Ep. 342: John Coons & Jonah Wheeler: Double InDUMBnity, Kink, Queer Joy & Adult Cabaret Clowns

They met at a New York coffee shop, both quietly working on music, and didn’t speak for an hour. Eight years later, singer-songwriter John Coons and adult performer and former Broadway music director Jonah Wheeler are touring the country as self-described “adult cabaret clowns” with their new show, Double InDUMBnity. In this episode, Zach talks with the couple about building a creative partnership inside a romantic one, from a song that took a year and a half to finish to the Monday-night cabaret bootcamp at Club Cumming that got them started. They explain what people get wrong about cabaret, what people get wrong about kink, and why the show leads with dumb jokes but keeps leaving audiences in tears. They also get candid about Jonah’s move into adult film during the pandemic, how John made peace with it (with the help of a Mary Poppins Returns–themed party), and the assumptions people make about each of them as a result. Plus: drag queens on bicycles in Provincetown, seven weeks of shows in Puerto Vallarta, a fake infomercial of filthy 1940s gay standards, and the one person they’d love to see in the audience. NYC: The Green Room 42 Tickets (October 23): https://thegreenroom42.venuetix.com/showdetails/gAjapBDBnL0zxWLfpFdz/pHwSfqHpUIW2s8dHppPy Palm Springs: Toucans in Palm Springs, CA (November 5): https://www.tickettailor.com/events/toucanstikilounge/2426108 Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.