We Want the Airwaves - Cherry Galette

8/13/2019 We Want the Airwaves - Cherry Galette

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We Want the Airwaves: Cherry Galette

Cherry Galette: At one point (laughter) in my 20s I was a big Martha Stewart fan(laughter). My partner at the timeyou knowI ust really lo!e"# like# being a goo"

little $ueer homemaker in all of these ways. So# basi%ally my partner got me a

subs%ription to Martha Stewart &i!ing# an" the 'uly issue'uly is my birth"ay monththere was a pi%ture of this beautifulpastry on the front# an" it was a %herry galette# an" I

was like# *mg# what is that+ I ha!e to make it. An" so then I kin" of starte" kin" of#

you know# learning the re%ipe. An" as I was learning the re%ipe I was thinking a lot. An"my family has a !ery interesting history with %herries# whi%h is that it is the %rap I think

we most often pi%ke" as farm workers in the ,orthwest. An" it-s the first %rop that I

remember pi%king. An" there were these ways that I hate" %herries when I was little.

An" to a"" insult to inury# my (laughter) family plante" a %herry tree (laughter) in frontof the house that we li!e" in# an" so it was like there was no es%ape.

An" I %oul"n-t get away from them. So I pi%ke" them# an" then like many# you know#

lowin%ome immigrant families# we ma"e the most we %oul" out of %herries. So literallythere were woul" be# like# %herry pie# %herry empana"as(laughter) like anything you

%oul" possibly "o with %herry. e ha" %herry %obbler# fro/en %herries# like# fresh%herries. ou-re hungry# oh go eat some %herries. It was like (laughter)# I %oul"n-t es%ape

them. An" so I "i"n-t eat %herries until I was probably like 20 years ol" in the %ollege

town that I was going to s%hool in. An" I remember walking in the fan%y pro"u%e marketan" seeing a bag of %herries for this outrageous pri%e# an" I was like what thefuck. An" I

bought them %ause I was really nostalgi%# an" that was kin" of my home%oming to

%herries# an" I re"e!elope" an appre%iation an" "eep lo!e for %herries.

*kay# so fastforwar" to this re%ipe. So here I was "ealing with these %herries# an" then I

was remembering the signifi%an%e of that an" the signifi%an%e of %herries in my life an"also thinking about# you know# the wor" galette whi%h# you know# translates as tartreally. An" to me it was kin" of a %onoining of these two !ery "istin%twor"s# you

know# that kin" of %ombine my family-s bloo"lines an" were kin" of a fu%k you to the

imperialist# like# 1ren%h# you know# (laughter) for%es that o%%upie" ,orth Afri%a an" theMi""le ast. An" to me 3herry 4alette seeme" a great name to take on# assume# an"

%arry forth in the worl" for my own $ueer purposes. An" that-s what I "i".

(musi%al interlu"e)

Nia King: el%ome to e ant the Airwa!es. My name is ,ia 5ing# an" I-m !ery

e6%ite" to be still po"%asting in 2078. 9hanks again to e!eryone who "onate" to my lastIn"iegogo %ampaign. I sort of took 'anuary off to fo%us on a %ouple pie%es that I-m

working on for maga/ines an" also the book that I-m making out of these po"%ast

inter!iews with my frien"s 'essi%a 4lennonukoff an" 9erra Mikalson# but now I-mba%k# an" this first inter!iew is with 3herry 4alette who "oes all kin"s of "ifferent "an%e#

but I think is probably most well known for burles$ue as well as for being a %ofoun"er

an" %o%urator of Mangoes with 3hile# a $ueer an" trans people of %olor %abaret# whi%h is

about to go on tour. I guess by the time this episo"e goes up the tour will alrea"y ha!e


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starte". ;ut# the "ay this goes up1ebruary 7they will be performing at *regon State

th# they-ll be in &.A. ?th they-ll be at 1lu66 1est in

9u%son. An" 1ebruary @ they-ll be in hoeni6. 9hey-re gonna be in Santa 1e on 1ebruary

B# San Antonio on the 70th# Austin on the 77th# Couston on the 72th# ,ew *rleans on the7Dth. An" for "etails about where in those %ities they-ll be performing# %he%k out

mangoswith%hili.%om. ithout further a"o# here-s 3herry.

(musi%al interlu"e)

Nia: ou grew up in the a%ifi% ,orthwest+

Cherry: I "i". eah# a lot of folks "on-t know that there-s a lot of immigrant

%ommunities there in the rural areas of the northwest# an" it-s kin" of the en" of the

migrant %hain. ou know# a lot of families will start migrating from "ifferent areas of the


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Cherry: !erything. 3ongas are my fa!orite# an" also marimba.

