Transition is an exciting cabaret show organised by and for those in the trans, non-binary and intersex community. We have been lucky enough the attend multiple of these events (most recently the interaction headline by Drag Race UK season three alum Anubis which you can read about at …) These events are hosted by the fabulous queer emporium inside the royal arcade and aim to celebrate and at the same time educate those who fall under the trans umbrella. While these events are always highly entertaining, the focus of this event always stays the same. In fact, during the second act of the night a group of representatives from glitter pride (who we attended their pride event in Wales Millennium Centre which you can read about at …) and big queer picnic to talk about the issues surrounding corporate pride and alternative events that people could attend instead.
Taking up the hosting duties (as always) was the incredible Justin Drag who never fails to inject the perfect amount of excitement into the audience for every single performer on the lineup. Justin opted to open the their set with a wonderful high-energy rendition of “American Boy” by Estelle and Kanye West which was the perfect song to start their performance as every single person was singing along to the iconic track. In fact, at one point Justin went into the audience and offered a mic to a key audience who delivered a word-perfect performance of the rap section which everyone else went absolutely wild for! Throughout the night Justin could be seen donning a unique makeup style which made perfect sense during the Act Two opener. Those who are terminally online (like myself) will be aware of all the media attention dance mums alum JoJo Siwa is getting recently due to her recent track which has taken the world by storm. Justin decided to play onto all of the hype of the iconic “Karma” by delivering a visually accurate and choreographically perfect performance which yet again the audience went absolutely wild for. The intense, high-energy song again helped the audience to get hyped for the remaining performances.
One of the special guests for this event was the fabulous Whoremoans who decided to focus on the art of storytelling throughout their routine. The team clearly worked hard to create a plethora of props with a congestive storyline which tied every soloist and group performance together flawlessly. On top of this, however, the trio also decided to pay tribute to ballroom culture as they demonstrated dips, voguing and runway elements throughout the routine. It’s clear that this group come from a ballroom inspiration as these dance moments sprinkled throughout were absolutely beautiful to watch! The performance started with the three eccentric characters working in a chip shop as they delivered a rendition of Bipping by Bip Ling which talks about ordering a takeaway. These wonderfully camp openings then transitioned into each performer getting as one of the trio decided to chase their unrealistic dreams of fame and fortune. My favourite moment of the performance of the evening however had to be when one of the performers decided to pay homage to the iconic Sasha Velour who won Drag Race season nine with a rose petals style reveal but this time it was with chips which they proceeded to launch into the audience as the number came to an end.
One of the most iconic moments to ever come from Drag Race UK would have to be when the wonderfully eccentric Ginny Lemon walked out of the competition mid-lip-sync. As her run of the show was cut short, the world was left wanting more from the unique performer and so when it was announced that Ginny would be headlining the pride iteration of transition I knew we would be in for a wild ride. Taking to the stage in her iconic yellow tracksuit, Ginny started her routine with a mini comedy set that included jokes about Princess Diana (as she had a matching purse of the Princess of Wales) and the amount of alcohol she had consumed prior to taking to the stage. After this pseudo-microphone warmup routine took place, Ginny decided to do a performance-based warmup sequence with included a series of aerobics-style exercises which had the audience in hysterics throughout. Due to leaving earlier on the show, I don’t think that Ginny was allowed to showcase the range of her talents as she delivered an incredible rendition of “Baboska” by Kate Bush. This wonderfully eccentric song matched the performer perfectly with the vocals themselves being absolutely perfect. The end of the drag race alumni’s set took an unexpected turn as she decided to transform the royal arcade into a race as rendition she showcased a club rendition of “Bang Bang” originally by Nancy Sinatra which had every single person up dancing along with the usual track.
Overall, transition continued to be a fantastic event ran for and organised by people in the trans, non-binary and intersex community. Each performer brought something unique and interesting to the event which kept the audience on the edge of their seat throughout. Throughout the evening we experienced storytelling, comedy, rapping, live vocals etc which helped to make the event feel like there was something for everyone which again helped with overall focus of inclusion. I would rate this event 4.5 stars out of 5!
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