Published: 29 July 2022
Last updated: 5 March 2024
Meet the drag queen who will lipsync a portion of his bar mitzvah haftarah at a Hanukkah in July drag show in New York.
Back when Michael Witkes, 30, had his bar mitzvah, he described himself as a sweet, quiet and effeminate 13-year-old who was severely bullied by his peers.
At his bar mitzvah party, the DJ played Pink’s Get The Party Started as Witkes entered the room — and the lyrics “I’m coming up,” were misheard by his classmates as “I’m coming out.” Assuming this was Witkes’ way of coming out as gay, the event led to even worse bullying that lasted throughout high school.
Memories of a day that should have evoked pride and celebration were marred by feelings of embarrassment and shame. While Witkes eventually came out as gay in college, he said he never had the opportunity to heal the trauma and bullying he experienced at his bar mitzvah — until now.
These days, Witkes has a fully developed drag persona, Pink Pancake, who performs around New York City. So when Jayson Littman, the founder and director of Hebro, a gay Jewish nightlife events company, asked Witkes to be a part of an upcoming drag show featuring queens of Jewish experience — which Littman is calling “Hanukkah in July: A Spectacle of Jew’ish Drag” — the answer was an “absolute, 100% yes,” Witkes said.
“My Jewish identity in general is very important to me,” Witkes, who was raised Reform, told the New York Jewish Week. “After all that we’ve been through as a people, it’s really crucial to wear that with pride.”
The 100-minute show at Slate, a Flatiron nightclub, will feature seven drag queens of Jewish experience. They will all perform Jewish-related content, including remixes of classic Jewish songs from childhood and choreography to Israeli music.
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From Hanukah Lewinsky to Pink Pancake, these Jewish drag queens are celebrating their identities (NY Jewish Week)
Photo: Jewish Drag Queens Hanukah Lewinsky (left) and Kikibal Change (Instagram)
