Episode 67: An Ogre Walks Among Us

An ogre walks among us. He runs a traveling make-up and wig company out of Texas. He goes from city to city where his services are needed by smaller opera companies. One look at him and you see his innate malevolence almost glowing from his skin. He is five-foot seven and has a bullet head with the hair shaved down to the scalp, and dull eyes that are constantly searching out someone to humiliate. He walks with buttocks tightly clamped -- perhaps butt clenching disapproval (thanks Carolyn Hax) --and his long arms swaying slightly forward, almost a Cro-magnon man. I’m not afraid of him because I don’t work for him. He is a Nazi gay man named Brad.

Brad arrives in town with a couple of sycophants, usually one of which is a lover. The minute he appears on our floor, you feel the negative vibe of his personality. He is said to have a bowl of semi-precious stones on his coffee table, where he sits and runs the gems through his fingers when he is relaxing. But does this man ever relax?

He is also said to have AIDS and a determination to give it to as many others as possible.

This is completely believable.

Tim and I sit together against the hallway wall and watch Brad as he abuses his staff and yells at people in his way. Tim casts me a sidelong look with one eyebrow raised. It’s hard to believe anyone is so starry-eyed about show business to tolerate this behavior.

One chorus member tells me that Brad stops him from going onstage because he doesn’t have enough powder in his beard to create the look of grey hair. The singer puts more on and goes on stage. When he exits, Brad is waiting for him.

“That’s too much powder,” he screams as he whips the singer’s face with a wire hairbrush.

“Jesus,” says the singer as he leaps back, almost falling back on stage.

“I’ll get you for this,” Brad threatens, trembling with rage. He turns and heads back to his makeup headquarters, no doubt already on the lookout for someone new to attack.

At the beginning of one season, Brad arrives with a completely different kind of companion. This young man is cute and confident, with close cropped black hair and a slender build. He has Brad wound around his little finger. One look and you can see Brad is besotted with Joe.

Joe makes fun of Brad freely when he’s not around. We try to warn him that the walls have ears, and such talk can get back to Brad. He doesn’t care. He laughs and says he can take care of it. And maybe he can.

One evening as I am talking with Joe, I suddenly see the future. Joe is slowly taking over running Brad’s company, as Brad inevitably begins to decline from advancing AIDS. Joe sees a time when the company will be his and Brad will be dead. Clever fellow.

Joe looks me in the eye and smirks.

I'm right.