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Three transvestites travelling across Australia in a beaten up bus named Priscilla may not exactly get the heart racing on the face of it but, rest assured, by the time the cast of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert take their final calls at The Liverpool Empire, yours will be beating off the cardiographic charts.
Crammed with more cheese than the largest Cheddar factory in the Gorge, Priscilla also has more depth and pathos, laughs and tear jerkers than just about any other classic musical ever put out there, but also a deep understanding that its audience doesn’t need patronising, just entertaining and so delivers in bucket loads.
The set is ostensibly pretty basic, but the use of the flies, the lights, the multi-purpose bus itself and, above all, the 200+ costumes that all outdo each other in the glitter and glamour stakes all make for a show that is as much a feast for the eyes as it is for the soul. Then there is the choreography which, from first to last, is of an extraordinary quality, vim, verve and vigour yet made to appear to be so easily performed by what is an exquisite cast.
Jason Donovan is utterly outstanding as Mitzi, the drag artist who needs to go back to Alice Springs to see his son for the first time. If he has any inhibitions about performing 80% of the time in heels and a dress, these are banished in the opening moments so that, thanks to his poise, classy self-deprecation through the running references to Neighbours and an innate stage presence, it becomes more of a shock to see him dressed in jeans and t-shirts. Fabulous too as the former Drag starlet Bernadette is Simon Green, who manages to bring so much class to the part it is as though he is auditioning for the role of Marlene Dietrich in a biopic and landing it, particularly during his scenes with the slightly “confused” Bob, played flawlessly by Philip Childs.
The laughs are relentless, but the highlight moment of the show is delivered by Bob’s Mail Order Bride, Cynthia, performed with more uproarious cheek than a barrel full of monkeys by Julie Yammanee, while the whole show is warmed up brilliantly well by Callum MacDonald’s deliciously delightful Miss Understanding. Just wait until you see his / her Tina Turner and pinch yourself that you’re not watching The Acid Queen herself, it is that exaggeratedly good. Backed brilliantly by Lisa-Marie Holmes, Laura Mansell and Catherine Mort whose vocals fill the auditorium whilst hanging suspended above the stage, which makes their performances all the more astonishingly good and all the more memorable.
Yet as good as everybody here is, the standout performer of the evening is Richard Astbury whose spoiled, selfish Felicia is simply dazzling. In a role packed with puns, pithy one liners, over stated mannerisms, bitchy reposts and an underlying want of something that can’t be had – acceptance – Astbury delivers it all with so much style, wit, devilish assertiveness and skill it is as if he was born to play it.
Crammed with some of the most recognisable tunes the 70s and 80s Disco period had to offer, mixed with some pretty sturdy Rock numbers as well and all performed live, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert may be about three transvestites travelling across Australia in a beaten up bus but, trust me, don’t find yourself stranded at the depot before it departs the terminus on Saturday or else you will surely regret it, big time.
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
The Liverpool Empire Theatre
January 25 – January 30, 2016
Director: Simon Phillips
Choreographers: Ross Coleman & Andrew Hallsworth
Costumes: Tim Chappel & Lizzy Gardinier
Cast Includes: Jason Donovan, Simon Green, Richard Astbury, Philip Childs, Callum MacDonald, Julie Yammanee, Lisa-Marie Holmes, Laura Mansell, Catherine Mort, Naomi Slights, Adam Beaver.
Running Time: 2 hrs 15 minutes
PR Rating: ***** Camp as Christmas and Twice as Much Fun