Susanne Bartsch, the legendary fashionista and party hostess, is known for accepting, supporting, and honoring marginalized communities, and LGBTQ folks in particular. She “was the one who championed me and said, ‘You have got a future. You are something special,'” RuPaul recalls in a trailer for the doc “Susanne Bartsch: On Top.” “More than any other time in my life, that’s when I needed to hear that,” the “Drag Race” host says.
Bartsch is the one being celebrated in a new documentary from Anthony&Alex (“The Little Fantastic,” “Dearest Samuel”). Using archival footage, verité cinematography, and interviews, the filmmakers chronicle Bartsch’s life and career. “Susanne Bartsch has been dubbed New York’s ‘Queen of the Night,'” a news anchor announces in archival footage. “Her occupation? Well, she puts on parties, but they’re more like full-scale, theatrical assaults.”
In contrast, the film considers Bartsch’s occupation to be “creating a safe haven.” The synopsis details, “The mother of avant-garde self-expression, Susanne creates imaginative spaces where people can live out their wildest fantasies night after night.” As Bartsch says of her work, “I’m drawn to people that make statements with their looks.” She adds, “If it’s not a statement, what’s the point?”
“On Top’s” trailer also offers a glimpse at Bartsch’s AIDS activism, including the star-studded Love Ball benefit she organized to raise money for the cause. “Why don’t I fight this thing and do something about it?” Bartsch recalls thinking during the height of the AIDS crisis.
“Susanne Bartsch: On Top” premiered at last year’s Hot Docs International Documentary Festival. It opens September 7 in LA, and will be released on digital and VOD September 11.
