For those who don’t know a lot about the Transition events , they organised by Queer Emporium (which you can read more about at https://rhysreviews.com/2023/02/19/transition-2-event-review/), these are events purposefully arranged to uplift and showcase the talents of those who fall under the trans umbrella. Having attended multiple iterations of the event, every single time offers something different and shines a light on both local and established talent! In classic transition style, hosting this entire show was the amazing Justin Drag who never fails to inject electrifying energy into any room he is in! This is the perfect characteristic for a house as it is their job to make sure the audience is excited for every single act regardless of how late onto the night it is. They decided to open the show with a fabulous rendition of “Man I Feel Like a Woman” by Shania Twain but had altered the lyrics to be much more inclusive of the trans community by changing the iconic chorus to “Man I feel like a they/them.” This alteration shows incredible forethinking from Justin (as he was able to consider who this event was for and create a safe safe from the very first song) and also he managed to sprinkle the perfect amount of comedy into the routine so that the audience felt relaxed and comfortable from the very beginning. My favourite performance from Justin however would have to be his rendition of “I Feel Good” by James Brown which is a song very closely connected to Justin and his gender journey thus far. You could easily see how much this song meant to Justin as they radiated joy and excitement which again was perfectly suited for the intended audience of this event!!
Next up was the brilliant Anniben (who we have also interviewed on our YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/R4huS0YgI0w?si=4ocQNJL7RaidwawJ) who as always showcases their unique brand of eccentric and high-energy performance style. Unlike previous performances we have seen from this Welsh drag performer (for example, their performance at the most recent Cabaret of Queerosities which you can read about at https://rhysreviews.com/2024/02/01/cabaret-of-queerosities-2-production-review/) Anniben decided to showcase their live singing abilities while still sprinting around every inch of stage and audience area to create a truly mesmerising and immersive performance. Even though love singing is not something we have come to expect from Anniben, they still managed to showcase their eccentric and unique dance style. They decided to perform the wonderful “Here Comes You Girl” but had also been doing a bit of re-writing for the song to be about celebrating their non-binary expression with “Here Comes Your Them” which again shows fantastic understanding of the purpose of the transition events and it’s audience. One of our highlights from Anniben’s set would have to be “I Got You” which is a powerful song about togetherness and the importance of supporting each other which is not only important all the time but especially important for the trans community right now. By the end of this number, every single person was roaring the chorus “I got you” at the performer which helped to further embed the idea of these transition events being a safe space.
Making their debut at Transition was the wonderful Wan Long Cok who is a drag king who came out of the Drag King Collective workshop (which you can learn more about at https://www.instagram.com/welshkingcollective?igsh=MTVsNDhndnYxdHQzeQ==) What I thought was particularly fascinating about this performer was the fact that they are a very exaggerated and over the top character which influenced every single moment they were on the stage. The self-dubbed “chicken seller by day and coloniser dominator by night” is a larger-than-life persona who is inspired by the performer’s Asian heritage. Their set began with Wan walking through the audience in a wonderful kimono and laughing confetti over the audience as they walked past. This entrance fits the characters themselves perfectly and showcases the importance of their Asian heritage. This then set them to transition into a highly impactful and sensual dance routine when the performer finally reached the stage. Immediately after this, Wan delivered a very powerful speech about racial inequality with a focus on the conflict currently taking place between Palestine and Israel. Seeing this over-the-top character take on such an intense and political issue doesn’t seem they could co-exist but by the end, the audience was chanting along with the performer!
Headlining this iteration of Transition was none other than the incredible Anubis from Drag Race UK season three. Anubis’ first performance of the evening saw her showcase a much more narrative-heavy style as she told the story of a mother during a very formal press statement about the terrible things her child has recently done. This flipped from the formal statement from the mom to the perspective of the child which was told through the guise of iconic Nicki Minaj songs. The contrast between the extremely upper-class woman at a press release and the intense rap-stress child was hilarious and had the audience laughing throughout! In classic Transition style, the second half of the event started with a very interesting Q and A with this event’s headliner Anubis and Joey from the queer emporium. What was particularly interesting about this segment is the fact that they purposefully avoided questions about drag race as this is probably all Anubis has talked about since appearing in season three. On top of this, the whole purpose of the transition events is to uplift and support those who are going through some form of gender journey and so allowing Anubis to just talk about their own experience with gender made for a much more purposeful and reliable conversation for the audience. Anubis not only had the audience laughing throughout but also really opened up about their gender journey thus far, their career and their inspirations which made for a very interesting and engaging interview to watch. In my review of the most recent Hell Haus event (which you can read about at https://rhysreviews.com/2024/04/18/hell-haus-3-production-review/), I talked about how if, by some miracle, I found myself a part of the lineup then I would have chosen to perform the powerful “I’m here” from the Colour Purple. In a truly random coincidence, a few days later Anubis decided to bring her set at transition to a close with an insane rendition of this emotional ballad. It is a total travesty that we were not treated to a showcase of their vocals during their run on Drag Race but they are an incredibly talented vocalist with one of the most moving performances I have seen in a very long time! What was special about Anubis’ performance was that the lyrics of this song had even more meaning behind them after she discussed her upbringing during the Q and A section and by the end of the performance there wasn’t a dry eye in the arcade. After hearing this song performed excellently by Anubis I think I’m going to have to rethink whether it would be some sort of sacrilege to even think about covering this song as it was done so flawlessly at Transition!
Overall, the transition continues to be an event for and by people under the trans umbrella while simultaneously showcasing emerging and established talent. The collective of performers took the audience through every single emotion throughout the night and the Q and A section allowed the audience to get to know Anubis and further create a safe space for everyone in attendance. I would rate this event 5 out of 5 stars!
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