Monsoon reigns in ‘ The Vaudevillians’ at PPT
A monsoon rained down on Pittsburgh, and that was just a warmup for Jinkx Monsoon and Major Scales hitting town Thursday night.
The only thing that’s drag about their show “The Vaudevillians” is the queen, Jinkx, who reigned as the winner of the fifth season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” In her touring show, she and pianist Scales play the married team Kitty Witless and Dr. Dan Von Dandy, a 1920s vaudeville act that has been frozen in time — literally.
They were preserved in ice during a tour of Antarctica, but then thawed back to life through a miracle of global warming — with much ironic thanks to audiences everywhere.
And now they are back onstage, through Saturday night at the O’Reilly Theater, giving modern music and morays a raunchy Roaring ’ 20s twist.
Dandy/ Scales plucks away grandly at a Steinway as Witless/ Monsoon unearths new and unhinged ways to deliver songs such as “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” and “Drive Me Crazy.”
For those of us who like your comedy risque and gay, physical and smart — how many comedies can you name that reference Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” while also riffing on circumcision and cocaine? — laughing yourself silly is a definite possibility. Blushing is a probability.
As the bold and brassy Kitty, Monsoon throws decorum to the wind, and struts and somersaults and generally gets physical at every opportunity, including with audience members.
Scales, a composer, arranger and musician, plays Dr. Dandy as the mostly tolerant husband of a flirtatious floozy. He gets his own moments in the spotlight, while throughout the 90 minutes ( with intermission), both performers are so broadly expressive, they harken to silent- movie emoting — but with R- rated content.
The talented duo comes to Pittsburgh Public Theater’s Downtown digs as college pals of artistic director Marya Sea Kaminski. Her company has set them up with VIP cabaretstyle tables up front, but Monsoon doesn’t stop there when she sets her sights on an audience member’s inviting lap.
She’s a lot — a lot of brass, a lot of sass and a lot of bawdy energy in a blond wig and cinched- waist finery. Scales’ Dandy supports her musically and as a straight man to her outrageous behavior.
Unless a drag queen in all her glory is your idea of a political statement, there is no agenda here other than a good time to be had by all. And we could all use a lot more of that in our lives.