| Formation | 1969 |
|---|---|
| Dissolved | 1972 |
| Type | Theatre group |
| Purpose | Psychedelic, transgender, musical |
| Location |
|
The Cockettes were an avant-garde psychedelic hippie theater group founded by Hibiscus (George Edgerly Harris III)[1] in the fall of 1969 when Hibiscus lived in Kaliflower.[2] The troupe was formed out of a group of hippie artists, men and women, who were living in Haight-Ashbury, a neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Hibiscus came to live with them because of their preference for dressing outrageously and proposed the idea of putting their lifestyle on the stage. Later in the storefront at 992 Valencia Street, now Artists' Television Access.[3][4]
Their brand of theater was influenced by The Living Theater, John Vaccaro's Play House of the Ridiculous, the films of Jack Smith, and the LSD ethos of Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters. At first, they parodied American musicals, and sang show tunes, but moved to performing all original material, staging musicals, and musical comedies. They gained an underground cult following that led to mainstream exposure.
In early 1971 a few members of the original group broke away from the Cockettes and formed their own theatre group, the Angels of Light. Noh Mercy (formerly On The Rag) and Tuxedomoon formed from the Angels of Light.[3][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]
The Cockettes were the subject of an eponymous 2002 documentary film directed by David Weissman and Bill Weber.[15]
Esmerelda: At a festival in S.F. I met the Angels of Light: genius hippie drag queens, pretty girls and babies all covered in glitter. I found my tribe and sang in their free shows. Angel Gregory went to London and discovered punk and brought it home to us in '77. Overnight we cut our hair and became punks. Angel Steven Brown started Tuxedomoon while me and drummer Tony Hotel launched our band On The Rag (Noh Mercy). The Mabuhay and Deaf Club were our stages. We lived in the old Cockettes storefront at 992 Valencia Street. No one worked. We just played.