ALOK @ Traverse Theatre

Alok Vaid-Menon's new comedy and poetry show at the Traverse Theatre has all the sass you would expect from the queer social media icon, when their best asset is being unapologetically themselves.  

ALOK defines elections as gigantic drag shows and marriage as a heterosexual endurance performance while pretend-pitying cis, white men for struggling in these hard times. They start their set with a spin on societal norms and stereotypes, laying bare what is underneath: a construct, a made-up thing. Amongst an audience comprised primarily of queer people and their allies, the first part of the set is witty yet a bit of an already-known trope, in a slightly new dress. 

It takes Alok a moment to arrive, but when they do break out of the snarky, shallow character into a more vulnerable, earnest version of themselves, it really hits deep. With emotive language, they depict the last days of their grandfather’s passing and the struggle of letting go of a loved one. It is in that moment they truly connect with the audience, meditating on death, pain, and grief. Sharing resonances with Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette, ALOK mixes witty commentary and observation and then undercuts them with moments of absolute vulnerability. 

ALOK pivots back from the depths of sadness with another joke, another punchline to release the tension in the audience, which constitutes the driving force behind this multi-layered show. Hard-hitting as Alok's performance may be, their self-advocacy on stage does not mean they are safe in the outside world. Trans populations are facing rising rates of violence – this is their daily reality.

Over the course of an hour, ALOK’s message is carved out with uplifting defiance against hate and with solace for anyone who falls outside of the gender binary: “That maybe in our pain – not in our fear – we belong to something greater.”

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ALOK, Traverse Theatre (Traverse Two), until 21 Aug, 9pm, £5-22