The Last Seven Days of Obsidienne Obsurd
The Calvin Simmons Theater at Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts
10 10th Street Oakland
December 5, 2025
Somewhere between high fashion and a broken heart, Obsidienne Obsurd, their signature black and white made-up face and dark eyes full of wonder, bewitched a captivated audience at the Henry J. Kaiser Center on December 5. Encased in yards of fabric or in a cloud of pointed red horns, shedding layers as they went, to a crowd screaming in appreciation, waving their tipping dollars high, Obsurd offered a night of artistry born from skill and distilled through experience.
“I am fucking living for this! It's like they're me!” one excited audience member said. Though not always a beautiful voyage, I found myself rooting for Obsurd to both get themselves lost and then found inside the brilliant avant-garde labyrinth they had built. With elements of hyperventilation to rhythm more than dance (with assistance from local drag greats like Lisa Frankenstein, Sassi Fran, Cult baby and Lola Ren), there was no sense of space or time in The Last 7 Days of Obsidienne Obsurd.
Hosted by Mama Celeste, who seemed to glow with acceptance and goodwill (or was it the very good lighting?), the one night event, produced by Oaklash with support from the Gerbode Foundation and the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, presented us with an odyssey of the mind, heart, and soul of Obsidienne Obsurd. Trained from early childhood as a classical musician, their talent on the viola led the way onto a path of sharp twists and unexpected turns. A seamless blending of lip synch and chamber music, a world in which Bowie and a newly commissioned piece by Paul Wiancko of Kronos Quartet live in harmony, bloomed slowly over the course of the evening.
The show, broken into seven acts, took us from oceans to deserts to high mountain tops, and then to a glittering red moon. Obsurd was resplendent in a variety of handmade costumes—sheathed in blue to match the waters, morphing into a high fashion fungus—their looks subtly, and sometimes violently, escalated as the night wore on. Surreal haunting music paired with the sound of heavy breathing put the audience in fight or flight mode, and then, at the height of the unease, playful bits grounded us again. Though a strange spectacle, the journey was emotionally relatable. Most powerful was the last “Day” in which Obsurd’s parents Christopher Contanza (cello) and Debra Fong (violin) joined them on the stage trailing long black veils to play together as a family.
“Tonight you'll get to watch me crack open the fixture of my heart, It's so hard to distill all of this into a few words, but these are for you. All of you.” Obsurd wrote in the program. The genius of the work lay in its vulnerable honesty: a remarkable soul, broken and mended, showing all the world just how transcendent the light that shines through it truly is. Their tale of unapologetic self acceptance was inspiring, infusing new dimensions to drag’s already varied art form, the standing ovation from the decked-out crowd well earned.
For more information about events through Oaklash you can visit their website.
To keep up with Obsidienne Obsurd follow them on IG.
