Boys will be boys, and boys will be girls’ concludes Tom Stuart during the final soliloquy of one-man show ‘I Am Not Myself These Days’.
A rather apt line. As I sat enthralled next to recent QX cover star and apparently now dedicated follower of the arts, Gina Gee, as she delicately sips on a craft lager. An intimate 75 minutes with this entrancing actor left both of us with the overwhelming feeling that we’d been through something together – a sort of unorthodox group therapy.
The story, adapted from Josh Kilmer-Purcell’s autobiography, tells a tale of glamour, squalor, love and lust. Hot shot advertising exec by day and a delicious combination of Amy Pohler and Courtney Love by night, Josh is the effervescent drag queen Aquadisiac.
Our vivacious blond bombshell is fascinating, intense and vulnerable as she stumbles from one dramatic moment to the next – be that lipsyncing to Blondie’s Rip Her To Shreds, or tip-toeing over a bound British man begging to be abused – a standard Saturday night in East London then.
Quite frankly, her goldfish bowl boobs and sparkly pink dress is one of the best drag get ups I’ve ever seen, take note London queens!
Cut between the late nights and bright lights of New York’s 90s gay scene and crack addict boyfriend Jack’s Upper East Side apartment, Stuart expertly portrays the dizzying spiral of alcoholism and self-loathing – a ‘Class A diamond studded fuck up’.
The discourse around drug taking and its effects on sexual relationships feels poignantly relevant given the current gay landscape of chemsex and chillouts – perhaps even more so given the younger generations disposition to believe they were the first to do anything – sorry boys!
There’s something of a Hamlet character in this young man’s life. While the subject could feel removed from ‘real life’, you can actually relate to the tempestuous flow of his first years in New York.
With the cathartic close of the derobing of Aqua, she relinquishes her hold on Josh’s life and gives him the chance to come clean (Hi Hilary Duff!) and move on, leaving the emotional and physical baggage in storage before it is washed away.
A heartfelt thank you to Josh and Tom for letting us borrow Aqua for an hour and live life on the wild side.
