When I first saw this show five years ago, in another touring production, I was pleasantly surprised by the way that the kind of outrageous camperie, usually the preserve of the ‘Ugly Sisters’, had escaped the nursery of the much loved British institution and given drag artists a grown-up voice.

The present show, produced by Jason Donovan, confirms that previous assessment. Notwithstanding the fact that the show is as camp as a row of tents it does nevertheless have a solid heart. The Australian Outback is as vast and as seemingly blank as one might wish as a backdrop for one’s metaphor of choice and whether one views Priscilla Queen of the Desert as a simple ‘road’ or ‘coming of age’ story, be that of the main characters or indeed, Australia, the theme of self-discovery is the glue that holds the set pieces into a coherent whole.

Director, Ian Talbot, gives due weight to the sentimental sections without becoming mawkish and allows the people behind the costumes to glimmer through the sharp repartee. The three leading actors, Miles Western as the transsexual Bernadette and Nick Hayes and Edwin Ray as Adam/Felicia and Tick/Mitzi respectively, each find some substance behind the drag as they sweep across the outback with its inevitable rejection and surprising acceptance.

However the heavy dollop over made-up and overdressed fun factor of this production comes from the set pieces; the fabulous over-the-top costumes and the high quality dance and song numbers. The three Divas; Claudia Kariuki, Rosie Glossop and Aiesha Pease are peerless and I for one could listen to them all night as they rip through some disco favourites and pop classics. Tom Jackson-Greaves’ choreography is a visual delight and has the ensemble dancers fizzing with provocative energy.

This is the kind of show in which the costumes play a leading part and we have to mention designers, Phil R Daniels and Charles Cusick Smith. It used to be the case, it seems like several generations ago, that the big costume number was reserved for the ‘walk-down’ in the finale. That tradition flew out of the window and off into a distant eucalyptus tree; virtually every costume in this production vies to be a walk-down frock gleefully screaming for me-me attention.

This is a play that clearly has a loyal fan base and the sprinkling of audience members who had gone to the trouble of dressing up will auger well for the rest of this tour. It is fun, colourful and energetic and can’t fail to entertain.   ★★★★☆   Graham Wyles  27^th July 2021 at Bath Theatre Royal