Richard 'Tootsie' Dierick

‘A dream comes true’. After a delightful and warm childhood, Richard Dierick completed secondary education at a school where classical humanities (Latin and Greek) were part of his curriculum in 1970. He sought something that reflected his commitment to society and enrolled in a paediatric nursing programme. After graduation in 1973 he was able to start working as a nurse at the Queen Paola Children’s Hospital in Antwerp. During his three great college years, Richard, a late bloomer, went through an identity crisis and outed himself as 'gay'. Since then, he has felt good about himself and continues to live like that.

To counter the heavy workload presented by his job, Richard found an escape in the world of entertainment. He took classes in declamation for six years and spent three years at a school for dramatic arts and took jazz dance, African dance and tap dance classes. His irregular working hours made it difficult to join a theatrical company. Finally, Richard ended up in the fantastic world of transvestite theatre. He was on stage for thirty years and enjoyed giving voice to the theatrical animal hidden within his innermost being. He is pleased to contribute his experience and talent to Gardenia: the icing on his cake.

update: 07/2021