The last couple of months have been marked by a series of ‘lasts’ for Notorious OMG – the artist, activist, philanthropist, and general renaissance (wo)man also known as Rudy Flesher. Earlier this summer we saw the last Thank Goddess It’s OMG (TGIOMG) on Tabu’s stage, and just this past weekend we watched as OMG hung up their heels (at least for now) at Liberty City Kings Drag and Burlesque’s Vixens & Vagabonds Queer & Kinky Cabaret.

I reached out to Rudy to reflect on his time as OMG, some of his favorite moments on stage, and to look towards what the future holds for one of Philly’s finest.

For those that don’t know the story (like myself), how was the character Notorious OMG born? What was your inspiration?

You know what’s funny is that I’ve always said that The Notorious OMG isn’t a character, they’re just Rudy turned to 11 on the volume dial. And that’s part of the reason I’m retiring – OMG was a safe way to explore being a genderqueer person on stage, stretching way past the man/woman binary, and then go safely back to a more or less male presenting person off the stage. And now that I’ve brought that genderqueerness more fully into my daily life, OMG isn’t pushing me in new directions personally or artistically.

Now as to how I was born – I was inspired by many books and writers and performances. The anthology GENDERqUEER and authors like Kate Bornstein and Bear Bergman are hugely influential in my life, as are performing artists like Justin Vivian Bond, Taylor Mac, and Our Lady J. I’d be remiss not to mention Margaret Cho – she and playing rugby were the two reasons that I had any sense of self confidence whatsoever in my late teens and early twenties. Not to mention my home troupe Liberty City Kings (AKA LiCK) – they were the first drag kings and burlesque performers I had ever seen, and they stretched my imagination regarding gender and sexuality.

I worked with LiCK’s artistic director, Lascivious Jane, on Kelly Burkhardt’s lesbian noir film, “Tremble and Spark” and the next year we were chatting in line for a film at QFest. She was talking about a documentary she was producing on drag kings, and I offered to do research for it since I needed to complete an undergraduate thesis for my Women’s & Gender Studies degree at TCNJ that coming fall. In turn she offered me a spot as the MC of their upcoming calendar release party and the rest, as they say, is history. That show was August 15th, 2010, and I have been LiCK’s resident MC and performing as The Notorious OMG ever since.

For people who have never seen OMG, how would you describe them in one sentence?

The Notorious OMG is your favorite wacky aunt who spoils you and gets you into trouble, here to give you the honest sex talk that your parents keep hedging around; she’ll also take you to an R rated movie and drink one to many glasses of red wine at dinner afterwards.

Can you give a quick history of TGIOMG? How quickly after OMG was born did TGIOMG start? What pushed you to pull that show together? How long did it run?

Thank Goddess it’s OMG didn’t start until January of 2012, about a year and a half after I had started performing. At that point LiCK’s Vixens & Vagabodns Queer & Kinky Cabaret and Sinful Sundays with The Goddess Isis were both coming up on their one year anniversary. Tabu’s owner Jeff Sotland had approached me about hosting a show earlier but I wasn’t ready. But by the time I finally launched the show, I had a lot more experience in the nightlife scene and was eager to curate a show that mixed performance styles and community members in ways I wasn’t seeing anywhere else.

I know this is probably hard, but what is your favorite moment that ever happened on the TGIOMG stage? You can give me two if you want

Thanks for giving me two! Generally, any night – and there were many – that the audience and the performers just clicked, that’s just such a magical feeling. My show was always about letting the beauty on stage illuminate the beauty that the audience members were maybe failing to see in themselves. And even when someone sees it in themselves, well, who couldn’t use some reminding and affirmation? I wanted people to see themselves in drag queens and story tellers, clowns and burlesquers, people of all shapes and sizes and colors taking their clothes off on stage. TGIOMG was basically the anti-media. Magazine covers and skin cream ads and all of this tells us there’s only one way to be beautiful. And on those magic nights when the audience left feeling beautiful, excited, laughed out and sexy – that was the best

Secondly, a specific instance: in my final show I was flirting and bantering with a handsome fellow in the front row. As I always say – the first two rows of any drag show are the splash zone! So the show is moving along and suddenly he’s getting a little coy and his friend totally blows up his spot and says “He’s got a hard-on!” Well, how flattering for me! So of course I take it further and ask if he’s single and, when I found out he had a boyfriend, naturally I pushed him on whether they were open to a third. This went on for a bit and culminated when his boyfriend, who was traveling for business, FaceTimed him during the show and I talked to him and put him on the mic and asked permission to sleep with the guy. I did not, in fact, sleep with him, but making people laugh and arousing them sexually – if you can get paid to do that, that’s what I’d consider winning at life!

