I kind of reached a crossroads in my life—that big moment where you have to either shit or get off the pot. It was my early 30s. I was just a big alcoholic and partier. When I came out, it was 1981, and then there was AIDS, and I was terrified that I was HIV positive. I decided to finally get tested in my early 30s. When I found out I was negative, I had this come-to-Jesus moment. I ended up getting into recovery. I decided I’m here for a reason. I’d been wanting to write and be a performer since I was little, but I was terrified of doing it, of putting myself out there.
David Cerda, 51, is artistic director of Hell in a Handbag Productions, which he cofounded in 2002. His writing credits include the musical drag parodies Rudolph the Red-hosed Reindeer, Poseidon!, and Scarrie. —Tony Adler
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I was born in northwest Indiana, in Hammond. Before I even knew what gay was, people were calling me a faggot. It was like, what are you talking about? I was 130 pounds and I had no idea how to fight for myself, so I developed this wicked, very mean sense of humor as a defense. I’m the kind of person you can’t say anything about because I’ll say it first. I’ll say it better.
My one biggest influence was John Waters. I saw a double feature of Female Trouble and Pink Flamingos at the Parkway Theatre on Clark. It kind of changed my life. When I saw that movie I was like, “Oh my God, there are people who have my sense of humor, my mind.”
There’s no way I could change. I could never act straight. It made me not like myself for a long time, because I was told that it was bad. I realized later on that you have to love yourself to be loved. You have to be comfortable in your own skin before people are going to be comfortable with you.
