Chadd Curry, aka Dahc Dermur VIII, turned 60 at The Mandrake on Saturday. More than just a Wraith Club party for the “mother goth” of London, it was a fundraiser for his fight against cancer.
London’s gothic figureheads wax rhapsodic about no one more than Chadd. By no means superficially – their eyes mist over and the praise feels spiritual. Tonight, this chosen family of outsiders are rejoicing their fairy gothmother: a performance artist, DJ, educator and fashion muse. His 24/7 aesthetic – a blend of avant-garde silhouettes and industrial monochrome – is less a costume than a direct glimpse into his way of thinking.
“The wound is where light enters us. Then we shine that light collectively to the world,” Chadd reads aloud from a handwritten script, standing in a white Matières Fécales gown and headpiece.
The surrealist creature drag artist Jenna Marvin is kneeling on the floor before Chadd in black latex while the mother goth tenderly cradles their face. Fecal Matter are hugging two Drag Syndrome queens who attended their Paris FW26 show. Punk musician French Toast is dancing on all fours in red fishnets to Leo Monira’s DJ set. Tintin is kissing Parma Ham. Several other faces are instantly recognisable: Princess Julia (underground royalty and original New Romantic), designer Jean Louie Castillo, queer art rave Inferno founder Lewis G. Burton, singer Jazmin Bean, and club kids Opia.
“I live life to the fullest. I think that best describes what I do,” Chadd once said. Underpinning the room’s fondness for Chadd is an admiration for his commitment to authenticity and loving widely and deeply. It’s clear they uphold his life story as a touchstone of the community, relating it to their own personal journey.
Many in the past yearned to give love and be loved by people on the same wavelength, but felt outcast. In Jenna Marvin’s case, it began with secretly practising drag makeup growing up in a Siberian village. Alfred Androgynous, a new arrival in the capital, never found his tribe in Latvia where he repressed his femininity to fit into a heteronormative society. Others felt rejected by their homeland, have Down’s Syndrome yet dream of the stage, or were treated with contempt for their “extreme” fashion sense.
Now they find freedom in embracing their authentic self, surrounded by a chosen family that chooses them back.
The Mandrake is named after a hallucinogenic nightshade beloved by occult botanists and known for its human-shaped roots. In folkloric tales, it shrieks when pulled from the ground. The hotel opened in 2017 as a mystical, sensuous land of dark whimsy for artists to lark to and hide from the city’s uninspiring corporate surroundings. For this, it is no wonder Dahc Dermur VIII and his subversive circle have found a spiritual home there.
The circle at Chadd’s birthday hail from diverse worlds – fashion, raves, rock, perfumeries, makeup artistry, Soho drag – all united by their affection for him. Many have painted their faces white. All are welcomed. Other DJ sets include Less Than Human, and Wax Wings, and performances are also given by Joshua Woolford, Lewis Walker and Yen Ching.
“Everyone is a bit scared sometimes… but we are less scared together,” Chadd reads to a room that slowly fills with silence. The audience shed tears, pick apart a flower petal by petal, lean onto one another – whatever offers comfort in the moment.
Donate to Dahc Dermur VIII’s fundraiser for his fight against cancer here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/chadds-fundraiser-for-their-fight-against-cancer
