I’VE slept on it and had a chance to ponder things but, no, this definitely happened.
It wasn’t merely a psychedelic fever dream triggered by a too-hot chilli chicken at the Mosque Kitchen – I really did see a no-holds-barred cabaret show fronted by Ryan Patrick Welsh, someone I can only describe as a sexy version of Jame Gumb from The Silence Of The Lambs strutting their stuff to Donna Summer.
Now, that’s not being fair to the truly astonishing Ryan Patrick, a celebrated queer cabaret and theatre performer based in San Francisco, but you know that bit when Buffalo Bill looks into the camera while putting on make-up and dancing in a multi-coloured cape?
Well, in the middle of a number when RP gyrated right in front of me and tenderly stroked my face, I was sure they were going to say, “It puts the lotion on its skin…”
This is truly the most out-there mix of camp, glamour, showmanship and, let’s be clear, jaw-droppingly frank chat about being a queer sex worker that I have ever seen.
I didn’t know what to expect when I went in but it certainly wasn’t a three-piece band The Gruntz and a dancing diva duo (whose name I can’t record here but rhymes with the band’s) doing their stunning thang alongside Frank N. Furter’s camper cousin in a lace G-string and sparkly, see-through, flared stockings.
How camp and flamboyant is it? At one point RP is joined for an onstage costume change by Andi, who creates all of his stagewear. Now that’s ballsy.
But amidst the show tunes and sequins there are serious – and searingly honest – sections dealing with RP’s sexuality, ongoing work as a hooker (their term) and the impact it has on their own relationships.
And that’s what made it so marvellous. The songs were great, the showmanship was stunning and it was funny – RP’s five-minute delivery of back-to-back queer sex jokes had me gasping for breath in hysterics.
I just wish I could remember them all for the family barbecue tonight…
Sex, Camp, Rock’n’Roll, 22.35, TheSpaceUK@NiddryStreet until August 24.
