Dame Edna

I don't know what I was expecting, perhaps something campy and corny. Max had sent me a YouTube of Dame Edna taken back in 2005. The clip was funny, so I was looking forward to a unique show. She has purple hair and since purple is my favorite color, I figured she/he must have something right. I would be a good sport about the show.

The show as packed and apparently she has a cult following. When we sat down, the gay couple sitting next to us included a guy wearing a copy of her infamous glasses. She sings a song about her favorite son, Kenny. Based on her song's refrain "friends of Kenny" are gay guys. The audience was full of Kenny's friends.

I had tears laughing so hard, she was so funny. Max's usual barometer is whether or not he would pay to see it again. Hands down, he would. He would not only pay to see another show, he would pay for Don, Lisa and the kids to see it. Yes, even though this is a great character actor in drag, nothing was said or joked about that kids could not see. They may not "get it", but they could see the show.

If you view the YouTube clip, you will notice that she picks on an audience member. During our show, she picks on...sorry, interviews 4 people in the audience. One lady was seated on the other side of Max. Whew! We escaped the spotlight. She interviewed and joked with them about their name, where they lived, what kind of house they lived in and what they did for a living. Then on top of that, she had them come onstage to be interviewed on a couch similar to Johnny Carson, Jay Leno or even Oprah because HBO is filming this show for a Dame Edna reality show. The lady next to Max was giggling hysterically and would not go onstage. She finally relented after good hearted urging from the audience and Dame Edna herself. It was in good fun and no one was humiliated.

A unique aspect of the show is that her favorite flower is Gladiolas. So bouquets and bouquets of gladiolas are brought out as she tosses them out into the audience and into the "ashtrays" (balconeys) above her. Then those of us with the gladiolas would wave them in tune with her last song of the show and wiggle them as we gave her a standing ovation. Good show and lots of laughs. See it and enjoy!