For George Fowler to get to know himself, he first had to get to know his onstage alter ego, Hugo Grrrl: a kooky, campy fella with a curlicue moustache and, often, a fire engine-red ringleader’s jacket. Hugo is a bona fide star on the Wellington drag scene, but for George, he’s been a teacher of sorts, helping him understand his gender identity offstage. You see, it was just so damn fun – thrilling, even – to dress up as Hugo.
“I love the phrase ‘gender euphoria’, as opposed to gender dysphoria,” says George, 29, who came out two years ago as a trans man. “I’d chuck on men’s clothes and be excited in ways I couldn’t articulate at the time. Hugo was a very organic representation of myself. He was…
