Sherman Theatre, Cardiff
Sat 1 Apr
If you hadn’t heard of her before, chances are you may have heard the name of drag queen Panti Bliss since she became the face of Irish marriage equality and LGBT activism. You also might’ve watched her TED talk All the Little Things. On Saturday the (Drag) Queen of Ireland, and “national fucking treasure” (her words), brought her live show to her Celtic cousins in Cardiff’s Sherman Theatre.
Some background: already an established cabaret name, on a chat show in 2014 Rory O’Neil (the man behind Panti’s makeup) made some comments that claimed some established names in the Irish press were homophobic. There were obviously some (legal) negative results but Panti Bliss went on to make a rousing Noble Call speech at Dublin’s The Abbey theatre, become an LGBT activist, the face of equality and even campaigning, door-to-door, for the referendum on gay marriage in Ireland.
High Heels in Low Places is the story of that aftermath and Panti’s sudden worldwide fame. The show is not like a regular drag show, although there is a killer lipsync; it’s equal parts biographical, drag stand-up, and informative talk on equality.
Don’t get the wrong idea, the show is so funny (and filthy), the self-proclaimed ‘giant cartoon lady’ makes fun of the annoying ubiquity of football as a gay man (imagine if it was something straight men didn’t care about… like televised crocheting); a hilarious tale about lying to America on the Maury Povich TV show. Touchingly yet still humorously talking about living with HIV for the last 20 years and a poignant tale of the suicide of a young gay man in Panti/Rory’s hometown – this is a drag show that gives you all the feels.
words CHRIS WILLIAMS