Maia Kahn
Romeo Lau’s debut play Blondie Blue Eyes is a drag show, a technicolour nightmare, a character study, and a multimedia cabaret all in one. An ambitious and expansive 50 minutes, it explores the performative and personal questions of race using equal parts audience interactions and internet references: The titular Blondie, played by Lau, is the picturesque ideal of White Womanhood, propped up in a kind of metaphysical livestream to her adoring fans. But what did Blondie give up — or kill — to get here? And can she really escape her past?
The combination of satire and body horror/transformation to interrogate assimilation in the Asian diaspora brings to mind works like the graphic novel American Born Chinese, the book The Eyes are the Best Part, and the film Slanted, while bringing its own point of view through theatre and particularly through drag. Surreal makeup and wigs aid Lau in parodying the superficialities of mainstream beauty standards and highlighting the inherent racist charge behind them. Furthermore, these props and accessories become metaphorical extensions of the self. Elements of “strictly mandatory” audience participation also implicate the present bodies acting as Blondie’s spectators. The show plays with the figurative (and literal) cannibalism of identity that has always existed – especially how it exists now, with digital aesthetics further complicating what it is to be a person – and asks how to fight one’s way out.
Mio Jue’s production design drapes the stage and cast in stylised fake guts, the mixture of abjection and crafty whimsy mirroring the script perfectly. Lau and co-star Yijia Gong, who brings brilliant physical comedy and a sinister edge to the narrator character, also complement each other well, their power dynamic shifting before our eyes and adding a layer of stakes to the performance. Co-directors Yiu-Ching Brendan Mahoney and Basil Wan find many clever ways to use the small Canal Cafe Theatre space to its full potential. Wan’s movement direction also pairs nicely with Vincci Chung’s vivid sound design in some key moments of horror.
There’s a lot at play dramaturgically here, and some segments could benefit from either being teased out for longer or clipped to make a joke or revelation land with more impact. The cyclical nature of Blondie’s predicament shows the Sisyphean task of her running from herself but the piece could build tension even more by more methodically pacing each beat out across the runtime. That being said, each set piece is memorable, particularly the ending, which intriguingly has two possible outcomes.
Chaotic and moving, Blondie Blue Eyes is an unforgettable theatrical experiment that isn’t afraid to get very deep – or very silly. This is an impressive debut that will only get better with time.
Lychee Martini
BLONDIE BLUE EYES
Performance Dates- Wed 4 Nov 2026
- Mon 9 Nov 2026
- Tue 10 Nov 2026
“There is no point in national pride When the nation I’m from is lost to me.” Combining elements of slapstick, movement and drag artistry, BLONDIE BLUE EYES follows the turmoil of titular character BLONDIE, who…
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Ben Powell
Shay Mace
