Review by Greg Gorton
Kinder, by Ryan Stewart, is a performance filled with passion but lacking in those things that really make a show stand out. Still, for those who love a good lip-synced dance number, outrageous costumes, and some occasional laughs, it could make a cheap night out that little bit different for you.
While the conceit of the Kinder is fascinating, a drag queen only having an hour to prepare for a library drag reading. “Kinder” here refers to children, while also being a pun that is never explored orally. This conceit, however, rarely plays into the narrative and instead forms a weak segue to move between acts. These acts alternate between stories about Stewart’s life, contradictory rants about children and parenthood, and lectures about book burning and linguistics.
The contradictions are hard to parse. They don’t come across as intentionally contradictory, expressions of the complexity of discussion of anti-natalism, or the character’s own hypocritical nature. Instead they come across as unrealised issues within the writer’s own thinking. In one sad example, the character says that a childhood school student should not now be a parent because they were immature as a child. These contradictions are made worse of course, when it is unclear if the person we experience in any one moment is the drag character “Goody Prostate”, the real person behind the drag, or Ryan themselves. Even now, I do not know if it was the “real” Ryan that we experienced at any point. Is Ryan a teacher? An ex-linguistics student? Who knows.
Somewhat unexpectedly, my favourite aspects of this show came in the lectures. The story of Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld and the Nazi’s first book burning was told with passion and education, while the short lecture on the etymology of “Kinder” could easily have been expanded into a discussion on the universality of the concept of “kin”. Would I have preferred a comedic “lecture” series by a drag queen? Most definitely.
In the presentation, Stewart is boisterously flamboyant, and their sense of timing is impeccable. This is a colourful show, filled with sound and light and music and, generally, celebration. The darker discussions are still never treated with great darkness, and the tone is brilliantly consistent throughout. While the opening number does start to drag, other musical pieces really “pop”. Most one-liners land well, even if some (again) contradict others, and others never find their punchline. While the music was too loud (a common issue at the Motley, rather than a reflection on Kinder itself) the lighting made the sometimes-drab stage turn into a fantastical dressing room. The costumes are amazing, and while the “children’s box” seemed forced in narrative, the props were interesting.
I do want to comment on something I’m seeing a lot of in theatre. Even if it means adapting your blocking, artists need to be aware of their venue and how that affects the people watching. When “Goody Prostate” was on the floor, even audience members as close as the third row were straining to see them, and audiences at the back had zero view at all. I think this especially impacts artists who are expecting a wider space between their stage and the audience, but I’ve faced similar issues on large stages such as Hamer Hall (looking at you, Penn and Teller). So yes, while it is a problem I wouldn’t specifically blame this production for, it is one that should be on everyone’s mind.
Ryan Stewart’s Kinder is a work in progress and it shows in many different ways. As it continues to be worked out, I can only hope that Stewart cuts the fat, highlights the unique, and not be afraid to step out of the box more. I do want to congratulate Stewart for being a part of La Mama’s 2025 Residencies program and hopefully that experience will help strengthen the play. For a tight one-hour show, it is going to be a fun little outing once complete.
