2:13am. McGuinness Ave, Brooklyn

“They just keep going on and on about that evolution shit and it needs to stop already.”

“What is a predator? Well, let’s get a definition from the dictionary…”

“Newports, got them Newports. Five dollars, got them Newports…”

I pull up to a dusty box in the middle of nowhere that says “Bar” and open the steel door on a dark empty room.

A crush of sequins, rubber, heavy makeup, and skin marches down Surf Avenue, and thousands of New Yorkers climb over each other to get a better look

“It’s a great gig. Just put up the ads real quick, it don’t matter too much how it looks.”

“Welcome to New York, motherfucker!” He says this like it’s the movies.