Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended
"...In the inauspicious history of the musicals of boxes they call juke, "Priscilla" was the most brazen of them all. I remember seeing the show on Broadway in 2011 and thinking they'd just thrown in random, really fun songs, not giving a hoot about narrative logic. I mean why not open with "It's Raining Men?" Who does not enjoy hearing "It's Raining Men?" Why not write a scene where someone leaves a piece of cake out in the rain, so you can torch "MacArthur Park." Why not throw in "Girls Just Want to Have Fun"? Who hates that song?"
Chicago Sun Times - Recommended
"...Part of the fun in watching “Priscilla” is to see how cleverly co-directors Derek Van Barham and David Zak, along with choreographer Jon Martinez and their design team, have managed to shoehorn a grand-scale musical into a storefront space and how they home in on the personal relationships, never sacrificing the required glitz and flash and big production numbers."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...This bejeweled and bedazzled jukebox musical, inspired by the Australian cult film of the same name, had a brief run on Broadway in 2012. Pride Films and Plays has put its seal to some brilliant new work of late, so inaugurating its new home on North Broadway with this barn-busting hero's journey of three queens on the road to glory seems only right. Meierdiercks shines as Felicia."
Windy City Times - Highly Recommended
"...None of this would matter an old mascara wand without a cast oozing charm and conviviality. The fluid ensemble led by Chicago icon Honey West, flanked by Luke Meierdiercks as the swaggering Adam and Jordan Phelps as the sensitive Tick, command the room with the presence of parade floats, as do Aaron C. Reynolds, Jill Sesso, Tuesdai B. Perry and Rebecca Coleman's Miss Understanding and the Divas. Book writers Stephen Elliott and Allan Scott might be advised to lose the offensively outdated "Pop Music" number, but their uplifting message of empowerment continues to be a rallying cry to gender rebels everywhere."
Time Out Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Priscilla is very much a jukebox musical, with a nigh constant barrage of ’70s and ’80s pop and disco hits like “Go West,” “I Will Survive,” “I Love the Nightlife,” and “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” Whereas the majority of jukebox musicals—which contain only pre-existing music—feel like the musical theatre equivalent of reality TV, for Priscilla it only feels right. In a show about drag queens, and Australian ones no less, why wouldn’t they burst into a medley of Kylie Minogue?"
ShowBizChicago - Highly Recommended
"...Pride Films and Plays present Priscilla, Queen of the Desert in their new venue to a cheering opening night audience. Resplendent in flamboyant ball gowns, lots of feathers and glitter, looking down over the vast red Australian desert: for three showgirls it was the dream of a lifetime, a four week cabaret engagement in Alice Springs. The problem is simply getting there intact, along with their refurbished bus “Priscilla.”"
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...The audience gets a ton of fun too, stretching from the Cockatoo Club on the coast to colorful country crossroads to a gold-lame extravaganza in a central spa (the marvelous anthem “We Belong”). Not left out is the film’s spirited “Sempre Libera”, Verdi crooned by a splendid soprano from the top of a bus to the hills of the Outback."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...Priscilla: Queen of the Desert -the musical is two hours of flamboyant dance, rich comedy and an adventurous story that resonates with audiences while we enjoy the toe-tapping dance numbers. To have fun, laugh, and escape form reality get to the Pride Arts Center and take in Priscilla: Queen of the Desert -the musical. You'll leave smiling! This is the first major "must see' show of 2017!"
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"..."Priscilla: Queen of the Desert" is an over-the-top, sparklingly disco, fabulous time! Unless you're a Grinch, you go home laughing and happy. The Pride Arts Center stage is small, so I wondered how everybody - and the bus - would fit. I'm happy to say it all works. I loved "Priscilla Queen of the Desert" and I think you will too!"
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...But, if that weren't enough, the score of this jubilant jukebox musical is so unbelievably infectious that it constantly draws the audience in with its pulsating disco beat. Filled with club hits from the '70's and '80's, it's impossible to sit still while songs like "Material Girl," "Go West," "I Love the Nightlife," "I Will Survive," "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" and "MacArthur Park" flood our brain with memories of a happier, more carefree time. Only a handful of the movie's original tunes have found their way to the stage version, but when you're boogieing to "Hot Stuff" and "Shake Your Groove Thing," there's no reason to split hairs. This magical, musical story of friendship and family that professes to all, "We Belong," proclaims a love for all with "True Colors.""
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Highly Recommended
"...If all that glitters really is not gold, don’t tell the good folks at Pride Films and Plays, whose Chicago premiere production of 2011’s Tony-winning Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is a bawdy hoot for ladies, gentlemen and those who have yet to make up their minds."
Picture This Post - Highly Recommended
"...This show has everything you could want out of a night at the theatre - a fabulous book, fantastic songs, beautiful costumes, and an outstanding cast. All I can say is get there while you still can! The performance is set to close this weekend, so if you have a chance to see it, you won't be disappointed."
BroadwayWorld - Highly Recommended
"...PF&P executive director David Zak either has gotten pretty good at reading political tea leaves or is just plain lucky. If ever there was a need for a laugh and a reminder of the intrinsic bonds of family that we in the LGBTQ community have to forge when abandoned by our own families/communities, it's now. Acceptance comes easy in a major city like Sydney (or Chicago), but even today the reception is less welcoming in a small town be it in the Outback or downstate. Co-drected by Zak and Derek Van Barham, the arrival of that great, pink bus called "Priscilla" could not come at a more opportune time."
NewCity Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...The girth of Luke Meierdiercks' (Adam/Felicia) talent tool belt is preposterous; what a clutch full of finery! Honey West is a transgender actress playing a transgender character at a time when the battle for transgender rights is on the firing line. Her Bernadette wears the halo of calm dignity that is only earned by embattled survival. West is the show's anchor and the room goes dry whenever she stops singing."
