SARAH, 29, NEW HAVEN, CT
Gender Projected
Where are you from? Where do you live now? Have you ever lived anywhere else?
I grew up in San Francisco Bay Area, I moved to LA, and I have also lived in Washington, DC.
How old are you?
29
How would you identify your gender?
Girl. Almost prepubescent girl.
Why did you want to be involved in the project?
It is in line with a lot of work that I have done in theater and my interest in gender politics, theater gender politics, and it is time to discuss this. It is a discussion that is being had a lot more these days, but any media that explores gender is positive for the conversation.
What presentation would you be afraid to wear on the street where you live now (if any?) Why?
I feel sexiest in that suspender outfit. I came out as bi a few years ago and went on this huge exploration of “Oh, if I am not heteronormative, do I have a different gender? Do I dress differently?” The suspender outfit is the look that I feel great and comfortable in, but I also have the option of hiding in heterosexual society. When I’m dressed in a more “feminine” way, my sexuality is never a question in people’s minds. I get to just slip through and be treated in a certain way. I can’t say it feels right, but it’s definitely easy.
Did you gain any perspective on gender identity/expression in yourself during the project?
It is interesting. You try on all these different outfits that portray different gender expression to the world, and through that you loosen up your boundaries with it. But it is interesting when you put on an outfit that just clicks. The J Crew guy one felt really natural, which speaks to a certain gender fluidity in myself. I felt like a very beautiful man, and it felt great.
In your life, was there another time you explored/experimented with gender identity/expression? If so, what type of experience was it?
It wasn’t gender identity. It was sexual identity. Which are different. But I did switch feeling like girl to woman doing that. When I dressed up in a way that I felt right, as a sexual person, it pushed me into a woman category, which was new.
How do your gender identity and sexuality intersect, if at all?
They are very different. What turns you on and how you identify on the gender spectrum - how is that the same thing at all?
What do you want to see happen with Gender, Projected and what recommendations or suggestions do you have for the project?
It would be great if one day this sort of thing didn’t have to exist, wouldn’t it? I feel like one day we will get to the point where it doesn’t matter. We will get to the point where gender fluidity is the norm.