Suntimes.com – Paige Wiser
Straight girl tells all about life as a backup dancer
Every great comedian needs a straight man to play off. And every great drag queen needs a straight woman to back her up.
That’s where Heather Haneman comes in: stage left, heels high and hair higher. About 15 years ago, she danced backup in her first drag show. Now she’s giving the rest of us a glimpse of Chicago through fake eyelashes in Big Wigs: Stories of a Straight Girl in a Drag Queen’s World (State Street Publishing, $19.95).
“I’m not necessarily a great writer, but I tell stories well,” says Haneman, 37, whose friends have nicknamed her “Feather Handlesmen.” The conversational book contains anecdotes, e-mails from her friends, pratfalls, advice and the kinds of characters determined to shimmy off the page.