Photograph by Lucas Rainey
When James Bondage takes to the stage, the audience sees a macho, leather-clad, biker-esque character. He emulates a vintage type of masculinity while performing to pop songs. Bondage is a drag king in every sense of the word, and the audiences at Smoke & Queers’s burlesque shows are eating it up.
The stage is a safe space for Bondage, and performers like him, to explore his identity in a creative way while receiving support, guidance, and, above all, community.
Formed in 2019, the Smoke & Queers burlesque troop was created with the goal of carving out an LGBTQ+ safe space within Cincinnati’s performance industry. Historically, burlesque is a form of dance with a focus on sensuality and provocative undertones. Audiences expect to see stripteases and sensual performances, but there’s more to the art. At its core, burlesque is a type of variety show; acts can be serious or playful, provocative and poignant, comedic and emotional. It’s a history-rich performance art that Smoke & Queers are proud to teach more people about as a form of self-expression.
Photograph by Alyssa Moore
After attending his first S&Q show in 2023, Bondage knew he wanted to be a part of it. In everyday life, Bondage uses she/her or they/them pronouns, but when performing, he gets to explore his masculine side—a unique part of his queer identity he taps into.
“I feel so much when I’m performing. It’s nerve-wracking but also exhilarating,” says Bondage. “It’s so powerful to stand on stage and be my unfettered self.”
Amaryl Gruber is the newest addition on the leadership team at Smoke & Queers. A seasoned performer, their primary responsibilities lie in producing shows and hosting in their performance persona, Andro Hathaway (a play on the word “androgynous” and actress Anne Hathaway). They describe burlesque as a journey between audience and performer—as clothes are added and removed, a story begins to unfold.
“I think the biggest misconception in burlesque is that it’s just people taking their clothes off,” says Gruber. “People aren’t recognizing it as an empowering artistic expression that can be nerdy, sultry, sexy, powerful; I’ve been up on that stage before, working through trauma, [and] it can be such a powerful form of art because you’re working with yourself.”
While there are other burlesque troupes in the Cincinnati area, Smoke & Queers’s choice to label itself as being LGBTQ-oriented sets it apart. Here, participants celebrate their identities, meet others in their community, and receive an educational environment to learn what it takes to be a performer. The troupe does everything from open-mic nights to themed shows to workshop intensives for every skill level and accessibility need.
Photograph courtesy Smoke & Queers
The burlesque troupe’s “all-are-welcome” ethos comes at a time of need not just in Cincinnati, but across the country. Queer bars, venues, and other spaces are closing at alarming rates, and Cincinnati is not immune. In 2022, LGBTQ+ bars Below Zero Lounge (once ranked a top LGBTQ bar in the U.S. by Yelp) and the Cabaret closed after more than a decade in operation. Last year, The Birdcage abruptly shuttered its doors, citing that it was no longer financially viable to remain in business. The University of Cincinnati shut down its LGBTQ Center and other identity centers over the summer in compliance with Senate Bill 1, which became law earlier this year. A new group unaffiliated with the school, Alliance Cincinnati, has been created to fill the void left by the LGBTQ Center’s closing.
For many in the community, these closures mark an alarming trend, and they’re feeling the tension. Many members of the troupe expressed anxiety at the current political and social climates in the country. Bondage requested to only use his performance name to keep his everyday identity private.
“We need more venues, they’re dropping like flies, especially our queer-specific spaces,” says Sara McElwain, another leadership member and performer known as Salem le Fay. “We’re thankful for everyone that’s an ally for us, but it’s so hard losing these queer venues and we hope more people will stand with us in the way of creating or providing these spaces.”
Despite these closures, Smoke & Queers carries on. At burlesque shows, gender norms are meant to be broken and members explore their identity through performance art. Drag kings channel their masculine side through personas that play off of our stereotypical male traits; they can be strong, dirty, romantic, powerful.
Photograph by Mission Control Media
Anjali Basu, also known as Seymour Hiney, has been with the troupe since 2021 and currently serves as part of its leadership team. They wear many hats within the troupe: teaching drag king workshops, acting as a show producer, hosting, and performing in their drag king persona as Seymour Hiney. It’s a big job, but one they are happy to do.
“I’m always looking for more opportunities to get drag kings in the limelight. When I tell people I’m a drag king they say, ‘What is that?’ I usually just say that it’s like a drag queen but opposite and leave it at that. Drag kings are not in the mainstream,” says Basu. “For burlesque, there’s this expectation that it looks and feels a certain way. Smoke & Queers has gained this reputation that we’re open to the weirder stuff or, for example, burlesque that tells queer stories or explores your relationship with your body.”
An appealing part of Smoke & Queers is the spectrum of performance vibes that its members can emulate. Whereas some shows may take a narratively serious tone, others are all about being as silly and entertaining as possible.
Laura Arnold has been on a journey to bring more creative freedom and joy into her life. Self-described as a “recovering agency marketer,” Arnold has used the troupe to simply have more fun. When performing, she uses the persona Jolie Poison, a high-energy character that channels comedy with their movement.
“I can never take anything seriously and that includes myself. Last showcase, I dressed up as a Britney Spears piñata and danced to ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time,’” says Arnold. “I’ve smashed eclairs on myself, I’ll roll around on the floor, I want to make people laugh. I like to have fun with it. It’s not super classic burlesque, it’s a little silly.”
Beyond its typical shows and showcases hosted at bars around the city, Smoke & Queers has done performances in partnership with Findlay Market, the Contemporary Art Center, and even hosted a queer prom at the American Sign Museum. While these events market the group as a safe space for LGBTQ+ people, it’s also a proud declaration that Cincinnati has a strong queer community.
“It’s important for us to perform and express ourselves, it’s an act of value to be proud of that part of yourself and keep being cheerful even in such scary times,” says Bondage.
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