Eurovision (Your Decision) at Royal Vauxhall Tavern Review

Reviews

10 May

Written by Cathie for Theatre and Tonic

Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review

In life, few things are more synonymous than Eurovision and May. Some despise it and call it fake and obnoxious, while some love it in all of its cheesy glory. Beautifully written and directed by Tim McArthur, who describes Eurovision as “Christmas for gays”, this is a spectacular and feel-good show with something for everyone.

With four dynamic performers (Tim McArthur, Jo Wickham, David McMullan and Lucy Penrose), the first half unfolds in expected form. We have two hilarious presenters who create all the drama we know and love. The four actors work impressively well together to recreate 14 songs from Eurovision hits over the years, including Ukraine’s ‘Dancing Lasha Tumbai’, Iceland’s ‘Think About Things’ and the UK’s ‘Ooh Ah’. These songs are both loving parodies and exceptionally well sung, leaving the audience in stitches of laughter and genuine wonder at the performances. In between performances, we also have the expected country clips but with a hilarious twist, and it evokes a perfect recreation of the event, but in such fun form. There is some light audience interaction, yet most is contained to the stage. The audience can vote for their favourite songs via QR code, and it is a genuinely fun addition to this already spectacular night out.

The second half is also true to form, with going to multiple countries to hear the jury vote, including overt romantic gestures, technical difficulties and all the Eurovision drama we have come to expect. Highlights include Spain and France for pop culture references. We see plenty of green room and audience interaction, and the final results are hilarious and well-deserved. The personal vote also works well and has a huge highlight of unpredictability throughout. It is perfectly balanced in that we are not overwhelmed by songs and countries but have enough to make the event really fun, fresh and have you laughing out of your seat throughout.

There is enough spontaneity and unpredictability that you could watch this show multiple times in a row, and it will be fun; it is also utterly fresh and rewatchable if you want this show to be part of your annual Eurovision traditions. The themes are clear and the direction is finely nuanced to make this an utterly brilliant parody and cabaret show of high calibre. The jokes and innuendos fly thick and fast throughout, and the humour effortlessly spins from crude to erudite. The costumes design (Michelle Taylor) was fantastic and evoked the countries represented so well, and the sound design also added much gravitas and depth (Paul Gavin). One particular highlight is the sly comedy of voiceover Matt Richardson.

For its 5th year, the show is running at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. This is a small but mighty institution of London and is the oldest Gay bar in the city. It is phenomenal in its long history of serving brilliant drag acts and cabaret performances, and Eurovision your decision numbers highly in its impressive repertoire. The atmosphere was truly a wonderful community of 132 patrons and captured the joyful spirit of London Gay Bars of old. This show is truly phenomenal in its uplifting ability and powerhouse comedic puns. Its short running time of two hours, including an interval, is also a brilliant element as it speeds up the fun of the show and eliminates all the drag of the endless discussions in the real event.

If you love Eurovision, then this is the perfect love letter to the event and all its issues and glories. If you hate it (or love to hate it) then it’s still utterly brilliant in that it creates such genius parodies that you’ll be laughing hard enough to fall off your bar stool. If you enjoy live music, cabaret, saucy humour and a spectacular historic gay tavern, then I suggest running to the Royal Vauxhall Tavern before Celine Dion and ABBA steal all the good seats.