POC Revue 2021: Revues are back with a bang!

Liangyu Suns reviews.

The 2021 People of Colour (POC) revue, ‘The Period Piece’, was an animated performance that confronted big issues whilst finding the joy and absurdity in everyday life. The spirited cast left the audience in stitches with their witty takes on pandemic life and drew from their diverse experiences as POC to take some clever digs (and takedowns) at everyday racism. For two hours, the Reginald theatre was packed with audiences for the first Post-COVID theatre season, as well as cheers and raucous laughter. 

The 2021 POC revue, directed by Areebah Mirza and Madhullika Singh, kicked off with an impressive dance number (choreographed by Ping-Hui Ho), with performers dressed in period show-inspired clothing and costumes. Opening skits including the Covid-inspired medieval piece and the hilarious take on the everyday ‘Where are you from?’ gave the audiences a punchy start to the show.  

This revue was not interested in just replaying tired tropes with an all-POC version of Hollywood however.  Rather, through reincarcerating well known characters and storylines from popular culture (from Captain America to Ariana Grande and Scarlett Johanson), the actors confronted the very racist stereotypes that such celebrity figures and Hollywood characters reproduce. 

The Gordon Ramsey skit lured the audience in with a hilarious take on kitchen-drama before subverting expectations of the well-known ‘Idiot-Sandwich’ line. In turn, the head chef exposed Ramsey as a ‘Karen’-esque racist and highlighted how many English language food shows are embedded with whiteness. In doing so, not only did the performance inspire people to reflect on the often invisible and subtle racism of reality shows but also celebrated the multiplicity and dynamism of POC stories.  

A perfect combination of high energy and crowd engagement carried the audience through confident displays of character work and the actors’ commitment to their craft - even in the most absurd of skateboard-themed skits. Other skits from the show such as the Twilight Inspired piece and timely takes on Bridgerton were simply hilarious. 

Before entering the theatre, I was expecting to see more skits relevant to the discussion of escalating hate speech and racism towards POC during COVID. Some pieces, like the ‘Hollywood Casting’ scene which referenced popular controversies such as Scarlett Johnhanson’s starring in Ghost in the shell, relied on convivial punchlines without further challenging why Hollywood casting is overwhelmingly white. With growing POC representations in major award-winning screen productions, such as Half of it, Killing Eve and the Oscar-winning Minari, I was expecting the skits to engage more reflectively and critically on the changing movie and TV landscape. 

In saying this, the revue reminded audiences that POC are not anti-racism educators. Their stories are to be celebrated on their own terms and in all their diversity. 

POC revue was well-written, the costumes were beautifully designed and the actors’ excitement was palpable. Considering the short time frame and challenges of a post-covid world, the cast and crew have made an especially successful return-to-season debut, and reimagined a more colourful, diverse and dynamic period show that countered stereotypes and made us laugh until our bellies hurt.