MIKE JEKNAVORIAN Local Interviews

JOE POSA

Despite touring the country with his one-man show impersonating Joan Rivers, actor Joe Posa still has time to enjoy the “gayness” of Wilton Manors.  But what kind of balls would he have for his last meal?

PHOTOGRAPH BY DENNIS DEAN

Where did you grow up?  I was born in the Bronx, but I grew up in Thiells, New York, in Rockland County.  How long have you lived in South Florida?  For seven years.  Why did you move here?  After living in Manhattan for many years, and then in Boston with my husband Frank Ribaudo, we settled in our home in South Florida.  What part of South Florida do you live in?  In Wilton Manors.  What do you like most about living here?  The gayness!  And of course, the weather.  What South Florida venue do you miss that’s gone?  I so loved The Coliseum.  Where do you hang out in South Florida?  I love the many restaurants, and, of course, the clubs on Wilton Drive.  What’s your claim-to-fame?  I’m an actor, and I also impersonate Joan Rivers, Barbra Streisand, Liza Minnelli and Michael Jackson, to name a few.

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What’s your most cherished experience with Joan Rivers?  Performing at an event in Houston with her but AS her.  We then hung out in her dressing room and talked, and that was amazing.  What’s the best role that you ever did?  Of course, Joan!  I was also Erica Kane on All My Children with Susan Lucci, and Liz Lemon on 30 Rock with Tina Fey.  What’s your dream gig?  I’m living it now performing my Joan Rivers tribute show, The Bitch is Back!, with Joan’s head writer, Tony Tripoli.  We’ve taken it across the U.S. and Mexico!  Other than Joan Rivers, what performer do you admire, and why?  Barbra Streisand, because of her work ethic and her striving-for-excellence in the work.  Which one of your old jobs least prepared you for what you do now?  All of it prepares you!

WITH TINA FEY

How would you like to be remembered?  Besides as a kind and generous human being, I’d say as a master of illusion in the art of impersonation.  Will you ever retire?  As long as I’m able, I will be onstage!  What’s the weirdest question that a fan has asked?  The ole “where do you put it” question (laughs).  What celebrity did you act like a “fan” around?  Babs!  What’s the last thing that you looked at online?  A new wig (laughs)!  What’s the best place that you’ve visited, and why?  Besides having worked for nearly two decades with my shows in Provincetown, and loving it, I so enjoy working and being in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  What’s your guilty pleasure?  A full-bodied red.  What’s your best characteristic?  My infectious laugh!  Also, my compassion toward others. 

PHOTOGRAPH BY DENNIS DEAN

What’s your fondest childhood memory?  The morning of a “snow day!”  What are you afraid of?  The state that our great country is in.  What’s something that you learned in life only when you got older?  That the days are long, yet the years fly by.  What did you learn from your parents?  Humility.  What performer do you admire, and why?  Joan Rivers.  Not only was she the best in what she did, but she defied the odds and was a survivor.  How do you enjoy spending your time?  Being with my amazing husband.  If you could bring one person back from the dead, who would it be, and why?  Joan Rivers, because we need her humor now more than ever!  Where would you go in a time machine?  I like being in the here-and-now.  What would your last meal be?  Being Italian, I’d have to say my husband’s pasta and balls!

What do you worry about?  Our country, politically, and how we as a people are so divided on many levels.  Are you more like a sheep or a wolf?  I’m a wolf in my work, yet a sheep when I chill.  Who depends on you, and for what?  My husband and my closest friends.  They depend on me for positive words of advice.  Who are you closest with?  My husband, Frank Ribaudo.  What would your autobiography be called?  Me, Myself, and Her…  What music do you listen to when you’re upset?  Light classical.  What’s on your bucket list?  To be a talk-show host!  What’s your greatest regret in life?  I honestly feel that it’s all an amazing journey.  What’s something that you never told anyone else?  Well, I can’t tell you that.  Where can we see you?  At the Mizner Park Cultural Center in Boca Raton on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.!

