Drag Star Sasha Velour on Her New Show and J.K. Rowling’s Dangerous Views

Sasha Velour is currently in San Diego, preparing for “Velour: A Drag Spectacular,” her new autobiographical stage show at the La Jolla Playhouse.

The “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Season 9 winner and “We’re Here” co-host not only stars in the show, but she also co-wrote it with director Moisés Kaufman. “Velour” narrates Sasha’s journey from being a genderfluid child in the Midwest to becoming an international drag superstar. The production is a collaboration with the Tectonic Theater Project.

Sasha’s first encounter with drag was watching “Some Like It Hot” with her grandmother. “It was filmed in San Diego, where I am right now,” Sasha mentions in a recent “Just for Variety” podcast. She also discovered that Barbette, a renowned aerialist drag artist, trained the actors for their roles in drag for that film, adding an authentic touch to it.

“Velour” will feature plenty of Sasha’s signature lip-syncing, along with some new wire skills she’s acquired. “I’m learning to fly,” she says.

Sasha’s struggles with an eating disorder, which she discussed on “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” will be explored in more depth in “Velour.” “We’re really going to go there with the show,” she explains.

The show includes 14 costume changes, all happening on stage. “I’ve never been so fully dressed or so naked on a stage before,” Sasha teases.

Sasha believes that the show will have even more resonance now, especially as the presidential election approaches. “Everything we do is politicized because when you’re visibly queer, you can’t even wear a pretty dress without it becoming a political act,” she asserts. “The vitriol against drag and trans people comes from a place of ignorance and fear.”

The discussion also touches on J.K. Rowling’s anti-trans statements. “She spreads misinformation as if it is the truth,” Sasha says. “When I was in Tennessee and Oklahoma filming ‘We’re Here,’ I was shocked at how uninterested some people were in the truth or even hearing from those they wish to demonize.”

Sasha finds it tragic that someone whose writing once filled her with a sense of possibility has turned into such a divisive figure.

On a lighter note, Sasha recalls meeting Lady Gaga and being asked to interview her for the promo of the HBO concert film, “Gaga Chromatica Ball.” “Meeting her backstage and talking to her was unforgettable,” she says. “I felt like we had a real conversation. I just wanted to spend hours talking to her.”

“Velour: A Drag Spectacular” will be at the La Jolla Playhouse in La Jolla, Calif., from Aug. 13 to Sept. 15.