Frat Haus: Evicted is a drag-theatre cabaret present that takes immersive efficiency, social satire, and glitter, and creates a comedy with heartfelt moments. The well timed matter of Toronto’s housing disaster is informed by way of a lens of drag, queer tradition, and poisonous masculinity, with consuming video games and interactive moments with the viewers thrown into the combination.
A part of the Toronto Fringe Pageant, the manufacturing takes the stage at Buddies in Dangerous Occasions Theatre from July 2 to 12 as a co-production between Drag Haus & Theatre Collective and Apothecary Theatre, and contains a rotating solid.
We spoke to Frat Haus’ Devery Bess, who stars within the present, in regards to the challenge.
Devery Bess: The Interview
A local of Montreal, Devery Bess is a drag king and gender efficiency artist.
The present is introduced by a efficiency collective who first acquired collectively as fellow contestants at Absolute Empires.
“I’m one of many co-producers in addition to an artist within the collective,” Devery explains. “How we acquired began was we did a contest final yr in 2024.” As a collective, they acquired to the semi-finals. “We simply actually loved working collectively.”
“I acquired began as a result of I, me personally, I felt disconnected from group,” Bess arrived in Toronto from Alberta three years in the past.
“I didn’t care to win — I simply needed to create artwork,” they are saying. That feeling was shared by the opposite members of the collective, who belong to the trans and queer communities.
“I’ve talked about this for years, desirous to do theatre with drag,” Devery says. After the competitors, the group determined to stay collectively and do extra. Coyote Ugly grew to become a collaborator, and Apothecary Theatre emerged as a manufacturing accomplice.
The group utilized to the Fringe Pageant with the venue already on board. This might be their first mainstage manufacturing.
The Artwork of Drag
“After I take into consideration drag, I take into consideration visible artwork,” Devery begins. “When you concentrate on theatre or efficiency artwork, plenty of the time, it’s a collaborative expertise,” they clarify. Performs sometimes embody enter from quite a lot of folks, together with designers, and different again stage artists.
“Whereas drag is self reflecting. Lots of drag is like that, and so issues get very attention-grabbing.”
Bess notes that Frat Haus: Evicted takes the person expression of drag and provides the collaborative factor of theatre. “That’s why Drag Haus is basically cool.” The artwork and expertise that go into drag, and the important exploration of gender, merge right into a collaborative setting. “Drag itself is a spot the place you possibly can discover all the expertise you could have in artwork.”
It will possibly take many various types. One of many performers, Andy Fetamean, is a puppeteer. “Drag takes from so many artwork types to construct one thing new.”
As Bess factors out, drag has been round since Shakespeare and properly earlier than. “Drag permits for that protected house and group to discover your gender.”
Comedy, with Points
With comedic moments, the present explores critical themes. “Primarily, I really feel like, as artists, all of us have skilled what it’s like in a patriarchal society,” Bess says. The present satirizes and explores these notions in drag.
For the viewers, the comedy is cathartic. “How we’ve been affected by poisonous masculinity, I really feel like there’s a launch.”
Naturally, the disaster of inexpensive housing is one thing that impacts everybody, and the present displays that topical sentiment.
“We’re all renters. We’re all going through a housing disaster,” they are saying. “There’s plenty of frustrations for all of us as people.”
Bringing these real feelings to the piece provides to its poignancy. They’re hoping the viewers will be part of within the silliness and interact with the humour. “I believe it’s actually feeling in regards to the catharsis of our feelings.” The housing disaster itself has an absurd facet. “It’s so foolish. Everybody loses.”
That, primarily, is the message about poisonous masculinity. “Nobody really will get to get pleasure from their life.”
The humour comes from exaggeration and a way of the offbeat. “Subverting it and making it homosexual.”
Viewers Interplay
“Drag is inherently an interactive expertise,” Bess says. “Drag itself is totally different than theatre.”
The viewers will get concerned in numerous methods. One of many acts might be pitched as an MLM (multi-level advertising and marketing scheme), and a small protest with develop throughout the house. Viewers members can be part of within the battle again in opposition to evil landlords and companies.
As at a typical drag present, you can too tip your favorite performers as they dance, and be part of within the consuming video games.
“Lots of our solid is disabled,” Bess notes. That’s one of many the reason why they selected the accessible Buddies in Dangerous Occasions venue.
Present Particulars
Together with Bess, performers embody Coyote Ugly, Andy & Stefan Fetamean, and Archie Referred to as, with totally different visitor performers every evening. Particular nights through the run might be sensory-friendly and COVID-conscious.
- Earlier than the efficiency run, you possibly can catch a script studying of the present on June 15; particulars [HERE].
- Discover extra particulars, and tickets, for the performances at Buddies in Dangerous Occasions Theatre [HERE]
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Anya Wassenberg is the Toronto Metropolis Editor at Ludwig Van. Beforehand, she was a contract author with a specialty in tradition and journey for 3 many years, and a artistic writing teacher for Ontariolearn.
