IN|FORM | Adam Sleeman

What first got you into dance / What is your first memory of dance?

I began dancing as a subject at high school – it was the first State School in Rockhampton that offered dance as an OP registered subject. From there I continued dance at Central Queensland University’s Bachelor of Performing Arts as a minor. During this time I was lucky enough to participate in masterclasses with Expressions Dance Company (now Australasian Dance Collective), and participated in workshops with physical theatre companies like Zen Zen Zo. I first began choreographing and creating performances as Christina Draguilera when I was 17, which feels like a millennia ago. The thing that still connects me to dance is the physicality and expression, how both movement and stillness can create and evoke emotion and feeling, how we connect to music, lyrics, and our audiences, to convey this emotion and to tell a story. I’ve been telling stories and make believing since childhood!

What was the show / performance (that you haven't been involved with) that has had the biggest impact on you?

In grade 8, before I’d embarked on my journey into the Arts, I watched as the incredible cohort of Arts teachers at my High School in Rockhampton wrote, produced and staged their own musical productions for our school, the following year and right through to my senior year I auditioned and was lucky enough to secure leading roles, at such a young age working with senior students I was able to advance and to achieve, this was the moment I realised that the stage was for me, these incredible women both supported and encouraged me to be the best that I could be, they lit the fire that fuels my passion for the Arts, and it’s still burning. Other incredible performances that have changed my life are those from the Brides of Frank, Zen Zen Zo and Expressions Dance Company, which ignited my passion for movement, the human body, and the body in space in relation to others. I found inspiration from choreographers like Martha Graham and Alvin Ailey, understanding the whole body as a tool for storytelling. As a young Drag artist, the movie Priscilla led me to learn about the incredible work of the Les Girls who paved the way for Australia’s strong drag and showgirl industries: they truly inspired my inner Queen, to be my true authentic self, to be courageous, and to fight for what is important to me and for our community.

Do you still dance for pleasure? What kind of thing?

I believe that Dance is a universal language, we dance every day, we just often don’t realise it! It’s one of the highest forms of communications, and ways to express what we are feeling without words. After 17 years of being a drag artist, I used to perform a lot ‘for the job’, or the venue, but after such a long time I’ve realised that (though this feels like selling out) this is hard to keep up with, it begins to impact on what drag is at its core: it’s personal, it’s a journey of self-discovery and exploration, it’s a craft that is developed and evolves with your growth over time. The only way to hone this craft is to do it. This is something that I teach to my drag babies, do it for you, connect to what you are performing, and tell a story. In a room of whippers and dippers, of flips, front kicks and wild splits, there is always room for a good strong ballad, so that a wholesome drag show includes a variety of acts and performers. Maybe this also reflects my age, and now perhaps the aches and pains from years of corsetry and 6-inch stilettos as I get older, but there is always someone in the audience that will see you, connect with you and appreciate what you are doing. They will see themselves in you, and see themselves represented in what you are doing, they will feel home and safe and inspired, and that is what it is all about, regardless of the form or the style, being your true authentic unapologetic self.

What's your current role? How do you explain it to non-dance people you meet? How long have you been doing your current job?

Currently I work in a few different types of roles, so I often feel like it’s hard to describe exactly what I do, and that’s probably a reflection on how our industry has had to change and adapt, we really do need to be able to model this idea of a ‘portfolio career’, in an oversaturated industry of arts workers with fewer jobs and opportunities, and as funding is misplaced and thrown away, in order to stand out one must have a diverse array of skills they can bring to the job to be noticed. Some of the things I’m currently doing include, Office Manager for the amazing Australasian Dance Collective. I’ve been working with ADC since the beginning of 2020, starting as an administration officer, I’ve been lucky enough to be offered a new role, and I love every minute of it.

I also have my own freelance business, working as a private hairdresser stylist, which I established in 2019. I built a client base of over 120 amazing clients.

I’m also an independent theatre maker and performing artist and I’ve been a drag entertainer for the past 17 years, known around town as Christina Draguilera, the mother of the Haus of Space, which I formed in order to support, mentor and guide my beautiful, amazingly talented little queer family here in Brisbane.

What is the most rewarding or fun part of your job and why?

The most rewarding part of my work are the people I get to work with daily, whether that’s with ADC or through my Drag or freelance business activities. I am continuously surrounded by the most incredible, creative and inspiring people. There’s an old saying, it’s not the house you build, it’s the people who fill it. I am so lucky to be able to work as an artist, one of the most rewarding things I do is to create safe and inclusive works and spaces. Spaces that are safe and inclusive for all queer and non-queer people to exist together naturally and harmoniously.

One of the most exciting things about being a Drag performer is that I get the opportunity to use this platform to give others the opportunity to be heard and to be seen, I get to help others have the same opportunities that were given to me. I get to stand up for our rights, and rally together to make these changes happen.

What is the least enjoyable part of your job and why?

Being in the public eye as a Drag Artist, like any job, comes with its challenges, but it’s also layered with many complexities, we still have to (everyday) deal with ignorance, fear and unfortunately little to no education. We have to deal with others insecurities, and the deaths of our queer family members. In the world right now our Transgender POC and Transgender communities need our help! As a white person I can’t even begin to imagine how hard it is for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and other people of colour) to do what I take for granted each day, and it breaks my heart that it’s still taking so long to afford everyone basic human rights

What advice would you give someone just starting their career in dance / or starting a role similar to yours?

The best advice I can give to someone just starting their career is to never compare yourself to someone else. Be aware of your strengths and weaknesses and look to improve on these continuously, and know your own worth and value, but don’t let ego overshadow this.

Don’t ever underestimate yourself.

And it’s NEVER too late to learn. Embarking on something new only adds to your worth and value, aspire to be the greatest you can be, because we can ALL be truly great.

If money were no object, what project would you most like to take on?

I’d love to build a centre for Queer Culture, Arts & Sciences, an institution that would not only create a space for queer people to learn, develop and thrive in a safe, accessible and inclusive space, but to work towards development across social, political and economic spheres to help make change, to create and to provide stronger educational pathways and opportunities. A platform for research, and a way to begin to record and store queer works and our long rich and complex histories. To provide a platform to encourage and support young and emerging queer people into this world, to give them every opportunity to succeed and to contribute. To encourage an environment where we can all work together.

If you could change one thing in the world of Australian dance, what would it be?

If I could change one thing, it would be to dismantle the current structures and the separation between Major, Small to Medium and independent arts organisations, to form better alliances, communication and processes that will help us to work better together, rather than in competition with each other.