Dickie Beau at Contact

Prepare yourself for something quite extraordinary: if ever a man has challenged the boundaries of flamboyancy it is Dickie Beau. A self-styled ‘drag fabulist’ and University of Manchester drama department alumnus, his vivacious theatrical performances take inspiration from the arts of clowning and vaudeville, dance and mime. A Time Out cover star, and winner of Best Alternative Performer at the capital’s Cabaret Awards, his latest offering, Blackouts: Twilight of the Idols, conjures an eccentric journey through the trials of female stardom, suicide and sadness, set against a backdrop of glitter and decadence. Dickie Beau focuses his idolism on Marilyn Monroe and Judy Garland, juxtaposing their power and beauty with their frailty and despair. With his eerily splendid voice and graceful yet precise physical performance, the artist creates a dark and moving phantasma of goddesses past while offering a poignant warning about the price of fame.

Thu 15 – Sat 17 Nov, Contact, Oxford Road, M15 6JA, Tel: 0161 274 0600, 7.30pm, £10 (£6 conc), contactmcr.com