★★★
Alex Gibbon’s laugh-out-loud ride ‘on the intersection between disability and queer culture’ is as authentic and as it is filthy. Gibbon’s humour is bitchy, flirty, and never leaves a shady line alone, even if it’s in poor taste. They are totally in command, perched like a queen on the throne of their purple mobility scooter, ornate cane by their side. Alex’s performance is engaging and inviting, at once likeable but never afraid to arch an eyebrow or tongue-pop if the audience starts to misbehave.
Gibbon’s is candid when talking about being non-verbal, making jokes about the voice of the text-to-speech app they are using, and demystifying the common misconceptions people (and medical professionals) have about non-verbal people. I loved Gibbon’s fierce taking-down of the disadvantages verbal people have, and the stories about their ‘bad-life decisions’ make for a great equalising between ours and non-disabled communities.
Some of the gags did feel a little obvious at times, Gibbon’s is such a great performer, they don’t necessarily have to rely on constant one-liners to engage and make an audience laugh, their anecdotes and experiences are strong and original, carried by a wonderful stage presence.
Fat, Femme and Crippled is on at Bar 50 till the 15th August.
