Vivienne Sato is a unique cultural concierge in Tokyo, full of the lowdown on both high art and mass culture. Vivi knows what and who's happening in the city 24/365, and if she's present, the party is on till the wee-wee hours. Always dressed to the nines — and often to the nine hundreds — with her signature towering wigs and platform shoes, Vivi rules over the city's night scene as a benevolent drag queen. Her social life might be an endless partyathon, but her private one is all about art: She is a painter, illustrator, movie critic and architect. And this homebody alter-ego is no party animal: The artist Vivi loves working in the quiet with just the hushed steps of her 17 tarantulas providing the background music: Italy's Tarantella, of course!

I'm average in Tokyo. I really don't stick out that much. It's just my wig that stands out, not me. I mean, Japanese love uniforms, and not only kids but adults also do cosplay, so I am just another normal urban creature. In Tokyo, anything is OK.

Without makeup, I'm just a guy. Even with it, I'm still a man, but one who wears more eye shadow than most women.