Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In these tenuous times, JINKX MONSOON shined like a beacon in her captivating Carnegie Hall debut

• By drediman
• February 17, 2025
• No Comments

On Valentine’s Day, I had the great opportunity to catch Jinkx Monsoon make her highly anticipated Carnegie Hall debut in front of an adoring sold out audience. For those of you unfamiliar with the entertainer, Jinkx is a two-time winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race, which has established her as one of the legendary drag queens currently working the circuit. In recent years, she’s expanded her reach to encompass high profile legitimate theater, having appeared on Broadway in the long-running Chicago as Matron “Mama” Morton, as well as Off-Broadway as Audrey in the popular revival of Little Shop of Horrors. This spring, Jinkx will be returning to the Great White Way in Roundabout Theatre Company’s production of Pirates! The Penzance Musical.

The performance has been co-written and directed by BenDeLaCreme — Jinkx’s fellow Drag Race alum and longtime collaborator — who together represent perhaps the smartest and most theatrically astute entertainers to emerge from RuPaul’s queendom. Although their show is appropriately built around the theme of love, they’ve put an interesting spin on the notion, instead focusing on its more alternative aspects (e.g., sex, self-love). The performance was also a defiant statement in the face of the takeover of the Kennedy Center by Trump. To be sure, you won’t find drag performers like Jinkx headlining the Trump-era Kennedy Center any time soon, particularly given the President’s active and open agenda to repress and undermine the queer and trans community. Indeed, by boldly strutting her unique brand of drag — an irresistibly devious blend of intelligence, crass, and heart — at such a prominent venue as Carnegie Hall, Jinkx shield like a beacon, giving the reeling industry the kind of hope it needs during these tenuous times.

As for the performance — as the young people say, Jinkx slayed. Throughout, this self-proclaimed Goddess commanded the legendary venue as if it was an intimate cabaret club. Nevermind that some of her banter verged on didactic and exposed her love of exposition, we were all there to worship at the Church of Jinkx. As far as her song selections, the concert represented a very eclectic set, including songs from the Broadway songbook (e.g., the sultry “A Call from the Vatican” from the musical Nine) to the popular songbook (e.g., a moving rendition of Death Cab for Cutie’s “I Will Follow You Into the Dark”). Performing with an excellent small orchestra led by music director Will Van Dyke on keys (her longtime music director Major Scales also made a welcome appearance), Jinkx was in excellent voice, showing off her solid belt and rich higher register. Additional, she also looked fabulously svelte and stylish in two gorgeous gowns — one seductively black, the other lusciously red.

RECOMMENDED

JINKX MONSOON
Cabaret / Concert
Carnegie Hall
2 hours, 15 minutes (with one intermission)
One-night-only on February 14