13 Fascinating Facts You Didn’t Know About The Legendary Miss Coco Peru

Miss Coco Peru is a legend. Having made a name for herself in the drag scene well before RuPaul’s Drag Race, Coco has traveled the world with her one woman show.

If you’ve been lucky enough to see Coco’s show live, you know how talented she is. From storytelling and comedy to singing and dancing, Coco is truly a master of her craft.

During the San Francisco run of her show A Gentle Reminder: Coco’s Guide To A Somewhat Happy Life, we were fortunate enough to get the opportunity to learn more about her. These 13 fascinating facts about her life and career were revealed during our conversation, so we hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Related: VIDEO: Coco Peru’s 20 Simple Steps To The Perfect Cup Of Tea

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1. Coco has been performing in drag for 25 years

Having recently turned 50, Coco has been performing in drag for half of her life. She started on stage in New York City telling stories in the form of biographical monologues.

 

2. Coco starred in the movie Girls Will Be Girls, which almost became a TV show on Showtime

Unfortunately, when it came down to choosing between Girls Will Be Girls and one other show, the producers chose the other show. The show was turned into a movie instead and came be purchased or streamed on Amazon.

 

3. Girls Will Be Girls 2 has been filmed

Although it is currently being edited together, there is no official release date.

 

4. Coco doesn’t like when people record and post videos from her shows online

She dislikes how recordings spoils the live show and would rather have people come see her in person. (And we highly recommend doing so if she comes to a city near you!)

 

5. Coco gave “nothing” during her To Wong Fu audition

While other queens gave everything, Coco gave nothing, yet the other girls still thought she was fierce. And (of course) she still got the role.

 

6. Coco will perform wherever she is getting paid to perform

One time she performed in a living room in Pittsburgh, PA.

 

7. Coco wrote her latest show, A Gentle Reminder: Coco’s Guide To A Somewhat Happy Life, to share the life lessons she has learned with younger generations

She has even acted as a pseudo mother to some kids.

 

8. Coco has thought about writing a book, but finds writing to be too lonely

“I find writing very lonely and I like to be a social person, so the thought of writing a book just seems very daunting to me.”

 

9. Coco recently launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to raise money to film a television pilot called Conversations With Coco

As of March 1st, the campaign has raised more than $50,000 of it’s $80,000 goal.

 

10. Coco doesn’t do drag because she wants to be famous

Coco performs to be able to entertain, be in the arts, to surround herself with other artists and to tell stories that will help create a world where no gay kid has to go through what she went through growing up.

 

11. Coco admires and is inspired by drag queens who craft their shows

Some of those queens include Charles Busch, Lady Bunny and Jinkx Monsoon.

 

12. Coco wants to retire soon

“When people say, ‘Oh, I missed your show. Well, next time,’ I’m like, ‘How many next times do you think I have?’ So I encourage people to come if they have the opportunity because I don’t know how much longer I’ll be doing this.”

 

13. Coco used to spray paint “Miss Coco Peru: She Knows” on the sidewalks in New York City

“Back when I started drag, I used to go out every night and have to hand out postcards. I made a stencil and would spray paint on the sidewalks in New York City – not realizing it was illegal. Well.. maybe I did on some level, because I did it in dark clothes at two in the morning. But it created a buzz. You had to do that back then because there was no internet.”

Related: The Legendary Coco Peru Discusses the Evolution of Drag on ‘Hey Qween’