If you missed Gay Day at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire last year, you missed a grand old time.
I was at the front table and it was truly inspiring how many straight couples and families came up and said, “It’s Gay Day at the Faire? Good for you guys. Have fun!” One woman actually startled me when she ran up to the table jumping up and down screaming, “Oh my God! They’re having Gay Day here! You’re kidding me?” She was so emotional I thought perhaps she was a protestor until she then loudly shouted as she clapped her hands together, “This is FANTASTIC! I bet the costumes will be better than ever!” (Thanks to Van Nguyen, who won our costume contest, we did sport some fun costumes). Throughout the day, I spotted LGBT couples walking hand in hand and rainbow colors everywhere — OK, maybe that was mostly me and my rainbow boa molting. The capper to a great day was the grand finale, when the entire cast did a special number just for us. The crowd rocked out as they did a renaissance version of Lady Gaga’s “Thou Were Born This Way.” The event did so well, they’ve invited us back for a second annual Gay Day Aug. 11! This week’s interview is with Brett Nicol, one of the many LGBT actors who will be entertaining us at this year’s Faire.
PGN: Tell me a little about yourself. BN: I’m 23 years old. I’m originally from Damascus, Md., and went to college at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., where I got a BFA in acting. When I moved to North Carolina, the rest of the family moved nearby to Winston-Salem. I have three brothers, one older, two younger.
PGN: [Laughs.] Do you suffer from somewhat-middle-child syndrome? Getting into acting for the attention? BN: Yeah. Well, I lucked out somewhat in that my older brother got into all the trouble before me so by the time I came along, my parents weren’t as harsh as they might have been. And my younger brothers look up to me, so I try to be a good example and lead them in the right way. I got into acting in middle school. There was a random show that me and my friends auditioned for. I got a part and from there fell in love with acting. I loved entertaining and being able to make people laugh.
PGN: What was the first show you were in? BN: “A Christmas Carol.” I played Peter Cratchit. PGN: Are your parents extroverts? BN: It’s kind of funny. I think they’re naturally introverts, but having four boys, we pull the extrovert out of them. We all like to goof off and we really get the more outgoing side of them to come forward.
PGN: Did you do the family “let’s put on a show” type of thing? BN: Yes! We had a giant 16-passenger van and we would open the sliding side doors like curtains and get a bunch of the neighborhood kids together to do a show from inside. It was kind of ridiculous.
PGN: It sounds like fun. Tell me about a favorite family tradition or trip. BN: Christmastime had a lot of traditions for us. We were/are all allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve and even though we’re all over the age of 18 now, we still make Christmas cookies to put out for Santa and my father eats them. Every single Christmas to this day, before we go to bed, he reads us the Christmas story. We’re all about 5-foot-10 and above but we still gather around my Dad and squish on to the same couch that we did as kids. There’s a lot of poking and laughing that goes on; it’s not really about the story anymore but about having fun together and goofing off. It’s a lot of fun.
PGN: That’s so sweet. So what was a crazy moment in acting class; did you do method acting? BN: Oh God, there were many goofy moments. I was taught the Meisner technique, which emphasizes improvisational skills. I absolutely loved it. We were doing an exercise called mirroring where you work off of other people’s behavior and at one point I was doing some emotional prep work in a closet in the back of the room. I had too much drama and crap going on in my life and I just lost it! I just sat in the closet and bawled my eyes out. I never even got to the exercise because I couldn’t control how upset at myself I was, so the acting teacher continued to yell at me, which made me feel even worse. It wasn’t a good day.
PGN: You specialized in improvisation, the kind where you take suggestions from the audience. Were there any suggestions too bizarre to tackle? BN: Yeah, we were like “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” where we’d get our rules and suggestions from the audience. They’d pick occupation and scenario and we got some strange ones. We decided that we wouldn’t take gynecologist as a suggestion anymore because it always led us into taboo territory. We also stopped taking lava as a setting.
PGN: Lava? BN: Yeah, the audience would give us prompts like “The floor is made of Jell-O or lava.” Lava was suggested so often that we stopped using it.
PGN: Ha! In my wildest imagination I wouldn’t have thought of lava! I guess your improv skills will come in handy at the Renaissance Faire. BN: Oh, definitely. This will be my first time there and I’m really excited. I’m playing Slade Bladewell, who is a sword for hire and highwayman. His bio says that he thinks he’s all that and an order of fish and chips. He’s very confident and cocky, which is fun to play.
PGN: A highwayman. Isn’t that a land version of a pirate? BN: Yes, he’s like Robin Hood except that he steals from the rich and gives to himself.
PGN: Have you gotten your costume yet? BN: Yes, it’s all black: black boots, black tights, black pants with a thick black belt, black shirt with a black doublet, a huge black hat and my sword.
PGN: Wow, in the middle of August, that’s got to be challenging. BN: Yes, we’ve been wearing layers during rehearsal to get us ready for it. I got a taste of how killer it can be two weeks ago when we had that little heat wave with record temperatures.
PGN: This is your first professional acting job. What surprised you? BN: I was surprised at how tired I am. We put a lot into it — physically, emotionally and mentally — so to come out of school and think I knew what tired was and then to come here and learn what exhausted really is was eye-opening.
PGN: No going back, what was coming out like for you? BN: At the end of my sixth-grade year, I decided one day to sit at the girls’ table at lunch. Everyone divided into boys and girls, not because of any rule, just by choice. It was the beginning of a very rough time. After that one lunch period, all the boys, every single one of my friends, told me I wasn’t allowed to sit with them anymore. They started calling me gay and queer and a fag. I’d never really thought about it, it had never even crossed my mind that I might be. From there, my former friends turned pretty much the whole school against me. I lost all my friends and had no one to talk to. I didn’t want to tell my family, so I basically lost them and then I lost myself as well. Being told who I was was a difficult thing at such a young age. I had no idea myself how I felt about anything in this gigantic world so being told who and what I was, I struggled against that. It was a very difficult time. I moved from one group of people to another and another trying to figure out where I fit in or where I was wanted.
