Anthony Wayne has appeared in fantastic, Tony-winning Broadway shows including Pippin, The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, and Anything Goes. Yet the openly gay, African-American Harlem resident admits there aren't a lot of roles out there for people of color his age, despite his formidable talents as a dancer, singer and actor.
So, in collaboration with his boyfriend, celebrity fashion stylist Kendrell Bowman, Wayne decided to create a role and show entitled Mighty Real: A Fabulous Sylvester Musical to spotlight his range of abilities—and resuscitate a groundbreaking gay pop culture legend in the process.
"Sylvester was against the grain," said the Virginia-born Wayne. "He was a man who stood in his truth and who was able to pursue and do great things no matter what he went through. This was a chance to do something outside of the box. To do a leading role, to bring something to life, and celebrate the man at the same time."
Dubbed "The Queen of Disco," Sylvester ( born Sylvester James Jr. in Los Angeles ) performed some of the '70s most enduring and recognizable disco tunes and gay anthems including "You Make Me Feel ( Mighty Real )," "Do Ya Wanna Funk," "Dance ( Disco Heat )," and a soulful cover of Patti LaBelle's "You Are My Friend." In fact, June 25th saw a CD and double pink vinyl 12" release of Mighty Real: Greatest Dance Hits, featuring a new Ralphi Rosario dub remix.
More factoid realness: Sylvester performed with San Francisco's legendary The Cockettes troupe during the early '70s, while big-voiced divas Martha Wash and Izora Rhodes flanked him during the late '70s as backup singers Two Tons of Fun ( the ladies later went on to form The Weather Girls, of "It's Raining Men" fame ). He gender-bent with flamboyant clothing and makeup, helping pave the way for RuPaul ( and, surely, so much "realness" being served today ). In 1988 he died from AIDS-related complications, but not without leaving a legacy and oft-covered music catalog behind.
In the show, which recently ran off-Broadway's Theatre at St. Clement's ( 423 W. 46th St. ), Wayne channeled Sylvester, taking us through his life's highs and lows via monologues and favorite songs. For even those familiar with Sylvester, the show is rich with in-depth, little known information. "And everything is fabulous," adds Bowman, who designed the glam outfits.
The show entails a first artistic collaboration between the romantic couple, who first met online circa 2010 while Wayne was appearing in Broadway's Priscilla as Jimmy … although meeting offline almost didn't happen, Bowman admitted.
"I was kind of skeptical," Bowman said. "He was on Broadway and wanted to meet after his show, and I wasn't sure why he wanted to meet after 11:30 at night. I'm like, honey, Central Park after 11:30 at night, nothing's gonna happen."
However, not only did they finally meet, but Bowman showed up to see Wayne sing a number from RENT at a Town Hall event and was struck by his talent. Right then, the seed for Mighty Real was sown. "Kendall turned to me and said, 'we need to do something, people need to hear your voice,'" Wayne recalled. "The idea of the show was already bouncing around, and we went from there."
A 2010 episode of VH1's music biography series, Unsung, devoted to Sylvester proved an invaluable inspiration and wellspring of facts and information. More details were culled from research and talks with Sylvester's surviving friends and colleagues. Wayne got to work writing the show, while Bowman, who has styled the likes of Kanye West ( "He's laid back, he's not as crazy as people make him out to be," he attests ), re-created some of Sylvester's actual costumes, including the open-front white jacket seen in publicity materials.
"Sylvester would ride around on a moped with a fur mink coat on," Bowman said. "It was always about fur and diamonds and glamorous things. We tried to incorporate all that into the show. Not only with him—we did the same thing for the Two Tons of Fun. Every outfit is a recreation."
To portray Two Tons' Izora and Martha, the couple enlisted two of Wayne's Priscilla co-stars, Anastacia McCleskey and Jacqueline B. Arnold. One could say this was serendipity, as the pair performed "It's Raining Men" in that show, giving them a sort of warm-up for the roles. Priscilla served as a sort of warm-up for Wayne as well, since offstage he tends to be introverted and quiet. "Being around all the personalities at Priscilla, all the over the top-ness helped me create the Sylvester image and essence," he said. "It was the glitz and glamour and bigness of who he was. This is me and you're gonna love it."
An early, concert-style version of the show—titled "Fabulous, One More Time: A Sylvester Concert"—was performed in September 2012 at NYC's ( le ) Poisson Rouge. Further pre-runs took place in Washington, D.C. and in Miami at the Versace Mansion. "We slept in the Versace beds, too!" Bowman added. "It was fabulous—gold everywhere." The Off-Broadway incarnation of the production is now fleshed-out narratively, less a concert than full-bodied musical, with "more story, more songs, and more fun."
Of course, the people connected with the show hope everyone will come see the show, and savor a dose of essential disco realness. "People who love music, who want to see fabulousness," Bowman said. "It's not a traditional theater setting. After the overture everyone is standing up. It's like a party!"
Mighty Real: A Fabulous Sylvester Musical will hit New York City again Jan. 18, 2015, and then will be in San Francisco. Visit www.FabulousSylvester.com or www.Ticketmaster.com .
