Celibate superstar Virgin Xtravaganzah brought a sparkling, scintillating, stressfully salubrious show to the super-edgy East London venue with her Gods & Monsters show last week.
Sweeping onto the stage in a blasphemously fashionable religious ensemble that would put Lady Gaga’s Judas video to shame, she regaled the increasingly disorientated crowd with an increasingly insane amalgamation of performance, song and comedy. One of her songs was all about living in London, had the word “fuck” in it a lot, and conveyed perfectly the feeling of wanting to positively CRUCIFY people who walk slowly on Oxford Street.
The vibe for the night was religious drag, meets gore freakshow firebreathers, meets unpaid Dazed & Confused interns, meets the N55 bus stop. Smiley Vyrus was at the back wearing a sly grin and a wig that made it look she’d just stuck her finger in a socket (you know I love you really Smiley). Recording artist Jacob Aria was there too, looking shifty with a pint in the smoking area with a mysterious and attractive young dark-haired gentleman.
“The vibe for the night was religious drag, meets gore freakshow firebreathers, meets unpaid Dazed & Confused interns, meets the N55 bus stop”
Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club, as it turned out, made for a perfect setting for the night, which was originally scheduled to be at the Black Cap (remember the Black Cap? One of the city’s most iconic gay venues? Hundreds of years old? Creative hub and performance mecca? No? Me neither). I’d like to take this opportunity to say actually that the bar staff at BGWMC are lovely. They smile and interact with you socially and everything. Weird right?! LET’S TRY NOT TO SHUT THIS VENUE DOWN SHALL WE?
Virgin added richness and texture to her extravaganza, by bringing out kaleidoscopically eclectic harem of disciples who performed to varying degrees of bizarritude (is bizarritude a word? It’s not is it? You know what I mean though).
The highlights were inimitable immigrant Lily Snatchdragon, who, fed up of her role as stage manager, ripped off her smock to reveal a ridiculously camp outfit underneath, and belted out a jazzy number, much to the delight of the baying crowd. She was followed by the FABULOUS Bambi Blue, a firebreathing vixen in a corset who stalked up and down the stage setting fire to things, including herself. I caught her after the show and asked what she usually did during the week and she casually said “have sex with my boyfriend on stage at The Box.” You go girl. We’d all do that if we could. Well I would anyway.
• Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club, 42 Pollard Row, E2 6NB.
