Vicious - Etcetera Theatre
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go and see this play because it didn’t really sound like my kind of thing: "An exploration of contemporary drag and gay culture". I usually go for things like Les Miserables or Sunset Boulevard.
The theatre turned out to be a smallish room above a pub in Camden Town. But as soon as the play started, preconceptions were put aside.
The play is a comedy about a drag queen cum rent boy called Troy Peron who lives in Lewisham. He has very little grasp of reality. His main aim in life is to get rid of Phil as one of Troy’s admirers is Phil’s lover. To add insult to injury, Phil is taking part in a documentary about prostitutes. But Troy desperately wants to achieve stardom in Hollywood and this documentary could be the first step of his journey out of Lewisham.
His life revolves around collecting designer labels, comparing himself to Madonna and acting the Hollywood star. In fact, he is a complete bitch. No wonder the the play is called "Vicious".
I thought I would feel out of place going to see a play about drag and gay culture, but it wasn’t aimed exclusively at gay people. The whole play was extremely humorous, although there were one or two serious points.
Despite the size of the theatre excellent use was made of lighting. During scene changes, a video was shown, which I think is an inspired idea that ought to be more widely adopted. The acting was excellent. The story teemed with different sorts of characters - straight, drag, camp; and each was portrayed with an accurate but amusing touch. As the old biddy next door rightly says, Troy is more likely to appreciate her old dresses from the 40’s and 50’s than anyone else. "An exploration of drag culture" is a bit too serious as a description of this play.
I really enjoyed watching such a well acted comedy. You actually feel part of it, probably because you’re sitting so close to the stage. I would definitely recommend this play to anyone. Okay, so Camden might be a bit out of the way, but it’s worth it.It was nice to be able to drink a pint during the play. And the actors were so friendly and down-to-earth when I talked to them afterwards.
Sapna Trivedi
