On Point With: Cherry Poppins

She’s new to the scene, but this live-singing queen is already making her mark in competitions and pageants… and she’s got a major cabaret showcase coming up next month. Get your juices flowing for Cherry Poppins!

Thotyssey: Hi Cherry! So this just in… Shuga Cain won the Look Queen finale last night! Were you there?

Cherry Poppins: I wasn’t! I was so sad that I couldn’t be there, but Game Of Thrones called. I’m so happy for Shuga, though. She’s a good Judy of mine! So proud of her and the work she’s done.

Yes, she’s amazing! And true confession, I Gamed last night too. How about that ice dragon?

I was SHOOKETH. Though I aspire to be as fierce as Arya, I don’t know if she can fight back against the ice dragon.

Yeah, I don’t think she’s gonna be able to steal that thing’s face. Oh, and as for tonight… Lady Gaga’s at Citifield! Do you want to be there, or is that un-essential viewing?

I love Gaga. But honestly, I would rather be at Broadway Mondays than at Gaga.

Well, Sutton and Cacophony certainly put on a good show…

Okay, so lets talk about the lady of the hour: Ms. Cherry Poppins! First off, where’s your hometown?

I’m originally from Michigan – a small little town south of Lansing.

Did you always want to be some sort of a performer?

I’ve been on stage since age 12. I left Michigan for college. As cliche as it sounds, I found myself in college! Or found what kind of performer I was meant to be.

You went to school here in New York?

Yeah! I went to Marymount Manhattan College for musical theatre!

What came first, drag or working at Pieces?

Drag came first, cocktailing came second! Pieces has been so wonderful. I love the family that we have over there.

Do you generally work there as Cherry, or is it strictly boytending for you?

I’m actually your cocktail waitress Wednesday-Friday nights. I usually boyserve, and everyone still calls me Cherry. Ms. Poppins if you’re nasty.

Some of the city’s best weekly drag shows happen at Pieces. Do you you have a favorite?

I think “Snatched” is one of my favorite shows. Jan and Shuga have such great chemistry. And they are also just sweethearts.

That show’s a lot of fun! So how did your ow drag journey begin?

My journey began at Star Search down at Barracuda, a little over a year ago! Then I shopped around a couple competitions and here I am, living my best life.

What inspired you to start? Was it Drag Race?

Actually, it was my friend-turned-Drag Mom, Shirley U. Jest. I saw the performance opportunities she was given and I thought, “hey, I could do that.” And sure, RPDR helped a little.

Love her! She was last year’s New York’s Next Top Drag Queen, which is a singing cabaret drag competition at the Metropolitan Room. Was she the one who encouraged you to enter this year’s edition?

She was one of the voices telling me to enter! I owe that competition a lot. It really gave me a lot of opportunities outside of the competition.

What do you think your best song was?

“Either Broadway Here I Come,” which opened my finale set, or “Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera, which closed out the second to last week.

I was a judge watching you compete in Miss Lady Liberty! Did you have fun in that one?

Oh my! That was such a fun night! I left red lipstick all over a mans pants. What. A. Night.

I’m sure it was fun for him, too!

By the way, is Mary Poppins a particular obsession of yours?

I have different brackets of my love for Disney! Mary Poppins is my all time fave live action movie, though.

There’s a relatively new queen in Brooklyn named Sherry Poppins… you two are night and day, but because of your names is there ever any confusion between you two that you’re aware of?

I’ve heard of her, but I’ve never met her. There’s been a little confusion, but we’re different artists. And like you said we’re night and day.

So what’s been your favorite performing moment so far?

Performing in Cherry Grove this summer! It was an absolute blast! I think I might’ve been the first queen to tap dance on that new stage.

See, you’re already part of drag history! And how would you describe a “typical” Cherry performance these days… are you giving us singing, dancing, giving lewks, comedy, etc?

I’m a multi-faceted woman. I like to throw in a funny mix and maybe a fierce belt here and there. I’m not not a dancer, though.

Okay, let’s talk about some stuff coming up: First off, you’ll be part of the show “Cabaret for a Cause” at Therapy on September 14, which includes many singing queens. It’s a benefit for the Coco LaChine Scholarship Fund, presented by Bella Noche and the Imperial Court of New York. Do you have any interest in joining the court someday?

I consider myself Court-adjacent right now because I’ve worked with members a lot. They’re lovely, but I don’t see my career going that way.

Should a fun night.

And then on Sunday the 17th, you’ll be back for a benefit in Hell’s Kitchen… this time for Marti Gould Cummings’ Planned Parenthood Drag-A-Thon at Hardware. Have you done shows with Marti before?

I have! I did Marti’s old show at VSBU and I was in the first season of The Ultimate Drag Pageant.

And on September 26, you’ll be returning to the Metropolitan Room for Dragaret! This is a cabaret drag revue created by Michael Block, who judged Miss Lady Liberty with me. You’ll be the star, along with Bijoux and Vanna Deux. This sounds exciting! Tell us more!

Oh my! I am so excited about that. I can’t say much, but the set list is incredible. I can’t wait to belt some of my favorite showtunes with a twist! I just got some proofs back from the shoot we did on Saturday too. And we are WOMEN.

Stunning! Have you all rehearsed yet?

Our first rehearsal is on Friday, but we have a group chat and it’s hilarious. We made the joke that Bijoux is the like soft spoken one, I’m the sassy one and Vanna is somewhere in between the two of us. It makes us get along really well. We’re like the Harry, Ron and Hermione of drag

That’s so cute! I look forward to seeing it.

We look forward to having you!