Get into the groove as the Savannah Cabaret takes guests back in time to the 1980s in the funny, all-new theatrical cabaret show “Time Traveling Drag Queens in the 1980s” featuring live performances of some of the best musical hits of the decade.
In last year’s production, the Time Traveling Drag Queens went to the 1940s to help a USO troop put on a show. That show was full of big bands, standards, and jazz songs. At the end of that show they pressed the time traveling device to “travel” to another time in 2023, and now we know where they landed.
“They have landed in the 1980s, and the concept of this show is that they find themselves in a high school, and they have to help the kids put on prom. We also find out a little bit more about what the time travel device is doing and why it's sending them places,” said writer and director Rick Garman.
Garman is not “like a virgin” when it comes to writing and creating these gnarly worlds for audiences. If you love the 80s and the movies in them, you will find this show has just what you are looking for.
The Savannah Cabaret opens a time capsule of 80s movie trope characters including the mean girl, the ugly duckling, the nerd, the jock, the weirdo, and more.
“I am a child of the 80s and the teen movies are so iconic. John Hughes and all of those movie makers who made the great films of the decade…we're embracing those tropes,” said Garman.
The show goes like this: the prom is canceled at the last minute and the Time Traveling Drag Queens find out there is more at stake than just a dance, as this could affect the future of humanity. There is no time to take a chill pill since they will have to save prom and the world.
“There are quite a few twists in this show and some surprising people show up, and we find out more about the science behind the time travel device. It's a lot of fun and we go a little deeper into the ‘time traveling drag queen’ mythology,” said Garman.
Just like the famous decade, this show is jam-packed with dozens of stellar musical hits that will be performed live. Garman said he started with a lengthy list of songs for this show because this is a period he knows well.
“This was the hardest show that I've ever had to put together because–again–this was my era of music I grew up on. I was in high school in the 1980s and I started with a list of 1000 songs, and that’s no joke,” said Garman.
Garman said he narrowed the list down to 300 songs before letting the cast and crew pick what songs landed in the show. They managed to get that down to about 50 songs. (Every song will not be performed in their entirety.)
Garman joked that as he was making this list he realized that many of the songs from the 80s were five or six minutes long.
“We've edited a bunch of them down and we've put a bunch of them into what we're calling ‘mega mixes.’ [These are] medleys of songs from artists like Prince, which include ‘Little Red Corvette’ and ‘When Doves Cry.’ Then we've got one from Michael Jackson. We've got one from Madonna, Pat Benatar, Gloria Estefan and more,” said Garman.
Other tunes includes “Jessie’s Girl” by Rick Springfield, “Fame” and “Flashdance” by Irene Cara; “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” by Cyndi Lauper; “Physical” by Olivia-Newton John; “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Bonnie Tyler; “If I Could Turn Back Time” by Cher, and more.
The cast includes Treyla Trash, Sallie Just Sallie, and Kevin Hincapie as the Time Traveling Drag Queens performing alongside local theater vets.
“It’s the Savannah Cabaret’s biggest show ever,” said cast member Sallie Just Sallie, “with a dozen totally awesome cast members, 50 bodacious songs, a gnarly laugh-out-loud script, and rad 1980s costumes that will make this a blast-from-the-past experience audiences won’t forget.”
There will be two performances: Friday, May 12 and Sunday, May 14 at 7:00pm at Club One’s Bay Street Theatre.
The shows will cap off a week of 1980s programming at Club One including 80s Bingo, a trivia night, 80s karaoke, a 80s dance party, and more scheduled for May 8-14.More info about that can be found on Club One’s website clubone-online.com
Guests must be 21 years of age or older and the production is intended for mature audiences. Tickets range from $25-$30 and are available at SavannahCabaret.com
