Are you a tiny-hearted Grinch? Or are you a Hallmark movie-watching Christmas lover? (Grinch here.) (Side note: Hallmark tried to feature a lesbian kiss in a commercial, but hate group ‘One Million Mom’s’ bitched about it so Hallmark pulled it. Maybe watch your shows in another form of Christmas entertainment this year.)
Either way, the two personalities can happily sit side by side at the ’12 Steps of Christmas’, the Queerbots HoliGAY show now playing at The Clocktower Cabaret. Everyone participates here, as the audience members become Holiday abusers attending an “AA” meeting. I guess that would be called ‘HA’ meeting in this case. (Holidays Anonymous.)
Fasten your seat-belts, as the Elf on a Shelf is your host for the evening, and he is pissed. This snarky (and sick of being shelved and/or put into nasty positions by all of you sick adults) Elf is played by Chris Parente, who works the room like an angry elf should. This relentlessly dynamic concept was concocted by Jon Jon Lannen and Chris Parente. Yes it’s improv, but it sticks tightly to a web of audience participation, Christmas movies, Christmas lore and any and all holiday traditions. Including maybe shootouts and evil doers. You know, regular Christmas stuff.
All concepts and audience ideas are brought to life by the duo, along with core Queerbots creator, Ashley Scroggins. All are the players who make up and produce, The Queerbots. None of whom are afraid to drop a Christmas swear or two. This is the kind of party where a cock ring may be found in the Christmas stocking for some naughty boy. Or a tiger. It depends on all of you Christmas-holics who attend the show. Be snappy and cynical yourselves, they can handle it. Who handles the most, is the radical piano accompaniment on every crazy cue, the prodigious, Robyn Yamada.
You might have seen this troupe at their original home, which was at Hamburger Mary’s before 2016. Now this brilliant team, who began improvising with one another in 2015, calls The Clocktower home. The camaraderie and impeccable timing of the actors only adds to the BEST of watching these three perform. They are quick, salty and always moving. Cheddars the Elf makes an appearance and you can also catch him on Jon Jon’s you tube channel when he’s not performing.
The show has two dates left. Tonight, Saturday December 14, and the last show, not to be missed, is next Thursday, December 19. Doors at 7 p.m.and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. Come in time to fill out a name tag for your ‘meeting’, enjoy the amazing atmosphere of Clocktower and bring a friend whom you can hopefully embarrass.
