Priscilla plays homage to the queens

Seven hundred shows on and no-one seems to be tiring of Australia’s biggest musical, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. There are the obvious reasons -” the costumes and winning one-liners -” but perhaps some of this success must be attributed to the authentic approach taken by its leading actors.

Daniel Scott, the actor who plays Adam/Felicia to critical acclaim, spent five years working every bar on Oxford St. So don’t be surprised if the odd sequence takes you back in time to the days when the Albury ruled the strip.

The Adam I’ve created is a much more early ’90s figure, as well as the approach to the drag. He is actually a bit of an homage to the older queens from yesteryear, Scott told Sydney Star Observer.
There are little clues and hints, like I’ve handpicked tiny moves that are all out of Kylie’s clips. And there have been times people have come up and said. -˜Oi, you’re doing something from the Albury. Oh, I remember that’.

There are elements of Miss 3D’s Karma Chameleon act which I loved, and a Trudy Valentine turn here and there, and I just adore being able to put that in.

If audience reactions are any-thing to go by, the public is loving it just as much as Scott. The show, which returned home to the Lyric Theatre last week, has drawn in more than a million people since 2006 with London next on the agenda for the great sparkling Greyhound.

People’s love for the film and now the stage show is undeniable, and has made for a vocal and engaged audience that isn’t scared to say what it thinks.

I’ve had some really cool things that have been passed on, or people have written into me. Through just doing what I get paid to do I had someone tell me I’d inspired them to give up their job and go back into teaching, so I’ve had these offshoots from just doing my job, which has been really cool, Scott said before relaying a tale of a biker-come-trucker who accosted him after an evening’s performance, thankfully, with the intention of praising rather than abusing the startled actor.

When we got it up, there was so much love for what it already was, that we needed to put as much love into what we did. And I think that’s carried across and we’ve just managed to send that out into the audiences and they’re sending it out again.

It’s kind of that idea of you pay it forward, which is the nice thing about this show -” it’s just had such huge repercussions for the community of Australia and I just feel lucky to be a part of something which has had such a positive influence.

info: Priscilla plays at the Lyric Theatre, Star City. Bookings: Ticketek on 1300 88 096 or the box office, 9657 8502.