Thick & Tight will premiere their new production Camp as Christmas at the Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room this December, running from 10 December 2026 to 3 January 2027 as part of the venue’s 75th anniversary celebrations.
Created by Daniel Hay-Gordon and El Perry, the show combines the company’s signature mix of dance, drag, mime, lip-syncing and satire to deliver what is described as an uproarious and subversive antidote to mainstream festive entertainment.
Featuring a cast of characters that includes the Virgin Mary, Father Christmas, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Big Ben, Little Donkey, the Devil and even Reform UK, the production promises a playful and irreverent take on Christmas traditions.
Daniel Hay-Gordon and El Perry will perform alongside guest artists Annie Edwards and Harry Alexander, with the atmosphere described as celebratory, inclusive and queer.
Daniel and El said: “When the Southbank Centre invited us to create a Christmas show for the Purcell Room, we knew exactly what the assignment was: An hour of non-stop entertainment utilising everything we have learnt as performers and choreographers. In a way, it will be a bit like returning to our roots. Though El and I trained in ballet and contemporary dance at Rambert, as theatre makers, we began developing our style while performing in gay bars and queer venues.
“We combined the rigour and physicality of dance with what was going on around us like drag, lip-syncing and live art. We love to make work which exists somewhere between high and low art, campy yet refined, outrageous and gorgeous, strange and silly, showbiz and avant-garde, anti-elite and exceptional. Political AND entertaining AND accessible. Camp as Christmas will keep bouncing between these seeming opposites as that is what we love and what entertainment is to us.”
They added: “We want this show to be a great alternative show at Christmas time, for anyone who loves to watch dance, a panto or a carol concert but wants them all wrapped in one. A show which satirises and gift-wraps the season for you. We love to give audiences exactly what they want and hope they leave both giddy and stuffed to the brim!”
Aaron Wright, Head of Performance & Dance at the Southbank Centre, said: “The Southbank Centre is an engine of creativity: a home for artists to be their most adventurous and create extraordinary new work. As longstanding fans of Thick & Tight, we are thrilled to commission, Camp as Christmas, and present it centre stage as part of the Southbank Centre’s festive season. Our programming always seeks to offer new and existing audiences unique cultural experiences and Camp as Christmas is certainly no exception, expect a distinctively sizzling evening of cabaret dance, charm and cheer!”
The production is designed by Tim Spooner, Darren Evans, Nao Nagai and Claire Ashley.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
