Press for The Kinsey Sicks in Oy Vey in a Manger
Washington Post
'Oy Vey': Naughty can be nice
By Peter Marks Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Don they now their gay apparel! In an ecumenical display of wicked joie de vivre, the Kinsey Sicks are sending up everything that's holy in "Oy Vey in a Manger," a raunchily audacious declaration that nothing about the holidays is sacred.
If you haven't made the acquaintance of the Kinsey Sicks, it's high time you did. (Warning: for immature mature audiences only.) They're at Theater J through Jan. 2, and while other festive events may be decked out in red and green, theirs is of a bluer variety.
Calling themselves a "dragapella beauty-shop quartet," these four uproarious guys done up as wildly teased, rouged and girdled good-time gals sing fractured Christmas carols and Hannukah songs, riff on up-to-the-moment events and utter phrases no dainty dame ever would. (At the show I attended, a couple in front of me misguidedly brought along a young child; within minutes they were holding their hands over the boy's ears and minutes after that were scurrying for the exit.) CONTINUE READING
Oy Vey in a Manger
December 22, 2010 By Jayne Blanchard Leave a Comment
Seasonal schmaltz making you farklempt? Tarnish that tinsel with a refreshing nip of filth in The Kinsey Sick’s raunchy holiday roundelay Oy Vey in a Manger.
The Aaron and Cecile Goldman Theater at Theater J has seen some sights in its time, but probably not four men in perfectly-coiffed drag singing seamless a capella harmony (they call themselves “dragapella” and a “beauty shop quartet”) while doing things like tossing pubic wigs out into the audience or gyrating suggestively atop a dreidel. The beauty of the Kinsey Sicks is that they are equal opportunity parodists—gays, straights, Christians, Jews, liberals, Republicans all get the non-PC treatment. Nothing in this fast-paced musical revue is sacred or off-limits and thank God for that.
The San Francisco-based drag quintet specializes in twisted reinterpretations of holiday classics—and this being Theater J, we’re not just talking about Christmas. You may never look at Yiddish folk songs or klezmer music exactly the same way after seeing the Sicks. Cockles-warming, chestnuts roasting by an open fire—we won’t even go there. CONTINUE READING
Washington Examiner
'Oy Vey in a Manger' a naughty take on the holidays
Print By: Barbara Mackay 12/20/10 8:05 PM
Special to The Examiner
The Kinsey Sicks, Dragapella Beautyshop Quartet, will be performing this week at the Theater J, 16th St. NW.If Santa checks his list twice to see who's naughty and nice after seeing "Oy Vey in a Manger" at the D.C. Jewish Community Center's Theater J, it's a cinch he'll decide the Kinsey Sicks, who perform "Oy Vey," are naughty. The four men dressed as women who make up the Kinsey Sicks take delight in going out of their way to be naughty. And outrageous. Even scandalous.
The Kinsey Sicks, who call themselves a Dragapella Beautyshop Quartet, deliver a variety of a cappella songs in all their shows. In "Oy Vey," those songs are built around Christmas/Hanukkah themes. The premise is that the four women, two Christians and two Jews, live together in a manger previously occupied by a family named Christ.
Because of financial troubles, they need to sell the scruffy manger fast and are waiting for prospective buyers to arrive. Signs for "Open House" and "For Sale by Owner" flank the stage. CONTINUE READING.
Metro Weekly: Sicks Appeal
DC Theatre Scene
The drag a cappella group the Kinsey Sicks finds increasing popularity in a changing America
By Doug Rule
Published on December 16, 2010, 1:42am | 0 Comments, 0 Tweets
''As the culture is changing,'' says Irwin Keller of the drag a cappella group the Kinsey Sicks, ''we become sort of the daring-but-doable entertainment in small towns.''
It's all a far cry from roots in San Francisco, where the act was hatched at a 1993 Bette Midler concert.
''We thought it would be really funny to dress up in drag as the Andrew Sisters and go see the show,'' says Keller, who expected hundreds of others to show up with the same idea. "We got there and we were the only drag queens -- other than Bette. So we were very conspicuous. We just started hamming it up.'' A promoter asked them if the four friends would do it again, but next time sing. Stars were born.
Seventeen years later, Keller, who plays Winnie, still dresses up and harmonizes with co-founder Ben Schatz, who plays Rachel. Jeff Manabat has performed as the group's third Trixie for six years now, while Spencer Brown has been the third Trampolina (neé Vaselina) for two. It's been a full-time affair for Keller for a decade. Asked if he ever tires of playing dress up, Keller concedes, ''When it's time to sit down and put on the makeup, I have a certain groan in my body. But the payoff of walking onstage is so big. CONTINUE READING
Huffington Post: The Kinsey Sicks Descend on Washington
George Heymont.San Francisco-based arts critic
Article with videos
"A cappella" singing has been around for several hundred years. What started in the late 15th century as a form of religious expression (without the use of musical instruments) has evolved and morphed into new styles of music. Founded in 1909, the Yale Whiffenpoofs claim to be the oldest collegiate a cappella group in the United States.
While a cappella groups now range from barbershop quartets to dop-wop groups and The Swingle Singers, only one a cappella group has remained steadfastly lewd, crude, and rapturously reviewed. Listen to the Kinsey Sicks as they explain what makes them special in this footage taken from a concert at San Francisco's Herbst Theatre:
Legendary for their succulence, sarcasm, and simpleminded attempts at style, few barbershop quartets have been as prolific or media savvy as the Kinsey Sicks. Now celebrating their 16th year, the Kinsey Sicks have two feature films available on DVD (a live performance of "I Wanna Be A Republican" and a documentary about their Las Vegas engagement entitled " Almost Infamous") and have produced seven CDs. CONTINUE READING
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