Review by Steve Desroches
As soon as Sapphira Cristál takes to the stage at the Pilgrim House ensconced in an enormous royal blue evening gown fit for an opera diva with the sparkle of a pop star and the sass fitting of a drag superstar, it’s clear that her new show Mother Knows Breast is going to be a wild ride. And that it is. At this point in her drag career, Cristál has shot to national celebrity status after being the runner-up on season16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, in which she was also named Miss Congeniality, in part for her maternal ways with younger castmates. But for drag fans in Provincetown, particularly those who have been partaking in the drag scene in town for years, it’s a thrill to see Cristál return as she got her start in drag in Boston and Provincetown, first hitting Commercial Street in heels in 2011 as part of Ryan Landry’s theatrical troupe, the Gold Dust Orphans. Now a headliner on her own, Mother Knows Breast is a showcase of all Cristál’s talents as well as her nurturing ways.
A trained opera singer, Cristál walked into a voice lesson at the Eastman School of Music dressed as opera legend Leontyne Price, exhibiting a brass that would take Cristál far. It also was the first time an instructor allowed her to sing as a soprano, which is a highlight in Mother Knows Breast. In a show that is almost entirely sung live, Cristál shows incredible range singing not just opera, but pop, in soprano, alto, and everything in between. The musical selections are all a clever contribution to the show’s conceit that at this point in her life Cristál recognizes she is a drag mentor, or “mother,” as is the terminology in drag culture. And like a drag version of the old woman who lived in a shoe, Cristál has so many drag daughters she doesn’t quite know what to do (keen observers will notice the drag surname lives on in Provincetown with Qya Cristál). Actually, that isn’t entirely true, because Cristál is treating her case of empty nest syndrome by taking the spotlight for herself, and it’s an absolute delight. No matter Cristál’s playful potty mouth or comedic jabs, the takeaway of Mother Knows Breast is actually a gentle kindness packaged in a dynamic drag show that never lets up.
On this particular night a group of about five or six twentysomethings, each with a different shade of Easter-egg-colored hair, all clacking fans, howled with laughter and delight throughout. On the way out of the showroom a young fan turned to another and said with a snap, “Every day is Mother’s Day with her!”
Sapphira Cristál presents Mother Knows Breast at the Pilgrim House, 336 Commercial St., Provincetown, Thursday through Saturday, through August 15 with two special Carnival Week performances on Tuesday, August 18 and Wednesday, August 19, all at 7:30 p.m. Tickets ($40/$50/$75) are available at the box office and online at pilgrimhouseptown.com. For more information call 508.487.6424.