 

 

MIKE JEKNAVORIAN Local Interviews

TIFFANY FANTASIA

Fiercely independent, no one would ever accuse South Florida drag legend Tiffany Fantasia of being coy.  But what would she do to avoid being lynched?

PHOTOGRAPH BY MRJJBLANCO@INSTRAGRAM

Where did you grow up?  In Miami.  How long have you lived in South Florida?  All of my life!  What part of South Florida do you live in?  In South Beach.  What do you like most about living here?  The weather.  What South Florida venue do you miss that’s gone?  The Coliseum.   Where do you hang out in South Florida, and why?  Hotel Gaythering and Molto.  I like a nice, quiet atmosphere with familiar faces.  What’s your claim-to-fame?  I’ll tell you when I’m famous.  How did you come up with your name?  It was given to me.  What’s the best gig that you ever did, and why?  Mykonos, working the Dsquared party.  I got to wear something that was worn by Beyoncé, but unfortunately, it was too small for me.

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The star-studded and sidesplitting follow up to The Andy Cohen Diaries, Andy Cohen’s latest book Superficial, features Tiffany Fantasia.

What’s the most important gig or event that you ever did, and why?  Miami Beach Gay Pride, when I had to stand up to protesters.  It was a test of strength and courage.  What’s your dream gig?  A Broadway role, where the theater is sold-out.  How would you like to be remembered?  As person that gave her heart and soul to the audience!  What’s the weirdest question that a fan has asked?  I was asked to have sex with a straight couple.  What celebrity did you act like a “fan” around?  Queen Latifah.  She saw me perform, and she loved it.  But then we spoke, and I acted like such a fan.  Who would play you in a movie?  That little boy from Moonlight.  He could play the kid version of me.  I’m not sure who could play the adult version of me.

PHOTOGRAPH BY DALE STINE 

Will you ever retire?  Yes, when I die or I hit the lottery.  What’s the last that you looked at online?  Porn.  What’s the best place that you’ve visited, and why?  Curacao, because the island is beautiful and multicultural.  What the last thing that you watched on TV?  How to Get Away with Murder.  What’s the craziest thing that you ever did?  Go to the gym.  What’s your favorite book?  Superficial, by Andy Cohen, because I’m in it.  What’s the best concert you ever went to?  Mary J. Blige concert!  What’s something that you learned in life only when you got older?  That you can’t eat like a teenager when you’re an adult.  What did you learn from your parents?  To not be so trusting.

What performer do you admire, and why?  Whitney Houston, because that voice is everything to me!  What’s your best characteristic?  The ability to see past the bullshit.  How do you enjoy spending your time?  By myself.  What celebrity do you have a crush on?  None.  They’re too skinny for me.  Who do you admire, and why?  Tiffany Arieagus.  That woman can perform for twenty-minutes straight, and you will be entertained from beginning to end.  If you could bring one person back from the dead, who would it be, and why?  My mom, because she was my rock.  Where would you go in a time machine, and why?  Nowhere, because they would lynch me for being too black and free.  What would your last meal be?  Grits, scrambled eggs, sausage, and corn-beef hash.  And a big glass of Kool-Aid.

What do you worry about?  Being broke.  If you were a musical instrument, what would you be, and why?  The saxophone. That’s one sexy MF.  Are you more like a sheep or a wolf?  It depends on how I wake up in the morning.  Who are you closest with?  My bestie, Cindi.  What would your autobiography be called?  How the Hell Did I Get Here?   What music do you listen to when you’re upset?  R&B.  Particularly, the My Life album from Mary J. Blige.  What’s on your bucket list?  To live a long life.  What’s your greatest regret in life?  Putting work over family.  What’s something that you never told anyone else?  That I don’t fart rainbows.  Where can we see you?  At Drag Brunch Miami, Hotel Gaythering, Molto, The Palace, and at Miami Beach Gay Pride.