Les Primas

I've known for a while that I want to work in theatre. You could say an obsession with theatre is in my genes. However, if someone had told me that I'd be making my professional technical theatre debut (something I never did at amateur level- backstage was every bit as cliquey as onstage at school) with Les Primas, a drag ballet troupe in a pub theatre, I never would have believed it. It still feels a bit surreal. When I signed up at the Rosemary Branch Theatre as a sort of errands girl, I expected to sell tickets and deliver leaflets (which I did), but at the dress rehearsal I found myself put in charge of sound. I was probably more nervous than the performers on opening night (which was especially exciting as we were listed above the Mariinsky in Time Out). It's hardly the most complicated job (far less so than lighting), but I think being taken out of my comfort zone has given me a lot of confidence and I had such a high when everything went according to plan, and the show was received with enormous enthusiasm. I honestly hadn't felt so happy or positive in quite a long time. It's hard to overstate how good it felt to feel useful again.

I feel very lucky to have been able to watch the creative process, and to observe all the little details that make a show come together. The cast, led by the effervescent Joel Morris as prima ballerina Margot Funtyme (he's absolutely extraordinary in the sense that he dances- ON POINTE- and looks like a real ballerina- it isn't like watching a man in drag at all), are all remarkably talented. Joel is supported by Leigh Alderson (the perfect male dancer- I have no doubt that this young man has a very big future ahead of him and I may have nearly passed out on opening night when he delighted us with some surprise moves to 'I Get a Kick Out Of You') as premier danseur Rudolph Koklova, Ian Archer-Watters as Iamaya Plisetswanskaya (Margot's rival), actor and ballet newcomer (though you'd never guess...) Michael 'Tim' Heywood as character dancer Irek Tchnyob (and also offers some stand-up and cake as Doreen, the Northern cleaning lady), and finally Gary Albert Hughes (one of the loveliest people I have ever met) as hostess and singer Misty Willow (the ultimate in glamour- a bit like a benign Norma Desmond). It's the most wonderful, affectionate pastiche of classical ballet (the bitchiness, the upstaging, the milking of applause, the bows that go on forever), and the cast know how to milk every single nuance for every laugh it's worth. I love the way that they manage to blend the high camp silliness and the beauty and intricacy of the dancing together so skillfully. I have to admit that I was originally expecting it to be very much a niche show aimed at a very specific audience, but I couldn't have been more wrong. It's perfect for anyone who likes to be entertained (I appreciated how the innuendo was kept to a minimum- it's much funnier that way). Tutus, glitter, false eyelashes and fairy lights- what could be better?

Les Primas ought to be recommended on the NHS to anyone who's feeling low. As one audience member commented, "It's better than Covent Garden!" I couldn't have hoped for a more fun first show to work on. If they return to the Rosie, I'll have to force everyone I know to come along. I'm never going to be able to watch Swan Lake in the same way again, but somehow it feels worth it.