Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Theater Review: Priscilla Queen of the Desert

Glitz-tech Musical is Big on Show, but Short on Substance
By Lauren Yarger

A disco ball reflecting a swirl of lights with loud '70s music isn’t only the opening for the show, it’s the theme for the whole production, supervised by Jerry Mitchell and directed by Simon Phillips in a glitzy, bright Broadway stage version of the cult film “Priscilla Queen of the Desert.”

The explosion of color and sensory-attacking flashiness travels from the campy bus and set (Brian Thompson, bus concept and production design), to sparkle in the sure-to-be-Tony-nominated ’70s-era transvestite showgirl costumes (Tim Chappell and Lizzy Gardiner, design) -- there’s pink, lots of pink -- and to flash in the lights (Nick Schlieper, design)which never seem to dim. While it’s visually stimulating to say the least, it’s a bit of overkill, probably in an effort to keep us from noticing that there is little else happening in the rather weak book by Stephan Elliott and Allan Scott.

There are some good elements in the production. The score is comprised of popular songs from the time period played by a wonderfully full sounding orchestra under the supervision of Stephen “Spud” Murphy. His fine arrangements stand out and give new depth and meaning to lyrics when they show up in context to non-traditional action in the show. Choreography by Ross Coleman including good sounding flying divas (Jacqueline B. Arnold, Anastacia McCleskey and Ashley Spencer) are on equal footing with some standout performances in minor roles by Keala Settle as rather “butch” Shirley whom our threesome meet in a bar and Nathan Lee Graham, who does a fun Tina Turner impersonation.

So if watching a bunch of guys dress up and dance around in outrageous female garb (there’s even an opera piece) is your cup of tea, you’ll undoubtedly enjoy this show. For the rest of us, however, all of elements combine to make Priscilla an enjoyable romp, but aren’t enough to disguise the weak plot and give us a real reason to spend two and a half hours watching people croon while sitting in large oversized, sequined platform shoe on top of the bus, for example.

The story follows two transvestites, Tick/Mitzi (Will Swenson), Adam/Felicia (Nick Adams) and a transsexual, recently-widowed Bernadette (Tony Sheldon), who travel in a bus they name Priscilla Queen of the Desert on their way to do a show at the Alice Springs, Australia night club run by Tick’s wife Marion (Jessica Phillips). The gig is more than a much needed job: Tick apparently left his wife years ago to embrace his feminine identity. He hides the marriage from Adam and Bernadette as well as his fears about meeting the son he left behind, 6-year-old Benji (Luke Mannikus and Ashton Woerz), who doesn’t know that his “show business” father impersonates women for a living.

Along the way, they meet various people, most of whom are hostile to the men’s lifestyle choices. An exception is Bob (C. David Johnson) who comes to their aid when Adam is attacked in the "he-man-type" bar where he goes looking for love. Dissatisfied with his mail-order-bride, Cynthia (J. Elaine Marcos), despite the fact that she can perform sexual tricks with ping pong balls, Bob hops aboard Priscilla to join the trio on their journey and eventually enjoys romance with Bernadette.

The plot often seems contrived to serve as a vehicle for a transvestite fest. It is unrealistic at times, with both Marion and Benji perfectly fine (and politically correct) in their total acceptance of Tick and his life choices. Would Adam really go to a homophobe type bar looking for love? It plays like a predictable plot device more than a poignant moment that could be used to promote understanding and give the story some depth.

On the other hand, by treating everything with a lighter touch, the show never takes itself very seriously, which allows us enjoy all of its outrageous glitz, whether that means laughing at the silly costumes and wigs, enjoying a funny rendition of “MacArthur Park” or clapping along at the great “get-’em-back-after-intermission” number of “Thank God I’m a Country Boy.”

Priscilla plays at the Palace Theatre, 1564 Broadway, NYC. Discounted tickets are available at http://www.givenik.com/show_info.php/Masterworks/280/individual

Christians might also like to know:
Show posts a Mature advisory
Language
Sexual dialogue
Sexually suggestive moves (the ping pong sexual trick goes way too far in my opinion)
Scantily-clad actors
Obviously, cross dressing/transgender

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Our reviews are professional reviews written without a religious bias. At the end of them, you can find a listing of language, content or theological issues that Christians might want to know about when deciding which shows to see.

