Interview with Luke Bayer, Diva: Live From Hell!

Luke Bayer in Diva: Live From Hell! Photo by Danny with a Camera.

Described as a “devilish delight” (Gay Times) and winner of Best Lead Performance in a Musical at the OffWestEnd Awards 2023, Diva: Live From Hell! is going to have a fierce summer with a limited run at the King’s Head Theatre before heading to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August. Performed by Luke Bayer, we had some time to sit down with him to talk about this show’s return and his incredible career in the industry so far.

So to begin with Luke you’ve been in this industry for some time now, notably in shows like Everybody’s Talking about Jamie and Rent. What has fundamentally kept you focused and grounded during this time?

Oh, good question. I mean, it's a hard game. It's a hard industry. There's absolutely ups and downs, busy periods, quiet periods. For me, I think it's just about like, collaborating with friends, celebrating other people's successes, going and watching friends in shows and kind of remembering to have fun and remembering why we started doing it in the first place. I feel like sometimes it's so easy to take things really personally. And I feel like as I've gotten older, I've kind of been able to detach myself from taking things personally, then going, I feel like I did a really good audition for that. But it didn't go my way. And that's just how it goes.

Like, I literally just got a note from something like about an hour ago, and I felt like I smashed my audition, but I still didn't get the job. So I'm not going to mourn that and go oh, it's because I'm rubbish. Because I'm this. Actually, I'm just gonna own that and say, I did a really good audition for that. And it didn't go my way for whatever reason, but you can't take it personally. And I feel like being able to separate the two, you kind of get a bit of a thicker skin.

You mentioned that this industry is extremely demanding. What do you wish you knew before starting out?

I don't know necessarily what I, I think I think that kind of taking the pressure off. I went to drama school with this weird idea of what the drama school I went to would make me at the end. I went to Mountview and I thought I’m going to be perfect at singing by the end. And then you get to the end. And then you're like, Oh God, I'm still not perfect at singing. Like it's all of it's a learning process. I don't think you ever stop learning in so many ways, whether that's like in terms of singing lessons, like being more aware, acting classes, like all those kinds of things, I think you're constantly learning. And I would say maybe that kind of giving yourself grace. And I feel like again, as I've got older, kind of going, I can only do this today. So I'm going to do the best that I can do on this physical day, rather than going oh, it's not good enough. I couldn't be 100% Because no one can ever be 100% or anything all the time.

So Diva: Live From Hell! It’s back! Where did that journey begin for you?

So I actually was at The Other Palace And I saw Joe McNeese. And Joe said to me, Oh I'm doing this show and I think you'd be great for it. Do you know it? And I was like, I don't know it. So I listened to the album, loved it. And then I actually think I DMd Joe on Twitter, and was like, I love it. Let's do it. And that was honestly the kind of start of it. I read the script, listened to the music. And I was like, I love this.

I also knew Alexander Sage Oyen who wrote the music as well, he was an online friend for many, many years via Scott Allen years ago. I love his music and his work. I thought this could be really cool but I don’t think feel like I realised the enormity of doing a show by yourself being stood on stage by yourself. Until we actually did it and then we were in rehearsals. I was like, oh my god, it's so hard. But so fun. Like, I think one of my favourite things I've ever done. So to be back doing this with all these amazing people is like an absolute joy. Definitely.

For those who don’t know, it premiered back in 2022 at the Turbine Theatre. Diva: Live From Hell! will be heading to King’s Head Theatre in June ahead of a run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. So for those audiences who have seen it before, can they expect something new?

I would definitely say Desmond has had a glow up. I don't know when people will see that but Desmond's costume is giving high glam. There’s also a certain timeframe for the Fringe, because the time slots are quite tight to get in and out of the venues.

It's got a different monologue at the end that we didn't have before that I love. I just think sums him up. It's so like funny. It kind of sums him up as a person and a character and I think it's a really great way to kind of round the show off and in the show. So yeah, there'll be a few like little tweaks and surprises to people for sure. But I think there'll be other bits that people love before they're very much still in the show.

For those who don’t know a lot about this show, can you tell us a quick synopsis?

It's about a 16 year old boy called Desmond Channing, who is obsessed with Musical Theatre and the head of his Drama club at Sunset Springs in Florida. There's five characters in the show. You've got Desmond Channing who is the lead, and Allie Hewett who is Desmond’s friend. She's very cute. She's the stage manager. You've got Mr. Dallas who is the Head of Drama. You've got Sarah Sid and Barker, one of the drama club girls. And then you've got Evan Harris, Desmond's rival who comes to the school from a performing arts school in New York. And they're doing a school production and it's loosely based on All About Eve and Evan comes to the school and gets Desmond's part in the school show. And it all goes from there. But Desmond is not afraid to say what he thinks or do what he wants to do. It's very much a comedy. It's very silly, great music, great story. 70 minutes all the way through, which I think is perfect. I love watching one show. It's a fun show. I'm very, very excited to do it. Again, I think the writing is fantastic as well. When we did the read through on the first day, I was like, Oh my God, just how good this is. Like without having added all the other elements of like, direction, musical direction, all the other bits and pieces to it. It's such a strong show.

What can audiences expect from seeing Diva: Live From Hell?

It's very naughty. It's a really great musical and it appeals to everyone too. There's some things that some people will get maybe more than others. Some of the humour, a lot of the humour, I feel is quite like, bantery. I get to kind of play around with the kind of humour that I have amongst my friends as well, which I love. I think some of my closest friends always do like silly voices. Which is bizarre. I don't know why we do it. But we do and that’s interwoven into this show.

After the run in London, you’ll be heading to Edinburgh for the first time this summer too. Are you excited or find any of it daunting at all?

I've not really thought too much in depth. I'm just excited to be in Edinburgh for the month to see lots of amazing work. I've got a few friends that are going up, Rob. I know Vickers is there. Yeah. So I think it'd be really exciting to just experience something new. Take up the show that I love. I think it's a brilliant show. I'm really proud of it. And it's really nice to be in a show that you're really proud of, and excited for people to come and watch. I feel like I've when I've been speaking to people in London, I've been oh my god come and see the show come and see the show, which can sometimes feel a bit like I don't want to like push it onto people but also when you know something's good and you're really proud of it, you're like come and see it because it is really great. So I'm excited to go and share this piece of work and to go and celebrate and see lots of other amazing productions too.

DIVA: Live From Hell will perform at the King’s Head Theatre until the 29 June before the Edinburgh Festival Fringe from 1 - 25 August at the Underbelly Cowgate.