What are you most proud you were able to accomplish as OMG?

At my show I saw a greater diversity in the both on stage and in the audience than you do in most places, and I’m immensely proud of that. Often “diversity” is just a buzzword for taking a headcount and making sure not everybody is from the same background or experience, but it’s so much deeper than that. Diversity means people with different life experiences learning and growing across those differences for a more nuanced and compassionate experience of the human condition. It also means artistic growth for the performers. You get a drag queen and a clown and a burlesquer together over a few cocktails and the makeup tutorials and sewing tips are flying. I saw artists push themselves in new directions after meeting one another on my stage, and that means everything to me.

What does the future hold for OMG?

I’m not at all sure. I imagine that OMG might make a comeback one day, and at that point may truly be articulated as a character, entirely distinct from me as Rudy. Maybe OMG is done forever. I just don’t know. The one thing I particularly like and am proud of is The Notorious OMG as politically conscious drag personality, so maybe OMG will function the same way “Betty Bowers – America’s Best Christian” does for Deven Green.

I know you are heavily involved with non-profits, philanthropy, and politics in Philadelphia, and you’ve also expressed an interest in exploring your art through acting – what does the future hold for you now? A little bit of it all?

The last few years have been the “little bit of it all” phase. It was sort of like a second go at a liberal arts education, trying a little bit of everything and seeing how that changed my world view and my skills and informing me as to how I could show up powerfully in my purpose. I think that all of those will be themes throughout my life, but now I’m going to take the time to truly focus on each individually. Acting is up first. It’s where my heart and my passion is right now. I’ll certainly still be present politically, and voicing my concerns on community issues, whether through blogging or just via social media and town hall meetings, but I will be stepping back from a lot of roles and responsibilities to truly focus on acting as my art and, if the fates allow, perhaps my career as well.

It’s the year 2024, I pick up a newspaper and you’re on the cover, what’s the story?

Having picked up a Grammy for a comedy album, I’ve become one of the few artists to achieve the EGOT – including my Emmy for my leading dramatic role on a Showtime series, my Tony for acting in a one-human Broadway show, and my Oscar for my role in a film written by Allan Ball.

With your retirement (and Isis’ – a double dose of sadness for Philly), what direction would you love to see the gay Philly art scene go?

Let’s be real – that bitch is retiring like Cher. Look for a years long farewell tour, a Vegas floorshow, an Isis pull-string doll that says “Dressed like Mama but hung like Daddy,” amongst other charming phrases, and of course the DVD box set.

In all seriousness – I want to see burlesque keep growing, and for drag to move in the direction of taking itself as seriously, with regard to professionalism, as burlesque does. I’d love to see more mixing of identities and performance styles. I’d love to see more live music in queer spaces. I adore drag, but we’ve gotten to the point where there’s a glut of it. Supply is outpacing demand, and in turn the audience for any one show is smaller and less engaged. Promoters need to start culling the herd too. Every young queen deserves the space to grow through her booger phase into a great talent but let’s be real, there’s a mile gap between a drag QUEEN and a boy in a dress. Too many of the latter are sucking the oxygen out of the room because drag got really big really quickly and then overbooked and played out just as quickly. I think drag is finding its equilibrium and there are some really talented performers and producers right now, so I’m hoping it gets back to the same level of energy and innovation we were seeing two and three years ago.

Anything else you want to mention or highlight?

Go support the live arts in Philadelphia. Tip your bartenders. Tip your queens and, if it’s another performance style that permits (and encourages) tipping, tip them too. As Dolly Parton says, it costs a lot of money to look this cheap. Have fun. Spend time with art that makes you laugh until you cry; spend time with art that makes you question who you are and what motivates you to get out of bed in the morning. Never be bored. I have NO tolerance for people who are bored. There are more sports leagues to play in, more non-profits to volunteer at, more political campaigns to canvass for, more shows to go see than any one human could ever hope to do. If you’re bored, you are simply not taking advantage of what life to has offer. Find someone who inspires the hell out of you and then copy what they do until you figure out how to make it your own. Finally, always be gracious. Every performer I ever booked was kind and gracious, and that applies everywhere. Nobody likes an ingrate or a jerk. Be gracious!

As someone who frequents shows and events in Philly’s Gayborhood, I’ve had the privilege of seeing Rudy/OMG to their thing up on stage a few times. I think I speak for more than just myself when I say his witty, boundary-pushing ways will be a missed addition to our community. I’m looking forward to seeing what the future holds for you, and I will be sure to pick up that paper in 2024!