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Photo: Studio Concord
Conchita with Mevorach at his wedding to Clemens
Photo: Studio Concord

Meet Israeli behind Conchita Wurst's coiffure

Austrian drag queen who took 2014 Eurovision contest sang at Yohai Mevorach's wedding, he used to cut her hair, but stresses that 'she never once let me touch the beard.'

While the world is just getting to know Conchita Wurst – the unforgettable Austrian drag queen who took the 2014 Eurovision contest – for Yohai Mevorach, from Jerusalem, she's an old friend.

 

 

"Conchita used to come in every now and then to get a haircut," explained Mevorach, who now lives in Austria with his partner.  "But there was one thing she never let me touch – her beard. It's entirely her own creation and her trademark look. "

 

Mevorach – a hair stylist who also runs a non-profit which donates hair to children with cancer – has lived in Vienna over the last four years; he moved to the Austrian capital after meeting the love of his life, Clemens.

 

When the two decided to wed last year, they had no doubt who would sing at their wedding.

 

"She came with amazing hair, different from the way she wore it during the Eurovision," beard and all, Mevorach says with pride, adding "her entire look was just devastating."

 

The couple first met Wurst through a mutual friend, who even traveled to the Eurovision as part of the singer's entourage, and since they first met they have been part of the same social circles, Mevorach claimed.

 

"I meet her on an almost daily basis," he said. "For years she was a very controversial figure, that's why her victory is amazing and inspires pride.

 

"A lot of political forces in Austria don't like her and what she represented. It turned into this huge political battle, and each side has something to say."

 

For Mevorach, Wurst's victory echoes that of transsexual Israeli singer Dana International, who won the contest with her hit Diva, despite outcry by the local Haredi population.

 

"Like then, I believe that this will in fact lead to a change in the way she and the community is treated. She is proof that you can cross borders and bring Austria world pride."

 

Describing the issue of gendered pronouns, he claimed that it varies according to the situation: "When she's on stage, Conchita is a 100% women and I call her just that. But when I meet her on the street or with friends, and she presents herself as Tom (Neuwirth) then as a friend I'll call him Tom and treat him as a man."

 


פרסום ראשון: 05.13.14, 00:47
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