Queer Eye’s Jonathan Van Ness brings Hot and Healed tour to Kauffman

Jonathan Van Ness is calling in from The Big Apple, which feels correct in a cosmic alignment kind of way.

He’s got a lot happening. Meetings. Momentum. Hair that has opinions. But the minute Kansas City enters the conversation, his pace softens, and his obvious affection for Cowtown kicks in.

Van Ness returns to the metro on Saturday, February 7, bringing his Hot and Healed tour to the Kauffman Center. The title is not ironic. It’s aspirational. It’s also a fairly accurate summary of where Van Ness is right now, personally and professionally. More on that in a minute.

Turns out, KC is not just another tour stop for Van Ness. It’s a place threaded through the middle chapters of their life, courtesy of seasons three and four of Queer Eye. That’s when the show dropped roots here and promptly embedded itself into the cultural fabric of the city.

“I loved it so much when I was there,” Van Ness says. “I would just powerwalk all over downtown, and I ate at so many places down there.”

He waxed nostalgic about long days of filming, short windows of freedom, and the small rituals that made this unfamiliar city feel like home to him. Walking. Coffee. Pilates. Food. Repeat.

Some of his fave haunts didn’t survive the pandemic, which Van Ness acknowledges with a bit of sadness, but one chef’s name still rises to the top with the reverence of a sacred text.

Color him a fan of Beth Barden’s culinary skills. She’s the beloved owner of Succotash here in town. “She made me so much food,” Van Ness laughs. “I think I would have starved if not for her when we were there.”

He makes a good point. If you know (about her pancakes), you know (about her pancakes).

Stand-Up. Sit Down. Rah-Rah-Rah!

Van Ness tells us their new show took a solid year to workshop, starting in small clubs before graduating to theaters, and now it feels ready. Like, ready-ready. As he puts it, it’s a comedy show, yes, but it is also very much a Jonathan Van Ness experience. The kind where laughter sneaks up on you and suddenly you’re musing about politics, identity, resilience, and why you really oughta drink more water and text your therapist back.

Asked to describe the show in five fab words, Van Ness pauses, thinks, edits themselves, and then lands with the following: “Irreverent, joyful, fabulous. Glitter — because it’s bright. And enlightening!”

The show — all-new material, he adds — has the feel of unfiltered commentary mixed with stand-up comedy. (Comed-tary?) Van Ness explains stand-up is the art form that gives them the most freedom. “It really honors my ADHD brain,” they say. “It lets me go really quick. It’s just this really fast, live art form. It’s really the only place where I feel like I get to bring the fullness of who I am into the space.”

They add, “I just don’t see anyone else doing the brand of comedy that I’m doing, And this tour especially, or this set especially, is the most political, unapologetic, bold comedy that I’ve ever done.”

“And you really only get one chance,” Van Ness says. “There’s this unique energy that happens when you’re doing stand-up comedy that doesn’t happen anywhere else.”

Saying Goodbye To Queer Eye

The timing of Van Ness’s tour is notable. Queer Eye just released its tenth and final season, a milestone that still doesn’t quite feel real to Van Ness. “Ten seasons is kind of unheard of at Netflix,” they say. “Ten. Seasons. My ears almost don’t believe it every time I hear it.”

As the show wraps up, he’s filled with pride, joy, and a whole heap of emotions. “This is our last season, so it’s kind of weird,” Van Ness admits. “I don’t want it to be over. And also, I know I need a tiny, little break.”

For eight years, Queer Eye has required the cast to relocate to a new city for months at a time, year after year. Always rewarding, yet always relentless. “I’ve almost not stopped moving since the show came out,” they say.

Still, the dominant feeling is gratitude. “I’m just so happy to have been part of something that positively impacted so many people’s lives,” they add. Van Ness is quick to point out a few KC episodes that remain particularly meaningful. Deanna Munoz stands out immediately, they say.  So does Jessica Guilbeaux’s episode, “whose growth after the show has been deeply gratifying to watch.” And then there was the episode filmed in Van Ness’ hometown, a few hours outside Kansas City, which they describe as both cathartic and out of body.

Those connections are why the show worked, and why people still talk about it years later.

Queer Collaboration, KC-style

Between comedy tours and television finales, Van Ness is also deep in their author era. One of their proudest projects is a recent fiction collaboration with Kansas City author Julie Murphy. The two met years ago, bonded over books and vibes, and eventually co-created a queer coming-of-age young adult novel. Entitled “Let Them Stare,” it involves a haunted thrift store bag and a fabulous queen from the 1950s named Rufus.

“I love Julie’s voice. I love her vibe,” they add. “We had such a blast writing it. I’m ready to get back on my fiction saddle again.”

A Hair-Aware Homecoming

On the day we spoke, social media was abuzz with people posting throwback pics from 2016. Van Ness’ meme-themed Instagram didn’t disappoint when he added a photo of him and a baby-faced Pedro Pascal before the actor’s impending superstardom. And when we asked if Pascal was as adorable as he seems, we got the answer we deserved. “Oh, my God, he’s even more so!” says Van Ness. “I got to color his hair for Narcos for a few years. And he’s just such a sweet, amazing, nice, incredible person. Like, he’s just so amazing.”

Instagram photo.

When then asked — because Van Ness’ hair is always a subject of public interest — whether or not they were, indeed, having a good hair day. Naturally, Van Ness gave us the ultimate description: “I actually am giving you, like, slick bun because I was on, like, day-four hair. And I have all sorts of meetings today, so I’m giving you, like, entrepreneurial paralegal.”

It is a look. It is a mood.

If you see Van Ness (and their ‘do) out and about in KC next month, don’t be surprised. Coffee will assuredly be involved. And Pilates is non-negotiable. “You’ll probably find me at either Lagree Pulse 45 or The Body Lab,” they quip. “I’ll definitely be having to hit up one of those places, because I’ll need to get my Pilates on.”

Post-caffeine and post-Pilates, Van Ness promises to arrive at the Kauffman Center hot, healed, glittering, deeply thoughtful, and very funny. As he says, Kansas City is — once again — invited along for the ride.

Jonathan Van Ness (JVN) – “Hot & Healed” Tour 

When: February 7 at 7:30 PM.
Where: Muriel Kauffman Theatre at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts