Sasha Velour brings high-concept drag experience to the stage with Smoke & Mirrors – review
We’re sure Sasha Velour needs little in the way of introduction by now – having won the ninth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race she’s gone on to tour the world with her critically-acclaimed show Smoke & Mirrors, which she previously brought to the London Palladium prior to the pandemic.
We caught the revival of the show this week at the Eventim Apollo; she’s about to take the tour over to mainland Europe before returning to the UK in April for dates in Plymouth, Bath, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Glasgow and Liverpool.
And what a show it is – a cerebral high-concept drag experience, full of imagination and stunning set-pieces. This is not what you might think of as a ‘conventional’ drag show – there’s no singing, there’s no comedy routine (although Sasha’s patter at various intervals is witty), and the choreography, while effective, is limited and hardly the star of the show.
Instead we’re presented with two hours of intriguing and unusual ideas, and a selection of sickening looks. It’s a real variety show, with segments inspired by high-art, musicals, circus and a whole host more besides.