Nia: 3ool.

Cherry: eah. ;ut# yeah# so my mom an" her sistersa %ouple of her sisterssnu%k out

an" hear" that there was this ama/ing ban" playing that they ha" to go %he%k out. An"my "a" was on stage.

Nia: An" this was like where# geographi%ally+

Cherry: *h my go"# it-s like in the mi""le of nowhere.

Nia: *kay.

Cherry: In ashington state. &ike# literally# if you put your finger in the mi""le of the

map of ashington state that-s where it is.

Nia: *kay.

Cherry: An"# yeah# you know he tells the story like# An" I looke" out in the au"ien%e

an" there was this beautiful girl# an" I sai" that-s the woman I-m going to make my wife.

Nia: (laughter)

Cherry: An" my mom was like (laughter)# *h my goo"ness# you-re lying. 9here were

probably women throwing themsel!es at you# an" you "i"n-t e!en talk to me that night#an"# yeah. ;ut he "i" en" up marrying her# an"they ma"e me an" my brothers an"

sisters so

Nia: An" your mom-s a musi%ian too# or a "an%er+

Cherry: A !o%alist.

Nia: A !o%alist+ 3ool. eah# I rea" in your bio it sai" you were raise" by a family of

legen"ary musi%makers.

Cherry: eah# so this is a%tually kin" of %ute# be%ause I grew up# like# going to gigs with

my "a"# an" so like the touring lifestyle is !ery mu%h in my# you know# periphery of like

life e6perien%e an" life e6pe%tations. (laughter)

Nia: I-m sorry# what "i" your "a" play+

Cherry: *h# so he plays a%%or"ion# an" he plays bao se6to# an" basi%ally a lot of the

tra"itional stringe" instruments of Me6i%o. So# yeah.

Nia: 3ool.


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Cherry: An"# yeah. So# yeah# you know# basi%ally there woul" be a %ara!an be%ause

e!erybo"y ha" a family an" all the families ha" to %ome along too. (laughter)

Nia: An" "i" you tour ust mostly lo%ally or like all o!er+

Cherry: In the ,ortheast.

Nia: *kay# %ool. So# how "i" you pi%k up "an%ing+

Cherry: ;asi%ally# my parents foun" a way on their limite" in%ome to put me in a ballet

%lass when I was small# an"

Nia: Cow small+

Cherry: *h# like D years ol". An" it kin" of really stu%k. (laughter) An" that-s how it

starte". An" I-m really tou%he" that they foun" ways to like pro!i"e that for me. 3auseit-s# you know# "efinitely not something that they %oul" really affor"# an" I know it meant

"emeaning things like# you know# %leaning the stu"io. *r my "a" "oing# like#%onstru%tion work or other things that other families "i"nFt ha!e to "o. So# I-m really#

you know# ust please" an" honore" that they ga!e me that gift# an"# you know# please"

that I-!e been able to use it to my own $ueer purposes.

Nia: eah# let-s talk about those $ueer purposes.

BOTH: (laughter)

Nia: So# in the inter!iew that you "i" with# oh go"# I thought it was astbay 6press# but

maybe it was an S1 paper. 9he one where they "i" a profile of you in burles$ue# an" itwas aroun" the time that the burles$ue film was %oming out. ou remember the pie%e

I-m talking about.

Cherry: *h right# yeah# that was the *aklan" 9ribune.

Nia: 9hank you. (laughter)

Cherry: eah.

Nia: It sai" that you e6plore ra%e# power# an" empire through "an%e in your work# an" Iwas hoping you %oul" talk a little bit about how.

Cherry: eah# so# I think those are the stories that ha!e always intrigue" me the most#an" spe%ifi%ally the story of like $ueer bo"y in "iaspora# an"# yeah# you know what are

the lega%ies that we %arry with us# an" when I %hoose to put my bo"y on stage an" re!eal

my bo"y in !arious ways what are the lega%ies that that %arries with it. An" one pie%e

that I think "oes a goo" ob of breaking that "own is la petenera pie%e# whi%h is basi%ally


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base" on a folk song that %ame out of Spain. An" it was really about these women

"an%ers of ,orth Afri%a an" how they were sent to !arious %amps when a lot of war was

going on an" imperialist for%es were %oming into ,orth Afri%aG these women were sent to"an%e an" "istra%t. An"# you know# then the %amps woul" be ambushe" an" %haos woul"

ensue. An" I though that that was like a really brilliant antiimperialist tool. An" I

"is%o!ere" the song a%tually through one of my "a"-s gigs when I was a teenager. 3auseI-" hear" a bun%h of !ersions of the song# an" the way that it manifests is like# you know#

it-s a tale of like a mermai" an" how se"u%ti!e she is an" how beautiful an" how you-ll

see her an" you-ll really want to know about her an" you-ll really want to kiss her but you%an-t be%ause she-s an animal.

