Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
Sound like a bad joke? Well, you wouldn’t be far off, as this is the premise ofPriscilla, Queen of the Desert, an adaptation of Stephen Elliot’s hit 1994 film and the most successful musical ever to come out of Australia. Whether the musical standards are lower there or this is an average Australian showcase, who knows, but this show- or revue, as it appeared- seemed like an inside joke by the gay community aimed directly at those expecting a night of good fun and discovering not a musical, but a frankly erotic and inappropriate display of costumes and scenery. The acting, it seems, is merely a backdrop, if not much of one at all.
Will Swenson, flush with success from the recent heralded production of Hair,and a song list dating from the greatest times in musical history could do nothing for the fact that this show seems unacceptable on Broadway, not living up to the standards of its fellow musicals and diluting hits such as I Will Survive into nothing but gaudy dance numbers on stilts and in plastic wigs.
Jokes sprung to the surface occasionally, but failed to disguise the rest of the show as being anything more than an excuse to sit on a shoe in a sequined jumpsuit and sing opera. I honestly believe that musicals are worth more than this and should be treated with respect. If anything, Priscilla does not deserve to be classified as a show, as it includes essentially no plot, uses pre-written songs and second-class actors, and instills no feelings of joy or wonder whatsoever in the expectant theatergoer.
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