Outrageous singer and comic Lavinia Draper, who made her debut at Mr. Fire Island Leather 2012 Mark Nayden and DJ Richard Kennedy’s Excelsior Bar, in Park Slope, Brooklyn, in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, made a welcome return for a rematch on December 13 for a special holiday show, assisted by DJ RDK (Richard).
Dressed as a sexy Christmas elf, Lavinia opened with a romantic “At Last” and continued with “Rocking around the Christmas Tree,” with tap dance break. She related “Band of Gold” to her experience marrying gay men—five times—and gave us her customized version of “The Christmas Song,” to wit, “He’s loaded lots of whips and chains and paddles on his sleigh” and “To see which reindeer is straight, gay, or bi.” She passed out pizza and cookies, singing “A Little Too Late,” and in tribute to Cyndi Lauper, sang “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” while standing on the bar. Lavinia introduced a couple of guest singers: Luke Jones, celebrating his birthday (“At This Moment”), and this writer (“I Am What I Am”).
Saluting Liza Minnelli, and the possibly impending end of the world, Lavinia went on with “And the World Goes ’Round,” followed by “Come to the Cabaret.” She remembered Amy Winehouse with “Valerie” and Donna Summer with “On the Radio.” She invited audience sing-along with Queen’s “Somebody to Love” and with “Day by Day,” which began her ‘religious group,’ which she rounded out with “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” and “Like a Prayer.” She seduced us with Eartha Kitt song “Santa Baby” and after leading us all in singing “Happy Birthday” to Luke, dragged a chair to the middle of the bar and, singing and dancing “Mein Herr,” worked the room, the chair, and the floor.
Lavinia honored Barbra Streisand by singing “My Man” and Lady Gaga with “Yoü and I” and “Edge of Glory.” She sang of San Francisco in “When the Lights Go Down on the City” and, pointing out that she, like Lauper, is performing to raise money to help the homeless, closed with “True Colors.”
Look for Lavinia again at Excelsior, 390 Fifth Avenue, on a couple of Thursdays at 10 p.m. in January.