
"On The Go With Angelica Foxx"
This is a visit with one of Female Impersonations' brightest young stars, Angelica Foxx!
Angelica brings a refreshing attitude to the art of Female Illusion that combines
passion, dedication, professionalism, and a genuine love of performing
KS: Angelica Foxx, what a great name for a performer. How did you decide on the
stage name Angelica Foxx?
AF: Coming up with the name Angelica Foxx was really a group effort. The first name Angelica
was given to me by my Drag Mother Mercedes Martin. Mercedes got if from the cartoon
show "Rugrats". Mercedes said that she thought the character in the cartoon and I had
a lot of the same personality traits,...though I don't see them of course. (**EVIL GRIN**)
Once my first name was given to me, it was time for my last name. That is where the
group effort came in. One evening when a group of my fellow performers here in
Terre Haute, which I of course always refer to as my "Sisters", and a few friends were
over at Mercede's house all thinking up last names for me. After we had narrowed the
choices down to two names, "Black" or "Foxx", we all voted on which one we liked
and thought sounded the best. Well, it was from that point on that I had the stage
name "Angelica Foxx"!
KS: How long have you been doing Female Illusion and what got you up on stage?
AF: I have been involved with the art of Female Illusion for three years now. As far as
what got me up on the stage is a little longer of a story. When I was in elementary
school, I can remember always performing in the PTA functions and on Parents Night.
In Junior High, I can remember being in the show choir and always participating
in the schools talent show every year. In High School I was very active in the
Drama Club scene, and again was in the show choir. After High School, it always
seemed like there was something missing in my life, till one Halloween a friend of
mine, who performed here in Terre Haute, talked me into performing in the Halloween
show at our local gay bar.
As soon as I walked out on stage that night, I knew exactly what it was that had
been missing from my life,...it was the love of entertaining and performing for people.
From that night on, I became a regular to the art of Female Illusion.
KS: Congratulations on winning your first pageant! Tell us a little of your history
regarding your involvement in the pageant scene.
AF: Thank you very much on the congratulations! I am very happy to now be
carrying the title of Miss Gay Indiana State University. Over the last three years
I have been very active in the pageant scene. Although Miss ISU was the first
pageant that I had competed in, it by far was not the first pageant that I had attended.
Every year I always attend all the pageants that are held here in Terre Haute, either
just to watch, or sometimes to help a friend who is competing in the pageant. Just a
few of the pageants we have here in Terre Haute are: Miss Indiana Cosmopolitan,
Miss Central Indiana, and numerous other pageants. I also travel the state of Indiana
with other performers from my town to watch pageants or to help one of the girls from
Terre Haute who might be competing.
Every year I make the journey to Dallas, TX for the Miss Gay U.S. of A pageant, and to
Louisville, KY for the Miss Entertainer Of The Year Pageant. This year I had to make a
second trip to Dallas for the Miss Gay U.S. of A at Large. This is a traveling national
pageant that is held in a different location each year.
KS: What advice would you give to someone entering a pageant for the very first time?
AF: The first and I feel the most important piece of advice that I would give would be to have
realistic expectations. Remember this is your first pageant. The next piece of advice I
would give is to make sure that you come prepared. Too many times I have seen people
come to a pageant not prepared to the extent of what they should have been. The next
is to always be sure to maintain your confidence about yourself and your performance
throughout the whole pageant, no matter what happens. If you have done your best,
then there is nothing you need to be worried about. Also, when the winner of the
pageant is announced, always remember to be professional about your responses to
the placement of the contestants (runners' up) even if you don't think things should
have turned out the way they did. People are more apt to remember you for an
unprofessional act during "the crowning" then they are for something else outstanding
you did during the pageant. My final piece of advice,....JUST HAVE FUN! You want to
make sure that your first pageant experience is a fun one, that way you will of course want
to do it again.
KS: Do you do any celebrity impersonations? You look as if you could do Cher.
AF: As of right now, I am not doing celebrity impersonations. At this point in my career I am
still trying to perfect the art of Female Illusion itself. Once I feel that I am doing that to
the best of my abilities, I may then attempt a shot at doing celebrity impersonations.
