A UK-wide tour bringing together drag performance and musical theatre is set to open next month, with the group the QUEENZ announcing the cast for what it describes as its biggest tour yet.
The show, titled Drag Me To The Disco, will visit more than 80 venues across the country. The touring line-up includes longstanding members Bella Du Ball (Grant Jackson) and Billie Eyelash (Craig Colley), alongside Dior Montay (Martim Fornetti), Candy Caned (Harvey Rowland) and Zeze Van Cartier (Jon Hands). Stephen Lennox will appear in the role of Jase the stagehand.
The QUEENZ first emerged at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and, according to the company, have performed internationally to audiences totalling more than 250,000 people in the three years since their debut. Their previous show, billed as QUEENZ – The Show with BALLS!, achieved a number of sold-out dates on tour and received positive notices from some critics and sector outlets.
Drag Me To The Disco promises a blend of live vocals, choreography and costume-led spectacle, drawing on pop and disco material from artists including Madonna, Diana Ross, Chic, Lady Gaga and Whitney Houston. The producers say the show will mix comedy and emotional moments as well as the high-energy numbers typical of disco revues.
The expansion to more than 80 locations reflects a wider growth in live drag and cabaret productions on the UK touring circuit, a market that has broadened since drag acts moved into mainstream theatre and television. Such tours appeal to a mix of LGBTQ+ audiences and wider pop-culture fans, and often combine concert-style staging with theatrical storytelling. queenztheshow.com