Harvard's Silver-Medalist Stripper

Hamilton H. Hicks '01, a Currier House psychology concentrator, has recently augmented his Harvard education with a bold agenda of amateur strip-tease competition. His second-place win at Landsdowne Street's Axis Club, in addition to a short stint at drag-dressing, has earned Hicks quite a reputation for immodesty around campus as well as among the Boston area clubbing scene. Straight from the mouth of the boy who really "dares to bare," FM uncovers the true experience, inspiration and secret to successful stripping.

FM: Tell us about the stripping contest at Axis. When is it held?

Hicks: Well, the competition has been held weekly for a few months now. First there is a drag show during which people can sign up for the amateur striptease. After the professionals finish their lip-sync routine, the hostess drag queen announces the seven to 10 audience members that will compete and calls them up one by one. (S) he puts on some thumpy music, usually fuzzy techno but it can be anything appropriate for hip shaking. The contestants begin to dance and disassemble their outfits. Afterwards the hostess dances an extravaganza finale.

FM: What are the rules? Did you go the Full Monty? Would you, if permitted?

Hicks: You can strip down as far as you want but girls aren't allowed to show nipples, and no one is allowed complete nudity. Most guys strip down to a g-string. I got down to a pair of black briefs, but no g-string for me. But give me a month and ask again! If full nudity was allowed I don't think I'd do it, but I'd definitely be watching from the front row.

FM: How is the winner decided? Are prizes awarded?

Hicks: The audience chooses the winner; after all the amateurs have stripped the hostess decides which contestant received the most and loudest applause. Except for a few randoms who can't leave the bar, the audience is really attentive and sometimes people give money to their favorite performers. The competition usually comes down to a first and second place winner, and the grand prize is $50 from the club.

FM: Who won first place the night you won second place? Can you and will you compete again to claim your rightful title?

Hicks: Contestants can compete more than once. I came in second to a girl who had been competing for a while. I gave her a kiss and told her congratulations. I may compete again but first I need more "at home practice sessions."

FM: What motivated you to enter the contest the first time?

Hicks: I think the first competition is always the hardest and I just did it in a moment of boldness, or perhaps a lack of shame. I had also been encouraged by a big group of friends from Harvard and MIT, some of whom I came with that night. I knew a lot of the people in the audience--the Monday night regulars, a mixed crowd of gays, straights and bisexuals.

FM: So what is the trick to being an excellent stripper?

Hicks: There is no real trick that I'm conscious of. You just have to be able to feel the music and please the crowd. It helps to have a nice body. My physique is barely surviving on the remainder of years of gymnastics training.

Actually, I recommenced working out recently but I only started lifting weights three days ago.

FM: What other experience do you have in the whole dressing and undressing arena?

Hicks: I did drag for the first time for Halloween at a different club, The Machine, at their Thursday masquerade ball (and fooled and ex into thinking I was a girl!). I promote and model for the woman who runs the place. In general, my modeling experience is in its infancy but would like to explore it further. Last spring I was in a Harvard-sponsored fashion show designed by a friend. Oh, and while clubbing last year at Quest a photographer for a snazzy international gay magazine snapped a photo of me and it somehow ended up getting published on a half-page.

FM: So do you consider yourself an exhibitionist?

Hicks: No, I don't feel like this is a constant element of my life. It's just something I dip into every once in a while for a reaction and for fun. It's a way to escape the monotony of hackneyed college life. My personal motto is, "Don't let yourself be caught in the same old path. Walk all the walks and have delirious amounts of fun."

FM: Would you strip in private for a significant other?

Hicks: Maybe not on the first date. I guess it depends on whether it would just be in fun or if the act would be taken too seriously. Actually, I'm pretty slow going when it comes to relationships. As wild as the stripping and all seems, I've been single for a long time. No glamorous relationships, short term or otherwise.

FM: So apart from its role as an `escape mechanism,' has stripping been an overall positive or negative experience?

Hicks: I've enjoyed it; an interesting perk was that people who didn't talk to me before were eager to chat afterwards. The downside was that my exes started to call me up again. And when I was in drag people offered me money to do disgusting things. Perhaps they didn't realize that even in heels my biceps were still working just fine. It makes me question some of the underpublicized subtleties of drag life. Prostitution is something I definitely won't be doing. Another negative incident was when a jealous drag queen attacked me. She threw a drink on me because a certain gogo boy was fond of me and pushed her away.

FM: Whom have you told about your stripping skills? Do you feel quasi-famous?

Hicks: All of my friends know by now and random people at clubs come up and tell me that I should compete again. I have a family of conservative Southern Baptists in rural East Texas, but I told my mom about my stripping because she's a closet liberal. She encouraged me to get a leather jacket and earring in seventh grade when I attended a school where we weren't even allowed to have long hair--so I figured my new hobby wouldn't bother her too much.

FM: Do you think that stripping will be a part of your life for a long time to come?

Hicks: Sometimes because of my background people accuse me of just being in a "rebellious stage," but I see stripping as one of the more intriguing and wild methods of exploring city life. The idea of never leaving Harvard Square and trying new things is analogous to staying in East Texas for rest of one's life. Growing up in that cloistered environment taught me to get out of a place where I wasn't satisfied and I've applied that to my life....I don't know if I'll continue stripping, but I plan to move to New York City after college. That is, if I ever come back from Amsterdam where I'm hopefully spending first semester of junior year doing gender and identities studies at the University of Amsterdam.

FM: Back to the fun stuff. What is your ideal strip outfit?

Hicks: I saw some really cool Prada leather underwear in NY but didn't have sufficient funds at the time. Actually, I never have the sufficient funds! I do, however, own leopard-print underwear but I thought that animal skin would be going a little too far for an amateur so I settled on the black K-mart special.

FM: How do you pass your time when you're not feeling especially wild?

Hicks: Despite all the memorable reckless experiences in my past, my favorite thing to do is sit in a quiet caf and write poetry. My inspiration is a guy who is completing a master's degree here and continuing his Ph.D. at Oxford. He has published books of poetry and he collects information about his topics by living the life of his subjects. He's currently writing a book called "100 Days in Drag." I know him personally and agree that although it sounds clich, the best way to learn about people is to walk in their shoes and try to see life through their eyes before making any judgments.