Nia: (laughter)

Cherry: (laughter) It-s basi%ally# like# yeahan" yeah ust really talking about how

animalisti% she is an"# you know# stuff like this. An" I "is%o!ere" this song sung from a

woman-s perspe%ti!e at one of my father-s gigs# an" it was the first time I-" hear" it sung

from a woman-s perspe%ti!e. An" in that !ersion# you know# she was talking about howhar" it was to manage all the sharks that were trying to get at her an"# you know# fight the

battles that she ha" to. An" it tol" the story of arri!ing in Me6i%o an"# you know# thenew worl"s that she ha" to now na!igate. An" to me that was really profoun" to think

about. An" you know I kin" of thought about like the new worl"s that many of us

na!igate as $ueer people of %olor. ou know# whether it-s like lea!ing home or# youknow# all the ways that we are aske" tokin" of tra!erse# you know# tra!el# an" ourney

to "ifferent realms# an"

Nia: So# then# is that like imbuing the song with sort of an imperialist meaning# or anantilike# how%ause new worl" has su%h imperialist %onnotations

Cherry: *h absolutely it "oes.

Nia: So what-s your interpretation of that+

Cherry: Say more about what you mean# I lost you.

Nia: So# it-s talking about this mermai". An" it-s talking about all the sharks that she ha"

to get away from# but is she %oming from the ol" worl" to the new worl". &ike# is she a%on$uista"or type figure or

Cherry: *h no no noit was like she "i"n-t ha!e an option# an" she en"e" up there.An" now she was in this new pla%e an" you know kin" of ha" to fin" her way. An" so# to

me# that was su%h a powerful story# an" I was like# I ha!e to fin" out more about this

song. An" so then I began this like lengthy pro%ess of resear%h through whi%h I learne"kin" of aroun" the song-s history# an" so when I perform it I-m wearing a mermai"-s tail

an" either a %ala!era mask or ha!e my fa%e painte". An" it "raws on a lot of tra"itional

mo!ement from ,orth Afri%a an" the Mi""le ast# an" a lot of my work uses kin" of


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tra"itional mo!ement from# you know# either that "iaspora or the &atina "iaspora# so#

yeah# that-s one e6ample.

Nia: Cow "o you "efine tra"itional mo!ement+ &ike# what "oes that mean+

Cherry: 9hat-s a goo" $uestion. eah# so to %larify# I mean like# you know# the "an%eforms that originate from thosepla%es.

Nia: Cow "o you "an%e in a mermai" tail+ (laughter) 9hat soun"s like it-" be really"iffi%ult.

Cherry: 9here are ways. I

Nia: Are your feet a%tually# likeare your legs%an you mo!e them+ (laughter)

Cherry: ell# I "esigne" it so that the tail part was trailing behin" me

Nia: *kay.

Cherry: An" the front part ha" kin" of layers of tulle that fanne" out so that a%tually I

%oul" separate me feet.

Nia: *kay.

Cherry: An"# yeah# I thought it woul" be really really hot like the smaller I %oul" get it

aroun" my %al!es# but then I reali/e"# yeah that-s ust kin" of a re%ipe for "isaster# so

Nia: (laughter)

Cherry: An"# yeahit-s always an e6periment with %ostuming like that.

Nia: eah# so you make your own %ostumes in a""ition to "oing all the %horeography.

Cherry: eah. An" I-m a goo" re!amper of things# so I-ll# you know# fin" something in

a thrift store an" tear it up for my own $ueer purposes.

Nia: hat "oes being a "an%er mean to you+

Cherry: It means that I ha!e so mu%h oy in my bo"y on some "ays# or so mu%h sorrowon other "ays# or so mu%h story on e!ery "ay that ust likes wants to e6plo"e an" emerge

out. An" it means letting go an" gi!ing myself the spa%e to make that happen. An"

yeah# mo!ement %an take so many "ifferent forms# an" there-s no# you know# I thinkwrong way to approa%h it.

