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With a lot of new material, "Drag Queen" will again rule
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
YOUNGSTOWN
Robert Dennick Joki takes outlandish celebrity behavior and spins it into hilarious musical theater in his ever-popular holiday show “How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas.”
Presented by Joki’s Rust Belt Theater Company, the outrageous show — now in its eighth year — returns Friday for a two-weekend run in the large auditorium at Calvin Center, 755 Mahoning Ave.
In addition to the Friday and Saturday shows at 8 p.m. both weekends, there will be an extra risque performance at midnight Dec. 14.
The show is updated each year to spoof the people — both national and local — who deserve it most. But this year’s production includes more than the usual amount of new material. There are six new songs, as well as new scenes, characters and costumes.
“Celebrities like Paula Deen and Miley Cyrus were the gifts that just kept on giving this year,” said Joki, who writes, directs and performs in the show. “There is also a lot more locally derived humor that Youngstowners will get a kick out of. We lovingly poke fun at the recent mayoral race, as well as some local celebrities and businesses.”
When writing about “Drag Queen,” it’s difficult to share too much information. You don’t want to give it away. Plus, the show is very adult in nature.
But Joki did mention a couple of the new titles.
“Two of the new songs I’m excited about are ‘Twin-tercourse,’ which I wrote for the Siamese drag twins to sing, and ‘Life is Better with Butter,’ which is for Marisa Zamary to sing as the Ghost of Christmas Present,” he said.
The outpouring of new material was triggered by the loss of cast member Murad Shorrab after rehearsals had already begun. He had been with “Drag Queen” since day one but had to drop out this year.
“My only option was to do a lot of rewriting,” said Joki. “It ended up being a blessing in disguise because I really had to focus and rehash a lot of the dialog. It gave me an opportunity to fine-tune the comedy. I dialed up what worked, and got rid of what lagged.”
One number that’s a staple every year is the “Celebrity Death List” song. Joki said this year’s version is probably the most scandalous he’s ever done.
“Part of me thinks I should do a quick rewrite and include [“Family Guy” dog] Brian Griffin,” he said. “Ahh, we’ll see.”
In addition to Joki and Zamary, the cast includes Nicole Zayas, Lynn Sabeh, Alyssa Connelly, Beth Farrow, Kage Coven, Hunter Thomas, Terri Mac-Skimming, Andrew Labedz, Bernadette Lim, David Cirelli, Jo Ellen Jacob and Rachel Clifford.
Each performance also will include a wine and cheese reception at which guests will have the opportunity to bid on gift certificates and local artwork in a silent auction.
Special signed, limited edition, drag queen art prints, created by local artist Chris Yambar, also will be for sale at each performance.