Blame it on Bianca – Bianca del Rio & Sherry Vine

Elegant New York raconteur and self-styled nymphomaniac, Sherry Vine opened the evening enthusiastically with her entertaining blend of deranged songs and traditional choreography. The 3000+ audience was well primed for the main event.

Star of the evening, Bianca Del Rio, shimmered and sparkled in black and crystal. I can’t say that I liked all of her humour, for that would make me very weird, possibly even psychopathic. The renowned queen of insult comedy defies convention and takes her audience at least two steps beyond decency, comfort or any good taste. However, her endearing behaviour in Season Six of RuPaul’s Drag Race, that circus of transformation, inclusion and glamour, paints a very different picture. Bianca’s competitive strategy was marked by genuine affection, consideration and adult understanding. Such witty maturity allows her many fans to follow her uncritically into the morass of vituperation, shade and near-criminal character assassination that forms the basis of her chilling performance. The brightest moments came at the finale when she answered questions submitted from the floor (in the manner of Katherine Jenkins). Some were so crass they just couldn’t have been scripted. Bianca’s killing put-downs and ad-libs were bitingly sharp but also revealed a genuine humanity, playfulness and even compassion.

I’d hesitate to describe her as a saintly, truthful sweetheart because then she might want to sue me for damaging her reputation.

Brighton Centre, 29 July 2018

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