** Mature indicates that the show has posted an advisory because of content. Usually this means I would recommend no one under the age of 16 attend.

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

Theater Critic Lauren Yarger

My Bio

Lauren Yarger has written, directed and produced numerous shows and special events for both secular and Christian audiences. She co-wrote a Christian musical version of “A Christmas Carol” which played to sold-out audiences of over 3,000 in Vermont and was awarded the Vermont Bessie (theater and film awards) for “People’s Choice for Theatre.” She also has written two other dinner theaters, sketches for church services and devotions for Christian artists. Her play concept, "From Reel to Real: The Jennifer O'Neill Story" was presented as part of the League of professional Theatre Women's Julia's reading Room Series in New York. Shifting from reviewing to producing, Yarger owns Gracewell Productions, which produced the Table Reading Series at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT. She trained for three years in the Broadway League’s Producer Development Program, completed the Commercial Theater Institute's Producing Intensive and other training and produced a one-woman musical about Mary Magdalene that toured nationally and closed with an off-Broadway run. She was a Fellow at the National Critics Institute at the O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT. She wrote reviews of Broadway and Off-Broadway theater (the only ones you can find in the US with an added Christian perspective) at http://reflectionsinthelight.blogspot.com/.

She is editor of The Connecticut Arts Connection (http://ctarts.blogspot.com), an award-winning website featuring theater and arts news for the state. She was a contributing editor for BroadwayWorld.com. She previously served as theater reviewer for the Manchester Journal-Inquirer, Connecticut theater editor for CurtainUp.com and as Connecticut and New York reviewer for American Theater Web.

She is a Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter of the League of Professional Theatre Women. She is a former vice president and voting member of The Drama Desk.

She is a freelance writer and playwright (member Dramatists Guild of America). She is a member if the The Outer Critics Circle (producer of the annual awards ceremony) and a member of The League of Professional Theatre Women, serving as Co-Founder of the Connecticut Chapter. Yarger was a book reviewer for Publishers Weekly A former newspaper editor and graduate of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, Yarger also worked in arts management for the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and served for nine years as the Executive Director of Masterwork Productions, Inc. She lives with her husband in West Granby, CT. They have two adult children.

Copyright

All material is copyright 2008- 2022 by Lauren Yarger. Reviews and articles may not be reprinted without permission. Contact reflectionsinthelight@gmail.com

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Key to Content Notes:

God's name taken in vain -- means God or Jesus is used in dialogue without speaking directly to or about them.

Language -- means some curse words are used. "Minor" usually means the words are not too strong or that it only occurs once or twice throughout the show.

Strong Language -- means some of the more heavy duty curse words are used.

Nudity -- means a man or woman's backside, a man's lower front or a woman's front are revealed.

Scantily clad -- means actors' private areas are technically covered, but I can see a lot of them.

Sexual Language -- means the dialogue contains sexually explicit language but there's no action.

Sexual Activity -- means a man and woman are performing sexual acts.

Adultery -- Means a married man or woman is involved sexually with someone besides their spouse. If this is depicted with sexual acts on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Sex Outside of Marriage -- means a man and woman are involved sexually without being married. If this is depicted sexually on stage, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Homosexuality -- means this is in the show, but not physically depicted.

Homosexual activity -- means two persons of the same sex are embracing/kissing. If they do more than that, the list would include "sexual activity" as well.

Cross Dresser -- Means someone is dressing as the opposite sex. If they do more than that on stage the listing would include the corresponding "sexual activity" and/or "homosexual activity" as well.

Cross Gender -- A man is playing a female part or a woman is playing a man's part.

Suggestive Dancing -- means dancing contains sexually suggestive moves.

Derogatory (category added Fall 2012) Language or circumstances where women or people of a certain race are referred to or treated in a negative and demeaning manner.

Other content matters such as torture, suicide, or rape will be noted, with details revealed only as necessary in the review itself.

The term "throughout" added to any of the above means it happens many times throughout the show.

Reviewing Policy

I receive free seats to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows made available to all voting members of the Outer Critics Circle. Journalistically, I provide an unbiased review and am under no obligation to make positive statements. Sometimes shows do not make tickets available to reviewers. If these are shows my readers want to know about I will purchase a ticket. If a personal friend is involved in a production, I'll let you know, but it won't influence a review. If I feel there is a conflict, I won't review their portion of the production.

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