February 1, 2012
By Travis Hoewischer
Published by 614columbus.com on January 1, 2012
Andrew Levitt is Nina West.
Nina West is Andrew Levitt.
It’s been the case for nearly a decade; but, not until now have the two been publicly linked.
The identity behind the city’s uber-famous drag queen and one of Columbus’ most relevant personalities has only been known to his inner circle for years; now, after a decorated career that has included being named 2008 National Entertainer of the Year, Levitt is compelled to “come out” all over again.
The same sneaking anxiety that kept the Denison grad from boarding a plane to his destiny back in 2001, has now driven him to reveal, for the first time, his alter ego to his parents.
Emotional and unabashed, Levitt tells (614) about how he became Nina West and why it’s the right time to go behind the foundation.
How did you become Nina West?
I went to Denison University, from 1997 to 2001. The GLBT student organization had a drag show, and I was a theatre major, who tried out as a lark. Me and my best friend Justin at the time decided we were gonna get into drag. Just one time.
What was the appeal for you then? Did you have some sort of epiphany?
No, it was just for fun, to be stupid. After, I thought, ‘I’ll never do that again!’ (laughs). I graduated from Denison and my intention was to go on to New York City and star on Broadway and write my own shows. Be fabulous and call it a day (laughs).
And what happened?
My plane was set to leave in October of 2001, and 9/11 happened, so I stayed in Columbus. Looking back, I was 21 years old, and just scared. I think I used that as my reason to just not go. I auditioned for CATCO, and tried to get my foot in the door in professional theater in Columbus, and there just wasn’t anything there. I think my parents thought I would go back to school, but I was really committed to performing. My friend said, ‘Hey, if you’re looking to perform, you should just do this contest.’ The contest was ‘Who Wants to Be a Drag Queen?’ – Union Station’s annual anniversary show. Cash prize was $200 and I was broke, living at home and working at Marshall Field’s during the day. And I won. That was the beginning.
What was your name back then?
I’ve never performed under any name but Nina West, but I almost had the name Jocelyn Butane (laughs). Can you imagine? She was gonna be a firecracker, or she was gonna burn you, or something … we had a whole tagline for her (laughs). I was in theater with this buxom blonde named Jocelyn and I just thought she was everything.
Nina West rolls off the tongue better.
Yeah, it does! Nina came from Nina Simone, which was my collegiate thing. I was like, ‘I’m deep and poetic and thoughtful …’ (laughs). West came from Virginia West, my drag mother.
Tell me about your parents. I know this is the first time you’ve really revealed your identity, or done an interview as Andrew.
My parents are great people and, part of the story is that I haven’t been very fair to them. I haven’t given them the benefit of the doubt as far as whether they can handle this. I feel like I could have told them eight years ago, when my career was nothing, and they could have watched the progression. Now that my career is amplified, I feel like that’s where my trepidation lies. It’s my only regret. How do you explain something you’ve been doing for 10 years, that’s very important to you, and just expect them to accept it all at once?
And they’re politically active as well. Does that play a role in your hesitance?
They’re both partisan people and they both have Republican positions in government, but politics aside – if they had a problem with this, it wouldn’t because of their politics or my politics. They’re moderately conservative, they’re not right wing fanatics. I think it’s just that they’re Baby Boomers in their 60s that have a different view on life. Truly and ultimately, I’m the bad guy in this scenario. Now, it’s just so amplified. I mean, I won National Entertainer of the Year, and my parents weren’t able to share that. That’s shameful, to me. I remember coming home from winning, with my best friend Patricia, and I had written a letter – I was gonna tell my parents I do drag. And then, something stopped me. We were sitting out in the street, outside their house, I called them to tell them we were going to stop by. And they told me they were on their way out to make some calls on behalf of Republican candidates. It was 2008, an election year (laughs). I just realized that the timing wasn’t right. I mean, everything in my family is marked by politics. It goes a lot deeper. My grandfather was a very well known Republican and I went to the 1992 Republican National Convention as a 13-year-old kid. I was raised on the politics of the Republican Party, so coming out to my parents was a big deal.
How did you come out to your parents?
That’s a good story. When I went to Denison I decided I was gonna be out from Day 1. Parents know their kids, so I know that they knew I was gay, but there was never that conversation. In my sophomore year, I ran for student body vice president as an openly gay student, one of the few at Denison, and I started getting threats. I was being terrorized. All kinds of terrible things were happening. I was a Resident Assistant at the time, and I’d come home to my all-freshman dorm, and there’d be things carved on my door. There were hate pamphlets thrown underneath my door, messages left on my phone, saying ‘We’re going to kill you …’ I wasn’t going to classes; people had to bring me food. I moved out of my dorm. Still, at that point, I hadn’t told my parents I’m gay.