Nia: I-m remembering this storyan" I hope you-ll %orre%t me if I-m wrongbe%ause it

was tol" to me se!eral years ago# an" it might not ha!e been a%%urate then. ;ut# a frien"


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of mine was telling me about a Mango show that she saw that I think was for

3ounter


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Cherry: It-s satire# yeah. An" I will ust say that I "efinitely got hate mail as a %urator

for

Nia: 1or that parti%ular pie%e+

Cherry: eah.

Nia: ow.

Cherry: eah. ;utthat-s okaye!erybo"y is entitle" to their# you know# thoughts#

an" their "esire to write an" sen" hate mail# so

Nia: I-m gonna %ome ba%k to that later.

Cherry: (laughter) So# anywayin this parti%ularfor this parti%ular show we thought

it woul" be really funny to %ontinue this rofessor Ama"or narrati!e an" kin" of see# youknow# where it woul" go in front of a white au"ien%e. An" there was an element of

e6perimentation "efinitely built in where we ha" kin" of the sket%h of the pie%e an" our%hara%ters. So# you know# it was like Hr. Ama"or ha"# you know# brought these

spe%imens to gi!e a le%ture on an"# you know

Nia: An" you were one of the spe%imens

Cherry: I was one of the spe%imens# uh huh. eah# the wil" tiger from# you know# the

ungle. (laughter) eah.

Nia: *kay.

Cherry: &ike the u%atan ungle. An"# you know# 4aston Ma/o was# you know# a

flamen%o "an%eryou know# gen"er$ueer flamen%o "an%er. An"# you know# 'uba-s

%hara%ter "i" not speak# an" it was also the first timeallege"lythat 'uba-s %hara%ter waswearing pants.

Nia: (laughter) *kay.

Cherry: So (laughter) the way that we stage" this was really a%tually kin" of funny

!ery funny. So# Irina went aroun" with flyers to the au"ien%e before the show an"# like#

it-s really funny be%ause this was our# you know# kin" of fun"raiser. An" we ust kin" ofwante" to see what woul" happen# you know+ An" (laughter)

Nia: as this like a -fu%k you- to the white fun"ers or# likewhat

Cherry: It was ustyeahfu%k you to white suprema%y in all of its manifestations in

the ;ay Area an" the fun"ing worl"# in the arts worl"...


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Nia: So it-s sort of like playing on the awkwar"ness of being these brown people on

stage for white people-s entertainment.

Cherry: es. (laughter) So# Irina was passing out these flyers that were like# you know#

1u%k Hr. Ama"or. ;oy%ott this performan%e. &ike# this is not okay# you guys nee" to

know what-s going on. An" like# Irina of like going up in full %hara%ter to folks beforethe show. An" their rea%tions were really funny be%ause some of them were like *h my

go". I ha" no i"ea that this was happening tonight. I "on-t know how I feel about this.

I

Nia: Hi" people walk out+

Cherry: ,obo"y walke" out. !erybo"y staye". (laughter) An"# you know# this wasafter they ha" alrea"y gi!en 3ounter


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Nia: ;ut it-s making me think of"o you know the performer &71+ 9he $ueer hip hop

artist+

Cherry:


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Nia: I think what I-m trying to say is that# like# how "o you "efine that line+ ;e%ause

when you-re talking about "oing satire in regar"s to ra%e# but then on top of that# like# you

know $ueer an" trans *3 au"ien%es ha!e !ery "ifferent lines in terms of like

Cherry: *h# yeah# mmmhm.

Nia: in"i!i"ual to in"i!i"ual in terms of what they feel is like appropriate or offensi!e.

Cherry: ,o# I think that that-s a really !ali" an" soli" point.

Nia: I-m not trying to %all you a ra%ist# by the way. (laughter)

Cherry: (laughter) ,o# but it-s true# yeah# %ertainly it makes me think of the use ofsatire. An" there-s %ertainly been a lot of satiri%al work on our stages. &ike# a ton

a%tually.

Nia: hi%h I lo!e.

Cherry: eah (laughter). An"# yeah# but for me a%%ountability aroun" that means# like#being willing to engage in a %on!ersation with somebo"y if they-re feeling things about it.

Nia: ou mean an au"ien%e member or a performer or+

Cherry: An au"ien%e member "efinitely. eah. ;efore shows we usually ha!e a

performer-s %ir%le like a month or so out# an" sometimes it-s a longer planning pro%ess if

it-s a really intri%ate show. So# folks are aware of ea%h others- work an" %an offerthoughts an" fee"ba%k an" ask $uestions an" kin" of "ig in in that way# whi%h I fin"

really useful.

