Blogs

Our Trip Down the Pink Carpet with Jordan

| London's West End |

8 February 2011

Last night 75 Whatsonstage.com theatregoers made their way to the Apollo Theatre to see Leslie Jordan, most commonly known as Beverley Leslie in TV’s Will and Grace perform his one-man off-Broadway hit show My Trip Down The Pink Carpet which documents some of the highs and lows of his life. There had to be laughs and drug references as well as talk of celebrity and life in the Hollywood Hills. What there didn’t have to be but there was, taking this piece from mere comic story-telling to real-life drama, were intimate details of real personal struggle and the battle to find balance in life.

Jordan regaled us with tales of his time in Japan as a monkey with Boy George, as well as talking us through his struggle with internal homophobia and growing up in Tennessee in the 1960s. He talked us through his first experience of a gay bar and his time in cells with Robert Downy Jnr! Following an energetic performance which had him dancing to gay anthems as well as trying to do a little bit of hoola hooping Jordan headed off the stage and into the stalls where he chatted with us in our post-show Q&A. Terri Paddock who usually hosts our Q&As couldn’t be there last night so Joe Pike our Broadcast Interviewer stepped up to the plate and braved his first Q&A (and did very well, I might add)! Jordan was more than happy to answer all manner of questions, except for who in Hollywood relies on editing not talent. He did tell us about his housemates, known to his producers as his “poodles”, as well as his work off-screen with a charity which runs a suicide helpline and what, if anything he’d change about his past.

Please do feel free to email your comments and thoughts about the play, as well as any photos you have of the event and the evening through to feedback@whatsonstage.com, we love to hear from you.

Thanks for joining us for this event, and do check the homepage to keep up to date on all of our upcoming Outings.