Rebecca Humphries is 27 years old and she fucking loves Disney. Good girl. I’m the same age and I really like Disney too. Handsome princes and fairytale endings – how many girls have sat waiting for their Prince Charming, only to grow up and realise that maybe he just doesn’t exist.
In Dizney Rascals, Rebecca takes us on a musical journey explaining how “Disney touched me. Walt Disney touched me.” but he probably touched us as well and might be touching our kids. The classic films, followed by the barren years (Treasure Planet… Wtf?), then the sudden hell yeah of Frozen – Disney is back in the game!
It’s clear that everyone in the audience loves Disney too – before the show even starts Disney songs are playing… And the audience are singing along (obviously). We also join her to sing about fancying animals because “if it’s wrong … Why do Disney make them so fit?” And let’s be honest – the Beast is so much fitter than his human self. But because we’ve all seen the films, we know why her wry comments and remarks are so funny.
Punctured with short film clips of the Disney princesses and their issues – Belle’s boyfriend likes S&M, Ariel is suffering from body dysmorphia, and Jasmine’s husband is a kleptomaniac – which Rebecca solves with chocolate and wine in true London 20-something style, Dizney Rascals is laugh out loud funny, especially when my friend Alex (for the second time that evening) becomes a target.
Rebecca (with her lovely pianist Jo) has produced a show that is well-observed, hilarious and downright rude! If you love Disney (and doesn’t everyone?) then you’ll love this. It’s the Disney version of Forbidden Broadway.
Reviewed by Michaela Clement-Hayes