In the fall of 2016, Taylor Mac brought his show to St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn. A 24-Decade History of Popular Music was billed as a 24 hour marathon in which every decade of American music would be presented, each for one hour. Without any more knowledge, I declined to subject myself to that adventure. The rave reviews followed. In 2017, this work was one of three finalists for the Pulitzer Prize for drama. Luckily, the show is being presented in two 12 hour installments over two weekends at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia.
First and foremost, Taylor Mac is a drag performance artist and this is a drag show filled with all the glitter and bawdiness you would expect. But it is so much more than that. A 24-Decade is also history lesson, a musical jukebox, a political manifesto and a group improvisation exercise, all doused in gorgeous lighting and outrageous costumes.
Mr. Mac opens the show with an apology to Native Americans followed by a discussion of Thomas Paine’s pamphlet “Common Sense.” For the young people, he helpfully instructs that a pamphlet is smaller than a book and larger than a blog. How does he define government? The example used is “Nudie Baby.” A four year old likes to run around the house naked shouting “nudie baby, nudie baby.” It’s cute and funny. One time at the mall, the child takes off his clothes and runs around shouting “nudie baby, nudie baby.” He is then captured by parents who forcibly put the clothes back on while he cries and sadly wails, “nudie baby, nudie baby.” “THAT’S GOVERNMENT,” insists Mr. Mac.
Who knew Yankee Doodle Dandy was originally a song the British used to mock the American colonists, suggesting they were low-class men lacking in masculinity? That’s “really saying something coming from the British.” The history goes on and on from the Revolution to the temperance movement, from Native American genocide to the Oklahoma land rush, from abolitionists to Reconstruction and from the Trail of Tears to the robber barons of the late 19th Century. The scope of this piece is enormous. The politics unabashedly liberal.
From the lyrics to Johnny Comes Marching Home Again: “The men will cheer and the boys will shout/the ladies they will all turn out/and we’ll all feel gay/when Johnny comes marching home.” Yes it’s history and yes it’s hilarious. But seriousness lurks behind every eyelash, deepening the entire experience. I didn’t know My Old Kentucky Home written by Steven Foster was a minstrel song which, up until recently, contained the lyric “there comes a time when the darkies have to part.”
Mr. Mac is onstage for nearly the entire twelve hours and sings throughout. He is riveting, intense, outraged and hugely entertaining. He is celebrating freedom. He is also commenting on America and asking us to consider what it’s values were, are and should be. For him, “nostalgia is the last refuge of the racist.” The performance is colossal. I sat in my seat and remained glued to the spectacle while being firmly engrossed in its messaging. I cannot wait to see the second half this Saturday. Surely, we’ll hear more about politics mixing with religion and oppression of minorities as Mr. Mac continues deconstructing the “heteronormative narrative and colonialism” history of America.
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