With London’s East End losing some of its most famous edgier gay pubs and clubs through a whole variety of reasons but mainly due to virulent gentrification, the alternative and anarchic drag culture that is a vibrant part of the area is looking to re-imagine itself by ‘queering spaces’ that had traditionally been very straight. One such example is ‘Sink The Pink’ a drag night that is held at the Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club. One of the organisers is Joseph Wilson who told ‘It’s Nice’ about this new environment and added that ‘going out and doing drag, you can’t be frail or scared or embarrassed. You have to be a strong person’
Wilson takes this ethos one step further in a stunning new movie called ‘Stance’ that shows his perceptive observation that drag and vogue culture have a lot more in common with the tradition macho world of something like boxing. This dazzling striking film has been dubbed ‘tranny boxing’ by Joseph and Vic Lentaigne who shot the stills that accompany the film. Shot in Repton Boxing Club, a century old sports venue near Brick Lane, is an extraordinary fusion of contemporary drag and East End history.
Wilson, now a full time filmmaker, has an exceptional eye and a remarkable appreciation for a culture that he is a crucial part of. Alongside other filmmakers such as Colin Rothbart (‘Dressed As A Girl’) and Zoe Davis (‘Fierce’) he is helping insuring that not only does the alternative drag scene flourish but they all help push the boundaries to encourage even more exotic and idiosyncratic performers find their ‘voices’. queerguru salutes both Wilson and his work and hopes they both find the audience that they so deserve.
