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In print | February 28, 2008

The Phoenix’s Tiffany Liao interviewed Margaret Cho moments before she took the LPAC Stage this past Saturday. Here’s what the comedian had to say about everything from burlesque dancing to being a gay icon.

Tiffany Liao: You have mentioned that things are changing, that you are seeing more Asian American faces in the media. Why is this happening, why now?

Margaret Cho: There’s a growing consciousness around race … more of a non-acceptance of the way things happen and the way that it’s been really monochromatic. People are tired of not hearing their stories represented. It’s become almost trendy to have different perspectives. There’s a lot more gay characters, a lot more people of color out there. It’s exciting, I don’t think it’s completely better but that it’s better over all.

TL: You have a very confessional style and you mention a lot of personal topics in your work such as your substance abuse and your body image issues. Why do you choose this style and is it difficult to put yourself out there like that?

MC: I don’t have a personal connection to it, my stories are just my stories. I don’t feel like if it’s not accepted or if people don’t like it, I don’t take it personally, I just kind of keep going. I’ve been doing this such a long time so I don’t feel attached to every little instance or story that I tell. I feel okay about telling a story and just letting them go.

TL: You’ve mentioned in your shows your struggles with the idea of beauty and accepting alternative forms of it. How have you been able to move past this?

MC: As I’ve gotten older, I’ve embraced different hobbies like bellydance, which is a great art form that helped me feel very beautiful and really good about myself physically. Burlesque is another world, too, where the standard of beauty is very different and very wide open to a lot of different types of people … it’s a world that is supportive of women, of aging and women’s bodies. For me, it’s about plunging into this community.

TL: You’ve worked in a lot of different mediums. You’ve written an autobiography, worked in film, had your own television show and blog. Has there been a favorite medium or one that disappointed?

MC: I really started to enjoy doing music pretty recently, I did it for a burlesque show “The Sensuous Woman” and I’m doing a little bit of music in my new show. That’s something I’m learning about and trying to figure out. My mother’s a singer so I’m hoping that it’s handed down. I like directing but it’s really difficult. It’s something that I would like to do again but I know it requires a lot of preparation. I’ve really been lucky and I’ve been able to enjoy everything that I’ve come to do.

TL: You’ve been called a gay icon. What does that term actually mean to you and do you think of yourself as a gay icon?

MC: I don’t really think of myself as a gay icon but people tell me that. I think it’s really flattering and marvelous and exciting. I hope that I can live up to that, I hope that I can be a good queer activist … and work towards queer issues and equal rights.

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