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Brighton Fringe 2007

Lady Boys of Bangkok

Venue: Lady Boy Tent, Victoria Gardens

Festival:


Review

Men who look like women dancing around in skimpy, spangly outfits sounds like a winning formula, and the Lady Boys of Bangkok certainly prove that it is. Returning again to the Brighton Festival, their tent in Victoria Gardens was packed full of a surprising array of punters – all of whom found the lady-boy phenomenon too hard to resist (and I know many of them hoped to see a flash of the goods, but there was not a willy in sight – all terribly decent.)

Miming to a whole host of camp classics, from Madonna to ABBA, the performers were certainly skilled dancers, and the costume changes were nothing short of incredible. The lady-boys are so beautiful it is almost impossible to believe that they are, or once were men. I was disappointed that they didn’t sing the songs themselves, but I am assured that live singing is rarely part of a drag act – it was just a bit awful when they didn’t even know the words to mime! The audience loved the show; the highlight of the evening was when a man was brought onstage, and as he tried to run away he was tackled to the ground by one of the more butch lady-boys, and kissed ferociously. It’s an entertaining evening out, to be recommended for some light hearted sparkle, just don’t expect vocal wonders.

Published