BWW Reviews: TAYLOR MAC, The Arches, May 5 2013
Nothing quite strikes fear in my heart upon entering a performance like the words "audience participation". Opening with Tori Amos' Precious Things, drag act Taylor Mac pulled an unsuspecting audience member onstage to provide backing vocals.
Mac performed a song from each decade of the 20th century, interjecting his own interpretation of the lyrics. Mostly upbeat, fun and incredibly camp, he had the audience on their feet from the very beginning (not that it was optional). His aim was to showcase songs that he felt had political relevance and show how we could look at songs from the 1920s and see issues that are still a problem in 2013.
Poking fun at equality and hyper-political correctness, Taylor Mac quipped that he rejects the gender pronouns he or she and prefers to be referred to simply as "Judy". His song choice also covered gender inequality, racism, bigotry and his desire to destroy the patriarchy: a lot to get through in a 90-minute set.
Hailing from New York, this show was an offshoot of his upcoming 24-hour concert in his home city. The evening was tailored to his Scottish audience and he touched on the upcoming independence vote, Glasgow culture and nightlife and added a Robert Burns song to his encore.
At the beginning of the night Mac stated that this was not like a concert, where if the audience doesn't enjoy the show the performer has failed. He declared that he would have succeeded if you loved it, but that he also would have succeeded if the audience hated it, as it was a performance art concert.
He added that no matter what you felt at any point in the evening, it would be considered appropriate. In my case that feeling might have been described as absolute terror, as Taylor Mac sashayed down the aisle of the small theatre in a silver coin dress looking for audience members to join him onstage.
Hugely entertaining and very funny, Taylor Mac's show was a mix of cabaret, stand-up comedy and political arts show and it was relevant and engaging throughout.
More information can be found about Taylor Mac on his website.
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