Bianca Del Rio

The ‘Eyes’ Have It. Bianca Del Rio is Here to Stay.

After 18 years on the circuit with regional notoriety in her hometown of New Orleans as well as New York City, this queen made a name for herself as a finalist on RuPaul’s Drag Race’s sixth season.  Nothing stops this fearless gal from speaking her mind and stirring up a little controversy and lots of laughs. We caught up with Bianca for a behind the scenes look at what makes this bitch tick.

GED:        What’s behind the name?

BDR:        It was years ago at a bar. Someone said I looked like his friend Bianca. Within 5 minutes we added Del Rio. We were in New Orleans and it just smelled exotic!

GED:        How did you get your start?

BDR:        It was a while ago. I started in New Orleans in theatre doing costumes, wigs and makeup. A show I was costuming involved drag and they needed another character so I filled in. It grew into a career from there. I was 20 and planned on doing this until I was 40 – which is fast approaching. But there’s no way I can stop now!

GED:        Who inspired you?

BDR:        Lady Bunny and Miss Coco Peru are geniuses. I also love Charles Pierce and identify with his style. He wasn’t the best singer or character actor but he was a character within himself. I’ve got old video tape of his performances as Bette Davis and Mae West. Now you can find everything on YouTube but back in the day I had to pop in a VHS to watch performers.

GED:        Describe a Bianca performance.

BDR:        Theatrical drag madness! Expect the unexpected. I have a loose structure. It’s a lot of audience participation, not just a lip sync show. I enjoy improv comedy and doing a show with other girls to mix it up so everyone can showcase their real talent.

GED:        Tell us about the experience on RuPauls’s Drag Race.

BDR:          It was wild. I like being thrown to the wolves and not knowing what’s coming next. I don’t scare easily. It was an amazing, humbling, fabulous experience. You don’t have much time to think. It’s sink or swim. Cameras were on us 12 – 15 hours a day. You never know what moments are going to air. It’s hard to watch myself on TV without cringing every 5 seconds. (Laughs)

GED:        What projects are you working on now?

BDR:        Once the RuPaul’s Drag Race ride calms down a bit, I’ll finish writing my own cabaret style show that’s more structured and will hopefully come out in the fall. It’s still in my brain at the moment. It won’t be an autobiographical drama about my life. There are enough of those!

GED:        Any words you live by?

BDR:        Never let a bitch see you sweat.

To find out more about Bianca Del Rio and upcoming performances, readers can visit TheBiancaDelRio.com

Photo by Mathu Andersen