STAGES Episode 574: CHARLES BUSCH - PART 1

Charles Busch has forged a unique place in the world of entertainment as playwright, actor, director, novelist, cabaret performer and drag icon. He is the author and star of over twenty-five plays including The Divine Sister, The Lady in Question, Red Scare on Sunset, The Tribute Artist, The Confession of Lily Dare and Vampire Lesbians of Sodom; one of the longest running plays in the history of Off-Broadway. His play The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife ran for 777 performances on Broadway, won the Outer Circle Critics’ John L. Gassner Award for playwriting, received a Tony nomination for Best Play and is the longest running Broadway comedy of the past twenty-five years. 

He wrote and starred in the film versions of his plays, Psycho Beach Party and Die Mommie Die, the latter of which won him the Best Performance Award at the Sundance Film Festival. 

For two seasons, he appeared as Nat Ginzburg on the HBO series OZ and is the author of the auto-biographical novel Whores of Lost Atlantis. He has directed two films; the Showtime short subject, Personal Assistant, and a feature, A Very Serious Person, which won an honourable mention at the Tribeca Film Festival. His most recent film is the comedy caper The Sixth Reel starring Charles along with Julie Halston, Margaret Cho and Tim Daley.  In 2003, Mr. Busch received a special Drama Desk Award for career achievement as both performer and playwright, and was given a star on the Playwright’s Walk outside the Lucille Lortel Theatre. He is also the subject of the documentary film The Lady in Question is Charles Busch.

He is a two-time MAC award winner, a Bistro Award Honouree and has performed his cabaret act in many cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, New Orleans, Philadelphia, London, Paris, Barcelona and New York. In winter of 2016, his show The Lady at the Mic premiered at Jazz at Lincoln Centre’s American Songbook series. 

His autobiography Leading Lady: A Memoir of a Most Unusual Boy was published by BenBella Books in 2023. Charles Busch was among the 2024 inductees in New York's Theatre Hall of Fame.

Photo: Eric Stephen Jacobs

The STAGES podcast is available to access and subscribe from Spotify and Apple podcasts. Or from wherever you access your favourite podcasts. A conversation with creatives about craft and career. Follow socials on instagram (stagespodcast) and facebook (Stages).

www.stagespodcast.com.au