Nia: Cow "o you %hoose your performers+

Cherry: So (laughter) I wish that we ha" more %apa%ity be%ause I know that there are somany won"erful# talente" performers out there. An" there are two of us with limite"

%apa%ity. An" usually we are always keeping our eyes open for new folks an" new

performers an" also %ommitte" to ha!ing performers who ha!e been on our stages before#

be%ause I think that there-s kin" of a le!el of "eeper engagement with the work an""eeper risk taking that %an happen if you-re performing with a group of people o!er a

perio" of time. An" at the same time it-s really important to ha!e new performers on the

stage an" gi!e them a %han%e to show%ase their beautiful work an" help "e!elop it.

Nia: So is there like a ratio that you shoot for in terms of like new artists !ersus artists

you-!e worke" with before+

Cherry: I think within like a %alen"ar year it-s probably like about a thir" new an" the

rest folks we-!e performe" with pre!iously.


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Nia: An" "o youI feel like this is gonna soun" weir" no matter how I put it

Cherry: 9hat-s okay.

Nia: Cow mu%h is "i!ersity a fa%tor in %hoosing who performs+

Cherry: It-s a%tually a huge fa%tor. ou know# be%ause yeah we "efinitely want to ha!e

a show that resonates with as many au"ien%e members as possible. An" of %ourse that-s

like a really lofty goal to ha!e an" sometimes it-s "efinitely impossible.

Nia: ou usually ha!e about B performers in a parti%ular show%ase+

Cherry: eah. An" we typi%ally "on-t want somebo"y to e!er be the only# you knowL# # or Nthat-s performing. An" sometimes that-s unfortunately una!oi"able ust

be%ause of s%he"ules an" who-s a!ailable on a %ertain night.

Nia: eah# an" if you-re trying to get like a really "i!erse group of B then you-re notgoing to ha!e 2# 2# 2# an" 2 (laughter).

Cherry: eah# yeah. So# we try to approa%h it with a lot of gra%e an" %ons%iousness

an"# you know# "oing the best that we %an. An" a%knowle"ging that sometimes the best

we %an isn-t goo" enough# an" to try an" "o better.

Nia: Is that something you re%ei!eis "i!ersity something that you re%ei!e %riti%ism

aroun"+ I feel like there was a time when it was largely like %is women an" trans men#

an" I feel like it-s been "rifting away from that in the last %ouple of years.

Cherry: eah# "efinitely. 9hat-s something that I think it-s really important to speak to.

eah# is thatyeah# when we starte" it was# you know# "efinitely folks who were kin" ofin our networks whi%h is mostly %is women an" trans men# you know. An"# yeah# it-s

been in%reasingly important to mo!e away from that an"# you know# to really think about

%elebrating the won"erful resilient trans women of %olor artists who are ali!e an" not ust#you know# mythologi/ing our "ea". An" that-s something that we-!e "efinitely re%ei!e"

%riti$ue aroun" an" that we ha!e intentionally worke" at impro!ing in our work.

Nia: An" how "o you "o that+ &ike# is it a spe%ifi% sort of re%ruiting effort or+

Cherry: ell I-m %onstantly look at performan%e s%enes in like "ifferent %ities an"# you

know# trying to figure out who-s "oing what an"# yeah# looking at lineups an" trying tolearn about "ifferent artists. An" I also think it-s ust like really goo" when people sen"

us their stuff or# you know# intro"u%e themsel!es. 3ause that-s a great way to get to

know# you know# new folks an" new artists. So I en%ourage that for sure.

Nia: So you-re re%epti!e to like %ol" %alls+

Cherry: *h yeah.


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Nia: An" what "o you look for+ &ike# how "o you "e%i"e who-s Mangos material+

Cherry: *h go" (laughter).

Nia: *r "o you ust know it when you see it+

Cherry: I "on-t feel like there-s one sort of# you know# artist profile that fits. If you look

at who-s going on tour with us this year there are# you know# artists with a wi"e range ofperforman%e e6perien%e.

Nia: eah# I know 'ulio is like mostly known as an illustrator# so I-m %urious to see what

his performan%e is gonna be like.

Cherry: eah# "efinitely. ou know# an" some of the folks on tour are newer

performers an" ha!e less e6perien%e# an" some are like really !eteran %areer performers.

An"# yeah# I woul"n-t say that there-s anything that an artist has ha" to a%%omplish oranything. It-s not like that# you know# it-s more about looking at the story that the work

represents an" also# you know# how a potential pie%e fits on a gi!en stage for a %ertainpro"u%tion aroun" a %ertain theme.

