Fa’afafines at the Sydney Opera House (2009)

‘Fa’afafines at the Sydney Opera House 2009’ (2023) by Yuki Kihara. Plastic doll, fabric and mixed media. 450mm (H) x 170mm (W). Part of ‘BERTHA’ (2023) exhibition by Yuki Kihara curated by Natalie King. Commissioned by the Powerhouse Museum Ultimo, Sydney. Courtesy of Yuki Kihara and Milford Galleries, Aotearoa New Zealand. Photo courtesy of Gui Taccetti.

“How did we get so old? People often say I look younger than Buckwheat but the truth is, I am a few years older than her. I flew to NZ to celebrate the 50th Berthaday (lol) of Buckwheat von Duckfeet, as I had christened her many years ago.

The fabric is a Pucci-esque treasure found in some market in Melbourne. The passage of time had not been so kind to me and now Bertha was more a Gertha, or as I had become a naturalised Australian citizen, I had joked I was now ‘Gert by Sea’. Fittingly, a kaftan was the best design to fit with my current aesthetic – fat! When I look at this image, I immediately think Mrs Doubtfire Does Downtown Apia! The celebration was held at the Maota Samoa, on K’Rd (Karangahape Road), an iconic venue for my iconic sister.

Bucky, as I call her, is now father to two beautiful daughters and married to his wonderful husband, Peter Browne. They have been together for as long as I’ve been in Australia, say 25 years. He has his own exhibit in the Auckland Museum, so I’m glad to finally join the club.

When we first began, we were known as the Staircase’s Buckwheat and Bertha. Staircase was a gay nightclub in Auckland from the 1980s to the early 2000s. In those days, to do drag you were usually aligned to a gay venue. We were at the height of our fame/notoriety in the 1990s. The club closed in the early 2000s.

I have, since then, suffered the feigned indignity of being invited back to perform at a succession of Staircase reunions. While it’s fun to perform again with my sisters, Buckwheat and Tess Tickle, it’s confronting to one’s mortality to be flown in as the ‘Dowager Drag Queen’.”

-BERTHA aka Harold Samu