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Waiting for Sandy: Milked @WhiteBearTheatre

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Two lads looking for meaning and lots of time on their hands are at the heart of Milked. Simon Longman's play first premiered in 2013. While it may not capture the latest malaises and anxieties affecting post-pandemic youth, it has enough of a familiar ring to it for anyone who has eavesdropped on the thoughts and musings of young people when out and about. And with some lively performances by the two young men, you feel drawn into their bizarre little world as the conversation runs from the routine to the ridiculous. It's currently having a short run at the White Bear Theatre in Kennington.  The premise is that Paul (Iwan Bond) is searching for a job that becomes increasingly desperate. He wants to find a job in media (whatever that is) but has neither the skills nor the experience to do it. And being based in Herefordshire rather than London makes it a stretch to be considered for anything. His mate, Snowy (Evan L. Barker), seems to be on a journey of self-discovery. His fat...

Camp as Christmas: Hot Gay Time Machine @Trafstudios

Watching Hot Gay Time Machine by yourself at first is a bit like being the designated driver at a party. You’re just not drunk enough to appreciate it. But this high energy, high camp, gay gore extravaganza grows on you. The piece was a hit at Edinburgh Fringe and now has a brief run on the West End in the downstairs space of Trafalgar Studios.

Written and performed by Zak Ghazi-Torbati and Toby Marlow, the time machine part of the story are the pivotal gay moments of Zak and Toby’s young lives. Mostly this involves gay sex and brief encounters in changing rooms. But from the moment Zak and Toby burst into the theatre foyer introducing themselves, the scene is set for a party of shimmying and sashaying.

The stories are set to music performed by Marlow on keyboard. His lyrics tend to be less innuendo and more in your face. But even if artistically suspect, the filthier he gets the audience only seems to appreciate it more.

Marlow with Lucy Moss had the hit show Six, which was about the ex wives of Henry VIII. That was presented as a Tudor-style Spice Girls show. Here they give us something looser here. In every sense of the word. There’s plenty of audience participation, musical theatre references and life size cut outs of Beyoncé. With all that to contend with, it’s inventive and evocative.

Definitely not for all tastes, you get the sense with such a catchy title it could be the start of an enduring act. If those tiny pink shorts can go the distance.

Co-written and Directed by Lucy Moss, Hot Gay Time Machine is at Trafalgar Studios until 5 January. This Christmas go gay.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Photos by Pamela Raith

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