I decided to head to Local Diva: The Danielle Smith Diaries at the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival (EIFTF) on Wednesday to see if it was as cringy as I expected. However, I was left feeling surprised, as I thought it had some worthwhile parts. While I disagree with Local Diva’s team about Alberta Premier Danielle Smith being disastrous for the province, I was impressed with certain elements. Low Hanging Fruit Productions invited me to watch Local Diva after I did a story about it for the Western Standard on Monday. I was accused of writing a hit piece when all I did was inform our readers about it. READ MORE: Anti-Smith play to be performed at Edmonton Fringe FestivalThe story was so consequential Local Diva actor Zachary Parsons-Lozinski had a meltdown about it. “Obviously my intention is to continue doing the show,” said Parsons-Lozinski. “It’s an important piece of theatre that needs to be seen, and I think this article is a testament to the fact that it needs to be seen.”.Local Diva tells the story about fictitious diva Tragidean. It reflects Tragidean’s trials, struggles, and stories. To start off Local Diva, Tragidean came on stage to music, dancing all across the stage. They jumped, spun, and lifted their arms in heels as they made it known they were dominant. I was impressed by their dancing, as it was thoughtful. Their moves were co-ordinated, and I felt I could understand who they were. While they were dancing around for some time, they stopped to greet the crowd and made a verbal introduction in a lacklustre way. They revealed they were worried about their future. “I feel like I’m constantly on the edge of a vortex,” they said. They spoke about gay bars and their distinctness, which I felt took away from the performance. I expected them to provide a few details about themselves before going into attacking Smith, which did not happen until later. They squatted down a little and made a goofy face, saying they thought Alberta was terrible under former Alberta premier Jason Kenney. “And it got worse,” they said. They joked about Smith’s tenure feeling like seven years rather than two, and I thought it was relevant. Alberta leftists must be feeling this way because she has been a transformative premier, implementing major policies they disagree with. While the jokes were funny, I felt they could have lasted longer. They should have borrowed some inspiration from Jason Kenney’s Hot Boy Summer: The Musical. They went after Smith for actions she had taken such as reforming the healthcare and education systems, supporting the oil and gas industry, and meeting with people with problematic backgrounds. I felt this part helped to build on the play.They had a decent drag origin story. They started doing drag after dropping out of university. I remember finding it funny when they said they put all their effort into their makeup and wore casual clothes the first time they did it. However, I would have appreciated some more energy to make it better.I appreciated them joking about the state of the media, as they were accurate. They mocked op-eds from politicians in the Edmonton Journal being treated as news, which left people in the audience including myself laughing. “How does it feel to be circling the drain?” they said. Another part I thought they did well were the jokes about going to a Catholic school. As a person who went to Catholic schools, I reflected on my own experiences when they spoke about wearing uniforms crushing their individuality. Local Diva finished up with Tragidean reflecting on going to a high school reunion and getting into a fight with a former classmate for using a homophobic slur. This part was too explosive and made it come across as unrealistic. While I do not follow woke theatre, I will admit this play was thoughtful at times. I would not go to it on my accord, but I can understand why people might. The EIFTF is about hosting plays for everyone, and I have a better understanding of that after watching Local Diva. I would give it three-and-a-half out of five stars.
