Dear Jinkx Monsoon,
Last night I attended a new play by Charles Busch called The Confession of Lily Dare. Yes, THAT Charles Busch, the one who grew from downtown drag phenom in theater successes such as Vampire Lesbians of Sodom to movies including Die Mommie Die! before the Tony Award nomination for writing The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife. Last night I was at the Theater for the New City and caught his latest blend of imaginatively recreated classic movie magic and catnip camp. Jinkx, I thought of you and wished you were here.
This play is right up your alley, an homage to tearjerker films of early 1930’s pre-code Hollywood such as The Sin of Madame Claudet and Madame X. This play is set “against the gaudy tapestry of turn of the century California’s notorious Barbary Coast.” (For the young’uns, that’s a turn at 1900 not 2000.) Lily Dare, raised in a convent, becomes a famous chanteuse and later runs a string of brothels. Her troublesome secret is the daughter she was forced to abandon after her husband was killed in the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. Melodrama primed for hilarity.
This is high octane off-off Broadway with very talented actors and fabulous costumes by Rachel Townsend. While the set design was fairytale-like and fun, all of the steps proved to be a large distraction as Mr. Busch nervously traversed them in heels. He appeared inconsistently committed to the character of Lily. Of course he writes funny lines and can carry a comedy but this performance felt low on energy. Perhaps the superb cast around him shined so brightly, it was hard to compete?
Jinkx, why am I telling you all this? I believe Lily Dare is your next triumph. Yes, you are a famous singing drag performer and winner of season five of Ru Paul’s Drag Race. But it’s your performance as Kitty Witless in The Vaudevillians that came to mind here. Along with Dr. Dan Von Dandy, you were a famous vaudevillian couple frozen in an avalanche in the 1920s but were able to thaw out thanks to global warming. And make us laugh, a lot, you did.
The Confession of Lily Dare has some fun material and Mr. Busch knows his way around campy melodrama. Your acerbic wit could help elevate the uneven proceedings here. You’ve already proven you are an old-time chanteuse. Jinkx, if you choose this assignment, and you should, please keep the rest of the cast intact. Nancy Anderson, Christopher Borg, Howard McGillin, Kendal Sparks and Jennifer Van Dyck were all outstanding.
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