Jinkx Monsoon Is: Cursed, Glee Club, Birmingham - review

Those in the audience who had previously seen the comedy drag queen, played by 30-year-old Seattle performer Jerrick Hoffer, may have expected Jinkx to be accompanied by a plethora of props, a piano, and her writing partner Major Scales.

But after previously touring musical show The Vaudevillians, the performer returned to the Glee Club last night with her first solo show, Jinkx Monsoon Is: Cursed.

First up to satiate the hungry crowd however, was Bristol 'drag prince' Alfie Ordinary with his entertaining blend of live music and comedy.

"There is only one thing I indentify as, and that's being absolutely fabulous," Alfie told the cheering crowd, before singing pitch-perfect covers of songs such as Queen's Don't Stop Me Now, Gloria Gaynor's I Am What I Am and a comedy rendition of Whitney Houston's iconic single Greatest Love Of All, complete with a puppet of the musical legend to 'sing' the solos Alfie couldn't.

The Bristol performer left the stage in a trail of sequins and loud cheers, clearing the floor ready for Jinkx's eagerly-anticipated set.

Confidently striding onto the stage in a glittering black dress with flawless make-up and striking orange hair, the star was immediately greeted by adoring screams from her fans.

From this moment on Jinkx had the entire audience in the palm of her hand. They may have been expecting the 'kind and loveable' character they had grown to love on Drag Race, but she soon dispelled those preconceptions.

"If you've come here today Birming-um expecting the 'water off a duck's back' Jinkx, you need to go home, there's going to be a lot of blue talk," she informed the crowd, before launching into her hysterical performance.

Jinkx Monsoon Is: Cursed saw the star tell stories from her disastrous love life, which she believes is the fault of a terrible family curse, coupled with renditions of popular songs with a 1940s twist.

From tales of her infidelity to anecdotes about her friend - comically named Big Gay Sean - amputating his finger, roars of laughter shook the walls of the Glee Club from start to finish.

The audience was so engaged with the show, that even the smallest smirk or raise of an eyebrow from Jinkx incited hysterics around the room.

Her approach, in which she admitted that she had 'wrote a script and then decided [she] wasn't going to use it' made the set feel intimate, as if we had all simply met her at a local bar for a gossip.

Jinkx used music to portray emotions that she had felt during key points in her life. From a rendition of Britney Spears' Oops! I Did It Again and Meghan Trainer's All About That Bass, to a jaw-dropping performance of Mars Argo's Using You, the singer showcased her impressive vocal range flawlessly.

Ending her performance on a cover of Gareth Valentine, Ruthie Henshall, and Ute Lemper's My Own Best Friend before treating her fans to a rendition of her own hit single You've Really Got a Hold on Me, Jinkx received a standing ovation from the audience who had all been simply blown away.

With a show packed full of expertly-executed comedy and jaw-dropping vocals, Jinkx Monsoon was the definition of an entertainer.