Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Bark of Millions takes its name from the god Atum (Ra) in the ancient Egyptian creation legend. Said to be both male and female, Atum has come to serve as a foundational figure in some circles of LGBTQ+ culture. And so, considering there are thousands of years of gender-queer history, is it too much to ask a mixed audience to attend to a four-hour-plus tribute-in-song to LGBTQ+ and LGBTQ-adjacent figures of past and present? With no intermission?
With their musical drag extravaganza Bark of Millions Taylor Mac and Matt Ray say without hesitation: No, it is not too much to ask.
Pride, Magnified
The musical palette is all the colors of the rainbow flag: glam rock, blues, folk, R&B, soul, hiphop and patter songs, cabaret, musical theater, a cappella. Fittingly for a vessel that holds multitudes, this is a very big show, with a big cast and band. Its 55 musical numbers range from ribald production numbers like “Shwe Shwe” (“I pray to all strands of queer…Mother dyes away / The violence”) to hilarious theatrical set pieces (“Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne”) to diva solos, all brightened by countless costumes and costume changes each more outlandish than the next.
The honorees begin with Atum and proceed through the likes of ancient figures like Sappho and the Amazonians, writers and thinkers like James Baldwin, Mary Shelley, Kate Bornstein, and Oscar Wilde; historical figures like Florence Nightingale and Bayard Rustin; and performers and icons like Greta Garbo and Margaret Cho. The comedian is given one of the most spectacular numbers.
But one need not know the stories behind the songs or be able to follow the lyrics (which is only sometimes possible anyway). This is a show that must be surrendered to. Many of the figures it evokes are obscure anyway. Mac, who centers the cast in spectacular fashion, and Ray, who leads the band from behind the keyboards, stepping out to sing and play guitar as well, wield a broad brush.
A Heart-stopping Work of Draggy Genius
In addition to the endless energy of the boisterous, multitalented cast and band and their fabulous, bonkers costumes, the show features superb vocal arrangements, inventive staging, effective lighting and sound, raucous humor, and a wide variety of excellent voices.
And it should be experienced in full, or as close to it as one can manage. The current iteration at BAM, with its 55 numbers (the show could get even bigger), offers no intermission, which seems a strange choice but was the right one. Audience members are encouraged to take breaks when they will, and believe me, we did. But with no storyline, people would likely be tempted to leave at a formal interval, thinking they’d got the gist, seen enough of these numbers, didn’t need more. However, as the hours pass the effect is cumulative, more like a close, tense sporting match than a traditional piece of theater. It’s an endurance test well worth taking.
People took breaks at all different times. I took mine about halfway through and missed two or three numbers. And at the very end, my physical patience wore out and I started zoning out. So be prepared. Bring a snack, or be prepared to buy one at the show. And see Bark of Millions while it’s at BAM, only through Feb. 10. Next time it comes around – or when it plays in your town – Atum only knows how long it will be!
