Queerguru's Andrew Hebden reviews "Dr Adam Perchard and Richard Thomas: Interview with the Vamp"

Dr Adam Perchard on Interview With The Vamp
Soho Theatre, London   ****

If you were lucky enough to see Jonny Woo’s one night only All Star Cabaret at the Theatre Royal Stratford East at the end of last year then you would have got a too brief taste of the hyper realistic opera cake that is Dr Adam Perchard. Right now the delicious Dr, accompanied by songwriter and pianist RIchard Thomas, have their own show at the Soho Theatre. It’s only running til Saturday 13th July, so grab a handful, forkful or spoonful before it’s too late.

In Interview with the Vamp Perchard invites everyone into a musical meander through their brain, an overstuffed repository of personal failures, philosophical musing, dreamy desires and sharp observations of gay culture. Structured as a series of ten questions Perchard, dressed in the splendour of a gilded robe, delivers the answers in a musical theatre format that makes full use of a richly rippling voice and devilishly cherubic stage presence.

Apart from la Perchard themself what makes the show special is the cleverness of the lyrics and the uniqueness of the stories that are told. The words fall rich and ripe, like hand picked cherries. All fruit and no filler. The stories are charm filled anecdotes that could have been the fare of a particularly good stand up comedian but instead have been turned into bite sized operettas of laughter. Partly biographic about their fall from academia into cabaret via a mental breakdown, and partly surreal recounting how they gained an international gig as a fortune teller due to a random visual similarity between a pile of fallen petals and a rabbit. The highlights of the show are two songs in particular. One a more deliberative spoken word autopsy of gay culture called ‘Meanwhile the Gays’ that pits the inanity of the party lifestyle versus the struggle to live a life of equality. The other an ode to loving the body you are in which poses the unanswerable question ‘Am I fat or am I pupating?’. Both are gorgeously rendered.

Considering the crowd tonight had been pole-axed by the unlikeliest of events, England making it into the semifinals of the Euros, the remaining crowd was still up for every joyful moment and on their feet cheering by the end of it. Sadly, there was no extra time in this one hour show.

@dr.adam.perchard
Only a few days now until ‘Interview with The Vamp’ opens at Soho Theatre in London! Richard and I have been rehearsing our areoles off, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so proud of a show. We’re giving you comedy, we’re giving you GORGEOUS original music, and we’re giving you – dare I say it? – ART, babes. It’s macabre, it’s surreal, it’s political, and it’s for YOU! Make sure you wolf down those last remaining tickets right now, babes. Our social media advisor is fhe fabulous @Helen 🌈 Gay Big Sis 🌈 #LGBTTheatre #QueerMusicals #SohoTheatre #CampCabaret #LondonTheatreScene #MusicalMagic #WestEndVibes #QueerCulture #MustSeeShow #TheatricalExperience @Soho Theatre
♬ original sound – Dr Adam Perchard

Queerguru Contributing Editor ANDREW HEBDEN is a MEDIA and cultural STUDIES graduate spending his career between London, Beijing, and NYC as an expert in media and social trends. As part of the expanding minimalist FIRE movement, he recently returned to the UK and lives in Soho. He devotes as much time as possible to the movies, theatre, and the gym. His favorite thing is to try something (anything) new every day”

QUEERGURU

Queerguru’s Andrew Hebden reviews “Dr Adam Perchard and Richard Thomas: Interview with the Vamp”