REVIEW by Rebecca M. Alvin

In Provincetown we are blessed with not just a drag show or two, but rather a wide-ranging assortment representing, or at least touching on, every ray in the drag rainbow. For the uninitiated, this dizzying array might make it difficult to choose a show. If you’re looking for the sort of drag that features an impossibly beautiful queen, you can find it here. If you want stand-up comedy in drag, you can find it here. If you want to hear impeccable renditions of songs by all the divas you love—not lip-synched, but live—you can definitely find that here.

But this is not the drag of Dina Martina. While she has her own kind of beauty, her shows are among the most hilarious in town, and she does sing many a diva’s song, a Dina Martina show is more about disorientation, things being off-kilter—like performance art meets David Lynch film meets lounge singer. It’s an experience you will not soon forget.

For years, Dina Martina has delighted her audiences in the small cabaret room at the Crown & Anchor, but if you haven’t seen her perform on the big stage in the Crown’s Paramount Club, you owe it to yourself to buy a ticket and get over there before the show closes mid-month.

While the intimacy of the cabaret setting had its charms, Dina makes great use of the larger stage, bringing her brand of drag chaos to new, bigger audiences. Dina’s shows blend her character’s small-town charm and earnest desire to entertain with unique pronunciations of everyday words, truly unusual dance moves, and references to obscure albums by people like Loretta Swit and the little-known plight of earthquake-clowns.

This new show, which appears to be unnamed, brings together all the things Dina has been known for, in her signature surreal approach to live performance. There are fewer video segments than in previous shows like Forgotten But Not Gone, Chariots of Failure, and Creme de la Dregs, but that just means more live Dina to enjoy.

There are all kinds of ways to escape the struggles of everyday life. Going to a Dina Martina show is one of the best ways; her jarring appearance, good-natured but hilarious wit, and the intelligent subtext of it all are without a doubt a temporary cure for whatever troubles you.

Dina Martina performs Wednesdays – Sundays, 7:30 p.m. at the Crown & Anchor, 247 Commercial St., Provincetown, through September 17. For tickets ($40) and information call 508.487.1430 or visit onlyatthecrown.com.