Priscilla Queen of the Desert is currently playing at ZACH’s Topfer Theatre in Austin, Texas thru October 30, 2016. It’s a great show for a fun mom’s night out!
Cast of Priscilla Queen of the Desert at ZACH Theatre. Photo by Kirk Tuck
Priscilla Queen of the Desert is so much fun! From the 500+ costumes & 300+ headdresses to the laugh-out-loud comedy, you will come away from it grinning from ear to ear. Based on the Tony-award winning Broadway show, and the popular 1994 movie, Priscilla Queen of the Desert follows a story of three friends who travel across the Australian Outback to find friendship, love, & family. And oh yes, they happen to be drag queens.
You can imagine the quick wit and fun one-liners that come with a show like this. You can expect to be dazzled by the jaw-dropping costumes – seriously, they continue to top themselves scene after scene. But what you will be surprised by are the touching moments of love and family. And saddened but the unacceptance of others. I won’t give the story away, but it is both fun and touching.
Anthony Vincent Toudjarov, Joshua Denning, & Jack Donahue in Priscilla Queen of the Desert at ZACH Theatre. Photo by Kirk Tuck
As usual, the acting is superb. I have followed Joshua Denning since he was Angel in Rent and he is perfect in his role of Tick – the right mix of subtle and outrageous. New to ZACH, both Jack Donahue (Bernadette) and Anthony Vincent Toudjarov (Adam/Felicia) were amazing and brought this magical show to life. Of course the whole ensemble does a terrific job as well. I often have to remind myself that this is Austin and not Broadway. Yes, I could be exaggerating here a bit, but I just think this theater is fantastic.
And kudos to the amazing artistic staff of Priscilla Queen of the Desert, their talents really shown in this show. Director, Abe Reybold, and Musical Director, Allen Robertson, made time fly by, I could hardly believe it was over so soon. Guess it was because I was entranced by those unbelievable costumes – amazing work by Barry Doss and his team – and the terrific choreography, directed by Dominique Kelley.
Cast of Priscilla Queen of the Desert at ZACH Theatre Photo by Kirk Tuck
And to clarify, this is not a family show – it’s recommended for ages 13 and up, but I would honestly keep it to adults as there are adult themes & language used throughout. Grab a group of girlfriends or make it a fun date night, this is a show you don’t want to miss! Tickets start at $25 and are available online at www.zachtheatre.org
