Out and about on the festival
COMEDY
JASON WOOD IN BARE CAMP
Diva‘d and conquered .0000
Jason Wood is camp, make no mistake, but he is also hysterically funny. Striding
on stage in the shiniest of suits, he
performs a mix of stand-up comedy and
musical impersonations. His take-offs of Alison Moyet through to Boy George and Angela Lansbury are fantastic and he gives a tongue in cheek insight into their lives. You can’t beat his outing of the very
‘in the closet’ Johnny Mathis followed by an outstanding
rendition of one of his songs.
Aided and abetted by the stunningly downtrodden Michelle and a young, fit and scantily clad lad, he creates an environment of unthreatening fun. Members of the audience (especially the guaranteed late comers and people who forget to turn their mobiles off) are not safe from his observational wit and camp cattiness. He’ll have you willingly telling him your story while he takes great pleasure in ripping the proverbial piss out of you, your outfit or even your partner.
His ability to impersonate male and female singers and divas alike comes to a stunning finale as he performs Pavarotti’s ‘Nessun Dorma’ leaving you covered in goose bumps and laughing at the same time. The only problem is that his snatches of
songs are not enough - you want more. In fact, he leaves you screaming for more.
(Jane Hamilton)
I Pleasance. 5:36 (5:350. until 26 Aug met 73. 20;. (5.50pm.
5,‘8.:3()—£.‘9.:30 rt? 7. 50—98. 50/.
NOVELIST'SCHOICE
44 THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDE ’--. ‘
We grill novelist SARAH WATERS
Welsh ll()\.’()llSi Sarah \‘Jaters has been compared to a modern day lesbian Charles Dickens. Reclaiming literary territory for lesbians. she unintes hig. compelling. page turning novels with pluck; heroines facing ‘.'.’l|(l adventures in gothlc sett:ugs. She lllllllélllafSUE; melodrama. Her first hovelTr.';.')lr>g the Velvet. exploring the male— lrupersouatiug ‘.°.'orld of Victorian music hall. WI” be broadcast on p1. the BBC this autumn. hut oetore that she is at the Book F(}E3il‘.’£ll.
When you were growing up , did you have lesbian role models? Not that many. l'ru (30. so I got to see the occaslouaf shes/ant; of Me Kin/"mg of S/ster George if I was lucky. lheu there was Brooks/dos lesh'ai‘ :ss and Oranges are not fhe Only I
Before tl‘at. like other IOS'lJiéllYES. I had to read pet‘s/cell the lines. There ‘.'.'as a couple of pig actresses l was Iuexpllcahlg. draxm to as a child: Eleanor Bron and Glenda Jackson. What past lesbian writers do you like? A lot of lesbian ‘.'.’l'|i(l'l'f3 had such a‘.'.'tu| politics and '.'.'ere horrible people like Radcliffe Hall and Vita Sackx'ille \‘x’est. S‘;.'l\.la lt)‘.'.‘.’t§3(?'l(l \‘Varher was an exception. a great ‘.'.’.'li(}l' and a coiuu‘uhlst also.
Is it easier being gay nowadays? I: is (IOl‘iElllll‘, nerd. d:tt’ereut thai‘ when l ‘-.'.'as coming out at ls). Nexer underestimate the power of Bad (34’s. how It normalises l(?f§l)l£llllf$lll.
Have you been to Edinburgh before? Yes. li diuhtirgh :s sucl‘ a spectacular <::t§. to ‘.'.'ai‘.der til. ‘.'.’lill such a sei‘se of history It feels xer‘, gothlc. At i(}i;il‘.’lll time. It's |:kc- uox'xhere else. ‘Johll Binnie:
I [300A IVesfxtafl ()r’rar/offe Sena/e Gardens. (i.”-1:'>():'>(), l3! AM}. -.'.()‘();)r7.‘.
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gay@list.co.uk
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FESTIVAL GAY
Boy bands, books and buns
I Sarah Waters The great hope of lesbian literature. Welsh born Sarah is as passionate and compelling a speaker as she is a novelist. Book Fest/val, C/iar/otte Square, 74 Aug. 4.30pm. 228 5444, £7 ($5).
I Filler Up An ex punk- rock star. New Zealand lesbian Deb Filler bakes bread live on stage on her new solo show. After being workshopped in Toronto and New York, Fll/er Up is about the relationship of a mother and daughter and their radically differing views on food. Filler plays 27 characters. Expect laughter and tears and a copy of her beloved father's sacred bread recipe. Assemb/y Rooms. 226 2428, 3-26 Aug. 7.45pm, 29—2 70 (28—29).
I You Couldn’t Make It Up Provocative. polemical drama — with laughs — by Patrick Wilde. refuting TV's lie that ‘being gay in 2002 is no longer an issue' and looking at gay life in the 21st century. An ace cast will keep you stimulated for the entire show. Gilded Bal/oon, 226 2151. 2—24 Aug. 2.45pm. 28-29 (27—28).
I The Laramie Project Best gay show of the Fringe so far. American teenagers explore the tragic murder of gay student Matthew Shepard in Moises Kaufman’s award winning docudrama. Profoundly moving. C. 0870 707 5705, until lOAug, noon. £5.50 (£4.50).
I Jason Wood Be cheered up by the campest. gayest. friendliest singing stand up in the business. Hear impersonations from Alison Moyett and Barbra Streisand through to David Gray and Pavarotti performed with amazing accuracy and humour. A good night out and a damn good laugh. P/easance, 556 6550. until 26 Aug, 2pm, £8 (£5).