Latrice Royale, Glee Club, Birmingham - review

But RuPaul's Drag Race star Latrice Royale's poignant and uplifting new show Here's To Life could melt the most icy of hearts.

Crowds wound around the streets of Birmingham last night, eager to enter the Glee Club to catch a glimpse of the reality show star.

First up to entertain the audience however, was Glasgow queen RuJazzle, dressed in a striking baby pink dress covered in hot pink bows.

The queen entertained the crowds with a hilarious lip synch tribute to Barbie, before grabbing two volunteers from the audience to dance along with her to The Spice Girls hit Spice Up Your Life.

The charismatic queen created an electric atmosphere ready for the night ahead with her comedic stylings and impromptu audience participation sessions.

Walking gracefully onto the stage in a glittering pink gown, Latrice Royale was greeted with deafening cheers from the crowd.

Here's To Life saw the Drag Race season four star, accompanied by her fiancé Chris Hamblin, sing songs and tell stories about her life.

Opening the show to a powerful rendition of Chicago hit When You're Good To Mama, the 46-year-old queen demonstrated a stellar vocal range and hair-raising tone.

"You better grab a tissue, because you will laugh and you will cry," Latrice warned the crowd, and she was not wrong.

The queen, created by Californian artist Timothy Wilcots, told the crowd about her dealings with abuse in the home, her love for Drag Race which propelled her into the limelight, and how it helped her meet Christopher.

Her tales were greeted by roaring laughter, loud cooing, tears, and shocked silence as she emotionally told each story in graphic detail.

When Latrice laughed the crowd laughed too, and when she cried, tears flowed throughout the audience. Latrice is a charismatic character, and it was hard not to become engrossed in each story and feel her happiness and sorrow.

A real poignant moment of the show came when Latrice shared her deep and dark feelings when her mother passed during the time she was incarcerated. You could have heard a pin drop in the venue, and not one phone screen was illuminated. So engrossed was the audience, that the only sound heard in the venue was the buzzing of the speakers on stage.

One audience member broke this silence, exclaiming 'you've made your mother proud', and received deafening applause from the entire audience.

In just one hour Latrice had created a loving and supportive atmosphere, uniting the whole audience just using her powerful words.

Each anecdote was accompanied by a selection of songs performed by Latrice, such as Gloria Gaynor's I Am What I Am, Ruth Brown's If I Can't Sell It, I'll Sit On It, and a performance of her own single Weight.

Latrice's beautiful voice was partnered by Chris' smooth and melodic piano playing. Whether she was telling a story or singing a song, Chris was there creating emotive music that added depth and gravity to the show.

Ending on meaningful hits Encourage Yourself by Donna Lawrence and the Tri-City Singers, and Barbra Streisand's Here's To Life; the audience left the Glee Club uplifted and emotionally-wrought from Latrice's powerful show - I must admit, my eye's still feel sore today from all the laughing and crying I did.

If you see only one show this year, let it be Latrice Royale's Here's To Life.