KS: You live and perform in Terre Haute, Indiana. Describe the FI scene there.
AF: Here in Terre Haute, we only have one gay club, and it has two shows per week. We
currently have one former Miss Indiana U.S. of A at Large 1996 (Mercedes Martin) and
the current Miss Indiana U.S. of A at Large (India Black) residing here. Other girls in
our cast hold numerous other titles. Around the state of Indiana there are several other
clubs that have regular shows, and many of the girls from here in Terre Haute do guest
spots at them.
Right now I am not performing too often. At the moment, my main focus on life is
completing my college education, which thank goodness is not too far away. I
usually perform about once a month, since that is all the time I can spare right now.
In the near future I plan to get back to performing on a more regular basis.
KS: Wow! Maybe I should call you Miss Energetic! You work, attend college, perform,
and you even find time to run a web site. Tell us about your "spot" on the net.
AF: Well, my web-site is dedicated to all of the FIs' here in Terre Haute, IN. There is
a spot on the web-site that contains a short bio on each of the girls. The site
also contains information about upcoming pageants at our bar, as well as other
events that will be happening at our bar.
Although I am the one who runs and maintains the site, I make sure that the site
not only conveys what I want to tell people about the FI scene here in Terre Haute,
but I want it to convey what all the girls here want people on the net to know.
Unfortunately, right now I have been so busy with everything that I am doing that I
have managed to neglect my page a little and have not updated it in a while. I do
have a big update planned to take place very soon, so everyone who regularly visits
the site will have some new stuff to check out!
KS: Maybe its just me, but after visiting your web-site, I got the sense that the FI cast
at your club is really tight knit, and knows how to have fun!
AF: I don't feel that one could ask for a better group of girls to work with. Each of our
girls is always looking out for the other and always trying to help out in everything
that we do. When one of our girls decides to enter a pageant, she knows that she
has a whole group behind her to help out in any way possible.
When it comes to the part about us knowing how to have fun, yes, that is something
we know VERY well! Our group regularly gets together for dinners, and other
get-togethers, which usually turn out to be a very fun experience. Even our regular
meetings and production rehearsals for the cast usually end up with everyone laughing
and having a good time. The group of girls we have here in Terre Haute are more than
just a cast at a club, we are a very close knit family.
KS: Ok,...its showtime! What kind of presentation are we going to see from
Angelica Foxx?
AF: When it is time for Angelica to walk out onto the stage, one never really knows
what to expect until they hear the music start. I always have fun with the songs
that I do. Like most, I do my fair share of ballads, although I try to keep those
down to a minimum. I usually prefer songs that are upbeat, but not quite to the
speed of being a dance number.
I usually try to perform one song during the night that people, I guess, would
refer to as a "camp" song. I like to have fun when I perform, and I want to make
sure the audience can tell that I am really enjoying what I am doing on stage. If
you can't have fun performing , then whats the point?
When I go out on stage, I am someone who likes to have "costumes". I feel that
the crowd can get tired of seeing gown after gown, or dance outfit after dance
outfit. I try to come up with different/creative outfits that I can wear not only to
entertain the crowd, but to also help the meaning of the song that I am performing
be more compelling.
KS: Earlier, you mentioned that you have a drag mother. For those just learning
about Female Impersonation, would you define the term, and then talk a little
bit about the relationship?
Mercedes Martin |
AF: A drag mother, the best I can explain it, is someone who has been in the art of FI
for awhile, who knows the ropes of the art and is willing to show you the ropes.
I am very lucky to have a very wonderful drag mother who took me under her wing
when I was first starting out in FI. Like a drag mother should, my drag mother,
Mercedes Martin showed me things one needs to know when first starting out, like
how to put on make-up, the clothes I should wear, and how to present myself on stage.
At first, your drag mother is usually just a friend, but as time goes on that bond tends
to grow much stronger. I refer to my drag mother as "Mama" just as I would my own
biological mother. I know that if ever I would need something from my drag mother,
she would do whatever she could to help me, as she knows I would do the same for her.
