What happens when a bunch of today’s biggest drag stars start getting witchy with each other? Turns out, a whole lotta fun.
I’m using the word “witchy” literally, by the way, not as a substitute for a similar-sounding “b” word we don’t print in a family newspaper — although there’s a smattering of that, too. We are talking about drag queens, after all.
But what makes “Hokus Pokus Live,” the new touring show fronted by Orlando’s Ginger Minj, work so well is the fact that these queens seem to really enjoy each other’s company. If they’re faking that, more power to them. Their sisterhood is fierce and fabulous.
Ginger was greeted with particular enthusiasm on Thursday night at Orlando’s Plaza Live by the hometown crowd, some of whom surely know Joshua Eads, the man behind the Minj so to speak. Prolonged applause greeted a riff on her recent win and erupted again when a castmate, in character, proclaimed her a “winner.”
Fresh off Ginger Minj’s big win, creator Joshua Eads feels ‘unstoppable’
Written and directed by Ginger, “Hokus Pokus Live” is a parody, spinoff, tribute and love letter to “Hocus Pocus,” the comic 1993 Disney Halloween film about the child-eating Sanderson Sisters that has become a cult favorite.
Fresh off her win on the latest season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars,” Ginger portrays Winifred, the bossy leader of the trio of witches, emulating Bette Midler, who played the role in the film. Sapphira Cristál, runner-up on “Drag Race” season 16, takes on the loopy sister portrayed on film by Kathy Najimy. And Jujubee, who like Ginger has appeared in four seasons of the “Drag Race” universe, takes on Sarah Jessica Parker’s role as the most dimwitted of the three.
Drag king Landon Cider rounds out the cast as Billy, Winifred’s dead ex-boyfriend. Cider adds plot-serving support with good humor, but the spotlight really is on the three sisters.
Their chemistry and affection is contagious. But another key part to the success of “Hokus Pokus Live” is how all three manage to channel their own personalities and the personalities of the movie characters simultaneously. Their interplay is a delight to watch.
Ginger’s script is fast and furious with gags and knowing pop-culture nods. I heard one woman, as she exited, saying “There were so many references, I couldn’t catch them all.” She’s not wrong; a lot of the fun comes from references to the “Drag Race” world, which fans will (and did) eat up. Unfortunately, the theatergoer — like myself — might also have missed moments because of the low-level sound problems at Plaza Live throughout the night. Microphones going in and out, or the volume seemingly set too low, that sort of thing.
The performers, especially Sapphira, who suffered the most, handled it like the pros they are. Thursday night’s show was the first performance of a national tour that has sold so well, more cities and dates have been added. (There are two more Florida stops: Oct. 18 in Tampa, Oct. 19 in Fort Lauderdale; go to hokuspokuslive.com for more information.)
Some of the show, surprisingly, plays like old Vaudeville sketches; at one point, we were almost in an Abbott & Costello “Who’s on First” moment. And I don’t know if it’s due to Ginger’s proximity to Walt Disney World, but there was even an old Tiki Room joke thrown in for good measure. More surprisingly, that all works right alongside the contemporary quips — because these gals understand timing.
They also know how much horseplay is enough — they cracked each other up, along with the audience, a couple of times but were quick to get back to Ginger’s script. And why wouldn’t they? There’s plenty of comedy there in the meta-references to theater, the shout-outs to “Drag Race,” the self-awareness that they are in drag. It’s smart stuff.
Yes, there are a few adult jokes (the show is for ages 18 and up), but they are well-placed, well-timed, genuinely funny and not overdone so they retain their bite. And how could they resist at least one risque reference when these are characters who literally want to suck the life out of people?
The parody songs are clever, too — ranging from old-school Britney Spears to today’s Chappell Roan. I’m too big a square to get all the musical references, but I can still appreciate a good old-fashioned Cher sing-along.
As Ginger proclaimed: “It’s a real Halloween hootenanny.”
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