Canadian drag queen Jimbo, aka. James Insell, has garnered fans around the world with appearances on “Canada’s Drag Race,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race: UK vs the World” and season eight of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars,” which she won.
Jimbo performed in Phoenix in June 2023 at Kobalt Bar and is returning to Arizona to Tucson’s Rialto Theatre on Monday, March 25, as part of the world tour of her new show “Jimbo’s Drag Circus.
VIP tickets include a meet and greet with Jimbo, where fans can take pictures and get autographs along with receiving official tour swag.
The tour is the first time that Jimbo has done a production of this scale, with props, costumes, sets and production numbers.
“This is a dream come true. People wait their entire lives for an opportunity to have their own show,” Jimbo said.
Jimbo said the show has been in the making for the last 15 years.
“You have to work up to this level, doing different things behind the scenes and trying your best, trying out stories, helping here and there and making connections,” Jimbo said.
“Jimbo’s Drag Circus” spotlights Jimbo as different characters.
“I will play all six main characters. I have a sidekick Jeepers, who is my clown, henchman, handyman, music composer. Andrew and I actually wrote and recorded the music together for the show, and now he’s performing onstage with me as my musical accompanist. I also have two backup dancers, Ander (Arabolaza) and Deron (Walker), who help to tell the story as well,” Jimbo said.
The drag performer has been working with her musical partner Andrew Taylor for 10 years, since they toured together for another show called “Ride the Cyclone.”
“When I wanted to write this new show, I wanted to work with him and create all original music… We’ve made some original tracks, lots of mixes and an amazing production. I do all the singing for it,” Jimbo said.
Jimbo said the new show is very different from other productions she has done.
“It’s all my own concept. I wrote the story, came up with the set design with my friend Marshall (McMahen) and worked on all the costume designs with great designers. It’s really a trip inside my head, and I’m going to revisit some of my favorite characters from my seasons of ‘Drag Race,’” Jimbo said.
Jimbo is known for her impersonations of characters such as Shirley Temple and Joan Rivers as well as her larger-than-life looks. During her show, Jimbo performs as these characters, along with other characters such as a hip-hop artist and forensic scientist.
She will be doing a burlesque number as her new character Alphabet Annie.
“I try to give variety. I want everyone to feel entertained, to have a good laugh and to see some of my favorite things to perform,” Jimbo said.
Jimbo said audiences got a little taste of what she can do in “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” Now, she has a chance to add more dimension to her characters.
Each night will be a different experience for the audience.
“I do lots of improv and try to make each night feel really specific and unique,” Jimbo said.
Through her drag, Jimbo uses skills she has learned over the years.
“I’m a storyteller, and there are so many different ways to tell a story. I love writing. I love direction. I love costume design. I love prop making. I love puppeteering. I love lighting, sound and music,” Jimbo said.
“I have a history as a production designer, and I have a history working in theater. I got my start performing in a vaudeville troupe, Atomic Vaudeville. I love theater and theatrics, and I love that about drag. You can really get theatrical and use all of these different aspects of fashion, creation, writing and music to tell a story,” Jimbo said.
Jimbo had an unconventional path as a drag performer. She didn’t start out doing numbers at local bars.
“I didn’t come up in the bar scene,” Jimbo said.
“I came up in theater. I didn’t really get booked in very many places with conventional drag numbers. The thing I was doing was considered a bit weird. My partner and I, we started to create shows in our house. We have a little stage. So, we would have people over, and we would create improv fringe shows at our place.”
Jimbo mainly learned how to do drag on her own. Her biological mom inspired her.
“She put me in makeup for the first time when I was about 5. I looked in the mirror and said, ‘Mommy, I’m beautiful…’ She always had long nails. She was very glamourous and beautiful, loved dresses and dressing up and had big boobs,” Jimbo said.
Jimbo met drag queens from all over the world through “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” She said that each show has been different because of what the contestants bring.
“Going into ‘Canada’s Drag Race,’ I was an unknown queen. I didn’t have any following or know any of the other drag queens or many drag queens in general… As I competed in ‘UK vs. the World’ and again on ‘All Stars” season 8, when people knew who I was, and I knew who people were, that took away that level of fear of not knowing what’s going to happen…I got more comfortable and thought, ‘OK, I can just have fun. I can just enjoy this experience and just show my fans what I love to do and what I love about drag,’” Jimbo said.
Jimbo said with each show, she has garnered new fans in different parts of the world.
She has noticed growth in herself because of doing the shows.
“I learned tons about myself as a performer. I learned tons about drag and makeup. I went on ‘Canada’s Drag Race,’ and I was a rough little queen with lots to learn. I learned about body proportion, performance, makeup and hair, all those different elements that go into getting into drag,” Jimbo said.
