Trinity Rep’s “La Cage aux Folles” is a Big, Defiant Celebration of Drag

Zaza (C. Mingo Long) performs with Les Cagelles in La Cage aux Folles. (Photo by Mark Turek.)

Parents are calling for book removals in schools, hate groups are distributing literature outside a local library and several states are considering legislation to ban drag performances for children.

Is it the 1980s? Nope. But it sure feels like it sometimes.

That’s why Taavon Gamble, director and choreographer of Trinity Repertory Company’s La Cage aux Folles, thinks it’s more important than ever that audiences hear the timeless musical’s message of embracing one’s identity and sticking up for one’s family, whatever that may look like. Gamble spoke with Rhode Island Monthly about staging the show in 2024.

“We’re always looking for the lens of, ‘What does this show in particular have to still say to us? What are the themes and how does it relate to us today?’” he says.

“This show was first produced back in the early ’80s,” he adds. “As you read through, it was like, ‘Wow, these are conversations we’re still having today.’ To me, it’s the reason why this show continues to be revived over and over in New York City and regionally.”

Trinity Rep’s production doesn’t shy away from its source material, with big, bold costumes by Olivera Gajic and an immersive set design by Janie E. Howland creating the illusion that you’ve slipped not into a theater on Washington Street but a legendary drag club on the coast of France. According to Gamble, the theater brought in drag artists to attend rehearsals and lead a makeup workshop, lending the production an air of authenticity.

What’s more, it’s been embraced by the community. Following productions on June 7 and June 21, drag professionals Haley Star and Jacqueline DiMera will offer performances of Divas After Dark (ages 18+) in the Dowling Theater so audiences can continue the fun while supporting local talent.

As Gamble points out, drag as entertainment is never far away in our mainstream American culture. Television shows such as “RuPaul’s Drag Race” have brought drag to the masses, and musicals such as Mrs. Doubtfire and Tootsie have graced the Providence Performing Arts Center stage in recent years with nary a protester in sight. Where La Cage aux Folles presents differently is in its portrayal of the humans behind the drag performers and how their identities play out in their everyday lives. It’s a theme, Gamble says, that can be as meaningful for the actors as the characters they portray.

“I’m really trying to give my cast the freedom to not apologize for who they are, and to bring their full being into it and let that drive this story. I think that, to me, is the beautiful part and why we do what we do,” he says.

Fans of The Birdcage, the 1996 film version starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane, will recognize all the laughs in this tale of a drag club owner and his starring partner navigating the complications of their expanding family. Georges (Stephen Thorne) and Albin (C. Mingo Long) are understandably flustered when their son, Jean-Michel (Michael Jennings Mahoney) announces he’s getting married. However, in this version, the play dives deep into themes of acceptance, with Georges and Jean-Michel coldly banishing Albin from the house for the night to assuage the fiancee’s conservative family. Albin, who performs as the incomparable Zaza, lets loose with a heart wrenching rendition of “I Am What I Am,” reminding the audience that for the victim at its heart, the family drama is much more than a comedy of errors.

Between the serious moments are delightful performances from the club’s dancers, Les Cagelles. And of course, the show finishes with a big finale once the fiancee’s family, including Renaud (Dereks Thomas), M. Renaud (Jenna Lea Scott) and Anne (Kayla Shimizu), joins the stage. The final scenes challenge the audience as much as amuse, owing largely to the immersive setup where viewers feel a part of the action.

“It hearkens back to the original intent that the writers actually wanted for this to be a little more intimate and a little more, dare I say, dangerous in a way,” Gamble says. “The audience is actually another character in the show with us and participating in the event rather than sitting back and watching the event.”

At its heart, La Cage aux Folles is a fun production whose serious undertones remove none of the joy of its performance. And, of course, with Pride Month upon us, the time is right to indulge in a show that celebrates the LGBTQ+ community. Still, Gamble knows that for a portion of his audience, what’s playing out on stage is far more than entertainment.

“The person that I am doing this for are the folks who still live in fear or are still questioning their identity or still have that fear of living out loud and being able to present themselves as they believe they are — the hope that they can come out of this with a little more hope for themselves. That’s the person that I hope this touches the most,” he says.

La Cage aux Folles plays at Trinity Rep through Sunday, June 30. Visit trinityrep.com for times and ticket prices.

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