Nia: So# like# whether it relates to the theme or whether it relates well to the other pie%esin the show+

Cherry: eah. ;e%ause we "efinitely think about o!erall narrati!e an" shaping it in that

way. An" so e!en if an artist# you know# a parti%ular artist-s propose" pie%e might not bea goo" mat%h for a %ertain show it might be a great mat%h for# like# the show that-s

%oming in a few months# you know. 9his is (laughter) perhaps my fa!orite Mangos show

that we "o e!ery year# an" I ten" to

Nia: So you usually "o one aroun" Oalentine-s Hay# one aroun" Calloween. An" the

Oalentine-s one I think ten"s to be a little bit more upbeat+ I mean# it-s always like arange. It-s always sort of an emotional ourney e!ery show# but the theme forso# the

1ebruary one is %alle" Whipped

Cherry: # an" we were both !isiting

the ;ay Area. An" we were at an artist-s retreat an" !isiting our sweethearts at the time


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an" ust like ha!ing a goo" time in like really %ol" San 1ran%is%o. An" we were both

like# you know what I ha!e this "ream# an" you know really+ I ha!e the same "ream too.

Cow "o we make this happen+ &et-s make this happen. An" like we li!e" in two totally"ifferent %ities at the time so

Nia: An" you two ha" been talking online for a while.

Cherry: 9his is true# yes. 9hat rumor is true. e a%tually met !ia 1rien"ster (laughter).

Nia: 9hat-s a"orable.

Cherry: It is. I wish I %oul" like get ba%k into my ol" 1rien"ster profile. It was like

really hilarious. It sai" that I was rumore" to o%%asionally la%tate te$uila.

Nia: (laughter)

Cherry: 9hat wasI %annot %onfirm or "eny that rumor (laughter).

Nia: *kay. Maybe we-ll fin" out at the ne6t Mangos show. (laughter)

Cherry: (laughter) ;ut anyway# so yeah that-s how we met an" reali/e" we ha" this

share" !ision an"# you know# starte" kin" of "reaming long "istan%e about what it woul"be like. An" so 200? was the year that we really starte" working on it. An" it was in the

era before# like# %ell phones so all of this business was %on"u%te" like !ia %alling %ar" an"

(laughter) yeah. So# at the time she li!e" in 9oronto an" I li!e" in the %ommunity that I

grew up in be%ause I-" gone through like this whole or"eal with my house floo"ing an"ha" lost e!erything that I owne" an" was like# well fu%k it# like I ha!e to go ba%k to my

parents- house. An" a%tually

Nia: here "i" your house floo"+

Cherry: It was on the ast 3oast.

Nia: *kay.

Cherry: eah# it turne" out to be like the best year of my life to li!e where I grew up asan a"ult $ueer# but it was also kin" of a little bit %ra/y to start imagining this wil"

performan%e proe%t there. An" I like" that it was a goo" pla%e for me essentially. So#

we got together# "i" this first year of touring# were kin" of ama/e" at how it turne" out.An" there-s lots of stories that I %oul" tell about the early tour.

Nia: I woul" lo!e to hear those (laughter).

Cherry: eah. Cow basi%ally it was really beautiful an" ama/ing. An" I remember

&eah pi%king me up from '15# an" we were like oh my go" we-re really "oing this#

we-re really "oing this. An" she ha" a @seater mini!an e!en though there were B of us.


15/19

An" I was like# oh my go"# &eah# what are we gonna "o+ She was like ohhh# it-ll work

out# boo. It-ll work out. e-ll ust# like# s$uee/e in. ,ee"less to say it "i" not work out.

An"# 5ay


16/19

Nia: So# you en"e" up with more money than you e6pe%te" on the first tour+ *r "i" you

not start paying yoursel!es until later+

Cherry: hen I say more money I think it was like >00@00 "ollars more# so it wasn-t

like an e6orbitant amount# but we were...it felt like an a%%omplishment.

Nia: eah# "efinitely. 9o not be in the re" after something like that

Cherry: eah.

Nia: 9hat-s pretty impressi!e.

Cherry: So after that year we both mo!e" to the ;ay Area an" got really e6%ite" about"oing shows here as well# an" so there were kin" of D signature shows that were born that

yearncuentros# whi%h was about immigrants- e6perien%e# an"

Nia: I think I went to that one. as that the only onethe only year where you "i"ncuentros# or "i" it %ontinue after+

Cherry: *h no we-!e "one it a few times. eah. e ha!en-t "one it in re%ent years# an"

it-s probably time to "o it again. Sothat was born. An" thenBelovedwas born# an"

Whipped# whi%h was ourthis show that-s going on tour. So our show about lo!e# se6#an" "esire. An" yeah so# ea%h Mangos show is a really memorable e6perien%e# but I

think that this is my fa!orite one# be%ause at its %ore it-s like about e!erything. (laughter)

It-s about like why we-re here in our a"ult $ueer li!es an"# you know# yeah# kin" of the

impetus of all. An" so it-s so fas%inating to me to get to see how artists %hoose to portraythose stories. An" I-!e been really please" with like all the "ifferent manifestations of

lo!e an" lo!e stories that ha!e feature" on the stage as a result of it.

