YUMMY | De Parel Speigeltent | til Feb 3rd | ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Fringe Fever has well and truly kicked in across the city as festival-goers and artists take over Northbridge, and journalists are writing late reviews as they get sucked in to the madness (sorry YUMMY squad!).
This medley of drag performers, dancers, circus artists and singers come together for a queer cabaret spectacular that serve hors d’oeuvres of performances that will leave even the hungriest audience satisfied.
Melbourne-based artists Valerie Hex, Jandruze, Beni Lola, Hannie Helsden, Benjamin Hancock and the notorious Karen from Finance join forces with Perth’s own Joni In The Moon show their synergy on stage as the show begins with a group number.
It’s clear from the get go that YUMMY are a mongrel of a troupe (no shade!), in that each performer is startlingly different in style from the next – but there’s a clear connection between the cast as the show unfolds.
Karen From Finance deftly handles the MC duties of the evening, waxing lyrical about quarterly BAS returns and facsimiles, as one is want to do.
The drag star found viral fame recently when RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Trixie Mattel and Katya cackled maniacally about the genius of her name on their YouTube show UNHhhh, but Karen has an obvious star power of her own – leaving the audience in stitches with her unique rendition of Vanessa Carlton’s 1000 Miles.
Throughout the show, the members perform a mish-mash of solo, duo and group spots, keeping the audience on their toes. My personal favourites came when Jandruze was kind enough to make a sandwich for the hungry audience, and Hannie Helsden showed off her extra-delicious ice-cream cone.
It was also a delight to see Perth’s own Joni in the Moon make a cameo in the show, lifting the speigeltent with her ethereal vocals and otherworldly charm. Represent.
YUMMY is filled with moments of genius, glamour, and gimmickry – and perhaps once or twice the gimmicks dragged a little further than the audience’s interest – but that is certainly nitpicking on my part. For fans of drag and queer-oriented performance the show is near-impossible to fault!
I don’t care if you’re on a pre-Mardi Gras juice cleanse. Go get yourself something YUMMY before they leave this Saturday 3rd February.
Leigh Andrew Hill
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