Not Another Drag Show II

23 May 2003

DBS Arts Centre

Review by Yeoh Wee Teck, The New Paper

SOME nights are just a little more special. Anytime gay people to meet for a common cause—and the common cause not being cruising—it is a little magical. Not Another Drag Show II was a night to put aside petty bitchiness and barbed envy to celebrate common interests, like comedy and music.

Overall, the singing on was competent. But truth be told, the choice of music was too highbrow for me. My shallow music background surfaced when the cast broke into Broadway musical numbers. Quite a few times I had to ask around to find out the name of a particular song.

But, not having this background allowed me to judge the performances on its own merits.

There were the highs—the fun and the good music, like the Alan Lau and Sam Wu Whitney/Mariah duet. Then, there were the lows—the sound jarred and the staging lacked imagination (the sauna number—though offering delicious eye candy—was more laboured than steamy).

What kept the night going was sheer enthusiasm.

While the performers varied in competency and range, they all sang with gusto. Especially memorable was Alan Lau. He was the most consistent of the lot. Sam Wu had an easy presence that made him riveting. Although he was visibly nervous during the start of his stand up routine, he sailed past his nerves and delivered a chuckle worthy performance.

My biggest complaint with the show was that it had more heart than soul. Everyone gave it all but some did it with little soul. The staged interactions seemed forced and lacked spirit. Sometimes, it was obvious the cast was reading off their scripts—so, instead of speaking, they were reading. Here were moments that the show felt like a Secondary School production.

Here's a note for the organisers of NADS III— have a bit more rehearsals, perform more pop songs done Broadway style; have less obscure songs for those of us less musical and even perform songs in other languages.