Nia: eah# so this is your Bth anni!ersary tour that-s %oming up. Cow ha!e you kept the

organi/ation going for so long+

Cherry: (laughter)

Nia: I mean likeI was gonna say what is the glue that hol"s it together. I feel like

you an" &eah are the glue that hol"s it together but like you guys ha!e ne!eryou-re nota nonprofit offi%ially# are you+

Cherry: e ha!e a fis%al sponsor.

Nia: *h# okay. *h# that-s right# 3ounter


17/19

Nia: (laughter) ;ut# I guess it-s ne!er seeme" like youit-s !ery grassroots an" !ery

HI# an" it seems like a tremen"ous amount of work. An" so my $uestions are like# how

"o you not burn out an" how "o you not run out of money. (laughter)

Cherry: 9hose are like really goo" $uestions. So# yeah. I will be totally transparent an"

say thatsay a few "ifferent things in response to that. 9here ha!e been times when likeyour asses were literally sa!e" bylike# we ha!en-t re%ei!e" many grants# we really

ha!en-t. ;ut there ha!e been# yeah# times when like one %ame in an" literally sa!e" our

asses or# you know# all of these things woul"n-t ha!e happene". ;e%ause as you %animagine# trying to raise money for upfront tour e6penses is# like# really really really

really har". e-!e also been able to sur!i!e "ue to %ommissions that like Pueer 3ultural

3enter will gi!e us for a show in 'une an" without that it woul" be really har" to make

that 'une show happen e!ery year. An"# yeah# we are an organi/ation that-s relie" a loton the support of our %ommunity# so# you know# whether it-s like passing the hat or

ha!ing# you know# fun"raiser house parties to ust get us through. eah# that-s kin" of

how we-!e ma"e it.

An" there-s "efinitely been times when we felt like we nee"e" a break an" nee"e" to

pause. So# like# not mu%h happene" between 200Q an" 2070. eah# I feel like that wasmostly a year off for us. An" I think what-s kept us going is# you know# thinking about

the future. Meaning# like# future generations of $ueer an" trans people of %olor artists an"

arts organi/ations who will %ome after us# an" ust wanting to lea!e# you know# a lega%ybehin". An" also thinking about kin" of our au"ien%e an" the fee"ba%k that we-!e gotten

about how important that spa%e is for so many folks. An"# yeah# I think ba%k to a%tually

(laughter) my parents# be%ause when I was small I saw the ways that they were really

able to impart hope in people whose li!es were# you know# often felt really reallyhopeless. ou know# farmworking life is har". 9he life of a laborer is har". 9he life of

an immigrant is har". An" to kin" of see the ways that they %oul" make people forget

about their troubles for a night an" kin" of gi!e them the fortitu"e an" oy an" lo!e to%arry forth for another week or another "ay or another whate!er it was for the person who

e6perien%e" it# it was really powerful. An" I think about Mangos kin" of in the same

way.

Nia: eah# "efinitely. I guess one of the reasons I aske" about how you-!e kept the

organi/ation going so long is that itI %an-t imagine what a tremen"ous amount of work

it is to pro"u%e these shows an" pro"u%e these shows for B years. An" it-s reallyImean# there is no staff really. It-s ust like you an" &eah are the %urators an" %ofoun"ers#

an" then there-s sort of a re!ol!ing %ast of performers that work with you.

Cherry: eah.

Nia: So# what all "oes it take to put these shows together+ &ike# what-s the behin" thes%enes work that nobo"y sees+

Cherry: *h# man (laughter).


18/19

Nia: (laughter)

Cherry: So# yeah# I mean it-s a labor of lo!e %ertainly. An" if I "i"n-t ha!e su%h lo!e for%reating the spa%es an" su%h lo!e for gi!ing "eser!ing artists spa%es to show%ase an"

"e!elop their beautiful work# yeah# I "on-t know that I-" still be "oing it. 3ause it is a lot

of work. eah# so it means like some really long "ays sometimes# be%ause this isessentially what we-!e "one on top of alrea"y busy li!es with "ay obs an" in"i!i"ual

artist %areers an" family an" e!erything.