PGN: Sheesh, not a happy time. BN: No, I absolutely hated middle school. I walked down the hallways every single day of my life to a chorus of “fag” and “queer.” It tore me up inside. Eventually my parents found some pornography on the computer and that’s how I came out to them. That was in seventh grade. They were both raised very Christian and didn’t believe in the idea of homosexuality, so they took me to a therapist with the idea of curing me. I really didn’t like the idea of talking to someone whom I didn’t know so they could tell me that what I was feeling was wrong. So I caved and told my parents that it had just been a phase and that it was over and we just dropped the subject. High school was a little better. I still got called names and stuff but I was able to find some friends who wanted to be around me but it was still difficult trying to fit in and be someone I wasn’t. And constantly make people believe I was someone that I’m not while they’re all telling me who I am. It was a struggle figuring out who I was and where I fit in and how not to be alone. It didn’t help that in high school my parents once again found stuff on my computer. Thankfully, theater got me through a lot of it and when I got to college it was a lot better. As a theater major, the people I hung around with were a lot more open and accepting and I was able to finally be myself fully. It was very freeing. That Thanksgiving, I even came home and officially came out to the family.
PGN: How did that go? BN: Well, it was confusing. I’d been talking to this guy who I really wanted to be with but I was still very much into my religion and my relationship with Jesus. I believed in God and Christ but I was having feelings that I knew were against His teachings, so I called the guy and said, “Sorry, I can’t be with you.” It really upset me so when I went home, I told my parents everything that was going on. I just remember my mom crying her eyes out and yelling at me, “I thought this nonsense was over!” Then she ran to her car and drove off into the night. My father was a lot more comforting. He sat and talked with me and told me that they’d always love me and love me for who I was and just to give my mother time. A few weeks later after I’d gone back to school, she called me and said the same thing. They’ve both come a long way in realizing that me being gay doesn’t change who I am as a person or as a son, it’s just who I am. And they absolutely support me now 100 percent.
PGN: You are a walking, breathing “It Gets Better” ad! BN: [Laughs.] I know! I was actually thinking of getting a tattoo along those lines.
PGN: Let’s do some random questions now. Three smells that make you stop and reflect. BN: I love the smell of freshly baked brownies. I’m into colognes, when you find a really nice one, and the sugar cookie-scented Yankee candles. They’re my mom’s favorite so they always make me think of home.
PGN: The feature I get most compliments on is … BN: Oh, I guess my smile. I’m told it’s big and warming and welcoming.
PGN: You’re playing a Renaissance highwayman at the Faire. What do you think you might have been in another life? BN: A chef. I love cooking. My dad went to culinary-arts school and he taught me and my brothers to cook.
PGN: What’s your stupid human trick? BN: I solve Rubik’s cubes. I even have that on my resume!
PGN: What other “special skills” are on your resume? BN: Juggling and the ability to burp loudly on cue.
PGN: Any hobbies outside of acting and cooking? BN: I love solving puzzles, not just jigsaw puzzles but crosswords, cryptograms and brain-teasers, anything that makes you think. I also enjoy video games.
PGN: What’s your game? BN: I love “Zelda.” It’s awesome.
PGN: What’s your go-to karaoke song? BN: “What Was I Thinking?” by Dierks Bentley.
PGN: Any pets? BN: I have a hamster named Kevin who’s staying with my brother right now. The family has two dogs, Fudge and Bentley.
PGN: Who was someone you idolized as a youth? BN: It would definitely be my youth pastor. He was a best friend and the only one I could talk to about everything. He was outgoing and eccentric and loved to help people. He was the greatest person that I knew. He was accepting of who I was and helped me figure things out.
PGN: First kiss? BN: It was in middle school, sixth grade before everything happened. My friend and I made plans to kiss our girlfriends after school behind the vending machines. We met the girls and I exchanged the smallest peck you could imagine. She screamed “Ewww!’ and ran away.
PGN: Not a very good start to your romantic life! BN: No!
PGN: What was the first LGBT movie you watched? BN: I think I’ve only seen one all the way through, “Prayers for Bobby.” The actor part of me couldn’t handle some of the things that were going on, it was really heavy-handed, but I liked the message.
PGN: That’s the only gay film you’ve ever seen? [Laughs.] We’ve come a long way since then, you need to check out QFest next year. Let’s wrap up with two questions. First, with all the drama you went through coming out, what got you through it? BN: Oh man, I’d have to say it was acting. Without having a firm grasp of something that I loved and wanted to pursue, I would have been lost. I wouldn’t have had anything else. It was the only thing that was solid. It was the one thing that I was good at and people liked me when I was on stage. I was in every middle-school show and every high-school show they did.
PGN: And you got to slip into someone else’s life for a while. BN: Yes, I loved that. Becoming different people and telling their stories. You had a chance to forget your own problems and deal with other people’s instead. It was nice.
PGN: And what are you looking forward to this year at the Faire? BN: Oh I can’t wait until the grounds are filled with people. When the shops and vendors are open and the whole place comes alive. And Gay Day of course! I saw the video of the Lady Gaga number they did last year and I think they are planning something this year as well! I can’t wait!
Gay Day at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire will be held from 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Aug. 11. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.parenfaire.com or www.facebook.com/events/180620092109442.