Mitchell LaFramboise is getting ready to perform on the main stage of the Collingwood Pride Festival this month as his drag alter ego Justine D’as.
Village Media spoke with LaFramboise, 43, drag performer and hairstylist.
Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I grew up in Barrie. I lived there for the majority of my life. I went to public school and high school there. I moved to Toronto when I was 18.
Q: Why did you move?
A: I came out when I was 18. Life in the late ’90s was not very conducive in smaller areas. There were still not a lot of people who were very accepting.
I needed to be somewhere where I could find my people. That’s what Toronto was for me. I went there and I found my queerness.
Q: Where did life take you after that?
A: I worked in the bar and restaurant industry for many years. That’s mostly what I did when I lived in the city.
I moved out of the city to Port Dover, and I lived there for three and a half years, and that’s where I started doing hair. I went to hair school and apprenticed at a small salon. I worked as an apprentice during the day, and I managed a restaurant at night.
Q: When did you know drag was something you were interested in?
A: Justine was born when I was 19.
I originally had another drag persona, and her name was Pashmina Caboodles. I never performed under that name. I didn’t perform at all, actually, I just started getting into drag.
I was with my ex-partner for a very long time and he was not into it. When you’re young and naive, you do things to make other people happy.
It wasn’t until about 10 years ago, we came upon Rupaul’s Drag Race. I knew about Rupaul, because I was 12 years old in 1993, and her being out in the world was a big eye-opener for me. I knew about drag before then because of The Great Imposters (a Canadian drag troupe started in 1972), but I didn’t see it on such a grand scale.
My own drag didn’t come to fruition until about eight years ago. It was because of her.
We (my husband and I) did it for Halloween one year, and I looked fabulous. I asked my husband if he would be OK if I pursued doing drag again. He said that if it made me happy, I should do it. Here we are, eight years later.
Drag has taken me to so many amazing places. I’ve met so many amazing people. It’s opened doors of opportunity.
Q: Who is Justine D’as?
A: She’s like a ’50s housewife meets Barbarella. That’s the aesthetic. She’s very fashion-forward, very polished, very put-together. She’s flirty, very fun, very naughty at times as the occasion arises.
Drag is a spectrum. We have to do things at all different volumes by reading the room. Justine is a certain way when I do story times with children, and when I do bar shows, Justine is a certain way.
In a nutshell, she’s kind, crazy, passionate and loves fashion.
Q: When did you first start getting involved in Collingwood Pride?
A: Two years ago, I was asked to come and perform.
I had the honour of being on the (Collingwood Pride) float with Michelle (Kemper, chair of Collingwood Pride) and John (Miller, former chair). I performed at Bent Taco with Lemon from Canada’s Drag Race. It was huge experience for me.
People said hey, you’re a local queen. Come perform. I lived, loved, and I did it, and they kept asking me to come back.
I also have a show called Let’s Be Perfectly Queer on Rogers. I co-host it with Randy Davis (formerly of The Gilbert Centre in Barrie, and currently with the Canadian AIDS Society).
We had our friends (at Collingwood Pride) on and we chatted about what was going on and what to expect for pride last year.
It was busy! It was a good turnout. Considering we were coming out of COVID, it was huge.
Q: Why is it important for people who want to do drag to be able to express themselves in this way?
A: Drag in itself is not just an art form. It’s a way of expressing ourselves and our queerness. It expresses stories about our past, about who were are as a community and what we are trying to do.
For me, drag is a way for me to break the shackles of day-to-day life and just be able to be unabashedly myself without being afraid of the backlash of Mitchell.
It’s almost like putting on a superhero costume. I get to be a person that I’m not for an hour or two out of my day and bring joy and excitement to others. It brings a little bubble of light to my life.
It’s important for people to understand that there are so many ways to express yourself, whether it be through gender, painting, music, dancing or whatever your form of expression is.
I have friends who didn’t understand their gender, but they started doing drag and it helped them figure out who they authentically were. It’s so many different things for so many people. It helps me be a better version of Mitchell.
Q: What are your hobbies when you’re not working or doing drag?
A: Drag is such an all-consuming thing. When you’re a drag performer, drag is your life.
When I’m not working, I’m drawing, or styling wigs, or picking out music and coming up with concepts.
I don’t really have a hobby per se, because this is everything all rolled into one. Drag is the most important thing in my life.
Q: Where will you be performing?
A: I’ll be at Collingwood Pride performing at the Variety Show (Saturday, July 13 from 2 to 4 p.m.).
Q: You’ve performed in lots of towns and cities across Simcoe County and beyond. Is there anything that’s different about performing in Collingwood?
A: Yes. The energy here is amazing. People in Collingwood want this.
A lot of people came to Collingwood from the city looking for something a little more quiet, but they still want the amenities.
Being here as a performer, the energy from people is amazing because they’re so happy to have us here. People here know how to treat us. They respect us, and they respect our art.
They also tip us very, very well. (laughs)
Q: Is there anything else you’d like people in Collingwood to know about you?
A: I’m available for bookings. (laughs)
People who live in Collingwood, know the scene. You guys get the creme de la creme. A lot of the Toronto girls come here.
We need to see more of our local entertainers brought here to Collingwood because there’s so much compassion, joy, art and energy with all the performers here, and I’d like to see more of that everywhere.
