Denise Larson
Denise Larson is a native Californian: she went to elementary school in the Los Angeles suburb town of Torrance and high school in the San Joaquin Valley city of Manteca, and finally, after college, she put down roots in San Francisco. With a BA in theater from San Francisco State University, she pinned her dreams on becoming an experimental theater artist in the ’70s counterculture milieu of the Bay Area. Along that path she founded Les Nickelettes. For thirteen years, she helmed the feminist theater company and assumed the role of actress, playwright, producer, stage director, and administrative/artistic director. Then she gave it all up to become a mother and teacher. After a twenty-year career in early childhood education, she retired and took up writing. Denise still lives in San Francisco with her husband and their cat. She has also returned to her first love: theater. She is taking an improv class, and collaborating with other performers to form a new theatre group: Cosmic Elders. The author resides in San Francisco, CA.
Instagram: @Nickelette1
What’s your favorite comic strip or graphic novel?
I’d Rather Be Doing Something Else: The Didi Glitz Story by Diane Noomin is my favorite comic strip. In my book, Anarchy in High Heels, I relate the story about how my all-female theater group, Les Nickelettes, adopted Noomin’s story for the stage. It was a big hit in the 1981 San Francisco counterculture scene. I love all of Diane’s strips about the utterly fabulous, and ditzy Didi Glitz. I also love Zippy the Pinhead created by Diane’s husband, Bill Griffith. Zippy’s outlandish physical appearance, non sequiturs, and love of kitsch ‘50s and ‘60s culture always cracks me up. More recently I was blown away by Drawing Power: Women’s Stories of Sexual Violence, Harassment, and Survival, a graphic comics anthology edited by Diane Noomin.
Favorite non-reading activity?
I look forward to my daily walk. It’s an activity that keeps me healthy and also allows me 30 to 40 minutes to just let my mind wander. To me, it’s an important part of my creative and writing process.
Have you experienced Imposter Syndrome?
Yes, all the time. The strategy I’ve adopted to deal with this syndrome is to turn the imposter back on its self. I use the acting training and experience I got in college to create a character that can easily take on any uncomfortable situation. As I become an actor in a pretend confident role my self-doubt disappears, and it actually frees me to be my more authentic self.
Vacation druthers… City or Rural destination? Why?
I love to visit cities. There are always interesting things to see in cities: museums, landmarks, neighborhoods, and points of interests. And these activities lead to learning about the people and the culture of the city. One of my favorite things to do on vacation in a city is to just sit in a café or park bench and observe the people coming and going.
Do you have another artistic outlet in addition to your writing?
Yes: theater! I’m part of a theater ensemble called Cosmic Elders. We are exploring avenues of expression for older adults through theater games and improv experimentation. During the pandemic lockdown we have continued to meet through Zoom and have acquired new video-taping skills to present our work out in the broader world. Our current project is Wiggle Room for Eccentricity: Cosmic Clowns where we don red clown noses and put ourselves in a variety of comic situations and see what happens.
