This is the way Wikipedia describes Machine Dazzle: "(born 1972) is the stage name of Matthew Flower, an American costume designer, set designer, performance artist and drag queen known for his excessive and fantastical camp, surrealist, queer and maximalist approach."This description doesn't do this creative person justice because his talent, skills and accomplishments are too vast and varied to describe. Pulitzer prize winning theater critic Hilton Als puts it this way in the New Yorker, "...a true theatrical genius, who, under his professional name, Machine Dazzle, has created some of the most inventive costumes and sets I have ever seen. "

In this Dr. Lisa session we delve into Machine's immersive process as well as what it was like for him, growing up in a series of small towns as a queer person, how creative problem solving is part of his DNA plus why he doesn't go to therapy.

Machine Dazzle was born Matthew Flower, in 1972 in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania. The middle child of three sons, Matthew was mostly raised by his mother Deborah, while his father James was away working as an engineer on oil tankers. The family moved to Houston, Texas and then eventually to Idaho Falls, where Matthew felt alienated amongst the predominantly Mormon community. “I was always the tallest and the gayest” Machine Dazzle told Hilton Als when speaking about this period of his life for a piece in The New Yorker.

Machine cites seeing the 1980 Olivia Newton-John film Xanadu at the age of 8 as a defining moment that helped shape his view of himself. At the age of 19, he came out as gay to his conservative parents.[2]

Machine Dazzle attended and graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder, earning a degree in art. In 1994 he moved to New York City and joined the Dazzle Dancers. Machine Dazzle spent this time working a myriad of day jobs, including a position as a jewelry designer and at the non-profit cultural center Exit Art, to support his growing fascination with designing extravagant costumes to wear at night in New York City's clubs such as CBGB and Jackie 60.

The origin of the name Machine Dazzle came from dancing in costume at one such club as a Dazzle Dancer. A friend referred to him as a dancing machine, which quickly morphed into Machine Dazzle. As Machine's costumes began to catch the attention of other club kids and eventually he began taking commissions from drag queens and dancers. Julie Atlas Muz asked Machine to design a full show in 2004. In 2008, Machine Dazzle designed the sets and costumes for Lustre, a Midwinter Trans-Fest, starring Justin Vivian Bond. In 2009, he designed Taylor Mac's five hour long The Lily's Revenge. Mac and Machine Dazzle would go on to collaborate extensively throughout their careers.[3]