‘No men, no meat, all manners.‘
The ‘widows’ of the Susan B Anthony Society for the Sisters of Gertrude Stein have gathered for their annual Quiche Breakfast, where the winning delicacy will be unveiled. But above them, the world is about to change dramatically…
As we enter the theatre, decked out as a fallout shelter, the five ladies greet us warmly and issue us with name stickers (all women’s names, of course), and welcome us to their meeting. It’s a ragtag band of sisters, including Scottish multiple ice dancing Olympian Sinead Kerr who marks her return to her home city by taking part in a festival where she’s been an audience member from the age of 6.
And what a return it is. As tempers fray, hierarchies are reinforced and breakfast is fought over, Sinead’s character has one of the more entertaining food-based breakdowns I’ve seen on stage. When the sisters discover the rest of their precious quiches lie outside the single-use door, someone will have to make the ultimate sacrifice to rebuild the great American nation, resulting in both a moving discussion of trauma and a supremely macabre comedic moment.
The audience are a crucial part of the show. One unfortunate sister gets picked on throughout for her sub-par baking and another unnamed infraction – the gent in question runs with it marvellously and even comes on for bows at the end – but we’re all called to declare our gay truths in a rousing collective confessional.
At times tender, at others raucous and campy, 5 Lesbians Eating A Quiche takes aim at the patriarchal norms of the 1950s and provides a burst of queer joy that’s sorely needed this year.
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5 Lesbians Eating A Quiche is at Paradise In Augustines from 7-15 Aug at 13:25, with extra late shows at 21:25 on 14/15 Aug.