Hometown: Seattle, WA
Age: Girl, please!
Profession: Female impersonator, entertainment director, Gypsy Nightclub
Profile: Just one week after producing a show at Carnegie Hall with the Seattle Men’s Chorus and two years after winning Miss Gay Seattle 1992, Toni headed to Vegas. In the 13 years since his first Vegas gig as Diana Ross and Janet Jackson in the Sahara’s Boy-lesque show, Toni has played Erykah Badu, Donna Summers and Whitney Houston. As Toni James, he has entertained thousands with his 2 a.m. lip-sync contest at the Gypsy (returning January 3) and will showcase a show on the Strip in ’08. This Saturday, Toni emcees Beauty Bar’s second annual Drop Dead Gorgeous Beauty Pageant Finals at Downtown’s Plaza Hotel.
Why I Do What I Do: “I do what a lot of men would never do for a living and what most men can’t do for a living, and also I love to be able to make people forget about their problems even for just for a moment while I’m performing.”
Personal Tidbit: Toni is a world-champion baton-rifle-flag-saber twirler and a former bodybuilder who took the bronze medal in the 1990 Gay Games. He attended the University of Washington to study psychology.
What I’m listening to: Amy Winehouse
Latest Accomplishment: Toni spent much of 2007 on the road, splitting his time between Vegas and Seattle to reinstate drag entertainment at Neighbour’s Nightclub, the first place he ever performed in drag.
Quote: “Heeeeeeey.”