Prince Charming
IN A WORLD FILLED WITH LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS, THE ACTOR AND SINGER TODRICK HALL STILL BELIEVES IN A PLACE OVER THE RAINBOW WHERE DREAMS CAN COME TRUE
TODRICK HALL
WORDS: CLIFF JOANNOU
PHOTOGRAPHY: MAGNUS HASTINGS
FASHION: JOSEPH KOCHARIAN
It’s early March, on a typically sunny day in Los Angeles. A veritable army of gays has packed out photographer Magnus Hastings’ apartment and studio space in West Hollywood. There are reps from Producer Entertainment, who look after almost every notable performer from the world of US drag, including the brightest stars from RuPaul’s Drag Race. Todrick Hall’s assistant is here. Our styling team is ready to go.
When Todrick arrives, the customary hellos are made and he apologises for being a little out of it. It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours for the man the internet describes as a singer, actor, dancer, director, choreographer and YouTuber.
Last night on Broadway, he made his final — and 129th — appearance as drag queen Lola in Kinky Boots, did two hours of post-show meet-and-greets, hit the club with the cast and crew for his leaving party, and then jumped on a 5.45am flight to LA.
Today also marks Todrick’s relocation from the East to the West Coast; his nearby rental home is piled high with boxes and bags, he tells me, explaining how on top of it all, this is also his second photoshoot of the day. It’s clear he’s barely had a moment to catch his breath, but I get a sense that he thrives on the energy, even though he’s visibly flustered by the tornado of the past day’s events.
His mood is elevated when he strides out of the dressing room into the studio after seeing what we have for him to wear. “Guys, this shoot is going to be fantastic!” he exclaims, enthused by the fact there’s not a sequin in sight and he doesn’t need to throw on a full face of glitter.
Team Attitude lets out a collective sigh of relief.
As the shoot gets underway, Todrick repeatedly expresses his joy at the fact that he’s being photographed sans wig, heels and anything remotely flamboyant. “It’s the first time I’ve ever done a shoot in a white t-shirt,” he declares, while effortlessly serving the looks as if he was still Lola, commanding that Broadway stage. His surprise about his pared down styling is understandable. Over the past eight years Todrick has become one of YouTube’s standout stars, his videos garnering more than 400 million plays as people lap up his twisted tributes to Oz, Disney and almost every iconic female artist from the pop world.
GENERATION HOPE
Todrick wears jacket, by MCM x Christopher Raeburn, t-shirt, by David Gandy for Autograph, jeans by DSquared2
When he’s not dolled-up in drag, he’s playing a fairytale prince with a queer twist. Paradoxically, white t-shirt and jeans are rather revolutionary for this lad.
Ever since appearing on the ninth season of American Idol, in which he made it through to the semi-finals, Todrick has carved a niche for himself by directing, starring in, writing, producing and singing a variety of YouTube hits. Ultimately, he classes himself as a “performer”, he tells us post-shoot as we spread ourselves Mariah Carey-like across a huge bed and start the interview.