Born in the early seventies, Jonathan Wooster, grew up in the rather ordinary Allhallows-on-sea. His childhood and adolescence was one that many gay men will relate to: a deep adoration of Wonder Woman; an interest in amateur dramatics; and a sexual awakening prompted by flicking through the men’s underwear section of the Kay’s catalogue (sounds like my childhood!). Nothing much out of the ordinary. That was until he broke free from the prosaic shackles of routine.
Through mostly original musical material and various mediums of performance, Woo chronicles his personal evolution in his new Soho Theatre show.
The first twenty minutes or so concentrate on those early years. How he was seduced by a pianist and his discovery of cross-dressing, in Woolworths of all places. There’s a stand out mime section in this part of the show that has been concocted with a great eye for detail. It illustrates the daily grudge of the rat race he faced: going to a soul-crushing job everyday, being subjected to rude commuters and then getting off your face every weekend to forget the hell of the week behind you. Only to start the vicious cycle all over again on Monday morning.
Although exceptional in quality and originality, the ‘early days’ segment to the show is a slightly overly long introduction to what we are really here to see – Woo’s ‘colourful’ later years.
Throughout the show, Woo eases himself from one magnificent look to another, dressed in layered outfits, transforming a sharp-suited Mary Portas character (uncanny in likeness and manner) into a Lycra-clad Lynda Carter in a matter of seconds.
Titillating the audience he describes his days on the New York club and burlesque scene as he prowls the stage with the elegant grace of a preying panther. We’re even treated into rare insights such as how a fridge magnet changed him as a performer! This paves the way for my favourite part of the show: Spam Ayers, a send-up of English poet Pam Ayers. Visually freakish but verbally, pure genius.
Amongst all the madness, it’s easy to get lost in Woo’s whirlwind, however, this does not affect the enjoyment factor at all, for Wonder Woo-Man excels in variety, with sections of creative brilliance and a stirring finale. Put it all together and it highlights why Jonny Woo is one of the UK’s most acclaimed performance artists.
• Soho Theatre, 21 Dean Street, Soho, W1D 3NE.
• Runs to Saturday 1st June. Box office: 020 7478 0100 and www.sohotheatre.com
