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Chicki Parm: The Comedy Queen of Richmond

Allison Tovey | July 31, 2019

Topics: chase keech, Chicki Parm, comedian, comedy, drag, drag comedian, drag queen, drag shows, entertainment, extra cheese, Fallout, fallout rva, LGBTQ, local drag, local shows, performances, richmond drag queens, rupaul, rupauls drag race, trixie mattel, wicked wednesdays

Local drag performer Chicki Parm focuses on the funny, hosting a monthly comedy show in Richmond between tours across the country.

Chase Keech has turned his love of drag and comedy into a full-time career performing as Richmond’s drag star Chicki Parm. 

“I would have never guessed I’d get to be a full-time drag queen. My wildest dreams have already been shattered with drag,” Keech said. “I used to do drag goals for every drag birthday. I used to write out fifteen to twenty quantifiable goals, but I don’t even do that anymore. I would break them beyond my wildest dreams.” 

Keech was introduced to the world of drag in 2014 after meeting a drag queen at a house party. A natural-born performer, he was immediately drawn to drag. 

“It was so new to me. From there, I binged RuPaul’s Drag Race and I saw that there was a real lack in the Richmond scene of the kind of drag queen that I was always drawn to — which is a comedian, a comedy queen,” Keech said, “I saw a path for myself, started drag, and became the comedy queen of Richmond.” 

Keech had been working in IT at the DMV at the time, and he balanced his two worlds for over three years while he worked all day and performed all night. As Keech’s popularity rose and the bookings became more frequent, however, doing both was no longer an option. In November of 2018, Keech made the decision to quit his day job and to fully pursue his dreams of performing, turning his passion into a thriving career. 

“With drag, it’s only as much of a business as you make it. If you’re just doing gigs and not thinking about the bigger picture of what you’re doing, you’re not really trying to profit, then you don’t see much of a profit. Very early on into starting drag, I knew that’s what I wanted to do: do it for work,” Keech said. “I just have to be very business savvy with it all. You have to be very strategic; you can’t say yes to everything all the time. I have to be picky about what I do on the weekends because those are my big money-making days. And then I have merch — I’m able to sell a patron something besides my performance. You really have to go about it with a business mindset.” 

That ambition is what’s taking Keech all over the country as he travels state-to-state hosting and performing, as well as hosting multiple shows all over Richmond. He hosts Quenched Wednesdays every week at Thirsty’s RVA, as well as his own monthly show at Fallout, Extra Cheese, which features both drag performers and stand-up comedians. 

Keech pitched the idea for Extra Cheese when he was in the cast at Fallout’s Wicked Wednesdays shows as a drag stand-up comedian. This August 12th will be the third anniversary of the show, which falls on Keech’s 25th birthday. 

“It’s really nice to be able to have a show dedicated to the art forms I love, and dedicated to me being silly on the mic. My single favorite thing about drag is being on the mic and just killing a joke. That is better than performing or anything to me,” Keech said. “I always tell myself that my job is to be a comedian, and drag is the avenue through which I do my job. Drag is how I do my comedy.” 

Keech’s comedic chops are a huge part of the Chicki Parm persona, as well as his defined aesthetic. 

“I have tried very hard to create a brand, a color palette,” Keech said. “I want you to be able to look at me and say, oh, that’s a very ‘Chicki’ look.” 

When creating a look, Keech often draws on themes of futurism mixed with classic drag elements, like outrageous curves and head-to-toe rhinestones, all inside the strict color scheme Keech has set for himself. 

“I only wear three colors of hair: baby pink, platinum blonde, and silver. I only wear orange, blue, pink, black, and red,” Keech said. “I try to be consistent.” 

Among his influences are Bob The Drag Queen, the season 8 winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race, and Nicki Minaj — whom Keech cites as his “problematic fave.” 

His love of Nicki Minaj is what landed him with the drag name Chicki Parm, a name that has received lots of attention recently after Trixie Mattel of RuPaul’s Drag Race fame shouted out the fun and campy name. 

“Chicki came from my boy name, Chase, plus Nicki Minaj. So I sat on Chicki for a while and then one day I was watching Parks & Rec and there’s a bit where Aziz Ansari calls Chicken Parmesan ‘Chicki Chicki Parm Parm.’ I just thought, ‘ohmygod that’s me,’” Keech said, “And there’s so much I can do with it; Extra Cheese, and my merch with the spaghetti demons. I can do Italian-inspired numbers. I love my schtick. And so does Trixie, I guess.” 

The name Chicki Parm completes the strong branding that Keech has always aimed for in his drag career. 

“I think I’m unique in that I knew what I wanted to be, coming in to drag. I have a lot of people tell me, ‘I saw what you were doing early on and it’s been cool to see you polish it up.’ Even my colors, I knew early on,” Keech said. “It’s been such a cool journey, being able to develop that and grow with that. I really think it’s important, if you want to make it, to have a brand. People are weirded out by that word, or don’t understand, but it’s really so important to know who you are.” 

