Sequins sparkle on dull material
When drag comedian Varla Jean Merman says she loves a foreign tongue, you can bet she isn’t referring to Berlitz courses.
The wisecracking, oversexed diva is back in town, and she’s come armed with her usual battery of sequined gowns and naughty double-entendres.
Her sassy brand of humor gets a spirited if rather perfunctory workout in “Varla Jean Merman Loves a Foreign Tongue,” currently playing Thursdays at Ultra Suede in West Hollywood.
In this hourlong cabaret act, Varla Jean (alter ego of Jeffery Roberson) launches a mock one-woman crusade against American cultural imperialism and xenophobia. For the most part, that means performing songs such as Madonna’s “La Isla Bonita” and talking about Brazilian waxes.
Actually, Varla Jean spends a good part of the show presenting pictures from her recent 11-country tour. (“I did shows in three of them,” she adds.) There’s Varla posing in front of the Sydney Opera House, there’s Varla getting stoned in Amsterdam. She also shows scenes from an Italian dubbed version of her 2003 feature film, “Girls Will Be Girls.”
Roberson has excellent comic timing and performs the musical numbers with high-kicking energy. On opening night, Varla was particularly adept at engaging the audience in witty banter and mutual put-downs.
But there’s no denying that this campground feels more than a little overgrazed. The show moves from one tired ethnic joke to another (Germans and sausages; Asians and dog meat) without much conviction, and the rushed nature of the production suggests a tourist who’s trying to keep up with her busy itinerary.
The drag comedy circuit is hardly a bastion of artistic high achievement, but you can’t help wishing that Roberson and co-writer Jacques Lamarre had put more effort into their gags, most of which are curiously tame and quickly forgettable. Indeed, much of the show feels improvised, and not in a good way. The songs are equally bland and mechanical despite Varla Jean’s unwavering showmanship.
Director Michael Schiralli relies too heavily on pre-recorded video sketches to bridge the gaps between routines. Not coincidentally, these clips are available for purchase on Varla Jean’s latest DVD release, for which this show essentially serves as a glorified trailer.
As comically insubstantial as it is, “Varla Jean Merman Loves a Foreign Tongue” often delivers when it counts most, which is to say the gowns and wigs are satisfyingly garish and outrageous. Our host appears variously as a flamenco dancer, a Teutonic milkmaid and a beret-wearing French slut.
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‘Varla Jean Merman Loves a Foreign Tongue’
Where: Ultra Suede, 661 N. Robertson Blvd., West Hollywood
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursdays
Ends: March 27
Price: $25, plus a two-drink minimum
Contact: (310) 659-4551
Running time: 1 hour
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