High-camp musical Diva: Live From Hell! is a devilish delight – review
Since it opened in 2019 we’ve become big fans of the Turbine Theatre and their commitment to programming new queer works. High-camp musical Diva: Live From Hell! – book and characters by Nora Brigid Monahan, music and lyrics by Alexander Sage Oyen – is making its UK debut at the small theatre space under the railway arches in Battersea, and stars the excellent Luke Bayer, who we caught last year in the Hope Mill Theatre’s production of Rent.
In this loose retelling of All About Eve, Bayer plays the role of Desmond Channing – based on Bette Davis’ iconic Margot Channing.
The story sees Desmond singing at the Seventh Circle, which is Hell’s cabaret club, as he recounts the events leading up to his death.
Over the course of 75 minutes we witness Desmond’s dramatic fall from grace; starting from the point he is elected president of his high school’s drama society and cast as the lead in the fall musical, we witness the dramatic turns of events that lead to him being labelled a ‘diva’ – and what happens next.
