Dorothy Paul @ King's Theatre

Dorothy Paul, Scotland’s much loved lady of show-biz, takes the stage with her newly-devised performance at The King’s Theatre. After entertaining for over sixty years she has unsurprisingly secured a loyal, white-haired fanbase.

Ms. Paul’s verbosity and liveliness rightly merits a stage of its own. Apart from the interludes of cabaret style music, from her endearing piano accompaniment and dance set trio (including her daughter) Paul captivates the audience alone. She energetically delivers a variety show, filled with personal anecdotes about love, aging, and primarily her past. While these memories are told with enthusiasm, regretfully the performance on a whole seems disjointed. She imparts her stories in no particular sequence, which consequently causes a query regarding the inclusion of each one.

Both the first and second acts open with Ms Paul dressed in lackluster garb, not too dissimilar to that seen in Mrs. Brown’s Boys, and from there we get a few more costume changes. In a purple evening gown, Paul takes some time in the hot seat to answer questions posed to her by the audience. To some, it’s an intimate insight into the life of the cherished entertainer. To others it could appear as a gimmicky (and self indulgent) way to fill two hours. 

Dorothy Paul’s performance is a niche affair. The reminiscing and local chat seem incredibly difficult to relate to or even understand for non-Glaswegians and people of a slightly older taste/generation. You may even find it bewildering. Yet sidelining these apprehensions and placing them in the appropriate context, it might become clear why her personality has managed to win a place amongst the greats in variety-hall tradition.