“Trevor Ashley and company had me and everyone else in the room doing one thing: laughing our butts off“
“I loved, loved, loved this show.”
– Veronica Hannon
4.5 /5 stars
The Lyin’ Queen is the end of year panto with the mostest. The show reopening the Studio is about having a good time and forgetting a year many would like to see consigned to the scrap heap of history. Trevor Ashley and company had me and everyone else in the room doing one thing: laughing our butts off. With an un-PC scattergun of jokes and parodies, where no one and nothing is safe, Ashley has the talent to wring laughs without being too vicious, and he is the first to take the mickey out of himself.
The plot is absurd. Imagine a mishmash of every movie/tv show where unsuspecting strangers with seemingly nothing in common are lured to an island. Think everything from Jurassic Park to Love Island to The Island of Dr Moreau to King Kong and then even a nod to The Lion King.
Ashley has a ball with platinum Hollywood waves as ex-Home and Away starlet Fay Wray. Shannon Dooley plays the smart as a whip botanist. Then there’s Brendan Irving as a painful influencer with some enviable aerial moves. And, of course, there needs to be a diabolical villain with a ridiculous name and here unrecognisable in a white mo and beard; Todd McKenney is a perfect fit. Doctor Richard Rabbitborough, like all madmen, needs a sidekick, and the gorgeously voiced Shauntelle Benjamin takes the role to unexpected places while also playing a native of the Island.
This romp is not for kiddies. Co-written with Phil Scott, who is acquitting himself with aplomb in The Wharf Revue on the other side of town, this effort does its bit keeping our stages very colourful. Along with the silliness and the songs, it’s terrific to look at. Angela White is the credited costume designer, who, along with lighting designer Gavin Swift makes this a feast for the eyes. The cast’s tight and funky moves come courtesy of choreographer Cameron Mitchell, and it also sounds just great. The music tracks are by Jack Earle and Andrew Worboys. Did I mention Benjamin’s phenomenal vocals? I did. Okay, then, it is worth bringing up again.
Did I mention the carnivorous dancing dinosaur? It’s a fabulous thing.
I loved, loved, loved this show.
Veronica Hannon, Theatre Now
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