Miss Katherine excitedly takes afternoon tea in the very elegant drawing room of the gracious Robbie Deephouse, the majestic glamazon of Club West to discuss female impersonation, red carpet gowns, pearls of wisdom and blush lighting over a lovely pot of Earl Grey Tea and petit fours.

Miss Katherine: Oh Robbie your house is just so gorgeous! Do have have a history in design?

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Robbie Deephouse: Thank you Miss Katherine, I studied fashion design from the age of 25 until I was 29 – starting with commercial illustration, but I think a lot of design is being born with an eye for it.

On stage at Club West your poise and presence is very precise, have you had any formal dance training?

I was trained from the age of 19 with Disney then the West Australian Ballet Company, then I won a scholarship to the Australian Ballet School, so my training was very strictly classical.

That is very impressive indeed! When did you start doing drag?

I was twenty-four (laughing) -and that was a very, very long time ago! A lot of us from the West Australian Ballet company used to go to a Night Club to see a drag show called Les Coquettes. One night in 1974 when we went there was a strike so we offered our services and all four of us were snapped up. I was very green I had no idea what I was doing except that I was dancing with girly clothes on -leotards, feathers, very ‘Lido Paris’ showgirl style. Les Coquettes was one of the leading drag shows in this country and I also worked for Les Coquettes when the show moved to the Gold Coast.

Did you enjoy living on the Gold Coast?

Yes I did! After I finished with Les Coquettes, that was where I studied fashion design for four years. I won a few student designer awards. Queensland remained my base for 19 years, for three years during that time I toured Australia, Europe and South America with Disney – that was a very long tour. After Queensland I moved to Melbourne for a few years where I did The King and I, Carnivale and Chicago, returning to Perth with another transfer through another job in visual merchandising with a company called Mai + Picchi Oswald Sealy in Lord Street – I was state manager. It was great job but then I was diagnosed with HIV. I tried to keep my head above water with work. I eventually lost that job and then became involved with the Positive Living Centre which was then called the SIDA Community Center. In 1991 we put a show together for what was then D.C’s nightclub and my drag career started again from there. I did a lot of shows during the 1990’s until 1996, as well as being the head performer for The Court Hotel and D.C.s Night Club. For fun I was voted by the gay community as the Mayoress of Northbridge which remained my title for years. My peers during that time were Tushy and Audrey Woodstock Rose.

Who were your inspirations for drag?

Prima donnas! Divas! I have always looked towards Barbara Streisand, Shirley McLain, anyone who could belt out a song basically – all the first ladies of the stage, they always had the best choreographers and costume designers.

Your favorite light for the stage?

A very pale pink…

Blush?

Ha ha ha, yes a blush we called it blush!

Favorite color to wear on stage?

White.

Favorite flower?
Roses.

Is drag to you an art or a craft?

A craft, you see I spent more years on stage as a male dancer than I did in drag. Drag is definitely an alter ego, but you see I am much less a drag queen and more so a female impersonator. My whole image is based more on an illusion of a glamorous woman than a drag caricature. I design and create all my own gowns. I draw my inspiration for my gowns from red carpet events. With age of course I have had to tone down the colors I wear, I mean I would look ludicrous in a bright yellow at my age…

Robbie darling I think you would look good in a sack cloth! Do you have any pearls of wisdom for any new drag babies on the scene?

Yes! Look , watch and listen. Listen to what you are told to and take good advice, watching what others do and incorporating what you admire into your shows and making it your own. Don’t get caught up in negative bitchy drag scene bitching, remain yourself – It is a tough thing to say as we can all get into bitch fights. But you don’t have to be bitch to get ahead in life.

And finally, your favorite quote?

‘It is not how expensive the cup that we drink from, it is the contents we seek’. Which basically means it is not how glamorous you look on the outside but the soul that you possess that is more important.

Miss Katherine