There are some things you don’t expect to see on a Saturday evening, and that includes the live seduction of a folding blind cane, and a stage light so mesmerizing at least two performers become as entranced as a moth to a flame.
Enter stage right, the third instalment of Sheffield’s answer to a night of joy and chaos in equal measure – Queermageddon.
Queermageddon is a showcase of queer comedy run by Queer Comedy Sheffield, who host monthly open mic events (‘Quacks’) and give new and existing comics the opportunity to test new material (or stand up itself) in a safe and inclusive environment – a rare opportunity in the comedy world. Lucy Smith Jones, co-founder of Sheffield Queer Comedy and Queermageddon Emcee, told us before the show got underway that it was this ethos of creating a space for fun and queer joy that was so important to them:
“It’s really nice to be able to run another Queermageddon, and just keep having fun with it. We’ve got some old favourites returning tonight, as well as some new acts to look forward to!”
I cannot confirm or deny how she responded to being referred to as an ‘old favourite’, but Hannah Braggins, who performed at the first Queermageddon event in 2023 and has been a regular favourite slot at the Quacks open mic nights, said backstage she was looking forward to trying out some new material with the crowd. This was perhaps even braver for some of the newer performers, such as Kitty Messalina, who shared the night’s theme of taking risks (which surely is what good comedy is all about, no?) and was unsure how her background in musical theatre was going to translate on stage.
Needless to say, Kitty had nothing to worry about and ended up being arguably one of the most popular sets, using her keyboard and cheeky charm to share stories of revenge against dashed dissertation hopes, taking keeping it in the family quite literally, and exploring the limits of just how many words can rhyme with ‘metamour’ if you really try.
The experimental, uptempo sets of Hannah Braggins (she talked about keeping pet mushrooms, and I’m expected to not make a joke about her being a fun-gi(rl)? I’m only human people) and King Tito Bone, complete with a raucous cane seduction and striptease, were well-balanced by the calmer energies of veteran Vix Leyton and her millennial, big sister vibes, and Anna Thomas, who brought a refreshingly chilled, slightly stoned energy that was hard not to be charmed by.
We’re not entirely clear on why the event’s name shares a similar name to ‘Armageddon’, but if this what the end of the world looks like (in which Emcee Lucy predicts bisexuals everywhere will be trading in their tote bag collections as currency), there’s no need to be afraid of a little chaos, only accidentally deleting Kitty’s university thesis.
If you’re interested in finding your next queer comedy fix, Sheffield Queer Comedy will be hosting their next Quacks event in their new venue Showroom Cinema on Wednesday 19th February.
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