Wow. That’s terrifying.
I’m lucky enough that my parents raised me to not be afraid. I come from strong stock. The night before the judicial hearing (campus police caught the perpetrators and were set to expel them), I was sitting in the office of the Dean of Students – who I didn’t know at the time was gay. He said, “You should give your parents an opportunity to be there.” So, that’s the night I made the phone call and told them I was gay, and why I had to tell them I was gay.
I’m sure you can remember their reaction.
Honestly, I was a wreck. I was having such a hard time with it. Because, when you’re gay and you’re coming out, there’s automatically this crushing of a dream. The dream that your parents have for you changes. When you are a little kid, your parents want you play baseball, or play football, get married, have kids white picket fence … there are expectations. So, when you tell them you’re not what they hoped for, you’re crushing that dream. That’s the worst feeling in the world; I knew I was crushing my mom’s dream. That’s why I think I’ve been resistant to tell them about drag. Now, it’s like, not only am I gay, but you’re going to think I’m this ridiculous stereotype of what it means to be gay. Which is not how I think about what I do. My parents mean the most to me, so it’s just emotional, because it takes me back to when I had to come out.
Having to come out in that scenario, when you’re already so vulnerable, and physically and mentally stressed, had to be incredibly tough.
I’m really lucky that my parents didn’t turn their back on me. When I did, my mom said, ‘Anything you need, we’ll be right there.” My dad said, “We love you, we’re here for you.” My mom wanted me to withdraw and my dad wanted me to stay. They were so proud that I went to Denison. He was like, “No way are you leaving here.” I know that when I tell my parents I do drag, they’ll still love me. Regardless. I know that. It might be difficult, it might be touch-and-go, but my parents are good people, and I know I am a good person because I was raised by them. The work that I do is because of where I come from.
So, this is kind of the final frontier? You lived in the closet for years, and now for the last decade, you’ve been hiding something very central about yourself to your parents. Are you excited to lift the curtain?
I’m thrilled. This is going to sound so cheesy, but I am a big, big fan of Oprah Winfrey. I just love her. What she’s done for so many people is really inspiring. I can remember watching an episode of Oprah in college and she coined that phrase, “Live your best life.” Living in your truth is a big deal. One thing I haven’t done – in some degree or another – is live in truth. I hate that. One of my friends, he’s said before, “I can’t believe your parents don’t know you do shows. They’d be so proud of you.” That makes me emotional and upset. It feels like I’ve let them down. I’m excited to at least have this door open, and move forward with my life. I don’t want to hold this baggage. There’s been distance between me and my parents over the years – because of me. I’m just relieved. It’s a really big deal for me. I’m always thinking and always creating, and different things that make tick. It’s gonna be interesting; now, I’ll have to think, not only about my mom and dadknowing I have a show, but also that they might be sitting in the crowd. It could change some things. Because their opinion means a lot to me.
That’s the next frontier, I suppose. I couldn’t imagine if my parents didn’t know I was a magazine editor or a writer. It’s so central to my identity at this point.
I mean, they live here … it’s insane that they don’t know. They took me to Easton for lunch for my birthday, and I start recognizing all these people that come to the shows, and I’m trying to dodge them, like, ‘No, don’t look at me!’ It was embarrassing that I couldn’t just be myself.
I’m starting to get excited for you. From what you say about your parents, they will be proud. There may be a learning curve, but I think that’s case for a lot of people when it comes to drag culture.
That’s a great seg-way because it’s really important for my parents to understand, for a straight audience to understand, or even a gay audience to understand. Gay men really misconstrue what drag is. I, personally, have no desire or design to want to be a woman. I don’t want to change my gender. I look at this as an art form. I’m a dude – I’m a BIG dude (laughs). I am not the most feminine thing onstage, but that’s what makes the character mine. She is, for all intents and purposes, my creation. Ya know, there is a lot of my mom in that character, or my sisters … any strong woman or man that you meet, and it’s very me.
I’ve seen a few drag shows, and I would tend to agree with you.
It’s not sexual; it’s uncomfortable (laughs). You’re wearing five layers of tights, your wearing heels that crunch your man toes together, and you’ve got your eyebrows glued down. You’re sweating in it … what I do, I look at as the same thing Steve Martin does. It’s a stage persona. Everything I present on stage is not who I am offstage. It’s like Tyler Perry’s Madea.
