How to Catch a Krampus
Pleasance Theatre, London

HAVING danced the night away at several of its industrial-scale glitterfests, I was curious to see how the international drag collective Sink the Pink would interpret the tale of Krampus — the child-napping half-bogeyman, half-goat of European folklore — in the murky confines of the Pleasance Theatre.

A little sceptical as to whether they could pull it off, I was pleasantly surprised by a production which, written and directed by drag queen Ginger Johnson, truly is “a black-hearted antidote to all things cheery this festive season.”

Set in a Victorian London that's more Hammer Horror than Dickensian, it has a spiritualist-cum-pantomime dame, played by Johnson, who's looking for her cat when she bumps into a desperate mother (Mairi Houston) in search of her missing son.

Agreeing to help reunite them — and with a fair idea of where he is — the dame sets aside her fears and embarks upon the quest.

This humble narrative is frequently interrupted by extremely fruity humour, frequent innuendo, subversive cabaret, singing — from carolling to Rihanna — knife throwing, illusion and even some impressively skilled Morris dancing.

And there are plenty of heels, wigs and lace as well as a live score, spine-chilling puppets and a Victorian dominatrix, played by the legendary Lavinia Co-op.

As well as providing a highly entertaining night, these queer performers — as Johnson says herself — offer something importantly different to a Coca Cola Christmas.

Go and see it, just don’t take your gran. Actually, take your gran.

Runs until December 23, box office: pleasance.co.uk.