Theatre review: Pride Festival - Sirens of the Silver Screen and Bad Guy

The stars of Les Femmes - Miss Manage, Miss Givings and Miss Demeanour. Photo / LK Creative

It was going to be such a lovely Pride Festival in Auckland this year – so many shows and events were planned to mark 50 years since the first gay liberation march in New Zealand, but Covid has once again disrupted the city's premier LGBT festival.

While most of the planned live events have been cancelled, Auckland Live thankfully was able to go ahead with their two cabaret shows, Sirens of the Silver Screen and Bad Guy. The Wintergarden is a perfect venue to instigate social distancing, and I'd like to thank the venue staff for creating a safe environment that didn't fully disrupt the atmosphere in the room.

The seating may have been spread out, but both shows had enough energy and excitement to fill the entire Civic, and the crowds on both nights lapped up the chance to experience live theatre.

Up first was Sirens of the Silver Screen, the second production from Les Femmes, a relatively fresh trio of drag queens consisting of Miss Manage, Miss Demeanour and Miss Givings. This year's show focuses on songs from non-musical movies, a great concept that still opens up a wide and varied songbook to play with.

The trio are extraordinary singers, and this jukebox-style show is filled with energy, wit, and a clear love for the music that runs through every song.

It was great to see the trio produce something camper and sillier compared to their debut show, which oftentimes was weighed down by ripped from Wikipedia facts about the various singers they were emulating. The scripting here was not quite perfect – the first half was a bizarre amalgamation of Sister Act, Charlie's Angels and Star Wars amongst others, while the second half felt like an afterthought story-wise by contrast – but there was a more knowing silliness to it this time that glossed over the more ridiculous plot elements.

Hayden Tee. Photo / Sylvie Whinray

Coming the week after, local musical theatre legend Hayden Tee is finally taking centre stage all for himself with Bad Guy, an exploration of why he's always been cast as the villain and what draws people to those roles. A mix of his classic numbers from Les Miserables and Matilda mixed in with reimaginings of Billie Eilish's Bad Guy and some Disney classics, Tee moved easily between them all, his voice an absolute miracle that was marvellous to witness is such an intimate setting.

It's always a gamble with these one-person shows just how they can handle it, but Tee's experience and quick rapport with the band leader let the show slide by. While the transitions between songs to chatting could be abrupt at times, Tee's personal stories about being Takatāpui and growing up when homosexuality was still illegal were incredibly powerful and left you wanting more.

While the shows were worlds apart in delivery and style, both were clearly conceived with a more interactive experience in mind for the audience. It's a pity they couldn't realise the full experience this time, but at least they could still go ahead, both delivering a touch of camp class and cabaret entertainment to a city in desperate need for some light entertainment.

What: Sirens of the Silver Screen / Bad Guy
Where: The Wintergarden, Civic Theatre