Keech’s performance style as Chicki is engaging, hilarious, and intentionally individual. He keeps an audience on their toes and playing along, even promising to scream in your face if you tip higher than a one-dollar bill — much to the delight of everyone watching. The Chicki Parm persona is defined and marketed, but never disingenuous, and always a great time. 

Chicki Parm is quickly becoming one of the biggest names in the Richmond drag scene, and Keech shows no signs of stopping. 

All Photos courtesy Chicki Parm

Izzard is King: “Believe Me” Tour Lands In Richmond

Ash Griffith | October 8, 2018

Topics: believe me tour, comedian, comedy, eddie izzard, jazz chicken, Monty Python

Eddie Izzard is 56 years old, and wears six-inch red bottom-heeled, knee-high leather boots better than I could ever hope or dream to. Surprisingly, I can still sleep at night knowing this. What I really wish I could do, however, is be even a fraction of the immense story-telling comedic powerhouse that Izzard is, and has been, for the last 36 years of his incredibly expansive career.

The U.K. comedian is currently on his Believe Me Tour, which performed at the Altria Theater on Saturday night. The tour is the stand-up comedy version of his memoir, Believe Me, which was released in June of last year. And undeniably, he remains one of the most fascinating and talented comics of our era.

Izzard, who was born in Yemen, starts from the beginning by explaining how his parents met and how he was conceived. Through the beauty of a PowerPoint projector, Google Maps, and a super savvy (and above all else, patient) tech guy named Greg, the audience went back in time: not only to see where Izzard was born, but also learning fun anecdotes about his illustrious childhood, getting his start in stand-up, and how he broke into Monty Python.

Yes. He became an unofficial member of Monty Python because he broke in. He broke into their studio.

Before the show started, guests were given the option to tweet questions to Izzard, or fill out cards in the lobby so he could answer them during a portion of the show. Even though I may never know the answer to my question: “What is the best lipstick to wear as your car breaks down on the side of the highway?” Answer: Definitely MAC’s Russian Red — trust me. Nevertheless, he did cover a bevy of other topics: learning what a jazz chicken was, how badass a tea cozy can be, and whether he actually knew why James Bond was codenamed 007.

Unsurprisingly, a big focus of the show was Izzard covering gender and sexual identity politics, and how they have changed since the eighties when he first came out. Which is significant, since Izzard is widely regarded as one of the most well known and successful gender-fluid comedians of all time.

Knowing since he was young that he identified as transgender, he struggled on how he could come out in 1980s Wales. During the show, this was discussed and reminded the audience just how lucky we are that we live in 2018. This was a powerful reminder that it is easy to glaze over the obvious daily struggles the LGBTQ community endures, but doing so in 2018 rather than the early 1980s makes us fortunate.

Another anecdote that is core to Izzard’s personal and comedic identity was the first time he wore a dress in public. He recanted how great it felt to walk around in it, but acknowledged the panic which came when he realized that he had to change before coming back home (where he had roommates). He thought he was safe to do so in a women’s washroom, until he realized that there was a group of bad girls — thirteen year old girls in heavy black eyeliner, smoking cigarettes, and every latch was broken.

He ended the show by saying he hopes that, in his lifetime, we will eventually come together so everyone can have the exact same opportunities as their peers.

Izzard is undoubtedly a gifted comedian. Yet something he doesn’t get enough credit for is how much of a humanitarian and political activist he is, no less than making genuine plans to run for mayor of London in 2020.

“I’m trying to do an Al Franken,” Izzard told George Stroumboulopoulos in an interview. “I want to bring all the energy of doing gigs in different languages, of touring around and playing lots of crazy places, of doing marathon running, of all this stuff. I’m going to bring that energy into it and hopefully do something positive. I can think in a different way, I can see things in a slightly different light.”

Izzard’s stream of conscious comedy always makes for an amazing show, but it’s really when he gets raw and vulnerable that it makes for an honest performance. He’ll always be known for his comedy, but what he should be known even more for his is heart.

Eddie Izzard is currently on tour for his Believe Me Tour. He can next be seen on October 9th at the Gaillard Center in Charleston, SC. 

 

Comedian Tom Papa on diffusing bombs and hanging with Rob Zombie ahead of his 10/16 show at UR

Amy David | October 12, 2015

Topics: comedian, comedy, Rob Zombie, standup, Tom Papa, University of Richmond

“Life is a pair of skinny jeans, and you are a big fat ass.”

[Read more…] about Comedian Tom Papa on diffusing bombs and hanging with Rob Zombie ahead of his 10/16 show at UR

Comedian Mike Birbiglia Comes to RVA in Late May (Tickets on Sale Friday)

Brad Kutner | February 6, 2014

Topics: comedian, Mike Birbiglia, Richmond center Stage

Mike Birbiglia is freaking hilarious. The comedian and writer is known for his story telling.
[Read more…] about Comedian Mike Birbiglia Comes to RVA in Late May (Tickets on Sale Friday)

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