Winner of the title of Miss Congeniality in season one of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under, New Zealand drag queen Anita Wigl’it is no stranger to Australian audiences.

So it’s exciting that she’ll be premiering her new solo show Funny Gurl! here in Perth, at Fringe World.

Funny Gurl! takes punters back to where it all started, in 1989, when a little boy with a big personality was born. Anita promises plenty anecdotes and dazzling performances as she tells all.

Ahead of the season, Seesaw Mag’s Nina Levy chatted to Anita Wigl’it to find out more.

Nina Levy: Anita Wigl’it, for Seesaw Mag readers who don’t know you, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your work? 

Anita Wigl’it: I am the silly and ridiculous Drag Queen from RuPaul’s Drag Race DownUnder, Season One, and Canada’s Drag Race: Canada Vs the World!

I’ve been working in the drag world for the past 12 years and co-own two fabulous Drag Queen dinner theatres in my home town of Auckland, New Zealand.

Known to be a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day and the best thing to come out of New Zealand since… well, ever, I can’t wait to entertain you this Fringe World season!

NL: Tell us about Funny Gurl!, the show you are presenting at Fringe World 2023.

AW: My life has been all over the place and I thought that it would make a fun, outrageous and wildly entertaining show!

In Funny Gurl! I talk about growing up gay, how I discovered drag and discuss some of the hilarious adventures along the way. Memories are shared through photos, videos, shows and anecdotes which all combine to create the story of my life.

NL: What inspired you to make Funny Gurl!?

In life good and bad things happen to everyone; I didn’t think that it would be fair to my audience to perform a show leaving out the negative things that made me into the person that I am today.

AW: After being on my initial season of Drag Race, I really wanted to find a way to connect with my audience more. I felt overjoyed at the response from the viewers about me and about my drag, and wanted to show more.

So I created Funny Gurl! to tell my fans more about me and to let those who hadn’t yet heard of me into the mind of a person who found drag, and the adventures that went with it.

NL: What makes Funny Gurl! different to all the other shows on offer at Fringe?

In Funny Gurl! 99% of the show is designed to make people laugh and have a laugh with and at me!

However, with this show I had the unique opportunity to delve deeper than a usual drag show and show a bit more of myself, and discuss something that people don’t often talk about, especially in a live theatre setting. In life good and bad things happen to everyone; I didn’t think that it would be fair to my audience to perform a show leaving out the negative things that made me into the person that I am today.

In Funny Gurl! I open up to my audience in one particular story with the observation that bad times also shape our identity. Through positive thinking and an acknowledgement that life’s journey can be difficult, we can still lead the life that we dream of and use the negative times as a fuel to burn even brighter.

NL: What’s next for you after Fringe World 2023?

AW: After Fringe World 2023 I continue on my most ridiculous year so far! Fringe World is the Australian premiere of Funny Gurl! and then I take it around the country and hopefully overseas!

Now that the borders have re-opened I’m very much looking forward to doing live shows around the globe and have shows in Australia, New Zealand, America, Canada and the UK all on the horizon.

Funny Gurl plays The Parlour, Perth Cultural Centre, 20 January – 5 February 2023.

This article is sponsored content.

Seesaw offers Q&As as part of its suite of advertising and sponsored content options. For more information head to https://www.seesawmag.com.au/contact/advertise