So, the persona Nina is roughly 10 years old. That’s a character with a much longer stage life than any movie or Broadway play. How do you and your persona live and grow with each other?
Whatever I’m interested in, I try to translate over to the character. I mean, it’s really obvious that I loved The Muppets when I was a kid. Now, as a drag queen, I get to do a big show and I’ve got 27 puppets up on stage with me … that’s like a dream to me! I grew up loving Pee-Wee’s Playhouse and that was something I was able to transcend to the character. These are all the things that made Andrew want to be a performer, to create, to be something different than a lawyer.
Last time I checked, the court of law frowns on the use of puppets.
(laughs) For my next witness …. (laughs) The character has allowed me to do so much; I am so blessed. I’ve worked with playmates, D-list celebrities, A-list celebrities … I have been flown all over the country because of my art. People have validated that what I do is important; that has given me license to push this art form. It doesn’t just have to be someone dressing up as a girl. It can be me dressed as The Grinch. Nina has allowed me to really push myself, and she’s given me so much confidence. As a bigger guy, I always thought no one was gonna find me attractive, no one’s gonna love me, I’m gonna be lonely … the more popular Nina got, the more swagger I got. Now, I don’t care if people love me; I’m comfortable in my own skin. It’s that Oprah lesson again.
Some people could see it as the opposite; as in, you shouldn’t have to dress up to be comfortable with yourself.
I don’t think Nina made me confident, but she allowed me to feel that what I was thinking wasn’t wrong; that my expressions as Andrew could be just as important as Ninas. She has given me a platform. I have an opportunity to reach people – to tell people that ARC Ohio needs funding, or to start a 501c3 with Steve Weaver and Dr. Sharma (of Project ZERO: Ohio). It’s incredible.
It’s more than just thick makeup and catty comments.
Yes! Believe me, that’s there. But, that’s show business as well. You can’t tell me Julia Roberts didn’t fight with some bitch on the set of Mystic Pizza, just because she wanted her hair done a certain way (laughs). It’s competitive everywhere. I’m really lucky to live in a city that appreciates the art form, and will just go with whatever I do. I feel really validated in Columbus; to even be doing this interview, is a huge extension of that. The gay community here is so important, and gay commentary matters. That someone, who many would consider a fringe artist, would be important … that’s insane to me. I couldn’t even tell you another city in the country where a major publication would sit down with a drag queen for their cover story. My love for this city is pretty intense; the ability that individuals have to create, and flourish and find themselves … it’s incredible. When I tell my friends that live in other cities that I’m working with Peaches, or Sandra Bernhard, they’re like, “What’s happening in Columbus?” (laughs).
Well, and you’re not just the most famous drag queen in the city; you’ve become one of our personalities. This is a city where the mayor and Nina West mix often.
It’s surreal. I get to host the city’s Halloween party! Every year, Mayor Coleman comes to Highball, but for whatever reason, I’ve not been the one to bring him on. Somebody else would grab the mic and introduce him. This year, out of nowhere, he walks on the stage and gives me this huge hug. I just about fell out. The f*cking mayor of this city, in front of all these people just hugged a drag queen! I’ve … honestly … I’ve done a lot in the last 10 years, but that was one of the best moments I’ve ever had. It said something.
And to think, now you get to share those moments with your parents.
I know! My mom’s gonna kill me, because I didn’t tell her about it!
So, they’ve never known?
There have been a lot of close calls. One time, when I was living at home, my mom found a bra in my laundry. A BIG bra (laughs). I told her it was my friend Patricia’s, who luckily had huge tits. She bought it (laughs). Part of me, deep down, thinks they’ve known.
So, why now? Why here?
One of my conservative cousins saw a photo of me on Facebook that was tagged, briefly, as Andrew and she flipped out, threatened to tell my parents. My grandfather passed away, and when I saw her at this funeral, I just felt this awful energy. I just realized I didn’t want to leave my life this way anymore. I told her, “You do what you have to do to feel better at night, but I know my parents will love me no matter what, and I will move on and keep on making positive changes for people and myself.” I would rather tell my story the way I want to. Hopefully, someone will say, ‘I feel a little braver now,’ or ‘I can tell someone something I’ve been needing to say.’ Carrying it around has just been so hard. What better time than at the beginning of a new year? The time is right. I just want to hear my mom say she’s proud of me … I just want my dad to say he’s proud of me. That’s all any kid wants.
