Bryan Safi Prepares To Go Out Loud With "The State of the (Super Gay) Union"

AfterElton fave and That's Gay host Bryan Safi brings his hilarious snark to the Out Loud Comedy & Arts Festival in San Francisco this week.

The Festival runs from October 7-10, and Bryan will take the stage Thursday at 8PM PT at the SF LGBT Community Center with "The State of the (Super Gay) Union."

Using some of the most outrageous and hilarious clips from this past year in media, Current TV's Bryan Safi of "That's Gay" presents The State of the Gay Union in the first live version of the show. From viral giants like that Old Spice dude to logic warriors like Bill O'Reilly and Focus on the Family, Bryan will enlighten, inform and tickle you in all the right places.

In preparation for his appearance Bryan interviewed two other stars from this week's festival, the caustic Sandra Bernhard and one of the original drag queens of comedy Lady Bunny. Here are some choice excerpts.

Bryan: So what are you planning to do at Out Loud?
Sandra: Just 45 minutes of my music and my comedy. It’ll cover everything from contemporary pop culture to my personal life to politics and everything in between.

Bryan: Is reality TV something you’ve ever been interested in doing? I imagine you’ve been approached.
Sandra: It’s interesting. Fifteen years ago, my friend Jhoni Marchinko - who ended up becoming the show runner for Will & Grace - pitched to HBO [the show concept] A Day in the Life of Sandra Bernhard.

Bryan: OH MY GOD, THAT WOULD BE SO GOOD.
Sandra: The people at HBO said, “We don’t get it.” It was right before it all kind of exploded. And so it never happened. And then of course, y’know, Curb Your Enthusiasm and all these shows [came on]. But no, I would never wanna do a show that’s strictly maudlin and invaded my personal life and my home. I would never do that.

Bryan: What about on Bravo?
Sandra: No, no, no, no. That’s not for Sandy. I don’t see the reality thing happening now. I don’t think there’s any room left to do anything inventive. They don’t want inventive. They wanna be hit over the head with this stuff. And, you know that’s not where I come from.

You can read the rest of Sandra's interview here, and tickets are still available for Saturday's An Evening With Sandra Bernhard.

Bryan: Lady Bunny! What are you planning to do at the Out Loud Comedy Festival? And what else are you working on right now?
Lady Bunny: With the Castro Theater's giant film screen as a back-drop, I'm premiering a song parody of Katy Perry's "California." It's the first time I've ever produced a video project and thanks to my co-stars and fab crew, I am thrilled at how rotten (in a good way) it turned out. I've always admired queens like Varla who incorporate video into their act--I've just never gotten it together until now. I've also been working on some stand-up comedy and will throw in a little of that.

Bryan: It seems like the only images we get about female impersonation are from RuPaul’s Drag Race and Drag U. Who or what inspired you to get into this line of work?
Lady Bunny: I was enthralled by drag queens I saw at a young age in bars in Chattanooga, Tennessee where I grew up. Except for TV and film, I'd never seen women--much less men--wearing sequinned gowns, huge hair and false eyelashes before. My mom was attractive, but no definitely no glamorpuss.

Bryan: Rate these queens on a scale of 1-10. Tyler Perry’s Madea —
Lady Bunny: Zero. I've never seen it or had any desire to.

Bryan: Two -- Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie?
Lady Bunny: I thought it was pitiful that they worked in a love scene with Dustin and Jessica Lange. Totally unbelievable that they'd be in bed and she wouldn't notice his stubble.

Bryan: Three -- Martin Lawrence in Big Momma’s House?
Lady Bunny: Wouldn't see it. I find Martin Lawrence very scary for some reason, although he was funny when he did that drag character with the very long nails.

Bryan: Four -- Nathan Lane in The Birdcage?
Lady Bunny: He ruined the role by playing it as a clown. In the original film, the queen may have been older and not so attractive, but she was still regal so you feared her tantrums and catered to your whims. Nathan killed all of that with his slapstick take on the character.

Bryan: Is there anything on TV or in film that you feel really gets it right when it comes to portrayals of gays and gayness?
Lady Bunny: The maid in The Birdcage was a riot--and he was straight! But drag is often misrepresented, as is transsexualism. I still can't get over how absurd it was to have Terence Stamp, with a full beard visible, play a post-op transsexual in Priscilla. News flash! You get electrolysis before the chop! However, I did think Felicity Huffman did a great job as an awkward pre-op in Transamerica.

You can read the rest of Lady Bunny's interview here, and tickets are still available for Saturday's The Drag Queens of Comedy.