Review: MY SON'S A QUEER (BUT WHAT CAN YOU DO?), Garrick Theatre

From humble origins at the Turbine Theatre in Battersea, sell-out shows at the Edinburgh Fringe, and now to the beating heart of the West End, Rob Madge's autobiographical musical mash up has had a rise as irresistible as it is flamboyant.

My Son's A Queer (But What Can You Do?) begins with unearthing home video cassettes, and unravels to reveal a poignant story about identity, alienation, and acceptance. A former child star themself, Madge's self-penned show is a nostalgic homage to precocious performers whose theatrical origins are a humble living room surrounded by family. Imagination unlocks everything, a blanket becomes a stage curtain and teddy bears are an attentive audience.

More poignantly, those makeshift stages were refuges from the wider world where self-expression is rarely met with acceptance. Madge, whose interests aligned with Disney and dancing rather than football, touches on their childhood experiences of bullying and ostracisation. The emotional weight is there but it never drags the piece down; My Son's a Queer (But What Can You Do?) is first and foremost a celebration of queer identity, individuality, and family.

The home videos, projected onto a large screen, document the early days of a diva in the making: the young Madge nags cheekily their obliging father-cum-camera man "are you filming?". Chutzpah aside, Madge's supportive parents and grandparents are the real stars of the show. Madge paints poignantly a picture of their unrequited support to the point of even sewing them their own Disney princess costumes.

The show is not without its flaws. The mischievous humour is often too esoteric for its own good with most of the gags relying on jokes and references. That is not to say they are not funny; one quip about Andrew Lloyd's Webber's critically panned and bafflingly titled Bad Cinderella received particularly uproarious laughter. But if you are not in the know you'll be left out in the cold.

It's easy to see why this narrow focus and self-referential style worked at the Edinburgh Fringe where the majority of the audience were likely theatre aficionados who will understand theatre lingo of Stagecoach and Fleabag. Although London is a different beast, Madge's infectiously charming performance will no doubt triumph. They belt out Pippa Cleary's musical numbers, intelligent parodies of Disney power ballads, with endless charisma.

My Son's a Queer (But What Can You Do?) plays at the Garrick Theatre until November 6

Photo Credit: Mark Senior