Stage: Boy In A Dress

Written and performed by La JohnJoseph and directed by Sarah Chew, Boy In A Dress was described as “A high-heeled, low-living clusterfuck of sex, class, religion, gender, identity and ideology” by Time Out.

Autobiographical, raucously political and accidentally profound, Boy In A Dress follows the life story thus far of La JohnJoseph, a third-gendered, fallen Catholic, ex-fashion model from the wrong side of the tracks, from the council estates of Merseyside to the strip clubs of New York.

The show is an exhilarating collage of vaudeville, song, proselytising, striptease and postmodern philosophy, exploring intersections between sexuality and faith, class and enfranchisement, gender ambiguity and feminism, in a frank and almost charming tale told from a somewhat unique cultural perspective.

With an acclaimed debut at South London’s Ovalhouse Theatre (where it was a Time Out Critics’ Choice), and following a hit run, with multiple rave reviews, at the Edinburgh Fringe 2012, Boy In A Dress brings together an outrageous but heartfelt slew of true-life tales studded with original versions of iconic songs from wide ranging artists such as Leonard Cohen, Justin Vivian Bond and Guns n Roses. La JohnJoseph is the protégé of New York performance legend Penny Arcade, and is influenced by artists from Jackie Curtis to Jean Genet.

He has performed across Europe and the USA and is a regular on London’s performance scene where he has appeared at The Royal Opera House, The Southbank Centre, Duckie and Soho Theatre and co-starred in the West End production Infinite Variety. Having been compared to everyone from Joan Crawford to Noel Coward, he is establishing himself as one of today’s most interesting and consistent stage presences.
Boy In A Dress, Marlborough Theatre, Brighton, Friday 8 March, 7.30pm, £8.50/£6.50