This show
has something. It has, what is called in the business, legs. It also has actual
legs, long and fabulous in the shape of two high-kicking, body-toned, diva drag
queens, Owen Richard Farrow, (drag artist Divina de Campo in BBC’s All Together
Now), playing Destiny and Jordan Simms as Phoenix. I could stop there, they can
hold any stage on their own, both have supported Ru Paul’s Drag Race stars, but
this show is so much more than that.
The Ruby Slippers first came to the
attention of producer Bill Elms about two years ago when it was in workshop at
the now defunct small Liverpool Lantern Theatre. It is an irony that is not
lost on the show which stars a once successful drag club, The Ruby Slippers,
that is also about to close. An offer of financial help comes from Laura,
played by writer Emma Culshaw-Vaudrey an old school friend of the owner but is
it too late? Elms joined the team at Break A Leg Productions and has worked
with writers Emma Culshaw and David Paul to produce a thought provoking piece
that raises more questions than it answers on the theme of true love from the
perspective of a gay man whose object of desire feels he must follow his soul
and transgender from male to female. The show also explores prejudice and
bigotry inside and outside of the LGBT community as well as the value of
friendship, family life and specifically a mother’s love and loss of her
beloved son as he becomes a woman.
Recorded
dance music plays before and during the performance which gives a lively buzz
in a full house. The set designed by Gemma Hollywood works well in the space.
It is open to the audience sitting in front at small round tables, club style
with four rows of tiered seating behind in the one hundred and fifty seat studio. Sparkly red shoes made famous in The Wizard of Oz hang on the
wall. A well-stocked bar displays photographs
of Judy Garland as Dorothy and Elizabeth Taylor. A sadly flickering neon sign
gives up the ghost as the club gets deeper into debt when customers and drag
acts leave to frequent and perform at the brand-new club in town named Nine
Inches. Stage left is a living area. Stage
right is a small dressing-room area which spotlights Destiny and Phoenix as
they prepare for their acts and put the world to rights in their own forthright
way. We also see their vulnerability and humanity as the self-absorbed air-head
Phoenix and worldly-wise Destiny, who by default are now the lead act, discuss
their love lives and the fledgling but obvious relationship between club owner
Raz, (James Rogerson), and bar-tender Ryan, (Kurtis Stacey).
Ryan,
however, has a secret that he has been trying to explain to Raz but keeps being
interrupted. The build up to his disclosure takes a full half hour or so to
reveal to the audience, through the character of Ryan’s devoted, free spirited,
tarot-reading mother Helen, separated from his homophobic father. Debra
Redcliffe gives a sensitive, heart rending performance that explores the issue
of transgender with conflicting emotions. Stacey has an obvious stage presence
that is displayed with anguish, humour and ease. He is on stage for most of the
short first half of forty-five minutes. When he takes advice from Destiny to
tell Raz of his sex change plans by text message the audience gasps in the
collective knowledge that this is a very bad move. Raz’s reaction was therefore
somewhat underwhelming when having song and danced his way through and even
kissed Ryan, his energy dips as he enters waving a mobile phone and says, ‘well
that’s it then’. Perhaps this is
intentional, as I said, more questions than answers. Raz’s reaction as a confirmed
gay man casts questions of true love versus sex and prejudice as he dismisses
Ryan as a partner.
Ryan’s
character is caring and likeable and I found myself missing him dreadfully in
the second, hour long, half. When he finally reappears as Rachel pre-surgery
but living as a woman it is a credit to the writers and direction by Craig
Ryder that I found myself identifying wholeheartedly with both Helen and Raz. The
show has some dark and dramatic moments and the ending felt a bit rushed, but
it is overall a positive, uplifting, hilarious piece, liberally sprinkled with
gay references, disco music and full costume drag numbers. Laura, friend and
potential club saviour performs with Raz in an hilarious rendition of Dirty
Dancing and there are many laugh-out-loud moments that sometimes took the cast
by surprise. Thoroughly entertaining. There is exciting potential here and The Ruby
Slippers deserves its spreading fame.
Reviewer - Barbara Sherlock
on - 25/7/18
I thoroughly enjoy reading your reviews Barbara. You depict the set and performance brilliantly. I can't wait to go and see The Ruby Slippers tonight!
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