Jinkx Monsoon and Major Scales in The Vaudevillians, Birmingham Hippodrome - review

The Vaudevillians tells the tale of two performers from the 1920s, Dr Dan Von Dandy and Kitty Witless, who were frozen alive while on tour in Antarctica.

Thanks to global warming, the pair of American entertainers have now thawed. And, to their horror, have returned to modern-day society only to find popular stars of the 20th and 21st centuries have ‘covered’ their songs without giving the pair any credit.

So the entertainers are now back on the road, showing audiences their ‘original’ 1920s-style versions of the songs. Hits on this list include Madonna's Hey Mr DJ, Janis Joplin’s Piece Of My Heart, Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive, 4 Non Blondes’ What's Up and Britney Spears' Toxic, which they controversially dedicated to their late friend Marie Curie.

With highly-talented sidekick Major Scales in tow, Jinkx put on an entirely bonkers - and very bawdy - show at Birmingham Hippodrome’s lovely Patrick Centre; which allowed fans to see the beloved US star up close and personal in an intimate setting.

See a trailer for the show here:

Perhaps a little too intimate, in fact, for the poor souls picked on in the crowd - thankfully, my mum and I were not among them.

As Jinkx made her way through the audience, she picked on a red-faced young lad sat mid-row. Asking what the man did, waiting to make a joke of it, the RuPaul’s Drag Race icon got more than she bargained for when he shyly told her he worked as a ‘discharge facilitator’ for a nearby hospital. Instantly, the crowd was in tears with laughter as even Jinkx struggled to hold back the giggles, before jokingly doing an impression of him throwing people out of their hospital beds.

But she soon got her own back as the lad was led on to the stage and, after Jinkx sat him down on a chair, the drag star licked his face, messed up his hair - and even performed a headstand on his lap.

Jinkx’s voice was tremendous all evening, though the sound was a little loud to begin with meaning the higher notes came through as very sharp. But her ability to hold a note with tremendous strength and range was nothing short of astounding.

Major Scale’s excellent piano playing - and the chemistry between the two comedians - meant the show ran perfectly and no more than two minutes at a time went by when the crowd was not laughing.

One thing I would say, however, is that the show was perhaps a little too blue to take your parents to… Though my mum thought it was very funny, some of Jinkx’s jokes and bawdy allusions left me very red-faced indeed. It was hilarious though; just perhaps a show for friends, rather than family.

Jinkx looked incredible too - dressed for the first half in a pink dress, with a high split on one side, exposing her long, toned legs, and for the latter part of the show she wore a stunning floor-length glistening navy gown.

A wonderfully bizarre, bawdy, batty show, which provoked no end of laughs from the crowd.

And certainly one of a kind.