So# yeah# it has meant really long "ays. An" the behin" the s%enes work is like planning

months in a"!an%e what-s going into# you know# a %ertain show an" starting to think

about the pro%ess of e!erything from starting to think about whi%h artists to what spa%e

%an we get for what pri%e an" starting to negotiate with !enues o!er that. An"# youknow# making sure that all the te%hni%al pie%es for the show are together. An" in %ases

where it might be like kin" of a longerterm show# or rather a show that in!ol!es a lot

more planning# helping to "e!elop artists- work# so getting in the stu"io with them an"

helping kin" of grow an" kin" of shape the work an" %hallenging them. An"# yeah# it-soh# I-m like getting way off tra%k# okay let me

Nia: ,o# it-s fine.

Cherry: *kay (laughter). An"# you know# things like managing the kin" of publi%itypie%es so you %an make sure that you ha!e an au"ien%e. An"# yeah# that is a part that gets

har" sometimes in %ities where# you know# you "on-t ne%essarily ha!e a lot of frien"s or

folks. &ike# Couston# 9e6as was that %ity this year. An" there were some folks who

were like really e6%ite" about bringing us there. An" I %ontinue to ha!e ner!es aboutwhat our au"ien%e turnout is gonna be# you know# e!en though we-ll put a"s in like the

weeklies an" "o what we %an aroun" 1a%ebook promotion an" "ifferent so%ial me"ia

promotions. eah# it-s e!erything from managing the artisti% "e!elopment of apro"u%tion to the te%hni%al pie%es of it putting together the te%h sheet so# you know#

whoe!er is working te%h that night knows about light %ues an" when a %ertain song or

!i"eo shoul" play# an" all of that fun to# yeah# "oing all that promo. An" then when thepro"u%tion is a%tually happening making sure that artists ha!e e!erything they nee" an"

are set to go# you know# shine an" be beautiful onstage.

Nia: An" what is your goal# both for the artists an" for yourself+ &ike# what are youhoping will happen as a result of ha!ing been part of Mangos ith 3hili+

Cherry: hat a goo" $uestion. I thinkthe big goal is to gi!e people hope an" gi!epeople healing an" make people laugh. An" to ha!e some element of their li!es an"

truths an" "reams an" e6perien%es an" realities refle%te" in what we put on our stage.

An" 9he =ebirth has this $uote that I really like that-s like# If our oy makes you oyfulan" our pain helps yours fa"e# then we ha!e be%ome frien"s here on arth. An" this is

greater than any simple hello or embra%e %oul" e!er hol". An" it-s basi%ally that.

Nia: eah. 9hat-s a pretty awesome $uote.


19/19

Cherry: So that-s one goal. An" I-" say the other goal is ust aroun" !isibility an"# you

know# keeping on going in an arts worl" that is really white# e!en $ueer arts worl"s# youknow# really really really white. An" wanting to keep this work going so that artists ha!e

a pla%e to show%ase their work an" au"ien%es ha!e a pla%e to %ome an" see stories like

theirs.

Nia: So# as we talke" about earlier this is the Byear anni!ersary tour. An" why shoul"

people %ome out an" see this one in parti%ular+

Cherry: ell (laughter)# somebo"y aske" me re%ently what is your most trans%en"ent

moment in Mangos history+ an" I kin" of feel like it-s right know# an" that-s saying a lot

be%ause there-s been a lot of memorable an" trans%en"ent Mangos moments. ;ut the fa%tthat we ha!e ma"e it to here. 9he fa%t that we are B years ol"# operating on a shoestring

bu"get# but figuring it the fu%k out be%ause that-s what we know how to "o. An" the fa%t

that# we want to make this work happen "eeply. An" we-re thinking about the artists who

are gonna %ome after us. 'ust the fa%t that we-re here is a mira%le. An" I-m really reallye6%ite" about the %ommunities that we-re going to !isit on this tour.

Nia: 9his is an international tour# isn-t it+

Cherry: I suppose so. It woul"n-t be our first# but yeah (laughter). 1rom Oan%ou!er#;ritish 3olumbia to ,ew *rleans. An" we ha!e some ama/ing artists %oming along with

us. It-s gonna be won"erful an" memorable. An"# you know# lo!e stories are powerful

stories. Stories of ust "esire are powerful stories. An" I know that ea%h artist is going to

bring their story of lo!e an" "esire in a really beautiful# powerful way.

(musi%al interlu"e)

Documents

We Want the Airwaves - Cherry Galette