Monday, January 22, 2018

DUCKIE at The Royal Vauxhall Tavern

Despite being in a location that Donald Trump recently described as ‘off’, a lively atmosphere was definitely ‘on’ at Duckie at The Royal Vauxhall Tavern. It’s a little slice of disco dancing paradise for London’s LGBT+ community and place where the the whole gender and sexuality spectrum is celebrated and accepted. A space that, for once, is not dedicated to the privileged in the society, but for those who feel marginalised and need to shout, sing and dance about it. In fact, the shouting, singing and dancing is what made the experience so unique. If it had been performed anywhere else, I don’t think it would have had quite the same entertaining, off the wall quality.

We arrived early, after being let in by bouncers who didn’t particularly care whether we were over 18. If you get there early, buy a couple of drinks if you can afford it; it’ll give you something to do instead of awkwardly watching the soft-core porn video in the background. Once others started to filter in, drinks in hand, the venue livened up with regulars and a few newcomers. As soon as the clock stroke 11, the tavern was packed with ‘girls, boys, and most importantly, everyone in between’. Two acts followed. The first: a scientific presentation on the evolution of the binary sexes. The nuance of the subject matter could have been well explored with a longer time frame, but the penis hat and the sex projections were very amusing. The second act: a collection of lip-synced impressions of various political figures and their opinions on gender and sexuality (including the one and only Trump). Although this sort of performance has been done many times before, there was something special about the whole room rallying against these characters and their crusty views.Once the performances were over, it was time for LGBTQ+ community to let loose, and for us to leave.


Any Indecent Exposure?         A great platform for LGBTQ+ artists, and great night out, but could have done with a few more women, both in the audience and on stage.

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