The Tailor Made Man ⚝⚝⚝⚝
Prince of Wales, London 

The West End has so many undiscovered gems that we are loath to burden you with even more FOMO, yet here we are at the Prince of Wales pub Drury Lane finding you a new pop up dinner theatre place with a show that will plunge you into the golden age of Hollywood. You’re welcome.

The Tailor-Made Man, by Claudio Macor, is the true story of one of Hollywood’s hottest heartthrobs William ‘Billy’ Haines. His movies are often forgotten as they were locked away by MGM after Louis B Mayer purged Billy from the studio for homosexuality. The threat ‘Remember what happened to William Haines’ is still a byword for staying in the closet in Hollywood. 

Haines (Hugo Pilcher) is plucked up by MGM via a talent contest for his good looks. He became a silent movie star and, even as some of his cohort fell aside when the talkies came along, he had a relatively successful transition to the sound era. The Hollywood publicity machine linked him to a number of starlets but it was the men he chased, and pretty successfully. He found love with Jimmie Shields (Gwithian Evans) and they set up home together, with Jimmie pretending to be a friend, an extra, a house help and a myriad of other roles that kept him out of the limelight. Eventually, due to Haines’ prolific sexual escapades with other male stars, military men and movie writers, scandal catches up with him. Louis B Mayer, driven by a vision of his own legacy, blacklists Haines who never acts on film again. 

The story is told in excerpts. Speeding from Haines’ initial hiring to his superstar peak and then his inevitable downfall. Mixed in is Hollywood history, which film buffs will love, and plenty of behind the scenes gossip. Some wonderful scenes with the fag friendly female characters show a subculture of gay acceptance underneath the Hollywood heterosexual veneer. Notably when Pilcher is on stage as Haines there is a distinct difference in tone. His performance is closer to the realism of contemporary performances. When he is not on stage it is more stylised, the performers hint at how they would be if they were characters in an old Hollywood black and white movie playing themselves on screen. A mirror held up to old skool movie mannerisms. It works. 

When we say you will be plunged into old Hollywood we mean it. The staging is diagonally across the dining area. The performers are inches away. Close enough to touch, though we discourage that thoroughly. Your knees will be in the spotlight. However the actors easily win the attention war leaving the rest of us to rely on our social media to pretend we are centre stage.

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”