{"id":88595,"date":"2025-07-24T12:19:10","date_gmt":"2025-07-24T12:19:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/88595\/"},"modified":"2025-07-24T12:19:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-24T12:19:10","slug":"angsty-teen-realizes-his-drag-queen-dream-in-winning-production-of-catchy-musical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/88595\/","title":{"rendered":"Angsty teen realizes his drag queen dream in winning production of catchy musical"},"content":{"rendered":"

When English teen Jamie Joseph Campbell decided to wear a dress to prom, he reached out to a number of production companies to see if they wanted to chronicle his journey. The resulting BBC documentary, Jamie: Drag Queen at 16, led to a stage musical, and later turned into a film.<\/p>\n

That sense of confidence, with an edge of angst-ridden teen desperation, permeates Uptown Players\u2019 clever, winning production of Everybody\u2019s Talking About Jamie, which premiered in 2017 in Sheffield, England.<\/p>\n

Catchy tunes by composer Dan Gillespie Sells and lyricist Tom MacRae, who also wrote the book, range from light, upbeat rap (opening number \u201cAnd You Don\u2019t Even Know It\u201c and the rhythmic, New Wave-y \u201cWork of Art\u201d) to soaring ballads (\u201cSpotlight,\u201d \u201cIf I Met Myself Again\u201d) to radio-friendly pop (\u201cThe Wall in my Head\u201d).<\/p>\n

\"JamieJamie New (Henry Cawood) shows off his new high heels to his mother, Margaret (Mary Gilbreath Grim), in Uptown Players’ production of “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.”(Mike Morgan)<\/p>\n

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We meet Jamie New (sunny blonde Henry Cawood) in a classroom buzzing with adolescent energy, despite the presence of the appropriately named Miss Hedge (Laura Lyman Payne). With results of their aptitude tests in hand, she\u2019s the careers teacher blocking their view of dream jobs, making them question their futures.<\/p>\n

Related:Get \u2018Buzzed\u2019 with new musical satire about climate change from Dallas actor CJ Critt <\/a><\/p>\n

Jamie, who tried on his first pair of high heels at 8, knows he\u2019s destined to be a drag queen instead of a forklift driver. The conviction is bolstered by his supportive single mother Margaret (Mary Gilbreath Grim), her close friend Ray (Brett Warner) and his hijab-wearing Muslim bestie Pritti Pasha (Laila Jalil), who can relate to his outsider status.<\/p>\n

On his journey, Jamie faces an absent, ashamed father (Jericho Thomas), a bullying but weak classmate Dean Paxton (Sam Illum) and school rules that would thwart his plans to dress in drag to the rite of passage that is prom. Then he meets a mentor, Hugo Battersby (Doug Fowler), a retired drag queen who went by the name Loco Chanelle and now owns the clothing shop Victor\u2019s Closet. Get it?<\/p>\n

\"JamieJamie New (Henry Cawood) finds a best friend in Pritti Pasha (Laila Jalil) in Uptown Players’ production of the musical “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.”(Mike Morgan)<\/p>\n

Uptown\u2019s production, helmed by director Penny Ayn Maas, gets almost everything right, including a flexible set by Kevin Brown that morphs school chairs into a runway, brick facade and nightclub tables, and rotates the New family kitchen and Hugo\u2019s store out from behind the back walls.<\/p>\n

The actors playing Jamie\u2019s classmates are young and energetic enough to pass for Year 11 students, propelled by lively choreography from Evor Wright. The show\u2019s trio of drag queens \u2014 Laika Virgin (Jacob Hemsath), Sandra Bollock (Tyler Ray Lewis) and Tray Sophisticay (Arya J. Valley) \u2014 are fabulously costumed by Suzi Cranford. Everyone sings well, with Jalil and Grim standing out on signature tunes.<\/p>\n

Related:Review: Hip Pocket Theatre buzzes through broad Lorca comedy<\/a><\/p>\n

The one flaw, at least in the performance seen last Sunday, is the inconsistent, teetering use of British working-class accents, a frequent if minor distraction.<\/p>\n

Despite his precocious cockiness, Jamie learns lessons in how to get what he wants. And despite its lightheartedness, Everybody\u2019s Talking About Jamie becomes a touching look at hard-won individuality.<\/p>\n

\"JamieJamie New (Henry Cawood, seated) visits his drag queen friends played by Jacob Hemsath, Doug Fowler and Arya J. Valley in Uptown Players’ production of “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.”(MIKE MORGAN)<\/p>\n

Details<\/b><\/p>\n

Through Aug. 3 at the Kalita Humphreys Theater, 3636 Turtle Creek Blvd., Dallas. $35-$70. uptownplayers.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n