PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT THE MUSICAL is a heart-warming, uplifting adventure of three friends who hop aboard a battered old bus searching for love and friendship in the middle of the Australian outback and end up finding more than they could ever have dreamed. With a dazzling array of outrageous costumes and featuring a score of dance-floor classics, Priscilla is a sensational journey to the heart of fabulous.
The most rewarding role belongs to Mr. Sheldon, who brings an authentic note of dignified grace to his performance as Bernadette. His mothering of both the troubled Tick and the potentially self-destructive Felicia feels honest, and Mr. Sheldon has a way of inflecting the book's litter of catty zingers with refined nuances that make them feel smarter and fresher than they probably are. But any flickers of warmth and true human feeling in 'Priscilla' are either obscured by another onslaught of gyrating dancers or squashed flat by a giant platform heel. After a while even the festive parade of outlandish costumes, among the show's more reliably entertaining diversions, begin to feel stale and overworked. At the extended curtain call - aptly set to the catchy '90s dance floor anthem entitled 'Finally' - you are likely to feel slightly dazed and stultified, as if you'd been conked on the head with a disco ball.
The nylon-thin plot is mostly an excuse to set up the classic tunes on the soundtrack. As fans of Glee know by now, there's a certain pleasure in the truly unlikely segue. It's natural for Tick to begin 'Say a Little Prayer' seated at the mirror: 'The moment I wake up, before I put on my makeup...' But you can imagine the narrative lengths to which the creators must go to introduce Jimmy Webb's 'MacArthur Park,' which memorably begins: 'Someone left the cake out in the rain.' Needless to say, the show is campier than a tentful of Boy Scouts (working on their choreography merit badge). And there's a dance-party atmosphere that helps compensate for the show's plot implausibilities and clunkier moments. Among the three leads, Adams seems the most solid and comfortably over the top as a bratty young provocateur. Sheldon is not the strongest singer, but brings some touching pathos to his role as the aging diva. The weakest element is Swenson, who seems a bit ill at ease as Tick/Mitzi (and the actor's shaky accent often seems closer to Eton than Australia).
2006 |
World Premiere |
|
2009 | West End |
Original London Production West End |
2010 | Toronto |
Pre-Broadway North American Production Toronto |
2011 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
2013 | US Tour |
US National Tour US Tour |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2011 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Tony Sheldon |
2011 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical | Stephan Elliott |
2011 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical | Allan Scott |
2011 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Costume Design | Tim Chappel |
2011 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Costume Design | Lizzy Gardiner |
2011 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Musical | Bonnie Comley |
2011 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Tony Sheldon |
2011 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Musical | 0 |
2011 | Theatre World Awards | Performance | Tony Sheldon |
2011 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Musical | Tim Chappel |
2011 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Musical | Lizzy Gardiner |
2011 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical | Tony Sheldon |
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