Tag Archives: Chapel Playhouse

Confessions Of An Ex-Drag Queen



Chapel Playhouse

Confessions Of An Ex-Drag Queen

Confessions Of An Ex-Drag Queen

Chapel Playhouse

Reviewed – 16th November 2019

 

“Lyrics are hard to digest and undeniably cringe-worthy”

 

Watching Confessions of an Ex-Drag Queen is akin to being stuck at a really bad carnival themed party for far too long.

The story itself has, admittedly, some potential underlying deep under metric tons of kitsch. The terribly unlikable main heroine, Kristen (Lauren Wilson) wakes up hungover on Denise (Bethany Milton) and Spencer’s (Daniel McCaully) wedding day. The issue is, Spencer (or, as the drag fam knows him, Sarah) is missing, leaving behind but a ‘goodbye’ in a mysterious glittering notebook. Kristen vows to find him and searching for clues, stumbles upon a few dubious characters (also played by Milton and McCaully) from Spencer’s past.

The potential lies in the fact, that it might have been reasonably entertaining if it was fifteen minutes long. Every character Kristen meets is naïve and cartoonish, their stories subtle as a brick through a window, like in a horrid version of The Little Prince, except not meant for children. There’s a little bit of everything – lost dreams, friendly freaks, feuding ladies, flirting gentlemen – bar actual drag. It is genuinely beyond my perception, how such a bottomless pit of inspiration remains completely untapped, reduced to a guy wearing lipstick and Disneyish theme of acceptance and love. Spencer might have well been a plumber, leaving behind his pliers and spanners for Kristen to find. It wouldn’t really change a thing, and had the entire show been called Confessions of an Ex-Plumber, it would have at least had faint potential not to treat itself so seriously.

And, for goodness sake, everyone – everyone gets to sing. Lyrics (by Jack Stone) are hard to digest and undeniably cringe-worthy but, as Denise with cheerful repetitiveness sings: “I’m getting married/ It’s all about meeeee today!”, you cannot say you did not grasp the message. It really is all about this tacky little monster of a show today.

The actors really cannot sing, and except Milton, they do not even seem to try. Wilson’s throat is so terribly constricted, it is actually astounding that there’s some sound at all; she also, for the life of me, can’t hear her own pitch whatsoever. All three of them have horribly underdeveloped voices and slide from note to note, instead of properly hitting them. Funnily enough, Lukas McCabe’s score itself is not bad – it’s pretty repetitive and sort of tedious, but overall quite pleasing to the ear. The problem is, without proper orchestration it simply cannot work. For chamber musicals, this score is too big. For the big stage, this story is too small. It just doesn’t belong anywhere.

The whole production is obviously on a budget, hence small set design, unimpressive arrangement and virtually non-existent staging. But here’s the thing: no budget can buy you creativity.

 

Reviewed by Dominika Fleszar

 


Confessions Of An Ex-Drag Queen

Chapel Playhouse until 17th November

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:
Blood Tales | ★★½ | March 2019
Connecting | ★★★★ | March 2019
Freak | ★★ | March 2019
The Passion Of The Playboy Riots | ★★★★ | July 2019
Fit For Work | ★★ | August 2019

 

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Fit for Work

★★

Chapel Playhouse

Fit for Work

Chapel Playhouse

Reviewed – 24th August 2019

★★

 

“whilst one can’t really ask for enjoyment from a story like this, there does need to be a glimmer of hope, or at least a moment’s hiatus from desolation”

 

Five months ago, Terry Lawson (Jasey Ó Dálaigh) suffered a stroke, and since then his health has continued to deteriorate. Mrs Smith (Ciara Pouncett), a healthcare professional, is tasked with deciding if Terry is eligible for ESA (Employment and Support Allowance) or whether he is in fact capable of working.

The hour-long show consists of an interrogation regarding Terry’s physical and mental health. At first we’re uncertain if Mrs Smith is a sympathetic ear, but as the play goes on she grows steadily more passive aggressive, barely bothering to disguise her eye rolls as Terry explains his inability to walk more than 100 metres, and his growing depression and anxiety.

The consequences of continued austerity are of course an incredibly important issue, and writer and director Louise Powell’s ‘Fit For Work’ certainly rings true in the manner in which Terry is treated as suspect from the get-go; being asked completely inappropriate questions about his failed suicide attempt (a tactic that was reported in 2017), and made to present and detail his illness time and again.

But to have an onslaught of misery and misfortune for a full hour is a lot. There is literally no relief; no small joke, or moment of remembered kindness or love. We don’t even really get to know Terry besides his ailments. The entire content of the show is watching utter despair consistently being met with deep cynicism. There’s no real plot, just a chipping away at what is already a very small reserve of hope.

Whilst it might be an accurate rendering, and both Dálaigh and Pouncett fulfil their roles effectively, much as someone yelling for an hour loses their potency, having someone being completely miserable or completely passive aggressive for so long wears away its effectiveness.

The staging is an appropriately simple doctor’s office, with a couple of family photos and a framed child’s drawing atop the desk to remind us that even though Mrs Smith seems completely heartless, she is a human being who thinks of herself as a good person, which makes her behaviour all the more concerning.

There are a couple of sound cues meant to convey (I think) what Mrs Smith is typing in her notes: the first happens so quickly I’m uncertain exactly what was said. The second is cut short. And after both cues the sound system is left on for a good while, hissing white noise. I don’t feel anything was lost by my not hearing these so perhaps the show could do without.

Both the situation and dialogue of ‘Fit For Work’ are believable enough, but whilst one can’t really ask for enjoyment from a story like this, there does need to be a glimmer of hope, or at least a moment’s hiatus from desolation, just to give the audience a short respite, even if it’s immediately followed by an even darker reality.

 

Reviewed by Miriam Sallon

Image courtesy Wellcome Collection

 

 


Camden Fringe

Fit for Work

Chapel Playhouse until 25th August as part of Camden Fringe 2019

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:
Blood Tales | ★★½ | March 2019
Connecting | ★★★★ | March 2019
Freak | ★★ | March 2019
The Passion Of The Playboy Riots | ★★★★ | July 2019

 

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