I know not everyone who gets into FI has the opportunity to have a drag mother. I
feel that being lucky enough to have one is one of the best things that one can do to
help start their experience in FI. Like in life, everyone needs someone to look up to.
KS: Is there a big difference between your "on & off" stage persona?
AF: I would like to say that I am the same person on or off stage, but that would
not be totally true. Although I am very outgoing off stage, on stage that persona
is even more magnified. On stage I seem to be a little more carefree and spontaneous
in my actions. On stage my two goals are to have fun, and of course entertain the
audience. So yes, in actuality my on & off stage personalities do have their
differences. I can't say which of them is any better than the other.
KS: Skills in hair, make-up, and wardrobe help create the on-stage illusion. How
expert in these areas are you?
AF: Well, when it comes to wigs, I can't say that I am very strong in that area. My drag
mother does most of my wigs, and the rest are done by the wonderful stylist who
cuts my actual hair. Both of them are very talented at styling wigs. A few of my wigs
have been ordered from designers who are very well known in the world of FI, although
I usually have my wigs styled by my people here in Terre Haute.
When it comes to make-up, this is a never-ending learning process. I am always finding
new ways that I like to do my make-up. The basic ways an FI needs to apply make-up
in order to enhance the features of the face and complete the illusion are usually the same,
but from time to time the techniques used to enhance those features may change a little.
The clothing part is a very different story. I do order gowns and purchase directly
"off the rack", but I usually tend to make most of my outfits and costumes. The
design and creation of my wardrobe, as well as many of the articles of clothing I do
for the other girls in our cast is something that I really enjoy.
I feel that one of the best things for someone who is into FI is to be self sufficient, or
at least know someone who can help you. When one of our girls can't do something,
there is always another girl that can step in and help out. Operating this way helps to
keep down the costs one can incur while getting into the art of FI.
KS: Even though you perform at a gay club, do you get much of a straight/tourist crowd
who just want to see a FI show?
AF: Like every gay club with FI, we do get some of the straight/tourist crowd who just
want to watch the show. In our club we often have our regular gay patrons bring
their straight friends to see the shows. We do not have a lot of straight people in
our bar since it is a gay bar, but we do get a few.
KS: When the show is over, how long does it take to unwind and come off
the "natural high" of performing?
AF: It really depends on the crowd the nights that I perform, like how energetic and
enthusiastic they are when it comes to winding down after a show. Every night I
perform, after we finish call-backs and all do our bows, I go back to the dressing
room and remove all of my make-up and change back into my regular "boy" clothes.
If it has been a slow night, sometimes the high comes away with the make-up removal,
but if I have had a really good night, and the crowd has been very supportive, it can
be hours before I lose the high that I aquired while on the stage.
Another factor is the reaction I get from people in the audience that I see when I am
in drab after the show. A lot of it depends on whether or not I get positive feedback
from them about the show. That can really help or hurt the high I obtained that
night.
Angelica in another context |
KS: Angelica, thank you so much for being here! As we wrap, I remember you telling
me that as much as you love doing FI, you would never want to do it on a permanent
full-time basis. Why is that?
AF: Well, this is really a hard question to answer For me FI is a hobby. I have a full-time
day job that I use to pay my bills and support my hobby of FI. I feel that doing
FI full-time as a way of paying my bills would just take out all of the fun and enjoyment.
I know that when I have to get up and go to my day job, that there are some days that
I think to myself, "I do NOT want to go to work today!" This is because I do not always
enjoy myself at work. I feel that when you have to do a job to get by in life, you tend to
stop enjoying it after awhile. Like I said before, FI is something I do for fun and I really
enjoy it. If I had to do it to support myself, I would be afraid that it would end up not
being as fun and enjoyable as I do now, and that it would become "just a job".
Check out Angelica and the rest of the girls from Terre Haute, Indiana! Visit the website at:
http://www.geocities.com/WestHollywood/Village/8530/
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