexuals like your show? If so, why?

Definitely -- the audiences have been extremely mixed sexually and age-wise, which reflects my social world. I love that. We had a seven year-old girl in the audience last night, which blew my mind a little bit since I get naked in this show. It's a very queer show. I think lots of "straight" people in this town are totally queer. The show is like a midnight movie. You never really know what's going to happen next. I think gay people are getting so many messages thrown at them that encourage them to assimilate and use the litter box. This show is about not using the litter box.

(SFist advises all felines to use the litter box. Again, we digress.) Tell us, Kirk, will there be nudity in your show? Will you provide us with wet-dream fodder?

YES! Full-on total nudity

Besides yourself, of course, who or what is the best local talent SF has going for it right now?

I am really inspired by the performers of Trannyshack. Going there is like going to church. I will miss that place something awful.

And finally, tell us your favorite bar and/or post-AA meeting hangout?

I like Sundays at the Eagle -- it's sort of like a gay Kiwanis club experience, running into all these people from different stages of your life. You get a little beer buzz and you just walk around hugging people.

What: This is the Thing
When: Tonight, 8/14, 8/15, and 8/16
Time: 8 p.m.
Where: Shotwell Studios (3252A - 19th Street)
Tickets: $12-20

Image credit: Ed Wolf