Review: PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT, Woking Theatre - Tour
Photo credit: Johan Persson
If you’ve never seen Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, either in the West End ( 2009-11) or on regional tours in 2013, 2015 and 2019 like this reviewer, then you must surely give it a try on this tour which arrives at Woking Theatre this week. With its fabulous 80s soundtrack of so many upbeat “bangers” and led by the charming Kevin Clifton as Tick (alter ego Mitzi), it is an enjoyable camp romp and a tale with real heart.
Tick is a drag queen at the Cock-A-Too Nightclub in Sydney when he gets a call from estranged wife in Alice Springs to come home and finally meet his nine-year-old son Benji and tempts him with a cabaret slot at the casino she works in. To give him the courage to go, he enlists the help of his old friend transgender Bernadette (Adele Anderson from Fascinating Aida) and another drag queen, Adam (alter ego Felicia) played - last night - by very muscular understudy Fionan O’Carroll. To make the hazardous journey across Australia (about 1700 miles!), they acquire a very old bus which they christen ‘Priscilla, Queen of the Desert’. The narrative tracks that journey and the people they encounter but really sets up a sequence of high energy dance routines and fantasy sequences choreographed by Matt Cole.
It’s fast paced with an ensemble in colourful costumes who sweep the action along in a celebration of camp drag queens with an exuberant mix of high kicking riotous fun and saucy innuendo with the darker homophobic and prejudicial reactions that their lifestyle attracted at the time. Priscilla is a rather static box that doubles as Ayers Rock for the finale, and we imagine ought to have developed into a character in its own right but provides the setting for the three central characters’ bitchy relationship to be explored as tensions bubble away just under the surface. The arrival of mechanic Bob (played by Peter Duncan) keeps the bus and the three soul mates on course for Alice Springs.
However, it is Kevin Clifton who is the revelation. Known as one of the former professional dancers from Strictly Come Dancing, he shows he has developed his musical theatre credentials in recent years and displays his full range as Tick. We know he can move with elegance and fluidity, but he can also sing with a strong fine voice and act too with poignancy and emotion. Who would not be moved by the scene when he finally meets his son who persuades him to do an Elvis impression with the touching ‘Always on my Mind’?
Jukebox musicals have become an easy show to programme for an audience looking for a fun feel-good night out, but this is more than the standard fare. The Three Divas (Leah Vassell, Bernadette Bangura and Jessie May) lead most of the vocals with great sassy power and clarity. The opening sequence with ‘It’s Raining Men’, ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It’, ‘Say a Little Prayer’ and ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way’, set the tone for the evening and settle the audience in with a smile, although the pantomime routine from Miss Understanding (James Wolstenholme) does seem oddly out of place. However, routines led by the three travellers in ‘Go West’, ‘True Colours’ and ‘I Will Survive’ provide stand out moments. Another comedy highlight is the version of ‘Pop Muzik’, with Cynthia (Isabella Glanzing Santos) demonstrating unique skills learned in a Thailand night club.
Though this touring version may have lost some of its spectacle, it is a joyous evening’s entertainment with a tender message of acceptance and friendship delivered with warmth, heart and infectious energy, and makes a fun and enjoyable night out with songs that you simply “can’t get out of your head”!
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Nick Wayne