Joey Arias' brilliant Strange Fruit shatters expectations

Joey Arias' brilliant Strange Fruit shatters expectations

by Sara Michelle Fetters - SGN Contributing Writer Joey Arias The Triple Door April 9 Drag performance artist extraordinaire Joey Arias returned to Seattle on Wednesday at The Triple Door, and to say he left victorious would be something of an understatement. Fresh off his stint with Cirque du Soleil performing in their Las Vegas spectacular Zumanity, the wildly successful cabaret star hit the town with his Billie Holiday extravaganza Strange Fruit and left the audience wildly cheering for more. Not that I understood what all the fuss was about before walking into the club. While I'd heard of Arias (and knew somewhat of his strong ties to the city thanks to quirkily iconic local producer Paula the Swedish Housewife), I can't really say I was a fan. I'd never heard him sing, never seen a show, and other than a few glimpses of the artist in a couple of movies, I hardly even knew what he looked like. All things now considered, you can color me a big-time fan after this show-stopping performance. Featuring fellow Cirque collaborator pianist Eliot Douglass, this journey into both the Holiday mystique and the enduring legacy of drag done well was full-on blast, the show opening with a bang before closing with an impromptu kissing session that left both the audience and the headliner in jovial hysterics. It was a program that broke taboos and shattered expectations, and anyone sitting in that audience expecting the same-old, same-old certainly had another thing coming to them. What's the most shocking here is how such an uncanny facsimile of the legendary Holiday's voice can come out of a lingerie-clad North Carolina boy. Close your eyes and it is almost as if you're listening to a recording of "God Bless the Child" or the timeless title track performed by the artist herself. Arias' voice shrieks and cracks in lustily beautiful emotional poignancy, each word rising and falling like the tide on the eve of a thunderstorm. But this show wasn't just full-bodied impersonation; it was also a raucous comedic extravaganza the star was obviously enjoying. Twisting words here and there to reflect Seattle's ever-changing social and entertainment scenes, it was obvious Arias was familiar with both his surroundings and the people from the city who would come to his show. One highlight was a rambunctious eviscerating of fellow drag darling (and local favorite) Dina Martina, while recollections of nights spent performing at the Re-Bar were told to greatly humorous effect. All in all, the audience ate everything Arias could throw at them with open arms and even wider mouths, one member even getting the opportunity to engage with him in a musical tête-à-tête that left me and those around me practically in stitches. The Triple Door was the perfect venue for such an affair, the star able to mingle and mix with the crowd like a Prohibition-era siren making her rounds at the local speakeasy, while the band - especially Douglass - proved to be worthy partners in all this Holiday-inspired ledger main. So I get it now. I understand why many were so excited when I said I was going to be reviewing Arias' show. Watching him isn't just a joy, it's virtually a privilege, and to my mind the only thing strange about this particular fruit is just how darn brilliant he really is.

Seattle audiences thirst for Moisture Festival's burlesque acts

by E. Joyce Glasgow - SGN A&E Writer Moisture Festival Hale's Brewery ACT Theatre Through April 13 Seattleites are thirsting for a respite, a few hours to be charmed by whimsy, color, surprise and innocence in another world-weary day filled with news of global strife and injustice, economic fears and environmental woes. They are thirsting for a live communal experience where they can share laughter, singing, clapping, hooting and hollering and be completely absorbed by a common positive experience in a room with hundreds of others. How appropriate is the Moisture Festival then, to quench their thirst, to be their oasis in the midst of a chaotic world, to delight with creativity, humor and silliness, to impress with unusual, unexpected accomplishments, and, in the case of the Burlesque in the Round shows, create a safe space for people to enjoy a little sexiness, naughtiness and things that may be considered a bit taboo, all in absurdity and goodhearted playfulness? Audiences have been streaming to performances and every show has been sold-out at both Hale's Brewery for vaudeville and the ACT Theatre for burlesque. The Burlesque in the Round shows this past weekend at ACT featured such fantasy scenarios as the Swedish Housewife as a firewoman, complete with smoke and revolving red lights, Ms. Indigo Blue in an homage to Carmen Miranda and a giant blue shoe fetish, and Lily Verlaine, who brilliantly recreated the bucolic tableau of Edward Manet's painting, "Dejeuner sur l'Herbe" (1862). There were some really funny acrobatic and strip bits by Trio Manchego with Hacki Ginda and Trixie Little and Her Evil Hate Monkey. Duo Madrona performed their romantic and powerful new aerial act and there were colorful aerials by the fabulous Aerialistas as "cupcake girls," Tamara the Trapeze Lady in a green parrot motif and the Flying Caribe Sisters in brilliant orange and red carnivale costumes. Evelyn Sin Claire performed an enchanting shadow act in which she interacted with a bouncing ball of light reminiscent of a Tinkerbell-like fairy. Nanda thrilled the audience, as usual, with their kung fu fighting and juggling act, incorporating some funny striptease. The Du Caniveaux Zebra Kings band provided fantastic and lively music for many of the evening's performances. I had a couple of criticisms, mostly having to do with physical stage blocking and pace of the Burlesque in the Round shows. It felt like there wasn't an overall director to watch, give guidance and to make sure that all the performers actually performed "in the round." While some of the performers made sure to address all areas of the audience, some performers seemed to keep their backs to the areas near the band, where I was sitting. There was also a platform for performance placed in an area in front of the band, where two whole sections of audience, again on either side of the band, couldn't possibly see what was going on. I couldn't believe that no one found a way to make sure that "in the round" really meant in the "round" and remedy this obviously odd situation during rehearsals. The pace of the shows was a bit slow as the emcees came out between each act. The two emcees I saw, Kevin Joyce and Madame X, on her stilts, were both charming, funny and entertaining in their roles. Again, though, I wondered if a director could have varied the pace, streamlining the acts and timing by varying what happened during the cleanups between acts and attempting to maintain the momentum of the intensity of the previous act right through to the next act without a dip in the energy. These rises and falls of energy had me tired out after the first hour of performance and made the show seem too long overall. Generally speaking, aside from these particular criticisms, I thought the shows were great, presenting a wonderful variety of creative acts with energy, enthusiasm and good spirits. The audiences were obviously delighted and tickled by the performances and "Burlesque in the Round" was a huge success for both the Moisture Festival and the ACT Theatre. For more information on the Moisture Festival, which continues through April 13, visit www.moisturefestival.com.