Review: QUEENS

Director and writer Anne Welenc's QUEENS is a three-hander that blends classical theatre, opera and drag to conjure an afterlife where Elizabeth I, Mary Queens of Scots and other queens revel in the underworld.

Brought to Summerhall as part of the inaugural Made in Germany showcase, the Main Hall's fresco is apt framing for such a regal affair as the lights go up on the three queens of Mary, Elizabeth and Penthesilea (the queens of the Amazons in Greek mythology) in a murky purgatorial set. Their costumes are immaculate: stately and grand, queer and contemporary. Mary’s dress in particular is stunning, a tangle of pastel clothes sewn into a long train. So too is the singing they open with, an operatic lament bursting with beautifully arranged harmonies. 

It is a strong setting of the scene in a bold production full of provocative ideas and aesthetics, yet the rest of the hour does not build upon this. A disjointed script, lurching from one thing to the next, stifles the story and unspools some of its magic. The delivery is also a little unclear at times, especially in the songs.

Despite its more opaque moments, the queen character archetype across time, from mythology to the TikTok generation, is always compelling. And there are some very funny moments, particularly from the actor playing Elizabeth I, which adds sparkle to this visually rich production.