One of the must see Aussie films, my sister said, is Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. I watched it the last time I was here, and it quickly became my favorite. When I arrived back here in Melbourne last October, one billboard on the Tullamarine freeway caught my eye: Priscilla the Musical. Of course, I *had* to see it.
While the whole of Melbourne was looking forward to the Melbourne cup last November 6, I was looking forward to the day after: the day I watch Priscilla on stage.
Priscilla Queen of the Desert Musical was in everyway the opposite of Avenue Q, a Broadway musical I saw before I left Manila. Where Avenue Q has a very simple set and a handful of cast, Priscilla was a grand affair. The stage was filled with lights, with towering speakers on the sides. An orchestra plays at the foot of the stage, and while there were only 3 major characters, there are several minor characters and a dozen or so extras.
Avenue Q in Manila and Priscilla in Melbourne is the same in one aspect though: they’re both great. The songs, the choreography, the acting… all superb!
Priscilla is the story of three gender illusionists, Tick (Mitzi), Bernadette and Adam (Felicia), who drove from Sydney to Alice Springs to perform. Tick went on this journey to meet his son for the first time, Bernadette to get over the death of her partner (asphyxiated on peroxide), and Adam went because… well, it was his dream to be a cock in a frock on a rock 
Here’s what you can expect to see on stage when you watch Priscilla the musical:
If you’re in Melbourne, why not watch Priscilla on stage? The musical will run until Janaury 27, 2008 at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre.
unfortunately, their idea of an exotic dancer is a filipino with pingpong balls spewing from in between her thighs.
I actually laughed at that, never really expecting her to do that. Inside the theatre, the people around me didn’t quite know how to react to what she was screaming about while I was quietly giggling because I know what she was saying.
But some of her dialogues were gibbrish, so it can be that her character is just some random Asian with a mix of characters and stereotypes put in together (her speaking Tagalog, the pingpong act which is more associated with Thailand, and the mail order bride thing).
Pingback: WordCamp Melbourne, November 17, 2007 » justwandering.org
na shock nga ako nung pinalabas yan dito (more than a few years ago) pero nakakatawa lalo na sinabi nya “Animal!”
i just have to comment because I saw this last April 27, 2008, the last day of this great musical. I love love it. The costumes, the music and of course the asian girl played by a Filipina. Current favorite music: “Pop Muzik” interpreted by Lena Cruz as Cynthia of Priscilla Queen Of The Desert The Musical.